Latest news with #Sainte-Flanelle
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Canadiens: Getting Ready For The Old Enemy
The Montreal Canadiens will face the Boston Bruins at the Bell Centre on Thursday night. Contrary to recent years, the Massachusetts outfit is dead last in the Eastern Conference, even behind the poor Buffalo Sabres. While the Habs are in the thick of the playoff race, the Bruins were sellers at the deadline and even traded captain Brad Marchand for a conditional second-round pick in the 2027 draft. Canadiens: Kapanen To The Rescue Canadiens: Kent Hughes Is Thinking Long Term 3 Takeaways And A New Nickname Advertisement The Bruins have lost their last six games and are 1-8-1 in their last ten, while the Canadiens have bounced back after a tough stretch with two consecutive wins against the defending Stanley Cup Champions Florida Panthers and are 4-3-3 in their last ten matches. The Bruins have won the first two meetings between the two sides this season, 6-4 in October and 6-3 in December, and nine of the last 10 duels. The Canadiens only had an optional skate on Wednesday, so it's too early to know if there will be any lineup changes. Still, the club announced that Oliver Kapanen would report to Montreal rather than Laval, and considering how little ice time Michael Pezzetta had had in the last two games, it wouldn't be surprising if the new arrival was asked to take over. We'll probably know more after Thursday's morning skate. While there's no confirmation yet about the identity of Martin St-Louis' starting netminder, it would be surprising to see Jakub Dobes in net, Samuel Montembeault is the likely starter. He has a 2-6-1 record against the Bruins, with a 4.16 goals-against average and a .876 save percentage, while Dobes has never played them. The Canadiens will need to keep a close eye on David Pastrnak - Photo credit: Natalie Reid-Imagn Images At the other end of the ice, the Canadiens have never beaten Jeremy Swayman in regulation; he has a 9-0-1 record against them with a .900 SP and a 2.69 GAA. As for backup Jonas Korpisalo, he also has a solid 8-2-0 record against the Habs, with a .916 SP and a 2.49 GAA. Whoever starts will present a challenge for the Sainte-Flanelle. Advertisement Brendan Gallagher is the Canadiens' most productive player against the Bruins, with 28 points in 42 games. Patrik Laine is next with 12 points in 15 games, and Josh Anderson is third with 12 points in 19 games. Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield had two points in the last game against the Bruins and will be hoping to pick up where they left off. For Boston, David Pastrnak will be looking for his 50th point against the Habs since he has 49 in just 31 games. Elias Lindholm is in second place with 24 points in 34 games, while Charlie McAvoy has 16 in 23. The game is set to start at 7:00 PM and will be one of nine games on the schedule with playoffs race rivals Columbus Blue Jackets also being in action against the Colorado Avalanche. Canadiens stories, analysis, breaking news, and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News, never to miss a story. Advertisement Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @ and Threads @karinehains. Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Calder Trophy Race: Hutson In The Lead According To NHL.com
In the latest instalment of it's Trophy Tracker series, has release the result of a polling of 16 of its journalists today concerning the Calder Trophy race. It was a tight affair but Montreal Canadiens rookie blueliner Lane Hutson is edging the competition three quarters of the way into the season. Hughes Turned Down A Generous Offer For ArmiaHanging On By A ThreadMichael Pezzetta's Ice Time is Curious Hutson received 69 points in the poll, including six first place vote, edging his former teammate at Boston University Macklin Celebrini who took the second place with 66 points. Calgary Flames goaltender Dustin Wolf, who was dominant against the Canadiens on Saturday night, finished in third place with 46 points, just ahead of Philadelphia Flyers forward Matvei Michkov who had 41. It's much too early to celebrate the win however as this was not an official poll, but the methodology used was similar to how the PWHA members are polled at the end of the season to pick a winner. Each of the 16 journalists was asked to put their five top candidates in order and points were awarded to the players on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis. The Calder race has been rather exciting to watch this season, with a couple of skilled forwards picking up points in bunches, a goaltender who's carrying his team on his back and Hutson, a defenseman who is fast finding his way in the NHL's most storied franchise record book. Even the most optimistic of fans wouldn't have guessed that the 5-foot-9 rearguard would have reached the 50-carrer point mark faster than Chris Chelios did it. Hutson needed 63 games to achieve the feat while Chelios needed 66. Earlier this season, he also established the longest point streak for a rookie defenseman wearing the Sainte-Flanelle when he put up points in seven consecutive games. Glen Harmon and the aforementioned Chelios previously shared the six games point streak record. Hutson very nearly had another seven game point streak but he was stopped in his tracks by Wolf's fantastic performance on Saturday. Canadiens stories, analysis, breaking news, and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News, never to miss a story. Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @ and Threads @karinehains. Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Time is Running Out For Evans
Before the 4 Nations Face-Off, Montreal Canadiens' forward Jake Evans used the past tense when asked what it means to be a Hab for him, and it sounded like he might have played his last game wearing the Sainte-Flanelle. While he's still in Montreal, sources report to that he will be moved if a contract extension isn't signed before the weekend. Given the fact there's just over a week left before the trade deadline, it makes sense for Kent Hughes to decide one way or another. Rush trades never bring as good a return, and according to the above-mentioned article by Marco D'Amico, there is plenty of interest in the 28-year-old pivot. Taming Their Bete Noire: 3 Takeaways From the Canadiens' Win Over the HurricanesCanadiens: A Big AuditionKirby Dach Injured The sticking point in the contract talks appears to be the cap hit; because of the upcoming significant salary cap increase, the Evans camp is reportedly looking for a cap hit of over $3.5 M annually. His asking price could also complicate Hughes' job as he tries to trade him. A suitor who knows it doesn't want to sign him up for an extension won't be willing to give that much for a rental player. Hughes clearly stated he has plenty of draft assets and doesn't want to overload his roster with rookies next season; he believes this would slow down the team's progress. He won't be looking for fourth-round draft picks, and he's not going to give Evans away. Some have suggested that putting him in a package deal with Joel Armia may maximize his return. A contender might find acquiring a ready-made penalty killers duo attractive, and it could help Hughes lend a roster player ready to step in. On Wednesday morning, BPM Sports' Tony Marinaro reported that Evans is after a five year contract with a $4 million cap hit. That's quite a sizeable commitment to make to a 28-year-old bottom six player. Armia is getting $3.4 M right now on the fourth line and the general consensus is, it's too much to spend on a fourth liner. The question is, will the rising salary cap move the needle that much? I doubt it, no right away in any case and Hughes has to keep in mind how much he'll need to shell out when players like Ivan Demidov for instance are done with their ELC. Selon ce que plusieurs sources proches du dossier ont indiqué à @TonyMarinaro , le clan Jake Evans demanderait un contrat de 5 ans et 20 millions $🤯 — BPM Sports (@BPMSportsRadio) February 26, 2025 While the Canadiens' center line is far from set, if it's impossible to sign Evans to an extension, Hughes will have to move him one way or another. Losing him for nothing when free agency opens would be a massive failure for the Habs' brass. As things stand, next season, Nick Suzuki is the only center who is sure to return in his spot. Kirby Dach has yet to show he can be a consistent center in the NHL, and just like Evans, Christian Dvorak is set to become a free agent. Owen Beck has shown promising play, but giving the youngster too much too soon wouldn't be the best idea. Martin St-Louis has always played the long game when it comes to the development of his players, and even though the team wants to move forward, rookies will still need to have the time to learn how to be NHLers. Canadiens stories, analysis, breaking news, and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News, never to miss a story. Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @ and Threads @karinehains. Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens.
