Canadiens at Jets
Coming off a rare loss on their home ice, the Montreal Canadiens hit the road for a back-to-back set starting with a visit to the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday night. Montreal, which holds a comfortable lead atop the Atlantic Division, had a three-game winning streak halted in a 4-1 setback to the Washington Capitals on Monday night.
The injury-ravaged Canadiens own one of the league's best records at home, but they will carry a five-game road point streak (4-0-1) into Wednesday's matchup. Winnipeg has won three of four following a 2-0 win over Calgary behind a 28-save shutout from Connor Hellebuyck, who is amped up over the possibility of facing Montreal netminder Carey Price. “You always see all these highlight saves he makes so it’s going to be pretty exciting to finally see it in person. He’s a great goalie,” Hellebuyck said. The Jets and Canadiens have split four meetings over the past two seasons, with the home team prevailing on each occasion.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, RDS (Montreal), Sportsnet (Winnipeg)
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (25-10-6): Price, who has surrendered at least three goals in five of his last six starts, was tabbed to play in the All-Star Game along with defenseman Shea Weber. One notable omission for Montreal was team captain Max Pacioretty, who leads the team in goals (19) and points (34) and has been on a tear with 14 tallies in his last 17 games. "Maybe he flies under the radar but not in this room," teammate Mark Barberio said of Pacioretty's All-Star snub. "We know what he brings."
ABOUT THE JETS (20-20-3): Rookie sensation Patrik Laine will miss his second straight game due to a concussion sustained against Buffalo on Saturday, but he received some good news Tuesday when he was selected to play in the NHL All-Star Game. There is no timetable for the return of the No. 2 overall pick in 2016, who has 16 goals and 37 points in 42 games. “He’s such an exciting player to watch and it will be fun to have him in the three-on-three format," Jets coach Paul Maurice said. "Hopefully he can go."
OVERTIME
1. Montreal is 5-for-13 on the power play in the last three games while allowing opponents to convert on 4 of 8 in the same span.
2. Jets F Mark Scheifele has four goals and six points in seven games against Montreal.
3. Canadiens F Tomas Plekanec ended an eight-game goal drought versus Washington and has tallied 10 times in 35 games versus Winnipeg.