Penguins at Canadiens
THE STORY: Sidney Crosby has passed every test since returning to the lineup last week, recording seven points and even drawing a couple of roughing penalties. The next step is playing on back-to-back days. Crosby will be looking to pass that test when the Pittsburgh Penguins visit the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday. Crosby has shown no ill effects from the concussion symptoms that kept him out of the lineup for the second half of last season and the first 20 games of 2011-12. The 2007 Hart Trophy winner chipped in three assists in Friday’s 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators. Attempting to stop Crosby will be a Montreal team that ranks in the top third of the NHL in goals against but has surrendered three tallies in back-to-back games. That comes on the heels of an eight-game stretch in which the Canadiens allowed more than two goals in regulation only once.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CBC, RDS, NHL Network
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (13-6-4): Pittsburgh was a first-place team without Crosby in the lineup. With their star back, the Penguins have a legitimate claim as the best in the NHL. Crosby has not been afraid of contact three games into his return. He initiated an altercation in Friday’s game, elbowing Nick Foglino and trying to force him out of the play in the defensive zone. His return has opened things up for Evgeni Malkin, who has six points in Crosby’s three games.
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (10-10-3): Montreal slipped back to .500 on Friday with a 3-1 setback at Philadelphia. The offense has struggled to find any consistency this season and managed a total of one goal in the team's last two losses but eight in its last two wins. The one thing that has not changed is the Canadiens’ remarkable penalty kill, which has allowed one goal in November (45 of 46). They snuffed out four penalties on Friday, but the defense fell apart during one stretch, allowing all three goals during the last 6:49 of the second period.
OVERTIME:
1. Crosby has 26 points in 19 career games against the Canadiens.
2. Pittsburgh posted a 3-1 win over Montreal at home on Oct. 20.
3. Montreal center Scott Gomez missed Friday’s game with a lower-body injury.