Preview: Canadiens At Blackhawks

[April 09, 2014]  Losing just 19 of their first 79 games in regulation has only been good enough to land the Chicago Blackhawks in third place in the Central Division. They'll look to stay within reach of second when they host the surging Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday. Montreal has won two in a row and is inching closer to locking up second place in the Atlantic Division.

The Blackhawks have been no slouches themselves, reeling off three straight wins despite playing without injured star forwards Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. But Chicago may feel their absences against a Montreal team that boasts a 23-15-2 mark outside Quebec and has allowed the fourth-fewest goals in the Eastern Conference to date. It's the second of two meetings between the teams, with the Canadiens pulling out a 2-1 overtime victory back on Jan. 11.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, TSN, RDS (Montreal), CSN (Chicago)

ABOUT THE CANADIENS (45-27-7): Montreal likely will have some reinforcements when it takes to the ice against the defending Stanley Cup champs as forward Dale Weise and defenseman Josh Gorges both returned to practice Monday and are expected to be in the lineup. Gorges, who hasn't played since suffering a broken bone in his finger in early March, doesn't want to upset what has been good team chemistry in his absence. "The guys played unbelievable hockey these couple of weeks," he said. "When you watch the games, you see the commitment to detail and the perseverance."

ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (45-19-15): Improved play from several role players has created a unique problem for coach Joel Quenneville. Jeremy Morin, Joakim Nordstrom and Peter Regin all contributed positively to the Blackhawks' three-game winning streak — and with Toews and Kane due back for the start of the postseason, Quenneville will have to decide how to dole out the ice time. "We think about that probably every minute of the day," Quenneville told the Chicago Sun-Times when asked about the impending issue.

OVERTIME

1. The home team has prevailed in the last nine games of the all-time series dating back to January 2003.
   

2. Morin has recorded two goals and two assists during his three-game point streak.
   

3. Canadiens LW Max Pacioretty has scored 10 goals in his last eight games.
   

PREDICTION: Blackhawks 3, Canadiens 2

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