WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE BELL CENTRE
Enjoy Molson FANatic Saturdays programming as of 4:30 p.m.! Fans can kick off festivities at a pregame party at Les Trois Monkeys on Peel St., located a few steps away from the Bell Centre. By participating in the pregame Trivia at Les Trois Monkeys, one winner will get to participate in Molson Lucky Shots to shoot three pucks from the ice at intermission for various prizes.
Monster Energy’s guest, DJ Trapment, will also be spinning tunes in bowl for warmups. Fans can catch his set on Twitch for a chance to win a prize.
TEAM COMPARISONS
The Canadiens have extended their point streak to six games (5-0-1) following two road wins over the Utah Hockey Club (5-3) and Dallas Stars (3-1) on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. Martin St-Louis' squad continues to impress with an 11-2-1 record over the past 14 games. With 48 points each, the Habs and Ottawa Senators are one point out from the last Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. Both teams have identical records (22-18-4 in 44 GP), but Ottawa holds the edge in regulation wins with 17 against Montreal’s 16. Following Saturday’s game, the Canadiens will host the New York Rangers at the Bell Centre on Sunday for the second game of a back-to-back this weekend.
Sitting atop the Atlantic Division, the Maple Leafs snapped a three-game slide with a 4-3 overtime win over former head coach Sheldon Keefe and his Devils on Thursday. Both teams are tied for second in the Eastern Conference, with Toronto holding a game in hand over New Jersey. Despite not being particularly dominant in some major NHL statistical categories (power play – 18th, penalty kill – 12th, goals scored per game – 12th, and goals allowed per game – 12th), the Leafs have still managed 58 points in 46 games and will look to solidify their high ranking in the East. Mitch Marner (62), William Nylander (47) and John Tavares (42) – who was placed on injured reserve on Thursday with a lower-body ailment – lead the team in points.
SEASON SERIES
Oct. 9 vs. TOR: 1-0 MTL
Nov. 9 @ TOR: 4-1 TOR
Jan. 18 vs. TOR:
Apr. 12 @ TOR:
PLAYERS TO WATCH FOR
MTL: Not to sound redundant but we’re going with Lane Hutson. The blue-liner has points in six straight games (1G, 9A) and could match his franchise record for longest point streak by a rookie defenseman if he gets on the scoresheet on Saturday. Reminder – Hutson already broke that record, last held by Chris Chelios, earlier this season with a seven-game point streak from November 27 to December 9. The 20-year-old rearguard continues to lead NHL rookies in the Calder Trophy race with 36 points (3G, 33A) in 44 games, four points ahead of Macklin Celebrini (32 points in 35 games) and Matvei Michkov (32 points in 44 games).
TOR: With two assists in Thursday’s win over the Devils, Marner became the fastest player in Maple Leafs history to record 700 points. The seasoned veteran is on pace to set career highs in points and assists as he currently leads the Leafs with 62 points (14G, 48A) in 46 games. The Canadiens will also need to shutdown Auston Matthews and William Nylander, who scored the Leafs’ last seven goals.
BY THE NUMBERS: LEAFS-HABS
Here’s how the Leafs and Habs match up by the numbers: