Canadiens vs. Canucks: Game thread and lines

Game 46: Montreal Canadiens vs. Vancouver Canucks

Start time: 7:30 PM EST / 4:30 PM PST
In the Canadiens region: RDS (French)
Streaming: Prime Monday Night Hockey

Eleven days since his last start, Jakub Dobeš is back in the net to face the Vancouver Canucks. It’s not an ideal situation for the goaltender to be in, but we’ll see how he responds to the long period without game action. The Vancouver Canucks will counter not with Kevin Lankinen, who lost to Montreal early in the season, but Nikita Tolopilo who will receive his fifth NHL start as the Canucks look for some kind of spark to end their slide. Tolopilo has a couple of wins so far this season, the last coming on December 6 when he beat the Minnesota Wild mere days before the blockbuster trade between the two teams, so he does have the talent to play in the big leagues.

The goaltender might pose a challenge to the Habs’ shooters, but they shouldn’t encounter as much resistance as the Detroit Red Wings provided two days ago. Since a four-game winning streak following the Quinn Hughes trade, the Canucks have given up at least four goals on seven occasions, and five in each of their last three matches, all regulation losses. There’s no reason why the Canadiens shouldn’t be able to extend that to a fourth consecutive game to set themselves up for an easier night in Washington tomorrow.

Montreal Canadiens projected lineup

Scratched: Jacob Fowler, Jayden Struble
Injured: Josh Anderson, Kirby Dach, Jake Evans, Patrik Laine, Alex Newhook

Vancouver Canucks projected lineup