Habs Debut for Tierney | PREVIEW: MTL @ PHI

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Sam Gerber
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GAME DAY PREVIEW | Montreal Canadiens vs Philadelphia Flyers: Preview, TV, Start Time, Statistical Match-up, Projected Lines, Starting Goalies, Keys to Victory, Habs Tickets

Game Preview 

A Look Back

The Habs outplayed a better team. It was an opportunistic offence and an active defense core that helped secure the win. The Habs showed while they might be injured and near the bottom of the league, they aren’t going to roll over and teams still have to bring their game to have a chance of beating them.

Last game: MTL 5  NJD 2  F

For a complete game recap: Upset Win | RECAP: MTL @ NJD

Players to Watch

  • Nick Suzuki
    Suzuki found the back of the net for the first time in a while. The injuries to the Habs have put a lot of pressure on Suzuki and while he’s having a good season he hasn’t taken a big step this season. Having said that, lining up against opponents best players on a nightly basis isn’t easy and Suzuki’s game will elevate once the Habs become a deeper team.
  • Justin Barron
    Barron’s stint in the minors did wonders for him, as he now is showing a ton of confidence at the NHL level including his offensive side. Barron might not be a top pairing guy, but if he continues to develop he could easily become an excellent second pairing defenceman and quarterback on the powerplay.
  • Josh Anderson
    Anderson wants to stay in Montreal and, at this point, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to move the power forward in my view. However several teams have made big trades for deep Cup runs and other teams might look to do the same and due to injuries the Habs don’t really have anyone else to trade.

Keys to Victory

  • Control the neutral zone
    The Habs played a great game against the Devils and a big part of that was controlling the neutral zone. Repeating that effort against the Flyers should have the same type of success.
  • Activate the defence
    Three goals by the defense in one game from the Habs is quite the surprise but with an injured lineup that’s the type of effort the Habs need. Activating the defense once again will be necessary for the Habs to win.
  • Win special teams
    The Flyers aren’t the most disciplined team which should give the Habs plenty of time to work on the special teams tonight.
Statistical Matchup for Game 58
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA | February 24, 7:00 PM ET | TV: TSN2, RDS, ESPN+, NBCSP
teamlogo_flyers

2022-23  statistics
FLYERS CANADIENS
56 (25th) Points (rank) 52 (26th)
23-26-10 Record 24-29-4
L1 Streak W1
3-5-2 Last 10 4-5-1
2.68 (27th) GF/G (rank) 2.67 (29th)
3.20 (19th) GA/G (rank) 3.63 (28th)
15.8 (32nd) PP% (rank) 16.7 (29th)
76.2 (21st) PK% (rank) 73.6 (28th)
45.7  Faceoff % 49.1
Pre-game 
Marty St. Louis 

  • “We’re very confident with both goalies right now. We’re trying to share the workload.”
Projected Forwards, Defense and Goaltenders (subject to change)
Forwards
Laughton – Cates – Allison
van Riemsdyk – Frost – Tippett
Lycksell – Hayes – Farabee
Deslauriers – Brown – Bellows		 Harvey-Pinard – Suzuki – Anderson
Pitlick – Dvorak – Dadonov
Hoffman – Drouin – Ylonen
Pezzetta – Tierney – Belzile
Defensemen
Provorov – Sanheim
York – Ristolainen
Seeler – DeAngelo		 Matheson – Barron
Harris – Kovacevic
Schueneman – Savard
Out of the lineup
Scratched: Zamula, Braun
Injured: Ellis, Couturier, Brink, Atkinson, MacEwen, Konecny		 Scratched:
Injured: Byron (hip), Price (knee), Monahan (lower-body), Guhle (lower-body), Gallagher (lower-body), Evans (lower-body), Slafkovsky (lower-body), Caufield (shoulder), Edmundson (upper-body), Xhekaj (upper-body), Dach (lower-body), Wideman (upper-body), Armia (illness)
Goalies
Carter Hart Jake Allen
Record: 16-18-9
GAA: 2.89
Sv%: .909
SO: 1
Alternate: Samuel Ersson		 Record: 12-18-2
GAA: 3.47
Sv%: .894
SO: 1
Alternate: Sam Montembeault
 Game Expectations
A matchup between two very injured teams and teams that are close in the standings should make for a very tight checking game. The coaching matchup is a fun one as Martin St. Louis has learned a lot from Flyers bench boss John Tortorella. The two spent several years together in Tampa and St. Louis helped Tortorella briefly while in Columbus. There will definitely be some money on the board tonight.

Bottom Line

The Habs final 25 games of the season aren’t going to be easy as more than 80 percent of them are against the top half of the league or teams fighting for the final playoff spot so it’s important the Habs enjoy a win while they can.
 Video Highlights

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