Canadiens at Bruins
Northeast Division supremacy once again will be on the line when the Montreal Canadiens visit TD Garden to face the Boston Bruins on Wednesday. The Original Six rivals have met twice in 2013 - with the winner staking claim to sole possession of first place following each contest. Boston scored a pair of third-period goals in its 2-1 victory at the Bell Centre on Feb. 6, but Montreal returned the favor with two tallies in the third en route to a 4-3 road triumph on March 3.
The Canadiens also had an opportunity to move into sole possession of first place in the division on Tuesday but were unable to score in their 1-0 loss to red-hot Pittsburgh. The setback, which gave Montreal consecutive losses for the first time in 2013, also snapped its five-game road winning streak. Boston salvaged a split with a 3-2 shootout win against fellow Original Six rival Toronto on Monday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, TSN, RDS
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (20-7-5): Carey Price has remained optimistic despite suffering a pair of hard-luck losses in his last two outings. "We've got to take the positive out of it," Price said after making 24 saves versus the Penguins. "If we keep playing the way we are, we're not going to lose that many games like that." Price turned aside 21 shots in the Canadiens' loss to Boston in February, falling to 15-8-3 against the hated rival.
ABOUT THE BRUINS (21-7-3): While Price has often put his best foot forward versus Boston, Tuukka Rask continues to struggle against Montreal. Rask fell to 2-7-1 in his career versus the Canadiens after yielding four goals in the loss earlier this month. Patrice Bergeron collected a goal and two assists in that contest after being held off the scoresheet in the first meeting. Bergeron scored the game-tying goal in the third period before converting in the shootout on Monday.
OVERTIME
1. Montreal C David Desharnais scored twice against Boston on March 3 but has just one goal and two assists in his last 10 outings.
2. The Bruins signed D Matt Bartkowski to a one-year deal worth $650,000 on Tuesday. Bartkowski has six penalty minutes in 11 career NHL games.
3. The teams conclude their season series in Montreal on April 6.