Detroit City Wire

The Detroit Red Wings are set to begin a four-game homestand against the Montreal Canadiens at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday night. This Atlantic Division matchup offers the Red Wings an opportunity to earn two important points.

Lucas Raymond emphasized the importance of home games, stating, “We take pride in taking care of our home ice, especially against guys in our division and around us [in the Eastern Conference standings]. It’s a big stretch for us obviously, and I think everyone is looking forward to it.”

The game will start at 7 p.m., with coverage available on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit). Currently, Detroit has not won any of their previous encounters this season against Montreal, losing both prior games.

Alex DeBrincat expressed optimism despite recent setbacks: “I can speak for myself, it feels like almost a new season since then. We know what we’re capable of. We’ve had some tweaks to different things, and it’s been working well. Obviously, the last three games haven’t been as good, but I think it’s more execution based.”

Detroit aims to build on positive aspects from their recent road trip that ended with a 3-2 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. Raymond commented on their performance: “I felt like our defense was good in a lot of stretches... It’s tough to win games when you score one goal, but that’s the reality of it. At the same time, we know we can score and what to do to be successful.”

However, they will face Montreal without Patrick Kane due to an upper-body injury sustained earlier in Dallas. Head coach Todd McLellan noted Kane's status as day-to-day: “[Kane’s injury] started in Dallas,” he confirmed. “Continued on in Philly, and day-to-day for now. We’ll see how he is tomorrow morning.”

Montreal enters Thursday tied with Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins at 52 points each in the standings. They recently achieved their second consecutive victory by overcoming a two-goal deficit against Tampa Bay Lightning.

Nick Suzuki leads Montreal with 47 points this season; Cole Caufield has scored 24 goals while rookie Lane Hutson has provided 36 assists. Goalie Sam Montembeault holds a record of 3-1-1 over his last five starts.

McLellan praised Montreal's head coach Martin St. Louis: “I think [Martin St. Louis] has done an outstanding job... Their key guys are playing well and hitting on all cylinders... I think when Patrik Laine came back in it gave them a boost both offensively and probably morale-wise."