PREVIEW: Back from road trip, Red Wings host Canadiens on Thursday

DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings will try to secure two big points when they kick off their four-game homestand with an Atlantic Division battle against the Montreal Canadiens at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday night.

“We take pride in taking care of our home ice, especially against guys in our division and around us [in the Eastern Conference standings],” Lucas Raymond said. “It’s a big stretch for us obviously, and I think everyone is looking forward to it.”

Puck drop for the third battle of the season between Detroit (21-21-5; 47 points) and Montreal (24-19-4; 52 points) is set for 7 p.m., with broadcast coverage on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit).

The Red Wings trail the season series 0-2-0 after getting swept in a back-to-back set last month, first dropping a 4-3 decision at Little Caesars Arena on Dec. 20 then a 5-1 score at Bell Centre on Dec. 21.

“I can speak for myself, it feels like almost a new season since then,” Alex DeBrincat said. “We know what we’re capable of. We’ve had some tweaks to different things, and it’s been working well. Obviously, the last three games haven’t been as good, but I think it’s more execution based.”

Detroit wants to pull the positives and learn from the negatives of its recent 1-2-1 road trip, which concluded with a 3-2 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday.

“I felt like our defense was good in a lot of stretches,” Raymond said about the Red Wings’ latest road swing. “Obviously, not scoring as much as we would like to. It’s tough to win games when you score one goal, but that’s the reality of it. At the same time, we know we can score and what to do to be successful.”

But the Red Wings will have to execute their game plan on Thursday without Patrick Kane, who is day-to-day with an upper-body injury and won’t play against the Canadiens.

“[Kane’s injury] started in Dallas,” Detroit head coach Todd McLellan confirmed. “Continued on in Philly, and day-to-day for now. We’ll see how he is tomorrow morning.”

The Canadiens, Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins entered Thursday all tied at 52 points apiece in the standings. Montreal specifically is coming off its second straight win after rallying from a two-goal deficit to take down the Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-2, on Tuesday.

Captain Nick Suzuki has tallied the most points (47) for the Canadiens this season, while Cole Caufield has scored the most goals (24) and rookie Lane Hutson has dished out the most assists (36).

Over his last five starts, netminder Sam Montembeault has posted a 3-1-1 record, 3.17 goals-against average and .893 save percentage.

“I think [Montreal head coach Martin St. Louis] has done an outstandings job,” McLellan said. “They have a ton of confidence right now. Their key guys are playing well and hitting on all cylinders. They’re confident. I think when Patrik Laine came back in it gave them a boost both offensively and probably morale-wise, and they’ve capitalized on it."