COL@MTL: Five things you need to know

MONTREAL - Here are five things you need to know ahead of Thursday night's matchup against the Colorado Avalanche at the Bell Centre.

1. Tuesday night's victory over the New York Islanders did the Canadiens some serious good. Claude Julien's contingent snapped an eight-game winless streak with a 4-2 win on home turf. The team also hosted a Captains' Reunion to mark the franchise's 110th anniversary. Phillip Danault snapped an eight-game goal drought, while Jeff Petry snapped a lengthy goal drought of his own - 21 games. For his part, assistant captain Brendan Gallagher scored his team-leading 11th goal of the season. Captain Shea Weber scored an empty-netter. Meanwhile, Carey Price made 21 saves on 23 shots to help the squad secure their first triumph since November 15.

2.Weber was certainly extra motivated with former capatains aplenty on hand. He celebrated the occasion by adding two points to his resume and was named the game's first star. The 34-year-old blueliner has three goals and six points in his last six games. He ranks second on the team with 23 points (9g, 14a) in 28 games. Following Thursday's morning skate, Julien confirmed that goaltender Cayden Primeau would make his NHL debut against the Avalanche. Defenseman Otto Leskinen will also be playing his first NHL game. Leskinen was recalled from the AHL's Laval Rocket on Wednesday afternoon.

3. Defenseman Ben Chiarot has been logging some big minutes of late. On Tuesday night, he set a new career-high in ice time for the third consecutive game. The 28-year-old Hamilton, ON native was utilized for 27:11 versus Philadelphia, 29:26 versus Boston, and 30:47 versus New York. He also logged a shift of just under four minutes in the latter stages of the contest. In addition to being solid defensively, the former fourth-round selection has three goals and 10 points in 28 games this season.
4.The Avalanche were in action on Wednesday night against the Maple Leafs in Toronto. Jared Bednar's squad picked up a 3-1 win over the Maple Leafs. Colorado has won four straight games. Forward Nathan MacKinnon leads the Avalanche with 18 goals, 26 assists and 44 points. Rookie defenseman Cale Makar ranks second on the club with 27 points (8g, 19a) thus far this season.
5.Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. You can watch the game on TSN2 and RDS, and listen to all the action on TSN Radio 690 and 98,5 fm. To purchase tickets,
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. Following the game, the Canadiens will travel to New York where they'll play the Rangers on Friday night at Madison Square Garden.
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