MTL@ANA: What you need to know

ANAHEIM - The Canadiens are in the Golden State for a trio of games this week, starting with a tilt with the Ducks at Honda Center on Wednesday. 

Here’s what you need to know ahead of tonight’s matchup: 

1. Montreal’s five-game road swing began on a bad note after head coach Martin St-Louis' squad dropped a 5-2 decision to the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on Saturday. Juraj Slafkovsky, who finished the night with a goal and an assist, and Johnathan Kovacevic were the lone scorers for the visitors. Jake Allen stopped 39 shots.
The Canadiens have been winless in their last four outings.

2. The team held an intense practice in Anaheim on Tuesday. Prior to the on-ice session, the team announced that Jordan Harris and Rafaël Harvey-Pinard were sidelined with lower-body injuries. The former is out indefinitely and has been placed on the injured reserve list, while the latter will miss six to eight weeks. Following practice, the Canadiens recalled defenseman Mattias Norlinder from the Laval Rocket.

3. The Habs will hold a morning skate at 11:30 a.m. PST on Wednesday. Any changes to the lineup will be known during head coach St-Louis' pregame press conference. Fans can tune in on the Canadiens’ official YouTube, Facebook, and X accounts at @CanadiensMTL. Sean Monahan should play the 700th game of his career, in his 11th NHL season, while Johnathan Kovacevic should play in his 100th NHL game.

4. While the Canadiens will be looking to snap their losing streak, their opponents will attempt to do the same after suffering a 3-1 defeat to the St. Louis Blues on home ice, resulting in their third loss in a row. Anaheim is in the midst of a four-game homestand and sits fifth in the Pacific Division with 18 points. Before suffering a lower-body injury, star forward Trevor Zegras struggled to find his groove this season, recording only a goal and two points so far this season. Head coach Greg Cronin has found offense elsewhere thanks to Frank Vatrano (17 points), Mason McTavish (17 points), Ryan Strome (14 points), Troy Terry (12 points) and Cam Fowler (10 points). Leo Carlsson, the second-overall pick in last year’s draft, has also enjoyed success in his rookie season with eight points (six goals, two assists) in 12 games. During the offseason, Anaheim bolstered their defense by adding physicality to their blue line with the additions of Radko Gudas and Ilya Lyubushkin. Goaltenders John Gibson and Lukas Dostal have been sharing the crease, with the former earning 11 starts to the latter’s seven.


5. Puck drop is scheduled for 10:00 p.m. ET. Fans can watch the game on TSN2, BSW and RDS, or tune in on the radio on TSN 690 or 98,5 fm.