BUF@MTL: Five things you need to know

MONTREAL - Here are five things you need to know ahead of Saturday's game against the Buffalo Sabres at the Bell Centre.

1.The Canadiens put together an important and convincing win on Thursday night against the New York Islanders at the Bell Centre. Thanks to his first career power play goal, Joel Armia gave the Habs the lead in the first period and they never looked back. Jonathan Drouin also joined the party, finishing with a two-point night including a goal and snapping a nine-game pointless drought. Carey Price shone in the win, turning aside 28 pucks to earn his fourth shutout of the season. He now has 44 career shutouts and is just two away from tying Ken Dryden for third all-time in franchise history.

2. In Thursday's win, captain Shea Weber scored in consecutive games for the first time this season. With his 13th tally of the campaign, Weber reached the 30-point plateau, becoming the ninth Hab to do so in 2018-19. The last time Montreal had as many players reach the mark was in 2010-11. The other 30-plus-point players on the current roster are Max Domi (64), Drouin (52), Tomas Tatar (51), Brendan Gallagher (47), Phillip Danault (46), Jeff Petry (41), Andrew Shaw (38), and Jesperi Kotkaniemi (33).

3. After picking up that all-important win against the Islanders, the Canadiens are back in the playoff picture with 85 points in 74 games. The Habs will have the chance to create a bit of distance from the Blue Jackets for the final playoff spot, given that Columbus is idle on Saturday. Montreal is also just two points back from the Hurricanes, although Carolina holds a game in hand. The Canadiens and the Canes face each other on Sunday night in Raleigh. On Saturday morning, the Canadiens confirmed there would be no expected lineup changes for the Sabres game.

4.This is the fourth and final meeting of the season between the Canadiens and Sabres. Phil Housley's troops won the first three, with two of those wins coming in extra time. The Sabres are mired in a rough patch in which they have gone 2-7-1 in their last 10 games. Buffalo has been shut out three times during the stretch. Centerman Jack Eichel leads the Sabres with 73 points, while Jeff Skinner is first on the team with 37 goals.
5. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. You can catch all the action on City, Sportsnet East, and TVA Sports on television, and on TSN 690 and 98,5 fm on the radio. For tickets,
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