The Canadiens’ two-game heater rolls into St. Louis on Tuesday night, and the big question hanging over the night is in goal. Montreal is trying to stretch its win streak to three, but Jakub Dobes’ status gives this one a little extra intrigue.
Dobes is back in that familiar setting where he’ll have to skate into action at some point this week. Montreal doesn’t want him getting rusty, and before his overtime blunder against the San Jose Sharks, his play had been solid enough.
He also already missed the Heritage Classic, and Martin St-Louis now has to decide whether this is the night Dobes gets his “home-away-from-home” return. The Canadiens also have the Dallas Stars waiting on Thursday, which adds another layer to the decision.
The last time Montreal met St. Louis, the Blues had the upper hand in both meetings.
They beat the Canadiens 4-3 in December at the Bell Centre with Dobes in net, then followed that up with a 2-0 win in January with Fowler in goal. St-Louis didn’t seem concerned then that it was Dobes’ home-away-from-home, and the matchup has already tilted toward the Blues lately.
There’s no morning skate, so the Canadiens won’t reveal their starter until later in the afternoon. On paper, the numbers point to Fowler as the stronger option against the host: Dobes is 0-1-0 with a 4.48 GAA and a .783 save percentage against St.
Louis, while Fowler is also 0-1-0, but with a 2.13 GAA and a .895 SV. Still, as the situation around Dobes makes clear, there are more moving parts here than a simple stat line.
Montreal comes in at 6-3-2 and sitting in eighth in the Eastern Conference. St.
Louis is 5-5-1 and 10th in the Western Conference after an offseason that brought Mason McTavish, Connor McMichael, Ross Johnston, and Brandon Carlo into the fold, while Jordan Kyrou, Matthew Kessel, and Justin Holl moved on. The early returns haven’t translated into much success yet.
Up front, Chris Kreider has been the Canadiens’ most productive scorer against the Blues with 18 points in 22 games, even though he’s been held without a point in his last eight outings. Nick Suzuki has 12 points in 11 games against St.
Louis, but he won’t play. Cole Caufield follows with 10 points in nine games, and Phillip Danault has nine points in 21 games.
Kaiden Ghule has scored in back-to-back games and has never picked up a point against the Blues.
St. Louis has its own familiar names on the scoresheet against Montreal.
Cam Fowler leads the way with 19 points in 25 games, followed by Robert Thomas with 15 points in 10 games and Pavel Buchnevich with 12 points in 19 games. This season, Mason McTavish and Dylan Holloway have paced the Blues with 10 points in 11 games.
The Blues have taken six of the last 10 meetings between the teams, including the last three, so Montreal won’t be walking into easy territory. Puck drop is set for 8:00 PM, with RDS carrying the game in French and TSN2 in English. Wes McCauley and Brandon Schrader will referee, while Julien Fournier and James Tobias are working as linesmen.
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Oliver Kapanen Suddenly Has A Real Chance To Change Canadiens Plans
Oliver Kapanen is back from a lower-body injury and suddenly finds himself in a very different spot in the Canadiens lineup. After opening the season on the fourth line, he now has a chance to skate in a far more prominent role, the kind of opportunity that can alter how a team views a young center far beyond a short stretch of games.
Kapanen has yet to post a point in his four appearances this season, but Montreal has long liked the idea of what he could become as a reliable two-way center. With more responsibility now in front of him, the focus shifts from simply getting him back up to speed to whether he can show enough poise and skill to strengthen the clubs long-term plans down the middle. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Just Sparked A Trade Question Fans Wont Ignore
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Adding to the intrigue, Red Wings executive Kris Draper was in attendance, a detail that naturally fed speculation about whether Detroit has Engstrom on its radar. There has been no official confirmation of any trade talk or scouting intent, but when a front office figure keeps showing up around a players team, it is the sort of thing fans notice right away, especially when the Canadiens are juggling personnel choices at the same time. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Suddenly Feel Closer To A Dylan Larkin Trade Watch
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Darren Dreger reported that Detroit is keeping tabs on Montreal and St. Louis even though neither club is currently on Larkins list of preferred landing spots. For now, the Red Wings are simply gathering information and staying prepared in case that list changes, which leaves both teams in an interesting holding pattern as the conversation around Larkins availability continues to develop. [Read more 🡒]