Canadiens Pre Game
Canadiens Preview And Lines: Laine Looks To Maintain Momentum

The Montreal Canadiens (13-16-3) will once again face the Detroit Red Wings (13-16-4), however this game will take place at the Bell Centre, with the puck drop scheduled for 7 pm ET.
The Habs emerged with the win on Friday thanks to the excellent play of the fourth line, as Jake Evans, Joel Armia, and Emil Heineman did most of the heavy lifting versus the Red Wings. Evans, playing in his 300th career game, scored a goal and an assist, pushing his season totals to 18 points in 32 games, a rather encouraging scoring rate given his usage.
As per usual, Patrik Laine ended up stealing the show, scoring his seventh goal in just eight games with the Canadiens. He’s currently on pace to score 51 goals in a 58-game prorated season, and though we can’t expect him to maintain his incredible production on the powerplay, it’s always entertaining to see a player in a Canadiens uniform find the back of the net with regularity.
ON TOPIC: Canadiens Highlights: Patrik Laine Delivers Again, Evans Shines
There’s been no word on whether Samuel Montembeault or Cayden Primeau will be given the start. Montembeault played on Friday, which would usually lead to the back-up taking the mantle in the second leg of back-to-back games, but as we’ve seen in the last few seasons, the Habs simply do not trust Primeau, limiting his starts as often as possible. The 26-year-old netminder has only received one start this month, and that was on December 1, versus the Boston Bruins.
As for newcomer Alexandre Carrier, he’s set to play in his second game with the Habs after a quiet but efficient showing on Friday. His stability on the back-end is exactly that the doctor ordered for the Canadiens and their chaotic defensive setup.
We should also note the Canadiens are set to hold a media availability around 5 pm ET. If there’s any additional roster information available at that time, we will update our preview.
If you are interested in the view from the other side of the rink, we recommend you visit our sister site, Detroit Hockey Now.
Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup
Cole Caufield | Nick Suzuki | Juraj Slafkovsky |
Alex Newhook | Kirby Dach | Josh Anderson |
Owen Beck | Christian Dvorak | Brendan Gallagher |
Patrik Laine | Jake Evans | Joel Armia |
Mike Matheson | Alexandre Carrier |
Lane Hutson | Logan Mailloux |
Arber Xhekaj | David Savard |
Jakub Dobes |
Samuel Montembeault |
Detroit Red Wings Projected Lineup
Tarasenko – Larkin – Raymond
Debrincat – Copp – Kane
Rasmussen – Compher – Motte
Veleno – Kasper – Fischer
Edvinsson – Seider
Chiarot – Petry
Gustafsson – Holl
Lyon
How to Watch The Montreal Canadiens vs. The Detroit Red Wings, December 20, 2024.
Game 33 of the regular season will be aired on City TV, Sportsnet East, and TVA Sports. Once the game is over, an instant recap complete with highlights will be available on Montreal Hockey Now.