Toronto Maple Leafs at Montreal Canadiens (-155,6)
The Basics
For the 698th time the Montreal Canadiens battle the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Montreal is 6-6-0 this season and had its four-game winning streak snapped in a 6-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Toronto is 1-7-2 and is coming off an overtime loss to the Dallas Stars.
Montreal and Toronto have split the last 10 games against each other.
Air Miles
Toronto will be playing its second road game in a row, third road game in four nights, and fifth and final game of an eight-day road trip.
Toronto is 0-4 in its last four 3-in-4 situations.
Montreal is playing its second game in a row and third game in four nights.
Net Notes
Toronto has Jonas Gustavsson and Vesa Toskala back from injury.
The most likely scenario has Gustavsson starting Friday at Buffalo and Vesa Toskala playing Saturday.
"It might be a good idea to get Vesa in there,” said Leafs coach Ron Wilson. “Three games in four nights might be a bit much for Jonas right now."
Carey Price will make his first start in six games Friday against the Blackhawks and could get the call on Saturday with a solid performance.
“(Price) started the season and he played some strong games for us,” coach Jacques Martin said. “(Jaroslav Halak) got the opportunity to play in five games and we’re looking for Carey to help us win some games.
Over-Whelming Numbers
Despite giving up a league high 4.2 goals/game, Toronto has gone over the total in just six of its 10 games. Montreal is giving up a more respectable 3.17 goals/game and has a 6-6 O/U record.
The last seven games between Montreal and Toronto have gone over the total.
Detroit Red Wings at Calgary Flames (-135, 6)
The Basics
The Detroit Red Wings have started the season slowly at 4-4-3, while the Calgary Flames have been one of the league’s best at 7-3-1.
"We've been through some streaks that haven't been very pretty,'' Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. "But I think this might be the worst start I've been involved in.''
Detroit Road Wings
Detroit will be completing a road trip has included: two games in extra time, a loss despite registering 49 shots, and two third-period comebacks.
Calgary is enjoying a homestand where it plays five games between October 14 and November 3.
"This stretch, we have to take advantage of it because after this we're pretty busy and don't have too many breaks between games," defenceman Jay Bouwmeester said.
It A’int Over ‘Till It’s Over
The Wings scored four times in the third period to earn a victory Tuesday against Vancouver and escaped with a point in Edmonton after trailing 5-1 in the second.
Detroit’s late-game heroics do not bode well for a Calgary Flames team that has had difficulty maintaining leads.
In its last game, Calgary blew a 2-0 lead to the Avalanche, including a game-winning goal by Wojtek Wolski that had coach Brent Sutter in a rage.
"A terrible goal to give up," said Sutter. "Everyone standing around on the ice watching someone walk into the slot and shoot the puck."
How Deep is Your Team?
Detroit has been one of the deepest teams in the league over the past few years, but personnel changes and injuries have left the Red Wings with many new faces.
"Every night we play with six forwards who didn’t play for us last year," said coach Mike Babcock.
To make matters worse, Valtteri Filppula suffered a broken wrist Thursday and will be out six to eight weeks.
In Calgary, team depth has been the main factor behind the Flames’ league-leading 3.82 goals/game average.
“We really have three, or even, four number one centremen,” assistant coach Rob Cookson said.