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Montreal Canadiens looking to win against Columbus Blue Jackets

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Montreal Canadiens looking to win against Columbus Blue Jackets
After a tough 3-1 loss to the Florida Panthers at the Bell Centre on Saturday, 30 October, the Montreal Canadiens are looking to return to the win column. They’ll have a chance to do so
in their next game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday, 2 November.
The Habs recently received a much-needed boost to their line-up, as top defenceman Andrei Markov returned from off-season knee surgery. Markov had undergone surgery after suffering a torn
anterior cruciate ligament during last season’s playoffs. He had collided with Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Cooke and fell awkwardly, tearing the ligament in his knee.
As little as a few weeks ago, Markov was spotted practicing with his Habs team-mates at the team’s practice facility in Brossard, Quebec, and was cleared for contact a short time later.
The return of Markov will significantly boost Montreal’s power play unit, which has been struggling greatly since the beginning of the season. The Habs’ power play currently ranks 29th overall in the NHL, while their penalty kill ranks sixth.
In the game against Florida, the Russian was second amongst the Habs’ skaters with 23:03 of ice time. Only rookie P.K. Subban, Markov’s defence partner, was on the ice longer, playing
for 24:49.
Markov said that it would take some time for him to return to form, and that he was having some problems in the first period.
“I knew it was going to be hard and the first period was tough for me, but I felt much better in the second and third,” said Markov, who had five shots in the loss to the Panthers. “It’s
not easy to come back from a long-term (injury).
“I was lost a little bit. It’s much different than practice. The intensity is very high, so the first period was a little tough.”
Despite having their power play quarterback back, Canadiens head coach Jacques Martin opted not to use him when the Habs held the man advantage. He went with Subban instead, along with
forwards Mike Cammalleri, Andrei Kostitsyn, and team captain Brian Gionta.
“We have shooters in Subban and Cammalleri and we had (Tomas) Plekanec, (Brian) Gionta and Andrei Kostitsyn, and I think we had chances, but it just didn’t go in,” Martin said of his decision.
The Blue Jackets have had a decent start to the 2010-11 season, posting a 6-4 record in their first 10 games. Part of that can be attributed to the emergence of key players like captain
Rick Nash, and forwards Chris Clark and R.J. Umberger. Clark currently leads the Jackets with six points, while Umberger has scored four goals, the most of any player on the team.
Like the Habs, the Blue Jackets are also coming off of a tough loss. They dropped a 5-1 decision to the Colorado Avalanche in their last game, and they too are hungry for another win to
account for the big loss. On the positive side, back-up goaltender Mathieu Garon has been stellar in the Jackets’ net of late.
Garon has posted a 2-0 record with a 1.61 goals-against average and a save percentage of .938. Starter Steve Mason has struggled a bit, as he has gone 4-4 with a 3.30 GAA and a .894 save
percentage. He’ll need to be at the top of his game when he faces the Canadiens’ sharpshooters, as they have been known to score clutch goals in key situations. The New York Islanders learned that the hard way.
One thing is certain about this match – whatever the result, it will surely excite the fans, as both teams have a core of talented players who are as good on defence as they are with their
offensive contributions. The game gets under way at 19:00 on Tuesday night.

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