Canadiens vs. Penguins: Start time, Tale of the Tape, & how to watch

Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

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Start time: 7:00 p.m. EDT / 4:00 p.m. PDT
In Canada: Sportsnet East (English)
In the region of Canadians: RDS (French)
In the Penguin Region: ATTSN Pittsburgh
Stream: ESPN+, RDS Direct, Sportsnet now

Jeff Petry joined the Montreal Canadiens for the 2015 NHL Trade Deadline, signing a six-year deal in the offseason after the Habs’ playoff run and rejoined for another four seasons a year before the end of the contract. He had become a regular at Montreal soon after arriving, and the new deal nearly ended his career.

That plan worked last season. Border restrictions meant his family couldn’t easily travel between the United States and Montreal, creating tension off the ice for the Canadians’ best defender. On the ice, the Habs had similar problems at their own blue line, using Dominique Ducharme’s defensive system that just wasn’t working, and when the coach was fired Petry almost admitted he had given up on the coach and his failed tactics, which im play of the defender was clearly visible.

With the arrival of Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes as new bosses in the front office, they quickly shed light on Petry’s family situation and stated that they would look into a deal in their Star Blue Liner. Petry had reverted to his usual self under the more logical structures of Martin St-Louis and indicated he wanted to stay to play for the new manager, but the message from the management staff never wavered, suggesting that the situation was getting behind didn’t change the scenes.

In fact, Petry (along with Ryan Poehling) was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 6 for Mike Matheson and a draft pick. Tonight, Petry will play the Habs for the first time since February 2015, when he was a member of the Edmonton Oilers.

There’s certainly a mix of appreciation for the former player for his years with the team and mockery of how his tenure came to an end. Unfortunately for fans, they can’t make a direct comparison between him and the player who replaced him as Matheson has yet to play a game and is expected to be out for the next two months with a stomach strain.

Despite Petry’s departure and the absence of both his backup and defensive partner Joel Edmundson last season, the Canadians’ defense has held together quite well. The rookies have seen periods of shaky play in recent games, but they also held their ground well enough to keep the Habs competitive until the end.

The bigger problem, and it’s a well-known one, is that the team didn’t muster enough offense. They were ruled out in Detroit despite keeping the Red Wings on goal most of the night, and Nick Suzuki’s fine overall record was the only highlight of Saturday’s game in Washington. While they have players who can score goals and they created some chances through a more creative attacking approach, they are nowhere near the four goals they scored on opening night. Perhaps returning to the setting of their biggest production yet and their only win is the answer.

They need to score a few goals to match Sidney Crosby, who started the season with six points in two games. The Nova Scotian shows no signs of slowing down in his 18th NHL season after turning 35 in the summer, and Pittsburgh is leading the league as a result.

The Penguins already have 11 players with at least one goal, and Crosby is one of three on the team with two. A strong power play is part of that offensive outburst early in the season, something else the Canadians can’t hope to match with their current construction and man advantage alignments. They have to limit the times Pittsburgh wins a man, but that’s a tough one for the young defense, which is facing this powerful offense for the first time.

It all sounds like Montreal is headed for another loss, which is very likely to be the case for most games this year, but even last season, during one of the worst losses of a miserable season, they did a 6-3 scored win. This year’s young Habs team is looking to keep proving themselves while some of the veterans like Matheson and Edmundson are sidelined and there’s always a chance of an upset with this attitude.