COL@MTL: What you need to know
The Habs close out their two-game homestand with a visit from the Avs on Thursday
VAN@MTL: Poehling grabs equalizer
The Canadiens held a full practice on Tuesday, the day after the game, but opted for an off-ice session at the Bell Sports Complex on Wednesday in preparation for the Avalanche. On top of that workout, 10 players also hit the ice in Brossard with assistant coaches Luke Richardson and Alex Burrows and goaltending coach Eric Raymond on Wednesday.
Defenseman Joel Edmundson, who has been taking strides in his recovery and is hopeful of making his 2021-22 debut soon, did not take part in the practice again after taking a therapy day on Tuesday.
Winger Brendan Gallagher and defenseman Sami Niku won't face the Avalanche since
both players have entered the NHL's COVID-19 protocol
.
There was some good news on Thursday morning. During his media availability, head coach Dominique Ducharme indicated that forward Mathieu Perreault and defensemen Brett Kulak and Chris Wideman will return to the lineup against Colorado.
Expect Allen to get the start against the Avs. The Fredericton native is the only NHL netminder to face 40 shots in a game three times this season - and he's won two of those contests. Allen may have been on the losing side against Vancouver on Monday, but he was also between the pipes to help the Habs beat the Pens 6-3 on Saturday. He set a new career high with 47 saves in that matchup.
Meanwhile, Colorado will be playing a second game in as many nights after losing 8-3 to the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Wednesday.
Last night's loss was just the Avs' second in their last nine games. Still, Colorado is currently on the outside of the playoff picture looking in, with an 11-7-1 record through 19 games, although the Avs currently have three games in hand on the Pacific Division-leading Minnesota Wild, who were idle on Wednesday but are back in action tonight.
Wednesday's game marked the return of star forward Nathan MacKinnon, who had been on the shelf for the previous eight games with a lower-body injury. In his absence, center Nazem Kadri has been leading the charge for Colorado with 29 points (9G, 20A) in 19 games, which places him in the top-5 in the NHL in scoring. Captain Gabriel Landeskog (6G+15A=21P) is second in team scoring, while Cale Makar's nine goals and 20 points make him one of the NHL's leaders in both categories among defensemen.
Landeskog extended his points streak to five games with an assist against Toronto. He has seven points - all assists - in that span.
Darcy Kuemper has carried the bulk of the load between the pipes for the Avs this season, but he was a late scratch vs. Toronto with an upper-body injury and Jonas Johansson was in net for Colorado's loss at Scotiabank Arena. We'll have to wait for a game-day update from coach Jared Bednar to find out who will be in goal on Thursday at the Bell Centre.
Forwards JT Compher (upper body) and Stefan Matteau, defenseman Ryan Murray, and goalie Pavel Francouz (all lower-body) are all on the shelf right now for Colorado.
This is the first of two meetings between the two teams this season, with the second dance set for January 22 in Denver. It'll also be the first time the two teams face each other since December 5, 2019, when the Avs bested the Habs 3-2 in Cayden Primeau's NHL debut.
The Canadiens are holding their annual Food Drive on Thursday. Fans wishing to donate non-perishable food items or money can do so from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Canadiens Plaza near the entrance of the Cour Rio Tinto outside the Bell Centre.
Click here
for more info.
Broadcast information
Game time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET.
Catch all the action on TSN2 or RDS, or listen in on TSN 690 or 98,5 fm. For tickets to the game,
click here
.
