Canadiens vs. Lightning: Game thread and lines

Game 47: Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Start time: 7:00 p.m. EST / 4:00 p.m. PST
In the Canadiens Region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Lightning Region: FanDuel Sports Network Sun
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+

The Canadiens have a rare opportunity to play a team in the second half of a back-to-back game while coming off an off day themselves. It’s not that Montreal seems to mind playing twice in 24 hours – they just won another one of those games without a break on Sunday – but they’ll just have a lot more energy if they try to play one quickly To achieve a 2-1 home score.

Although Jakub Dobes set his season record with a 5-0 win over the New York Rangers, Samuel Montembeault will be back between the goals as he looks to beat the Lightning for the second time this year. He conceded just two goals in a 5-2 win against the team that ranks first in the league in offense, something Martin St-Louis is hoping will happen again.

The Lightning are coming off a loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs and are now 5-6-1 since visiting Montreal in late December. They know they have to start playing better to fend off the Habs and the other teams moving up in the Eastern Conference. The question is how much more Montreal wants to win today’s game.

Projected lineup of the Montreal Canadiens

Scratched: Michael Pezzetta, Jayden Struble
Injured: Emil Heinemann

Planned lineup of the Tampa Bay Lightning