CANADIENS (21-8-4) at BLUE JACKETS (22-5-4)
7 p.m. ET; FS-O, SNE, RDS, NHL.TV
Canadiens team scope
The Montreal Canadiens have their second straight chance to stop a long winning streak when the face the Columbus Blue Jackets, who have won 11 in a row. They lost 4-2 to the Minnesota Wild at Bell Centre on Thursday as the Wild extended their win streak to nine straight. The last time the Canadiens played in Columbus they lost 10-0 on Nov. 4. "It's not going to be easy," forward Brendan Gallagher said Thursday. "We better be ready to play hard. We can see what happens if we don't in that building. There's no excuse for us not to be ready. We all remember that feeling. It was embarrassing to be in the rink that day." Backup goaltender Al Montoya allowed all 10 goals and coach Michel Therrien said Thursday that Montoya would start Friday after Carey Price started the previous seven games. Therrien said the Canadiens would not be seeking redemption against the Blue Jackets. "It's another game," he said. "We understand they have a very good team and it's going to be a good challenge for everyone." They did not have a morning skate Friday.
Blue Jackets team scope
The Columbus Blue Jackets are atop the NHL standings this late in the season for the first time. They are tied with the Chicago Blackhawks with 48 points but have played four fewer games. Their 11-game winning streak is the longest in the NHL this season and two more than the previous Blue Jackets record. They also are 12-0-1 in their past 13 games to tie the team record 13-game point streak (12-0-1) from March 18 to April 11, 2015. They have outscored opponents 44-17 during the win streak, and lead the League with 3.42 goals per game. After beating the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins 7-1 on Thursday, the Blue Jackets play the eighth of their NHL-high 19 back-to-backs. They are 10-2-3 in those games, including 3-1-3 in the second game. Coach John Tortorella said he doesn't see the 10-0 defeat of the Canadiens last month as a watershed moment for the Blue Jackets. "That's an aberration, what happened," he said Thursday. "We move by that game and get ready for each and every game here. Turning point? I don't know. I just want us to consistently get ready each day to be the best we can be and then see where the chips fall." The Blue Jackets did not have a morning skate Friday.
Canadiens projected lineup
Max Pacioretty -- Phillip Danault -- Alexander Radulov
Paul Byron -- Torrey Mitchell -- Brendan Gallagher
Artturi Lehkonen -- Tomas Plekanec -- Brian Flynn
Chris Terry -- Michael McCarron -- Daniel Carr
Joel Hanley -- Shea Weber
Al Montoya
Carey Price
Scratched: Alexei Emelin, Sven Andrighetto
Injured: Andrei Markov (lower body), Alex Galchenyuk (knee), David Desharnais (knee), Andrew Shaw (concussion), Greg Pateryn (ankle)
Blue Jackets projected lineup
Brandon Saad -- Alexander Wennberg -- Nick Foligno
Boone Jenner -- Brandon Dubinsky - Cam Atkinson
Matt Calvert -- William Karlsson -- Josh Anderson
Scott Hartnell -- Lukas Sedlak - Sam Gagner
Markus Nutivaara -- Ryan Murray
Scratched: Scott Harrington, Dalton Prout
Injured: David Clarkson (lower body)
Status report
Emelin will miss a second straight game because of paternity leave. … Prout was recalled Friday from a conditioning assignment with Cleveland of the American Hockey League. … Bobrovsky is expected to start after making 25 saves against the Penguins. Tortorella started Curtis McElhinney against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday so Bobrovsky would be ready for the back-to-back against the Penguins and Canadiens.
Who's hot
Plekanec has nine points (two goals, seven assists) in his past eight games. He had seven points (one goal, six assists) in his first 25 games. … Atkinson has seven goals and 13 points during his eight-game point streak. He is two assists from 100 in the NHL and one point shy of 200. Gagner has 20 points in the past 20 games.
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