The Montreal Canadiens will finish their home stand on Saturday night with their first game of the season against the Winnipeg Jets.
GAME DAY PREVIEW | Winnipeg Jets vs Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens (4-2-1) vs Winnipeg Jets (4-3-0)Game Preview
Roster News
Tonight's game at the Bell Centre will be the final one at home before the Canadiens head west on Sunday to begin a road trip in Las Vegas.
Kaiden Guhle returns to the lineup tonight after a brief absence due to injury, leaving Gustav Lindstrom as a healthy scratch.
Forward Joel Armia will make his Montreal Canadiens season debut tonight, finally drawing into the lineup for the first time since his recall from the Laval Rocket. Jesse Ylonen will be scratched to make room for the veteran.
Last Game
After a rough opening period on Thursday night, the Canadiens clawed back into their game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Cole Caufield potted the game-winning goal in overtime.
Last game: MTL 4 CBJ 3 (OT)
For a complete game recap: Canadiens Caufield is the Hero Again | RECAP: CBJ @ MTL
Players to Watch
- Jake Allen - Allen has notably been the steadier netminder for the Canadiens early in the season. With Laurent Brossoit getting the start for Winnipeg, Allen has a chance to improve his case to remain Montreal's starter.
- Joel Armia - After handling his demotion to the AHL like a professional to start the season, Armia finally has an opportunity to perform on NHL ice. He'll be looking to make a tangible impact.
- Nick Suzuki - With the pressure to pot his first goal of the season off his back, look for Suzuki to play a bit more freely and, hopefully, get on the scoresheet again.
Matchup for Game 8, Home Game 6
Bell Center, Montreal, QC | October 28, 7:00 PM ET | TV: TVAS, CITY
Pre-Game
Kaiden Guhle
- "I'm happy to be back...injury's just been kind of all over me the past couple of years, so anytime you're back on the ice ready to play with the guys, it's exciting. Good day, Saturday night at the Bell Centre, I mean, can't draw it up much better than that."
Martin St. Louis on the Winnipeg Jets
- "They have a really good rush game, they'll make you pay inside the dots...for us, we've gotta just be disciplined in our structure tonight and how we wanna play."
Projected Canadiens Lineup (subject to change)
Forwards
22 Cole Caufield 14 Nick Suzuki 17 Josh Anderson
49 Rafael Harvey-Pinard 15 Alex Newhook 20 Juraj Slafkovsky
70 Tanner Pearson 91 Sean Monahan 11 Brendan Gallagher
55 Michael Pezzetta 71 Jake Evans 40 Joel Armia
Defensemen
8 Mike Matheson 52 Justin Barron
21 Kaiden Guhle 26 Johnathan Kovacevic
72 Arber Xhekaj 54 Jordan Harris
Goaltenders
Starter: 34 Jake Allen
Alternate: 35 Sam Montembeault
Out of the lineup
Scratches: Gustav Lindstrom, Jesse Ylonen, Cayden Primeau
Injuries: Christian Dvorak (knee), Carey Price (knee), Chris Wideman (back), Kirby Dach (knee), David Savard (upper body)
Visiting Bench
The Jets (4-3-0) continue their road trip after defeating the Detroit Red Wings 4-1 on Thursday night, and are currently on a three-game winning streak. Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, and Josh Morrissey all lead the team with seven points, but it's Connor who's got the most goals this season, with five.
From the line combinations at morning skate, it looks like tonight could be a battle between the Barron brothers. Canadiens defenseman Justin Barron should square off against his older brother, Morgan, who plays at the forward position. They each have two goals this season, although Morgan has also tallied one assist.
Laurent Brossoit (4.04 GAA/.846 SV%) will be in goal for Winnipeg, just his second start of the season.
Game Expectations
Can the Canadiens figure out how to stay out of the penalty box tonight? The Habs need to use Thursday night's overtime victory to nab another win tonight. Positive momentum like that will help propel them into a road trip that starts with a matchup against a very good Vegas Golden Knights team. With Brossoit in goal, Montreal should make the most of their opportunity and get on the board early.
Be sure to bookmark THN.com/Montreal for year-round coverage of the Montreal Canadiens, Laval Rocket, and Habs prospects playing in leagues around the world.
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