3 Things to Watch: Canadiens at Sabres, Game 1 of Eastern Conference 2nd Round

(3A) Montreal Canadiens at (1A) Buffalo Sabres 

Eastern Conference Second Round, Game 1

7 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC

BUFFALO -- The Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens know each other well as Atlantic Division rivals and facing each other four times during the regular season. 

They haven't met since Jan. 31, ending a stretch in which they played each other three times in 17 days. Each team won twice. Each scored 13 goals.

Not going to get closer than that.

Forget about it all, though. That was the message from Buffalo forward Tage Thompson prior to Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Second Round at KeyBank Center on Wednesday.

"We know they are a good team," Thompson said. "We know we have had some good battles during the regular season, but that season is over with. Each round is a new season, so we just have to get ready for Game 1 and go from there."

Game 1 will start a story that will play out across the next two weeks and determine which team goes to the conference final.

"We just talked about the fact that we're super excited to be able to get to this point but have to reach another level pretty quickly, too, and not be satisfied with just accomplishing that," Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson said. "I think our goals are higher than that."

Here are three things to watch in Game 1:

1. Battle level

The Canadiens won their first-round series Sunday against the Tampa Bay Lightning with a 2-1 victory in Game 7 at Tampa, where they stayed until arriving here Tuesday. They have only been on the ice once since the emotional series finale and did not hold a morning skate Wednesday. 

The Sabres have been idle since winning Game 6 at the Boston Bruins on May 1. They have practiced but have also spent some days off the ice.

Is there an advantage for one team or the other?

Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff says no. It will be about whichever team manages the puck the best and battles for possession the hardest when it is lost, something each proved adept at in the first round. 

"This time of year, it is all about the willingness to compete on pucks," Ruff said. "Any coach will talk about you have to win the battle on the wall, you have to win the battle off the wall, you have to win the battle to get it to the net. You got to be determined with your boxouts around the net to win that 50/50 battle. 

"They don't get here -- we don't get to where we are without it. It's the time of the year when you are the coach going through the game, you are looking at every battle. It's all about effort and desire." 

2. Dobson rounding into form

The Canadiens received a lift in Game 7 of the first round with the return of Noah Dobson from an upper-body injury. The defenseman made his debut this postseason Sunday and had an instant impact, recording four hits and two blocked shots in 18:37 of ice time.

Expect that to increase to closer to his regular season average (22:29) in Game 1 as he becomes more comfortable after the time off.

"It's huge," Montreal captain Nick Suzuki said. "He's been a huge part of our team for the whole season. I thought he had a heck of a game coming back, so it's great having him back in the lineup. He makes a lot of calm plays, moves the puck well and defends hard."

3. Will Carrick play?

Sabres forward Sam Carrick was recently all but ruled out of this series, still recovering from an upper-body injury he sustained on March 31. On Monday, Ruff said Carrick had made significant improvement. On Tuesday, he was on the ice for practice. Wednesday, he took part in an optional morning skate.  

Could Carrick play in Game 1? 

"We really haven't put a date on it," Ruff said. "Tonight could be a possibility."

If he can make it back, Carrick could provide a huge boost. 

He had six points (five goals, one assist) in 13 regular-season games of bottom-six duty after arriving in a trade from the New York Rangers on March 6. 

Carrick won 57.3 percent of face-offs after joining the Sabres, who don't win them often enough. He also features on the penalty kill.

Canadiens projected lineup

Cole Caufield -- Nick Suzuki -- Juraj Slafkovsky

Alex Newhook -- Jake Evans -- Ivan Demidov

Alexandre Texier -- Phillip Danault -- Josh Anderson

Zachary Bolduc -- Kirby Dach -- Joe Veleno

Mike Matheson -- Alexandre Carrier

Lane Hutson -- Noah Dobson

Kaiden Guhle -- Arber Xhekaj

Jakub Dobes

Jacob Fowler

Scratched: Brendan Gallagher, Jayden Struble, Oliver Kapanen, Samuel Montembeault

Injured: Patrik Laine (lower body)

Sabres projected lineup

Peyton Krebs -- Tage Thompson -- Alex Tuch

Jason Zucker -- Ryan McLeod -- Jack Quinn

Zach Benson -- Josh Norris -- Josh Doan

Jordan Greenway -- Tyson Kozak -- Beck Malenstyn

Rasmus Dahlin -- Mattias Samuelsson

Bowen Byram -- Owen Power

Logan Stanley -- Connor Timmins

Alex Lyon

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Scratched: Josh Dunne, Colten Ellis, Michael Kesselring, Tanner Pearson, Luke Schenn

Injured: Noah Ostlund (lower body), Sam Carrick (upper body), Jiri Kulich (blood clot), Justin Danforth (lower body)

Status report

Only the Canadiens' expected scratches skated in the morning, including Gallagher, a forward who played the previous three games, and Struble, a defenseman who played in all seven games of the first round. … Veleno could play for the first time this postseason. ... The Sabres held an optional morning skate. Carrick rejoined them at practice Tuesday for the first time since he was injured March 31 and skated on a line with the other projected scratches; Ruff said he "could be a possibility" for Game 1.

NHL.com staff writer Mike Zeisberger contributed to this report