Canadiens at Maple Leafs
The Montreal Canadiens will be down another key forward when they visit the red-hot Toronto Maple Leafs for an Atlantic Division showdown on Saturday. Right wing Brendan Gallagher is expected to miss about eight weeks with a broken left hand sustained in Montreal’s 4-3 overtime win at Dallas on Wednesday, but Alex Galchenyuk and David Desharnais are skating with the team and could return soon.
Defenseman Andrei Markov (groin) also is closing in on a return while forwards Andrew Shaw and Paul Byron are out indefinitely with concussions for the Canadiens, who have earned points in five straight overall (3-0-2) and have beaten Toronto 12 consecutive times. The young Maple Leafs are surging with points in seven straight (6-0-1) and 10 of their last 11 games (7-1-3) while moving into a playoff position in the Eastern Conference. Toronto scored four goals in the first period Friday and held on for a 4-2 victory at New Jersey as rookie Auston Matthews netted his 21st tally of the season. Matthews has managed just one assist in two encounters with Montreal this season but rides an eight-game point streak (seven goals, five assists) into this contest.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CBC, TVA
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (24-9-6): Montreal will rely even more on Carey Price, who owns a 19-5-4 record with a 2.02 goals-against average and .930 save percentage after being rested Wednesday. Montreal recalled forwards Sven Andrighetto and former first-round pick Nikita Scherbak, who is expected to make his NHL debut after scoring 10 goals in 27 games in the American Hockey League this season. Captain Max Pacioretty leads the team with 33 points and has scored 13 goals in his last 15 contests while Alexander Radulov is riding a five-game point streak (three goals, three assists).
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (18-12-8): Toronto recorded a season-high three power-play goals in Friday’s victory and is a robust 10-for-25 with the man advantage over the last seven contests while killing off 27-of-28 penalties in the same strech. The 19-year-old Matthews leads the team with 35 points and James van Riemsdyk registered a pair of assists Friday to move into second with 30. Nazem Kadri has scored three goals in his last four games, starting with the overtime winner at Tampa Bay, and Tyler Bozak has netted a pair of tallies and set up two others in his last four contests.
OVERTIME
1. Montreal D Shea Weber has warmed up again with four points in his last three games and is third on the team with 24 overall.
2. Toronto G Frederik Andersen, who recorded his 17th win on Friday, is 1-2-0 while turning aside 79-of-84 shots in his last three games.
3. The Canadiens have won both meetings this season by a 2-1 score in Montreal with Price in net.