Game 20: Canadiens vs. Avalanche: Without MacKinnon And Makar

The Montreal Canadiens have had at least one point in their last 12 games, and one can wonder whether they’ll keep that streak alive against the Colorado Avalanche. The Avs haven't had a great season so far; they are currently third in the Central Division with 25 points, and both Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar left their last game on Thursday night with lower-body injuries. Neither will be playing tonight. 

Saturday night’s game will be the first of two between the two sides this season, with the second and last one scheduled for November 25 in Denver. Last season, each team won once by a big margin. The Avs won 7-2 in Denver, while the Habs won 7-3 in Montreal. Colorado has won six of the last 10 games, but the Habs have won four of the last six duels.

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Since the Canadiens had a day off yesterday, we only got news on Chris Kreider this morning, and he's going to be out for six to eight weeks following that play involving Michael Eyssimont on Thursday night. As a result, Florian Xhekaj will be back in the lineup and play alongside Jake Evans and Josh Anderson. 

Jacob Fowler has played the last three games, while Jakub Dobes hasn't been between the pipes for eight days; will that be enough to earn him the start? The Czech netminder has a 2-1-0 record against Colorado with a 3.57 goals-against average and an .875 save percentage. Meanwhile, Fowler has never faced them. After the morning skate, Martin St-Louis confirmed that Dobes would get the start.

At the other end of the ice, Scott Wedgewood was in net for Thursday night’s loss, and Mackenzie Blackwood has 15 starts so far this season and seems to have established himself as the number one choice in net. He has a 6-0-2 record against the Habs with a 2.41 GAA and a .922 SV. As for Wedgewood, he has a 0-2-0 record with a 5.79 GAA and a .761 SV. The Avs have confirmed that Blackwood will be in net. 

Up front, Nick Szuki has more than a point per game against the visitors with 13 in 11 games. Phillip Danault comes in second place with 10 points in 22 games, and three players are tied for third with seven points: Juraj Slafkovsky (in seven games), Alexandre Carrier (in 14 games), and Mike Matheson (in 15 games). While Cole Caufield doesn’t make the top three (five points in eight games), he is on a five-game points streak right now (4-2-6), and the Avs would do well to keep an eye on him. As for Mike Matheson, he will be a game-time decision. 

As for Colorado, Brock Nelson leads the way in points against the Habs with 32 in 34 games, followed by Nazem Kadri with 24 points in 44 games and Brent Burns with 21 points in 30 games. MacKinnon has 20 points in 21 games but may not be an issue, just like Makar, who has 11 points in as many games. It’s also worth mentioning that former Hab Artturi Lehkonen has seven points in as many games against the team that drafted him.

Kelly Sutherland and Beau Halkidis will be the referees, while Tommy Hughes and Matt MacPherson will be the linesmen. The game is set for 7:00 PM, and you can watch it on Sportsnet East in English and on TVA Sports in French. This will be the Canadiens' only home game this week, as they hit the road for a three-game road trip on Sunday afternoon.

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