After a successful homestand, the Montreal Canadiens are looking to bring some momentum on the road starting with a clash against the struggling Calgary Flames on Wednesday to open a four-game trip.
The Canadiens are coming off a 4-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Monday that gave them three wins in a four-game home stretch as they battle for the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
“We’re a good team,” Montreal goaltender Jakub Dobes said. “I feel like we’re going to win a lot of games.”
The Canadiens were a surprise playoff squad last season and have built on that success. They have won five of their last six games overall.
Leading the way offensively is center Nick Suzuki, who collected a pair of assists against the Sabres to give him 10 points (one goal, nine assists) in a six-game streak. Tied against Buffalo, Montreal scored three third-period goals for the victory.
Adding intrigue is the competition between the pipes. No. 1 goaltender Sam Montembeault has struggled while Dobes has a perfect 3-0 record with an impressive 1.63 goals-against average and .939 save percentage.
Since the Canadiens will play in Edmonton on Thursday, both goaltenders are likely to see action in the first two games of the trip, although coach Martin St. Louis would not divulge who would start in Calgary.
“We feel comfortable with both goalies,” St. Louis said. “But you’re always going to have that internal competition, no matter what position you play.”
Montreal could receive a boost for the game, with forward Kirby Dach expected to return from injury.
While the Canadiens are off to a hot start, the Flames are at the other end of the spectrum. Calgary, which actually finished ahead of Montreal in the overall standings last season but missed the playoffs, has lost six straight games and sits last in the league.
Calgary is coming off a 2-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Monday, the third consecutive game the Flames have been held to just one goal. They have scored more than two goals just once this season, when they had four goals in a season-opening victory over the Oilers.
“It’s frustrating right now, but you have to find a way to get through it,” goaltender Dustin Wolf said. “You don’t want to put yourself in a hole. It’s not the ideal scenario by any means, but if there’s a group that can dig out of it (it’s us).”
The Flames likely deserved a better fate against the Jets. They had plenty of third-period chances, even after Winnipeg tied the game early in the final period, but could not deliver in a strong performance from start to finish.
Key will be finding the positives and building from them, according to coach Ryan Huska.
“If you allow yourself to get stuck on that emotion, then it just keeps snowballing,” Huska said. “You have to focus on the things that you’re doing well and you have to do them harder. ”
-Field Level Media
