The Detroit Red Wings return home for their first game in front of the home fans at Little Caesars Arena in the new year, and they'll be hoping to maintain a winning streak against an Original 6 rival.
The Montreal Canadiens are in town, and the Red Wings will be looking for their third win in as many games against Le Bleu-Blanc-Rouge. Both wins came at Bell Centre.
Goaltender Jonathan Bernier is expected to get the nod in net for Detroit. The Quebec native sports a 1.50 goals against average and .962 save percentage against his hometown team, making him the obvious choice to start tonight.
A matchup against Montreal could be just what Detroit needs, as they've just won a single game in their past nine. Their most recent matchup in the
Windy City was a 4-2 setback at the hands of the Blackhawks, a contest that saw them blow a 2-0 lead.
Their record of 10-30-3 is unfortunately the worst in the NHL. Meanwhile, Montreal (18-18-7) has dropped their past six games.
Here are tonight's anticipated line combinations:
Bertuzzi - Larkin - Fabbri
Glendening - Filppula - Zadina
Helm - Nielsen - Erne
Abdelkader - Ehn - Smith
Nemeth - Green
Lashoff - Hronek
Biega - Bowey
Bernier (starting)
Howard