Canadiens @ Islanders: Game thread and lines

Game 81: Montreal Canadiens @ New York Islanders

Start time: **6:00 PM EDT / 3:00 PM PDT**
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Islanders region: MSGSN
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+

Rather than focusing on trying to claim home-ice advantage for the playoffs, the Montreal Canadiens’ attention has now turned to setting three defence pairings for when the post-season begins. They know they won’t have Noah Dobson for the first few playoff games, and the status of both Kaiden Guhle and Alexandre Carrier remains unknown.

The replacement options will face a New York Islanders team that has ramped up its physical play under new head coach Peter DeBoer. Outside of his first game, versus a Toronto Maple Leafs team that wants to lose games, the offence hasn’t changed for the team, scoring zero goals in a critical matchup on Saturday afternoon.

New York’s leading point total from Mathew Barzal is the same as Nick Suzuki’s season assist total, which reached 71 yesterday. The Islanders might be good at keeping the puck out of their net, but they’ve had trouble scoring their own goals all season, averaging just 2.84 on the year. That lack of finishing ability might benefit Montreal’s inexperienced blue line that can perhaps get away with a mistake or two today, though not if those errors happen right in front of their netminder.

Montreal Canadiens projected lineup

Injured: Alexandre Carrier, Noah Dobson, Kaiden Guhle
Scratched: Brendan Gallagher, Patrik Laine, Samuel Montembeault

New York Islanders projected lineup