Canadiens at Bruins
THE STORY: The Montreal Canadiens will visit the Boston Bruins on Monday after both teams made loud statements Saturday – with each one befitting squads veering in opposite directions. Entering the weekend with a league-low five wins at home, the Canadiens pulled the plug on the Jacques Martin era, firing the third-year coach and naming assistant Randy Cunneyworth as the interim replacement for the remainder of the season. “We obviously have to figure out ways to get more out of our individual players," Cunneyworth said. "It’s a responsibility of the coaching staff, but it’s also a responsibility of the players themselves.” Cunneyworth's debut continued a pattern of frustration for Montreal, which watched New Jersey score the final three goals in a 5-3 home defeat. The reigning Stanley Cup champion Bruins have no such issues, and they drove home that point by going into Philadelphia and laying a 6-0 beating on the Flyers, snapping their seven-game winning streak.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, RDS, NESN
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (13-13-7): Montreal kicks off a six-game road trip, but it is 8-6-1 away from home as opposed to a woeful 5-7-6 at the Bell Centre. Canadiens goaltender Carey Price has allowed 12 goals in his last three, but he is 15-5-1 lifetime against Boston and has yielded four goals while going 2-1 against the Bruins this season. Defenseman Tomas Kaberle has five points in four games since joining Montreal and nine points in a six-game streak.
ABOUT THE BRUINS (21-9-1): Boston is riding a four-game winning streak and is 18-2-1 since back-to-back losses to the Canadiens at the end of October. The Bruins' offense is cranking once again, pumping in 19 goals in the past four games. Defenseman Zdeno Chara returned from a two-game absence with a goal and assist and Rich Peverley added three assists to lift Boston to its league-best 21st win. Tim Thomas notched his fourth shutout of the season – all on the road.
OVERTIME:
1. Boston's Milan Lucic will have a phone hearing Monday morning with NHL disciplinary chief Brendan Shanahan for a hit on Philadelphia's Zac Rinaldo. On Sunday, Shanahan absolved Montreal's Erik Cole of blame for a hit to the head of New Jersey's Adam Larsson.
2. The Canadiens and Bruins rank 2-3 in penalty-killing success. Boston is the only team in the league that has yet to allow a shorthanded goal.