NHL Original 6 Matchup - New York Rangers at Montreal Canadians

Saturday, October 24th – Bell Centre, Montreal

The Rangers have lost two straight for the first time this season. They were embarrassed 7-3 on Monday against San Jose, then lost 4-2 against New Jersey on Thursday. This is the first bit of adversity the Rangers have had to face all season. It will be interesting to see how they handle it.

Don’t look now, but Jaroslav Halak has started two in a row for Montreal and won both. After a five-game losing streak the Habs turned to Halak and are finally winning, the most recent a 5-1 beating of the Islanders. The Canadians still consider Carey Price their number one goalie, but how long until Halak starts to question why he, arguably a better goalie now, is riding the pine?

What The Rangers Have To Do To Win:

Coach John Tortorella has made it clear he is not happy with the Rangers sloppy play as of late. The Blue Shirts have taken 23 penalties in their last four. Not surprisingly, they are probably New York’s least impressive four games of the season. The Rangers have proven themselves to be legit contenders in the East, but must cut down on the penalties unless they want to continue hearing it from their coach. Luckily they’re playing a lackluster Montreal power-play just in case the dumb penalties continue.

Conversely, the Rangers have had much success on the power-play, ranking 6th in the NHL with 13 goals in 47 chances. They’re playing a halfway decent Montreal penalty kill, so the matchup is in their favor. They’ll need to take advantage of that should the opportunity present itself.

What The Canadians Have To Do To Win:

Before Thursday’s game against the Islanders, the Canadians power play could be described as downright dismal. They partially righted the ship against New York, scoring twice in six chances. The power play will be key for Montreal’s success because of the way they play their game. They don’t take a lot of chances on offense, so they need to be able to take advantages of the opportunities that are given to them.

Marc-Andre Bergeron, who was brought in by Montreal to offset the loss of Andrei Markov, has played well with Montreal, with two points in two games and a plus-1 rating. Although not expected to provide the kind of defense Markov could, Bergeron will be leaned on heavily on all facets of the game until Markov can return. Whether or not Bergeron can handle it will weigh heavily on the Canadians chances of contending this season.

Outlook & Pick

The Habs haven’t decided yet on who will be starting on Saturday, but conventional wisdom believes Montreal won’t want their number one goalie sitting for three games straight. The Rangers have been struggling, but are still one of the most dangerous teams in the league. Montreal’s two game win streak is a good confidence boost, but they’re outmatched by a talented Rangers squad looking to get back on the right track.

Pick: New York Rangers