TEAM COMPARISONS
Martin St-Louis’ Canadiens are no longer heating up; they’re hot. Consecutive road wins over the Panthers and Lightning—a feat the team hadn’t accomplished since 2017—have thrust Montreal back into the postseason conversation. Since December 17, the Habs have scored four or more goals in every game, pairing that goalapalooza with solid goaltending and steady defense. The result? A 5-1-0 record over their last six outings.
Vegas is cooking on high heat as the calendar year winds down. Riding a six-game win streak—the longest active run in the NHL—the Golden Knights have surged six points clear of the top spot in the Pacific Division and climbed to second in the overall standings. Over that stretch, the Knights have outscored their opponents 24-9, including a 3-0 shutout of the Flames on Sunday.
Like the Canadiens’ recent opponents, the Panthers and Lightning, the Golden Knights are a force to be reckon with on offense, scoring at the fourth-best rate in the league this season. Complimenting their firepower is one of the NHL’s deepest defensive corps, headlined by Noah Hanifin, Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore, who have limited their opponents to just nine goals in their last six games. With Montreal’s scoring surge of late, something’s got to give on Tuesday afternoon.
SEASON SERIES
Nov. 23 vs. VGK: 6-2 VGK
Dec. 31 @ VGK:
PLAYERS TO WATCH FOR
Tuesday’s matinee features a showdown between two of Team Canada’s goalies battling for the starting job at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off: Adin Hill and Samuel Montembeault.
Hill and Montembeault each have four wins in their last five starts, but the Habs netminders owns the statistical advantage with a .904 save percentage and 2.44 goals-against average, compared to Hill’s .901 and 2.60.
While they’re set to be teammates for Canada in about six weeks’ time, today, they meet as rivals.
BY THE NUMBERS: HABS-KNIGHTS
Here’s how the Canadiens and Golden Knights match up by the numbers:
