The Eastern Conference playoff picture changes on a daily basis. The contenders for most of the playoff spots are tightly-bunched, making every remaining game important.
The Montreal-Detroit matchup Thursday night can certainly be classified as pivotal. The Canadiens will venture into Detroit with 84 points, while the Red Wings have 82. Detroit could pull even with Montreal in the Atlantic Division via a regulation victory, though the Canadiens have a game in hand.
The Canadiens (37-20-10) collected a 3-2 overtime victory against Boston on Tuesday, as Cole Caufield scored his 40th goal of the season with 22 seconds remaining in overtime.
“This was a pretty important game for us as a team,” Caulfield said. “At the end of the day, it’s a big two points. Obviously a hell of a job by our team to get it done. Obviously (scoring 40) is pretty special, but it says a lot about where our team is headed.”
Nick Suzuki set up Caulfield, who became Montreal’s first 40-goal scorer since Vincent Damphousse in 1993-94.
“I was just trying to work the puck around the offensive zone,” Suzuki said. “I pulled up (got the puck) to Cole. He made a nice play going to the net. It’s what (Caufield) does. Forty is just a start for him probably. It’s a special night for Cole and a huge two points for our team. He’s the OT guy. I try to find him in good spots. I thought we wore them down as the game went on.”
The first two meetings between the Canadiens and Red Wings this season have produced lopsided results. Montreal spoiled Detroit’s season opener with a 5-1 victory on Oct. 9. Detroit won the rematch on Canadian soil, 4-0, as John Gibson recorded a 27-save shutout on Jan. 10. The game on Thursday will decide the season series.
The Red Wings (37-23-8) snapped a three-game losing streak Monday with a 5-2 victory over Calgary that began a four-game homestand. Patrick Kane broke out of a scoring slump with two goals. Kane had notched just two goals since Jan. 10.
“We all want to be known as big-game players,” Kane said. “If you have the right mindset and attitude coming into it that you’re going to play confident, going to get the job done, more often than not you play with a little bit of an edge and kind of put together a better showing individually and team-wise too. We all want to be good this time of year.”
The offensive boost is needed for a team missing centers Dylan Larkin and Andrew Copp due to lower-body injuries.
“We got some really strong performances from some guys that elevated their games and we’re going to continue to need that to have success,” coach Todd McLellan said. “It was good to see some of the old Kaner, J.T. (Compher) and (Alex DeBrincat) and a few others get rewarded for their elevated play.”
The five-goal output on Monday was the most by the Red Wings since a 5-1 victory over Winnipeg on Jan. 24.
