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The Montreal Canadiens have another opportunity to eliminate the Ottawa Senators from the Stanley Cup Playoffs, this time in front of their fans at the Bell Centre for Game 5.
"It's definitely a tough building to play in [for the visiting team]," said Max Pacioretty after the Canadiens held an optional morning skate. "It's our job to get the fans into the game and get Ottawa to lose momentum."
The Canadiens won their first two games of this series on home ice after finishing with the League's 3rd-best home record this season.
At home or on the road, matching Ottawa's desperation remains the biggest challenge the Canadiens face with a 3-1 series lead. The Senators proved their mettle in Game 4, showing once again they feel comfortable with their backs against the wall, just like they did in chasing down a 14-point deficit in the standings to make the post-season.
As for the adjustments Montreal can make, Canadiens head coach Michel Therrien boiled it down to execution in his post-morning skate comments.
"There's no sense of trying to change everything," said Therrien, who has confirmed he's opting for the same lineup he had in Game 4. "We all know they got the urgency to win [Game 4], there's no doubt about that. And we understand tonight, for us, we're going to have the same urgency [for Game 5]."
Each game in this series has been decided by a goal, and Brendan Gallagher expects the same tight-checking style of hockey in Game 5.
"We know their style, they know ours," said Brendan Gallagher. "There hasn't been a lot of room out there to score goals. It's the little mistakes, the little bounces that make the difference and it isn't going to be any different tonight."
Gallagher believes a return to the fundamentals of Montreal's system will tip the scales in his team's favour.
"We have to bear down on the little details of the game. We pride ourselves on winning 50-50 battles and being on the right side of the puck, and we have to get back to that," he said.
Sportsnet Magazine: An all-access pass to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including a behind-the-scenes look at Coach's Corner and exclusive camera angles in Montreal. Download it right now on your iOS or Android device, free to Sportsnet ONE subscribers.
Therrien had a more straightforward outlook on what will be the key to the Canadiens wrapping up the series Friday night.
"It's pretty simple," Therrien said with a smile. "We gotta play our best game of the series. We played a lot of important games throughout the course of the season; big games, especially here at the Bell Centre. We're prepared. I've got no doubt in my mind that we're going to have a solid game tonight."
The only players absent from Friday's skate were P.K. Subban and Brandon Prust.
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