Montreal Canadiens hope to win at home as the Phoenix Coyotes visit the Bell Centre
There are a large number of teams in the National Hockey League that have been hot as of late, and the Montreal Canadiens are one of them. In their most recent game, they handed the Ottawa
Senators a 3-0 shutout loss at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa.
One of the major factors in that win was the stellar play of goaltender Carey Price. Price was deemed as the heir apparent to the Habs’ goaltending throne following the trade of stand-out
netminder Jaroslav Halak to the St. Louis Blues. He has been trying to make the of the situation, and has been playing relatively well lately. The shutout over the Sens, the fifth of Price’s NHL career, was his first in almost two years.
Last season, Price did more watching than playing, as he lost his starting job to Halak early into the 2009-10 season. Price only made a few more appearances that season, including a few
relief appearances during the postseason. Halak took over, and stole many big games for the Habs in the process. He saw the bulk of the action last season, while all Price could do was sit on the bench and watch.
But now, after playing the role of spectator for most of last season, Price and his Canadiens team-mates have begun the 2010-11 campaign with a respectable 4-2-1 record. The Habs had previously
dropped a 3-0 decision to the New Jersey Devils during their last home game, and were happy to get a 3-0 win of their own over the struggling Senators.
The Coyotes, who have strung together a record of 2-2-2 in their first six games, have not won a game at the Bell Centre since 28 October, 1996, which was the team’s first season in the
desert after the team moved from Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Habs have a record of 8-0 with three ties in their previous games against the Dogs.
Like Price, the Coyotes also have a player who has experienced his own share of struggles in the NHL. Centre Kyle Turris, the number three overall pick at the 2007 NHL draft, has struggled
since the Coyotes inserted him into their line-up. He played in 63 games for Phoenix in the 2008-09 season, but scored only 20 points. The coaching staff was unimpressed with Turris’ performance, which resulted in him spending the entire 2009-10 season in
the American Hockey League.
Turris seemed to return to form at the beginning of the new season, scoring a pair of goals in the third period in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Phoenix earned a point
by making it to overtime, but head coach Dave Tippett says that his team will need to step up its play if they have any hopes of advancing this season.
“I give the guys full marks for finding a way to get a point,” Tippett said. “But the reality is, if we play like that, we’re not gonna get anywhere.”
The Coyotes will be without the services of team captain Shane Doan in this game, as he is serving out a three-game suspension for a hit to the head of Dan Sexton of the Anaheim Ducks.
This will be the final game of the suspension, and Doan will return to action in Phoenix’s next game.
The Habs will go after their fifth win, while the Dogs will attempt to halt their progress. The game is scheduled to start at 19:30 from the Bell Centre in Montreal.
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