The undefeated (6-0) Montreal Canadiens will face the St Louis Blues tonight at the Bell Centre in what could be the Canadiens stiffest competition to date this young season. The Blues are 1st in the Western Conference and Central Division, sporting a 5-1 record and coming in on a four game win streak. There is no question that the Canadiens and Blues are the hottest teams in the NHL right now. Tonight’s game be another barometer for the Canadiens - are they for real and can they keep playing this demanding style of play?
It is exciting for fans that 2 of the NHL’s 3 stars from last week are facing off tonight. Carey Price was named the NHL’s 1st star as he posted a perfect 3-0 record with a shutout against the New York Rangers, a save percentage of .963 and an even 1.00 GAA. Price has silenced any of the critics who doubted that he could start the season as well as he finished last year. In fact, some might say that Price looks better than ever - a scary thought for the rest of the NHL. The 3rd star of the week, St. Louis’ Vladimir Tarasenko is electrifying to watch and tied for the NHL lead in points. His line with Alex Steen and Jori Lehtera have been dominant. I imagine that Therrien will go head to head with power and have Tomas Plekanec, Max Pacioretty and Brendan Gallagher matched up against the Tarasenko line for the better part of the game.
On the Blues side, they are missing the injured Paul Stastny and Kevin Shattenkirk tonight. Here is what their lineup should look like:
Here is your @StLouisBlues am skate lineup for tonight's matchup with #Habs. Allen starts. #HabsOn690 #stlblues pic.twitter.com/h95tiix0oU
— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) October 20, 2015As for the Canadiens, they held an optional skate today after an intense practice yesterday. Head Coach Michel Therrien already announced that there will be no lineup changes for tonight’s game. Eventually Greg Pateryn, Jarred Tinordi and Paul Byron will get into a game, but it was not going to happen tonight against a powerhouse team. Perhaps one or more will get an opportunity on the weekend as they play back to back against Buffalo and Toronto. There is a good chance that Mike Condon will get his 2nd NHL start this weekend, probably in Buffalo. Tonight though the Canadiens should have an extra edge as Jake Allen gets the start in goal. Allen has allowed 6 goals in his two starts so far this season and a save percentage of just .887. However, Allen played most of his QMJHL career with the now defunct Montreal Juniors and might have extra motivation to perform well at the Bell Centre.
In AHL news, the Canadiens affiliate St. John’s Ice Caps are also back in action and will play the Binghamton Senators tonight and tomorrow night at home on the Rock. They are coming off two convincing wins this past weekend against the Rochester Americans. The 2nd game featured not only Rookie Michael McCarron’s first professional goal, but an impressive hat trick no less. He is the prospect that I am personally most excited about as I feel he can have the biggest (literally and figuratively) impact on the Canadiens, especially come the playoffs.
Do we have a new Mr. Saturday night? Relive all of @MacAttackUSA93's goals from his hat trick performance. https://t.co/cgNA9qp4OU
— St. John's IceCaps (@IceCapsAHL) October 19, 20155 Questions heading into tonight’s game vs the Blues:
1) Both teams are on winning streaks (Habs 6-0, Blues 4 games), which team will lose tonight? Heart says Canadiens, mind says Blues.
2) Can the Canadiens continue to use their speed and stick to their game plan against the physical Blues?
3) Will the Canadiens powerplay be able to score in consecutive games for the first time this season?
4) The Canadiens have outshot their opponents in 4 of their 6 games. The Blues are averaging a league low of 25 shots allowed per game. Will the Canadiens stay aggressive and get 30+ shots on net against the Blues?
5) Which forward will score their first of the season first, Alex Semin or Devante Smith-Pelly? They are the only two forwards without a goal this season.
Puck drops at 7:30pm tonight! If you plan on watching the game on RDS, note that the Habs game will start on RDS2 due to the baseball game. If you are in the Canadiens region, the game will be broadcast on Montreal’s CITY TV.
Cheers & Enjoy the Game! Follow @Jenbcutler