Game 81: Montreal Canadiens @ Detroit Red Wings
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
In Canada: Sportsnet (English)
In the Canadiens region: RDS (French)
In the Red Wings region: Bally Sports Detroit X
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, Sportsnet+
Tonight we will see the most anticipated Montreal Canadiens debut since Cole Caufield joined the team after a few years of hype on April 26, 2021. Lane Hutson, another product of the U.S. National Team Development Program, will also play his first game out of the spotlight of the Bell Centre, but will still have the eyes of all Habs fans, and a lot of other observers who want to see how his jaw-dropping offensive skills translate to the NHL level, on his play in his first game.
It will just be a two-game stint to start his professional career rather than the 10 games and four playoff rounds Caufield received, but they will be high-pressure games because he’s being dropped into a matchup with a team that needs all four points from this miniseries to end the season.
The Detroit Red Wings are currently tied with the Washington Capitals at 87 points, and each team has two games to play. Washington has already secured the tiebreaker with more regulation wins, so finishing tied won’t do any good for the Red Wings. If they want to end their seven-year playoff drought, they need to earn at least one point more than Alexander Ovechkin’s club. All they can do is work to win these two games and hope the Capitals falter in their bid to do the same.
| Canadiens | Statistics | Red Wings |
|---|---|---|
| 30-37-13 | Record | 39-32-9 |
| 44.8% (29th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 44.3% (30th) |
| 2.80 (27th) | Goals per game | 3.33 (9th) |
| 3.40 (26th) | Goals against per game | 3.31 (24th) |
| 17.7% (26th) | PP% | 23.2% (9th) |
| 76.4% (23rd) | PK% | 79.3% (17th) |
| 1-0-1 | Head-to-Head Record | 1-0-1 |
If it was just up to their offence to make that happen, there wouldn’t be too much concern. Detroit averages three-and-a-third goals per contest, and have scored five in each of their past two games. But defensive issues have plagued the team all season long. That’s why one of those five-goal performances required a late comeback from down two goals just to claim an overtime loss, and why they’re the only top-10 offensive club not sitting in a post-season position.
That is at least good news for Hutson as he will get some chances to add the first point to his NHL ledger. We’ve already seen one high-scoring game between the clubs this year, when the Habs lost a 5-4 overtime decision back on December 2. That happened the game before Juraj Slafkovský joined Nick Suzuki and Caufield on the top line and really kicked his game into the gear we see regularly now. We’re bound to see some nice interplay between Hutson and those three forwards, and that might be the most anticipated part of his arrival with the team.
As for shutting down Detroit’s chances, part of that will require a rebound on the penalty kill after allowing three power-play goals to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. Detroit also has a top-10 power play at 23.2%, and they can largely thank their own sub-six-foot defenceman, Shayne Gostisbehere, for that placement as he leads the team with 29 power-play points. The Red Wings scored two power-play goals versus the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, and, at the very least, the Habs will want to prove that their defence isn’t that hopeless.
