northernlou
Idi Admin
Preview: Montreal at Anaheim
10:00 PM ET, Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Honda Center, Anaheim, California
The Anaheim Ducks are the hottest team in the NHL but that didn't prevent them from making a few moves at the trade deadline to bolster their depth for the stretch run. Winners of eight consecutive games, the surging Ducks can pull even in points with Los Angeles atop the Pacific Division with a victory against the visiting Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday night.
Despite a blistering 15-1-1 stretch over the past 17 games, Anaheim acquired forwards Brandon Pirri (Florida) and Jamie McGinn (Buffalo) on Monday while trading away Patrick Maroon and Tim Jackman. McGinn is expected to be in the lineup Wednesday while Pirri (ankle) is at least 1 1/2 weeks away, according to Ducks general manager Bob Murray. "I'm comfortable with not screwing up the chemistry too much," Murray said. "I think this works, this fits. We're deeper and we're very versatile." Sitting in 13th place in the Eastern Conference, the Canadiens made a minor deal Monday by acquiring Stefan Matteau from New Jersey in exchange for fellow forward Devante Smith-Pelly. Montreal saw its four-game point streak (3-0-1) end with a thud in a 6-2 drubbing at San Jose and now faces a grueling back-to-back against Anaheim and Los Angeles.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, Sportsnet, RDS (Montreal), FSN West (Anaheim)
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (30-28-5): The 6-foot-2, 220-pound Matteau, a first-round draft pick in 2012, had only one point in 20 games with the Devils, but Montreal hopes the 22-year-old will provide a physical presence along with waiver-wire acquisition Mike Brown, who made his debut with the club Monday night. “He’s going to bring energy,” coach Michel Therrien said of Brown, who has 751 penalty minutes in 394 NHL games. Rookie Mike Condon was named the NHL's Third Star of the Week on Monday in the wake of a 2-0-1 stretch, but he was blitzed for a season high-tying six goals by San Jose.
ABOUT THE DUCKS (34-19-8): One of the major reasons for Anaheim's turnaround has been the play of captain Ryan Getzlaf, who on Tuesday was named the NHL's First Star of the Month after registering six goals and 14 assists while powering the Ducks to a 12-1-1 mark in February. "Our team in general has turned it around," said Getzlaf, who posted a plus-13 rating for the month. "We climbed back into contention and we're playing good hockey." Forward Shawn Horcoff, suspended for 20 games for taking a banned substance, was back at practice Tuesday and is eligible to rejoin the lineup on March 11.
OVERTIME
1. The Ducks have scored at least one power-play goal in each game during their winning streak, converting on 13-of-29 chances.
2. Canadiens F Brendan Gallagher has scored three goals in the past four games.
3. Ducks G Frederik Andersen has not lost in regulation since Dec. 21, going 11-0-2 in his last 15 appearances.
Trends
Canadiens are 3-7 in the last 10 meetings.
Canadiens are 0-7 in their last 7 after allowing 5 goals or more in their previous game.
http://www.covers.com/pageLoader/pageLoader.aspx?page=/data/nhl/matchups/g2_preview_6.html
10:00 PM ET, Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Honda Center, Anaheim, California
The Anaheim Ducks are the hottest team in the NHL but that didn't prevent them from making a few moves at the trade deadline to bolster their depth for the stretch run. Winners of eight consecutive games, the surging Ducks can pull even in points with Los Angeles atop the Pacific Division with a victory against the visiting Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday night.
Despite a blistering 15-1-1 stretch over the past 17 games, Anaheim acquired forwards Brandon Pirri (Florida) and Jamie McGinn (Buffalo) on Monday while trading away Patrick Maroon and Tim Jackman. McGinn is expected to be in the lineup Wednesday while Pirri (ankle) is at least 1 1/2 weeks away, according to Ducks general manager Bob Murray. "I'm comfortable with not screwing up the chemistry too much," Murray said. "I think this works, this fits. We're deeper and we're very versatile." Sitting in 13th place in the Eastern Conference, the Canadiens made a minor deal Monday by acquiring Stefan Matteau from New Jersey in exchange for fellow forward Devante Smith-Pelly. Montreal saw its four-game point streak (3-0-1) end with a thud in a 6-2 drubbing at San Jose and now faces a grueling back-to-back against Anaheim and Los Angeles.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, Sportsnet, RDS (Montreal), FSN West (Anaheim)
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (30-28-5): The 6-foot-2, 220-pound Matteau, a first-round draft pick in 2012, had only one point in 20 games with the Devils, but Montreal hopes the 22-year-old will provide a physical presence along with waiver-wire acquisition Mike Brown, who made his debut with the club Monday night. “He’s going to bring energy,” coach Michel Therrien said of Brown, who has 751 penalty minutes in 394 NHL games. Rookie Mike Condon was named the NHL's Third Star of the Week on Monday in the wake of a 2-0-1 stretch, but he was blitzed for a season high-tying six goals by San Jose.
ABOUT THE DUCKS (34-19-8): One of the major reasons for Anaheim's turnaround has been the play of captain Ryan Getzlaf, who on Tuesday was named the NHL's First Star of the Month after registering six goals and 14 assists while powering the Ducks to a 12-1-1 mark in February. "Our team in general has turned it around," said Getzlaf, who posted a plus-13 rating for the month. "We climbed back into contention and we're playing good hockey." Forward Shawn Horcoff, suspended for 20 games for taking a banned substance, was back at practice Tuesday and is eligible to rejoin the lineup on March 11.
OVERTIME
1. The Ducks have scored at least one power-play goal in each game during their winning streak, converting on 13-of-29 chances.
2. Canadiens F Brendan Gallagher has scored three goals in the past four games.
3. Ducks G Frederik Andersen has not lost in regulation since Dec. 21, going 11-0-2 in his last 15 appearances.
Trends
Canadiens are 3-7 in the last 10 meetings.
Canadiens are 0-7 in their last 7 after allowing 5 goals or more in their previous game.
http://www.covers.com/pageLoader/pageLoader.aspx?page=/data/nhl/matchups/g2_preview_6.html