Senators at Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators are far apart in the Eastern Conference standings, but it would be hard to tell which team is better by looking at their past two meetings. The Senators look to defeat the Canadiens for the third straight time Thursday night as the Atlantic Division rivals square off at the Bell Centre. Montreal is among the conference leaders but has a pair of convincing losses on its ledger courtesy of the Senators, who look to keep their playoff hopes alive.
The Senators only find themselves in position to challenge Boston for the second wild-card spot in the East thanks to a stretch of points in nine straight games (8-0-1), a streak that came to an end with a 3-1 loss to the Bruins on Tuesday night. Netminder Craig Anderson has looked mostly ordinary in two games back in the lineup, which could mean an appearance from Andrew Hammond. The Canadiens come in having dropped four of five, including a 1-0 decision to Tampa Bay on Tuesday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, SNE (Ottawa), RDS (Montreal), TSN5
ABOUT THE SENATORS (30-24-11): The question of which netminder should get the start has taken over Ottawa media, with the veteran Anderson choosing instead to focus on the Senators' push to the postseason. "We've still got quite a few games left," he told the Ottawa Sun. "We just need to continue to improve and win games. I know we've got (Boston) on our schedule again next week. It's just imperative for us to keep going forward and keep getting points." Hammond has done a terrific job of that, registering seven wins and a shootout loss in eight starts this season.
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (42-18-7): In addition to emerging as a legitimate Hart Trophy candidate with the best season of his career, Montreal goaltender Carey Price is closing in on some significant franchise milestones. The 27-year-old is just five victories shy of equaling the team record shared by Jacques Plante and Ken Dryden, and he's two shutouts away from tying Bill Durnan for fourth on the Canadiens' all-time list. Price was sensational against the Lightning, stopping the first 35 shots he faced before yielding the overtime winner to Tyler Johnson.
OVERTIME
1. The home team has prevailed in four of the last five meetings.
2. Ottawa has won six of its previous seven games against division foes.
3. Price is 17-6-2 with a 2.30 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage for his career against the Senators.
PREDICTION: Canadiens 3, Senators 1