NHL Preview: Boston Bruins (37-5-4) at Montreal Canadiens (20-24-3)

BUFFALO SABRES NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME

• The Bruins visit the Canadiens tonight in the 1st of 3 games between these teams this season and the 1st of 2 to be played at Bell Centre.
• They were the NHL’s 1st 30-win team this season and they are 37-5-4 overall and are 15-4-1 on the road … They are 21-3-2 vs. Eastern Conference opponents.
• The Bruins open a 5-game road stretch tonight in Montreal, continuing in Tampa Bay on 1/26, Florida on 1/28, Carolina on 1/29 and concluding on 2/1 at Toronto … They are currently in span of 7-of-8 games on the road, having played at NY Islanders on 1/18 (4-1 win), at NY Rangers on 1/19 (3-1 win), and vs San Jose on 1/22 (4-0 win).

RECENT GAMES:

• The Bruins have won their last 5 games with a 4-3 win vs Toronto on 1/14, 6-0 win vs Philadelphia on 1/16, 4-1 victory at NY Islanders at 1/18, 3-1 win at NY Rangers on 1/19 and 4-0 win vs San Jose on 1/22 … They are 16-1-3 in their last 20 games.
• They are 8-0-1 in their last 9 road games … It is their longest road point streak since an 11-0-2 record in 2017-18.
• The Bruins are 22-1-3 in their last 26 home games, including a 22-game home unbeaten at 19-0-3 and a 14-game home win streak, the longest from the start of a season in league history and longest point streak from a season’s start in Boston annals … It was also their fourth longest home point streak overall in team history.
• Boston 4 at NY Islanders 1 … The Bruins yielded the 1st goal but had goals from Charlie McAvoy (1-1=2 totals), Derek Forbort, Brad Marchand and Trent Frederic, along with Charlie Coyle’s 2A … Linus Ullmark earned his 100th career win … SOG: Bos 24, NYI 27… PP: 1/4 … PK: 0/6
• Boston 3 at NY Rangers 1 … Pavel Zacha, Patrice Bergeron and Connor Clifton scored and David Krejci and Brad Marchand had 2A each to pace the team … Jeremy Swayman extended his point streak to 6-0-2 in his last 8 starts … SOG: Bos 27, NYR 32 … PP: .0/4 … PK: 0/3
• Boston 4 vs San Jose 0 … Hampus Lindholm, Charlie McAvoy and David Pastrnak had 1-1=2 totals each and Nick Foligno also scored … Linus Ullmark (W,17 Svs in 57:25) and Jeremy Swayman (1 Sv in 2:28) shared the shutout after Ullmark suffered an equipment issue … SOG: Bos 22, SJ 18 … PP: 1/4 … PK: 0/2

INJURIES (Total man-games lost in 2022-23: 50)

• Tomas Nosek: Non-displaced fracture in left foot
• Jake DeBrusk: Hand and lower body injuries, IR

BOSTON vs MONTREAL, LIFETIME SERIES

• The Bruins and Canadiens are meeting for the 755th time in their histories with the Bruins having a 288-353-103-10 record and Montreal having a 2,263-2,004 scoring edge in those games.
• The Bruins are 116-211-47-3 lifetime in Montreal with a the Canadiens having a 1,246-903 scoring advantage in those 22 contests.
• The Bruins have won their last 7 games vs. the Canadiens.

FUN FACTS

• The Bruins currently have 24 players on their roster (1 on IR) … 11 were drafted by the team, 4 were acquired in trade and 9 were signed as free agents.
• The Bruins play 16 matinees this season (local start time 4:00 pm or earlier) … They have a 5-0-1 record in afternoon games so far.
• The Bruins play 14 sets of back-to-back games this season … They are currently 6-0-1 in the 1st game of those sets and are 6-1-0 in the 2nd games so far.
• The Bruins are playing game 11 of their 14-game January schedule tonight (5 hm/9 rd, 8-1-0) … They will play 10 in February (3 hm/7 rd), 15 in March (9 hm/6 rd) and 7 in April (3 hm/4 rd) … They went 8-1-0 in October, 11- 2-0 in November, and 9-1-4 in December.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Jan. 5: Chris Wagner recalled from Providence/AHL.
Jan. 11: Chris Wagner returned to Providence/AHL.
Jan. 11: Joona Koppanen recalled from Providence/AHL.
Jan. 13: Joona Koppanen returned to Providence/AHL.
Jan. 14: Pavel Zacha signed to a four-year contract extension.
Jan. 17: Joona Koppanen recalled from Providence/AHL.
Jan. 23: Marc McLaughlin recalled from Providence/AHL.

MONTREAL CANADIENS NOTES:

À SURVEILLER CE SOIR / KEEP AN EYE ON…

• Les Canadiens et les Bruins s’affrontent ce soir pour la 755e fois en saison régulière. En incluant les matchs de séries, c’est le 931e affrontement entre ces deux équipes.
• The Canadiens and Bruins are facing each other for the 755th time in regular season. Including playoff contests, tonight’s the 931st match-up between the two teams.

DERNIER MATCH / LAST GAME – MTL 3 VS. TOR 2 (P/OT) (@ CENTRE BELL)
Buts MTL Goals – Anderson, Harvey-Pinard, Pitlick (P/OT)
Buts TOR Goals – Giordano, Jarnkrok
Gardien MTL Goalie – Montembeault (36-38)
Gardien TOR Goalie – Samsonov (28-31)
Avantage numérique MTL Powerplay – 0/4
Avantage numérique TOR Powerplay – 0/2
Meneurs MTL Leaders – TOI (Suzuki – 25:39) ; S (Anderson, Dach – 4) ; HT (Anderson, Pezzetta – 6) ; BS (Savard – 6)

MATCHS À VENIR / UPCOMING GAMES
26 JAN. VS. DETROIT 19 h / 7 p.m.
28 JAN. @ OTTAWA 19 h / 7 p.m.
31 JAN. VS. OTTAWA 19 h / 7 p.m.
11 FÉV. VS. NY ISLANDERS 12h30 / 12:30 p.m.
12 FÉV. VS. EDMONTON 12h30 / 12:30 p.m.

RAPPORT MÉDICAL DE LA SAISON / SEASON INJURY REPORT
Joueur
Player
Date Blessure
Injury
Matchs ratés
Games lost
Retour
Return
C. Price – Genou / Knee 47 –
P. Byron – Hanche / Hip 47 –
J. Evans – Bas du corps / Lower-body 4 –
B. Gallagher – Bas du corps / Lower-body 9 –
K. Guhle – Bas du corps / Lower-body 11 –
J. Slafkovsky – Bas du corps / Lower-body 3 –
S. Monahan – Bas du corps / Lower-body 22 –
C. Caufield – Épaule / Shoulder 1 –

RÉAFFECTATIONS, SIGNATURES ET TRANSACTIONS / ROSTER MOVES, SIGNINGS AND TRANSACTIONS
Les Canadiens ont rappelé l’attaquant Alex Belzile du Rocket de Laval (21/01)
The Canadiens have recalled forward Alex Belzile from the Laval Rocket (01/21)
Les Canadiens ont rappelé les attaquants Rafaël Harvey-Pinard et Rem Pitlick du Rocket de Laval (17/01)
The Canadiens have recalled forwards Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Rem Pitlick from the Laval Rocket (01/11)
Les Canadiens ont rappelé l’attaquant Jesse Ylönen du Rocket de Laval (11/01)
The Canadiens have recalled forward Jesse Ylönen from the Laval Rocket (01/11)
Les Canadiens ont cédé l’attaquant Anthony Richard au Rocket de Laval (10/01)
The Canadiens have loaned forward Anthony Richard to the Laval Rocket (01/10)
Les Canadiens ont rappelé le gardien Cayden Primeau du Rocket de Laval (09/01)
The Canadiens have recalled goaltender Cayden Primeau from the Laval Rocket (01/09)

STATISTIQUES D’ÉQUIPE / TEAM STATISTICS – AVANT LES MATCHS DU 23/01 – BEFORE GAMES ON 01/23
PTS (43 – 26e/26th)
V/W (20 – 24e/24th)
BP/GF (121 – 29e/29th)
BC/GA (171 – 28e/28th)
Tirs-PM/Shots-PG (28.0 – 30e/30th)
Tirs accordés-PM/Shots allowed-PG (34.0 – 28e/28th)
MÉ/Hits (903 – 28e/28th)
MP/PIM (613 – 1er/1st)
AN/PP (15.0% – 31e/31st)
DN/PK (74.0% – 26e/26th)

LES CANADIENS CONTRE CHAQUE DIVISION L’AN DERNIER / THE HABS VS. EVERY DIVISION LAST SEASON
Adversaire
Opponent
Fiche
Record
PTS Buts pour
Goals for
Buts contre
Goals against
Atlantique 9-14-3 21 84 89
Centrale 3-9-4 10 39 65
Métropolitaine 6-17-1 13 55 103
Pacifique 4-9-3 11 43 62
Total 22-49-11 55 221 319
*Inclut les buts en fusillade / Includes the shootout goals

LES CANADIENS CONTRE CHAQUE DIVISION CETTE SAISON / THE HABS VS. EVERY DIVISION THIS SEASON
Division Fiche
Record
PTS Buts pour
Goals for
Buts contre
Goals against
Atlantique 4-7-0 8 23 44
Centrale 7-5-2 16 44 45
Métropolitaine 5-6-0 10 28 41
Pacifique 4-6-1 9 30 41
Total 20-24-3 43 124 171
*Inclut les buts en fusillade / Includes the shootout goals

MARTIN ST-LOUIS EN CHIFFRES / MARTIN ST. LOUIS’ NUMBERS…
Matchs/Games : 84
Victoires/Wins : 34
Fiche : 34-43-7
Points de classement/Standing points : 75

CANADIENS VS. BOSTON
À vie / All-Time
CANADIENS vs. BOS 363-277-103-11 (754 PJ / GP)
Dom. / Home 214-110-47-6 (377 PJ / GP)
Étr. / Away 149-167-56-5 (377 PJ / GP)
Dern. Match / Last game:
D 5-3 L @ MTL (24/04/22)
S. Montembeault 4-41 | J. Swayman 3-26
BG / WG: C. McAvoy

10 DERNIERS MATCHS CONTRE BOSTON / LAST 10 GAMES VS. BOSTON:
24/04/22 – BOS 5 @ MTL 3
21/03/22 – BOS 3 @ MTL 2 (P/OT)
12/01/22 – MTL 1 @ BOS 5
14/11/21 – MTL 2 @ BOS 5
12/02/20 – MTL 1 @ BOS 4
01/12/19 – MTL 1 @ BOS 3
26/11/19 – BOS 8 @ MTL 1
05/11/19 – BOS 4 @ MTL 5
14/01/19 – MTL 3 @ BOS 2 (P/OT)
17/12/18 – BOS 4 @ MTL 0

CETTE SAISON CONTRE BOSTON / THIS SEASON VS. BOSTON
Match #1: 24/01/2023 @ MTL
Match #2: 23/03/2023 @ BOS
Match #3: 13/04/2023 @ MTL

MEILLEURS BUTEURS CONTRE BOSTON / LEADING GOAL SCORERS VS. TORONTO:
1) Mike Hoffman (8-7-15, 28 pj/gp)
2) Brendan Gallagher (8-16-24, 34 pj/gp)
3) Sean Monahan (4-6-10, 15 pj/gp)

MEILLEURS POINTEURS CONTRE BOSTON / LEADING SCORERS VS. BOSTON:
1) Brendan Gallagher (8-16-24, 34 pj/gp)
2) Mike Hoffman (8-7-15, 28 pj/gp)
3) Josh Anderson (3-8-11, 12 pj/gp)

MENEURS MINUTES DE PÉNALITÉ CONTRE BOSTON / MOST PENALTY MINUTES VS. BOSTON:
1) Mike Matheson (39, 25 pj/gp)
2) Brendan Gallagher (27, 34 pj/gp)
3) Chris Wideman (22, 12 pj/gp)