The Habs are coming off a pair of home losses to their Alberta-based foes, the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers, having previously suffered a 4-3 defeat at the hands of the Saint Louis Blues last Tuesday.
Their last win was an explosive 10-1 rout of the Detroit Red Wings in Montreal back on December 2.
After taking a therapy day on Tuesday, defenseman Shea Weber was back on the ice with his teammates in Brossard on Wednesday and skated on a pairing with Jordie Benn. Weber leads all Habs blue-liners with 16 points (6G, 10A) in 24 games this season.
Head coach Claude Julien did not announce his starter against the Devils, but expect to see Carey Price between the pipes. He has played 22 career games against New Jersey, compiling an 11-10-0-1 record, a 2.37 goals-against average, a .913 save percentage and one shutout against them.
Thursday's contest is the first meeting between the two teams this season. Last year, the Canadiens swept the season series against the Devils, outscoring them 12-6 in three matchups.
The Devils are a different team this year, however. They had a strong start coming out of the gate, winning six of their first seven games, and currently sit in third place in the Metropolitan division with 38 points.
Taylor Hall, now in his second year in New Jersey, is producing at a point-per-game clip and leads the Devils with 31 points (11G, 20A) in 30 games, but did not make the trip to Montreal due to a knee injury. Marcus Johansson and Kyle Palmieri are also slated to miss the dance against the Habs, although Palmieri traveled with the team.
Two recent Devils draft picks, Jesper Bratt (sixth-round in 2016) and Nico Hischier (first overall pick in 2017), currently join defenseman Will Butcher in a three-way tie for second place in team scoring with 20 points.
Goaltender Cory Schneider has played 22 games for the Devils this season. Lifetime against the Canadiens, he has a 1-2-0-3 record to go along with a 2.88 goals-against average and .908 save percentage. Devils bench boss John Hynes confirmed on Wednesday that Schneider would get the start in Montreal.
Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The game will be televised on TSN2 and RDS, and will be on the radio on TSN 690 and 98,5 fm.
