Caps @ Canadiens 3-24-2007 Preview

Washington Capitals (26-49; 65 points; 5th Southeast Division, 14th Eastern Conference, 27th Overall) @ Montreal Canadiens (38-37; 82 points; 3rd Northeast Division, 9th Eastern Conference, 18th Overall):
Caps Game #76, Road Game #38, NHL Game #1,121

Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. 7:05 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WTNT 570-AM. Montreal TV: None. Radio: CJAD 800-AM. Canadian National TV: RDS (in French). NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic feed.

Tonight the Caps finish off a three games in four nights road trip in Montreal. The Caps still haven't won on the road for exactly one month losing six in a row on the road and their last two overall. Montreal is involved in a death struggle for the last playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. The Canadiens have won their last six games at home and three overall. In their most recent outing, the Canadiens won 6-3 in Boston.

What The Natives Are Saying:

Caps.com. Caps.com .pdf game notes.

Open Source Intelligence:

Montreal Gazette: Dangerous opponent, flu bug hurts season. Canadiens.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com AP Wire.

What Do I Expect Tonight?:

The Caps fortunes tonight will rest upon whether or not the Caps can stay out the Penalty Box. That will mostly be up to who the officials are tonight. The Caps are still working out the penalty killing while Montreal is ranked #1 overall on the Power Play. A Caps win in regulation tonight will provide help to the Hurricanes and Rangers who are all tied for 7th in the Eastern Conference with the Habs giving up a game in hand to both teams. The Islanders trail by one point but have two games in hand on the Canadiens and Maple Leafs are two points behind with a game in hand on Montreal.

Caps Nut Official Washington Hockey.com Predict The Score Contest Entry:

Caps 3
Canadiens 5
Winner by Souray

Editorial Note For The Loyal Readers of This Blog:

Due to a prior engagement, I will not be able to watch tonight's game. Therefore, there will be no post-mortem after tonight's game.