Samuel Montembeault will start in goal for the Canadiens when they face the Winnipeg Jets Tuesday at the Bell Centre (7 p.m., TSN2, RDS).
That’s the only lineup change Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis will make with the team coming off a 4-3 overtime loss to the New Jersey Devils Saturday night at the Bell Centre. That means forward Rafaël Harvey-Pinard will be a healthy scratch for the second straight game since getting called up from the AHL’s Laval Rocket on Saturday.
Jakub Dobes was in goal for the Canadiens against the Devils on Saturday and made 40 saves while suffering his first loss since getting called up from the Rocket on Dec. 27. In six games with the Canadiens, Dobes has a 5-0-1 record with a 1.93 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage. Montembeault has a 17-17-3 record with a 2.99 GAA and a .899 save percentage.
The Canadiens have lost two straight games — including last Thursday’s 4-2 loss to the Red Wings in Detroit — for the first time since Dec. 14 when they were beaten 4-2 by the Jets in Winnipeg. That came after a 9-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins two nights earlier at the Bell Centre.
The Canadiens played four games last week, posting a 2-1-1 record. Heading into Tuesday night’s game they have a 24-20-5 record and are two points out of a wild-card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Jets are in first place in the Central Division with a 34-13-3 record and are on a three-game winning streak after beating the Calgary Flames 5-2 Sunday in Winnipeg.
St. Louis knows the Canadiens will need to bring their “A” game against the Jets.
“I feel like we’ve shown that we have a good ‘A’ game and I feel like we understand how this last week went for us,” St. Louis said after Monday’s optional morning skate at the Bell Centre. “It wasn’t all bad. I think we actually have raised our bad and you need that in this league. You need to have a good ‘B’ game and you need to be able to get some points when you have your ‘B’ game and that’s what we did last week. But you can’t just live off your ‘B’ game and we know that.
“So I think what encourages me is I think we have this conversation, the guys understand,” St. Louis added. “We weren’t really happy about last week, but it wasn’t the end of the world, either. Just focus on the things we need to work on. We got a practice yesterday to do that, which we haven’t had in the past (few weeks). A couple of days in between games (now) … the games are spread out this week. I feel like we’re setting ourselves up to give ourselves the best chance to have an ‘A’ game. Even having an ‘A’ game doesn’t guarantee anything. But we’re going to strive to have an ‘A’ game.”
The Canadiens will also have to stay out of the penalty box against the Jets, who have by far the best power play in the NHL. The Jets power play has a 33.3 per cent success rate, while the Devils rank second at 28.1 per cent. Gabriel Vilardi leads the Jets with 11 power-play goals, while Kyle Connor has nine and Mark Scheifele has eight.
The Canadiens rank ninth in the NHL in penalty-killing at 81.7 per cent, but they also rank sixth in total penalty minutes and second in minor penalties with 188, which is four less than the Florida Panthers.
When the Jets beat the Canadiens 4-2 in their first meeting, two of their goals came on the power play.
“I think we’re well aware that we got to try to play that team five-on-five as much as possible,” St. Louis said about the Jets. “It’s a fine line in competing and taking penalties. So we have to be in control of your body on the ice. But you can’t just tiptoe around the Winnipeg Jets, either.
“Winnipeg is a very good team,” St. Louis added. “We can’t just play with white gloves because we’re scared to take penalties. It’s a fine line. You got to be in control, but we expect us to compete and toe that line.”
After Tuesday’s game, the Canadiens will play the Minnesota Wild on Thursday at the Bell Centre (7 p.m., TSN2, RDS). After that, the Canadiens will hit the road for a three-game California trip that starts against the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday (4 p.m., TSN2, RDS).