GAME DAY | Capitals – Canadiens: Preview, Prediction, Lines, Goalies, TV

By
Sam Gerber
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Game Preview by Sam Gerber
Last game : MTL 3  VAN 2  

A game that went back and forth was again highlighted by Carey Price. He made 36 saves and came up with several point blank stops that secured the win for the Habs. Tomas Tatar remained hot with a breakaway goal in the first, as did Andrew Shaw who continues to go to the dirty areas in front of the net. A bad penalty by Michael Del Zotto late in the third period gave the Habs a chance on the power-play. A shot by Jonathan Drouin found the net with Brendan Gallagher providing a screen.

For a complete game recap: Price Earns First Star Nod Again

Players to watch

  • Jesperi Kotkaniemi
    Kotkaniemi was held pointless and made a poor play that allowed the Canucks to tie it early in the game, but he had four shots on net and drew the penalty late that set-up the game winning goal. He’s only 18, and has 10 points through 20 games.
  • Brendan Gallagher
    Gallagher made the play on the game-winning goal on pure determination and effort. He knew he needed to get in front of the net and wasn’t going to let anyone stop him. Gallagher has been a little inconsistent recently so it was good to see him return to form.   
  • Jeff Petry
    Petry has started to play with emotion, giving everything he has. When he does, Petry is a different player who plays a much more determined and physical game. It will lead to some penalties but if Petry can play with a bit of an edge more often the Habs defense will be a lot harder to play against. 

Keys to Victory

  • Be disciplined
    The Habs continue to take penalties, some justified and some not. The referees have called a tight game all year throughout the league. Montreal needs to stay out of the box and not give teams that chance.
  • Compete on the power-play
    One goal doesn’t fix a power-play and for the Habs to have a shot at beating the Caps for a second time this season they need their power-play to be effective.
  • Be ready
    The first game at home after a long road trip always seems to be hard for the home team. The Habs have to be ready from the start. Teams don’t want to play from behind against the Capitals.
Matchup by All Habs staff
Bell Centre, Montreal, QC | November 19, 7:30 PM ET | TV: TSN2, RDS, NBCSWA

2018-19 statistics
CAPITALS CANADIENS
21 (17th) Points (rank) 25 (8th)
9-7-3 Record 11-6-3
4-4-1 Away/Home 6-3-1
5-4-1 Last 10 5-4-1
3.26 GF/G 3.20
3.26 GA/G 3.25
29.0 PP% 13.5
73.2 PK% 80.9
47.99  CF%  52.07
eSAT Analytics by Mathieu Chagnon
 
Projected forward lines, defense pairings and goaltenders
Forwards
Ovechkin – Eller – Wilson
Vrana – Backstrom – Burakovsky
Stephenson – Boyd – Smith-Pelly
Jaskin – Dowd – Connolly		 Tatar – Danault – Gallagher
Drouin – Domi – Shaw
Agostino – Kotkaniemi – Lehkonen
Deslauriers – Peca – Hudon
Defensemen
Orlov – Carlson
Kempny – Niskanen
Djoos – Bowey		 Benn – Petry
Schlemko – Juulsen
Reilly – Mete
Out of the lineup
Scratched: Siegenthaler
Injured: Kuznetsov, Orpik, Oshie
 Scratched: Alzner, Ouellet
Injured: Weber, Armia, Byron, Scherbak
Goalies
Pheonix Copley Carey Price
Record: 4-2-1
GAA: – 2.64
Sv%: – .908
SO: 0
Alternate: Braden Holtby		 Record: 7-4-3
GAA: – 2.92
Sv%: – .904
SO: 1
Alternate: Antti Niemi
 What to Expect by Sam Gerber
The Canadiens return home after a Western Canadian road trip where they got four of six points. The Habs have to be happy with the outcome after it was off to a rocky start. Carey Price was great in his last two games with a .954 save percentage. It’s not going to a nice return to the Bell Centre as the Habs host the defending Stanley Cup Champions who have something to prove. The Canadiens beat the Capitals 6-4 in Washington earlier this season that will be remembered by the Caps. It’s important that the Habs don’t leave Carey Price hung-out to dry as they have done so often this season. The next five games will be a big test for Montreal.   
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