The Habs will be playing their most important game of the year in the Big Apple. The players know that there is no magic formula to help them survive. They will have to keep working - for a full 60 minutes.
"I think everybody knows what needs to be done. There's no secret," Carey Price attested after Thursday's defeat at home.
The Canadiens will have to do without Andrew Shaw in Game 6 after he suffered an upper-body injury. In Shaw's absence, Brian Flynn draws into the lineup, centering a line with Alex Galchenyuk and Paul Byron.
Michael McCarron and Brandon Davidson will also suit up in place of Torrey Mitchell and Nathan Beaulieu.
Price and Henrik Lundqvist again found themselves in a goalies' duel in Game 5, facing 36 shots each on the night. After Thursday night's performance, the puckstoppers both boast a goals-against average of 1.82 and are closely matched in the save percentage department, with Lundqvist's at .944 to Price's .936.
The Habs came very close to being on the opposite side of the equation, losing in extra time to the Blueshirts by a score of 3-2. Mika Zibanejad scored the deciding marker at 14:22 of the first overtime to give his team the win. Jesper Fast and Brady Skjei also scored for the visiting side, while Artturi Lehkonen and Brendan Gallagher replied for Montreal.
The Habs will try to avoid closing up their season in New York for the second time in three years. In 2014, Alain Vigneault's troops eliminated Montreal in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference final.
Please note that puck drop is scheduled for 8 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on both CBC and TVA Sports.