Canada
This article was added by the user . TheWorldNews is not responsible for the content of the platform.

March 27, 2023: Canadiens at Sabres — five things you should know

Habs will miss playoffs for second straight season, while it looks like it will be a 12th straight year with no postseason for Buffalo.

Canadiens' Nick Suzuki concentrates on the linesman's hand as he takes a faceoff during the first period of a National Hockey League game against the New York Rangers in Montreal Thursday March 9, 2023.
Canadiens' Nick Suzuki concentrates on the linesman's hand as he takes a faceoff during the first period of a National Hockey League game against the New York Rangers in Montreal Thursday March 9, 2023. Photo by John Mahoney /Montreal Gazette

Here are five things you should know about Monday’s game between the Canadiens (29-38-6) and Sabres (35-31-6) in Buffalo (7 p.m., SNE, RDS, TSN 690 Radio, 98.5 FM).

Eight is enough: The Canadiens set a season high for goals when they beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 8-2 Saturday night at the Bell Centre. The previous high came on Oct. 29 when the Canadiens beat the Blues 7-4 in St. Louis. Goalie Sam Montembeault made 20 saves against the Blue Jackets for his second straight win, improving his record to 15-14-3 with a 3.28 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage. With nine games remaining in the season, the Canadiens are in 28th place in the overall NHL standings.

Since the Montreal Canadiens making the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in 28 years, this newsletter is the dedicated Montreal Canadiens fan's source for exclusive Habs content, insight and analysis.

By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails or any newsletter. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300

Hatty-Pinard: Raphaël Harvey-Pinard was named the first star Saturday night after recording his first NHL hat-trick with all three goals coming in the second period. The three goals give the 24-year-old 12-5-17 totals in 29 games since getting called up from the AHL’s Laval Rocket. That would put Harvey-Pinard on pace for 34 goals over a full 82-game season. There are only five players on the Canadiens who have scored more goals than Harvey-Pinard this season: Cole Caufield (26), Nick Suzuki (23), Josh Anderson (21), Kirby Dach (14) and Mike Hoffman (13). The Canadiens selected Harvey-Pinard in the seventh round (201st overall) of the 2019 NHL draft. That’s the same year they selected Caufield in the first round (15th overall).

Four-point night: Suzuki had a career-high four-point night against the Blue Jackets with a goal and three assists. The Canadiens captain is on a four-game point streak with 2-8-10 totals over that span. With 23-38-61 totals, Suzuki has matched his career high in points and set a career high in goals after posting 21-40-61 totals last season. The No. 1 line of Suzuki between Harvey-Pinard and Hoffman combined for 10 points against Columbus with Hoffman getting a goal and two assists. Brendan Gallagher, playing in his third game since missing 32 games with a lower-body injury, had a goal and an assist.

Matheson on a roll: Defenceman Mike Matheson extended his point streak to three games with three assists against the Blue Jackets. In the 22 games since the all-star break, Matheson has 7-13-20 totals. Despite missing 34 games because of injuries, Matheson ranks seventh on the Canadiens in scoring with 8-20-28 totals in 39 games. He leads the Canadiens in ice time with an average of 24:13 per game and his plus-7 differential is the second-best on the team behind Harvey-Pinard, who is plus-9.

No playoffs: The Canadiens will miss the playoffs for the second straight season and it looks like the Sabres will miss the postseason for the 12th straight year. With 10 games left in the season, the Sabres were six points out of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference after beating the Islanders 2-0 Saturday in New York. Tage Thompson leads the Sabres in scoring with 44-45-89 totals, followed by Jeff Skinner (31-39-70), Alex Tuch (32-36-68) and Rasmus Dahlin (14-51-65).

scowan@postmedia.com

twitter.com/StuCowan1

  1. Blue Jackets' Kirill Marchenko (86) tries to remove Canadiens' Rafaël Harvey-Pinard (49) from in front of Columbus goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (90) in Montreal on Saturday, March 25, 2023.

    Harvey-Pinard becomes Bell Centre darling in whitewash 8-2 win over Columbus

  2. Canadiens' Jonathan Drouin, centre, celebrates his goal with teammates during a win over the Lightning Tuesday at the Bell Centre. Former GM Serge Savard has been impressed with how the injury-ravaged Habs have been competitive this season.

    Cowan: Serge Savard happy to feel like part of Canadiens' family again