Canadiens vs. Flames: Game thread and lines
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Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PSTIn the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)In the Flames region: SNWStreaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+, RDS, TSN+
The number-one thing that needed to be addressed by the Canadiens was the defence, and you could say, to some extent, they did that by holding the Pittsburgh Penguins to three goals on Saturday. However, Montreal was only able to score one goal of their own, and now the team that looked dangerous on offence in the opening couple of weeks has scored just six times during this three-game losing streak. Ending this run of losses will require the team to take care of business at both ends of the rink.
With that as the goal, Martin St-Louis has promoted his most consistent player, Jake Evans, to the second line to help Alex Newhook and Juraj Slafkovský find that same level. The play of the two wingers to end last season was one of the reasons for optimism for 2024-25, but so far they haven’t been close to last year’s form.
Evans’s promotion means more time as the top-line right-winger for Kirby Dach as he, too, desperately seeks consistent performances of his own. There are signs of him getting things turned around, then long periods when he struggles. At some point you have to think these top-six players will regress to more typical individual performances, and when they do that the team should look much better. For now, they just need to find a way to cobble together a full-game effort to find a foothold as they drop down the order in the Atlantic Division.
Scratched: Justin Barron, Michael PezzettaInjured: Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Patrik Laine
Calgary Flames projected lineup Left Wing Centre Right Wing Connor Zary Nazem Kadri Andrei Kuzmenko Blake Coleman Mikael Backlund Matt Coronato Jonathan Huberdeau Yegor Sharangovich Anthony Mantha Ryan Lomberg Justin Kirkland Martin Pospisil Left Defence Right Defence Kevin Bahl Rasmus Andersson Mackenzie Weegar Daniil Miromanov Tyson Barrie Brayden Pachal Starter Backup Dustin Wolf Dan Vladar
