Canadiens vs. Penguins: Game thread and lines
Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
Game 35: Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French)
In the Penguins region: Sportsnet Pittsburgh
Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
Jacob Fowler’s NHL debut versus the Pittsburgh Penguins went so well that the coaching staff has opted to give him the final start at the Bell Centre until January 7. With Samuel Montembeault due to return from his conditioning stint, it’s possible that this will be Fowler’s final game action before returning to Laval for the remainder of the year. Starting off with a 1-1-1 record, he will want to add a second win if that is the plan for him.
An interesting thing is happening on defence with another prospect, however. Even though Mike Matheson is back in the lineup after missing the past couple of games, Adam Engström is staying in, and it’s Jayden Struble who moves to the press box to make room for the veteran. It will be a sixth consecutive game for the Swedish blue-liner since he was called back up. He’s not giving Martin St-Louis any reason to remove him from the lineup; on the contrary, his ice time has only increased, to a career high of 16:13 on Thursday. Is his spot becoming more permanent? Another solid game on home ice might just force a conversation on which defenceman is removed from the roster when the space is needed.
Montreal Canadiens projected lineup
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| #13 Cole Caufield | #14 Nick Suzuki | #76 Zachary Bolduc |
| #20 Juraj Slafkovský | #91 Oliver Kapanen | #93 Ivan Demidov |
| #17 Josh Anderson | #62 Owen Beck | #85 Alexandre Texier |
| #90 Joe Veleno | #71 Jake Evans | #11 Brendan Gallagher |
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| #8 Mike Matheson | #53 Noah Dobson |
| #48 Lane Hutson | #45 Alexandre Carrier |
| #72 Arber Xhekaj | #42 Adam Engström |
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| #32 Jacob Fowler | #75 Jakub Dobeš |
Scratched: Phillip Danault, Jayden Struble
Conditioning loan: Samuel Montembeault
Injured: Kirby Dach, Kaiden Guhle, Patrik Laine, Alex Newhook
Pittsburgh Penguins projected lineup
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| Tommy Novak | Sidney Crosby | Bryan Rust |
| Anthony Mantha | Rickard Rakell | Justin Brazeau |
| Ville Koivunen | Ben Kindel | Rutger McGroarty |
| Connor Dewar | Kevin Hayes | Noel Acciari |
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| Parker Wotherspoon | Erik Karlsson |
| Brett Kulak | Kris Letang |
| Ryan Shea | Connor Clifton |
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| Stuart Skinner | Arturs Silovs |
