Hockey Night in Canada: Canucks Host Leafs, Habs Face Penguins

Hockey Night in Canada lands on Halloween, and the two headline games both start at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday. The Vancouver Canucks host the Toronto Maple Leafs at Rogers Arena, and the Montreal Canadiens host the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Bell Centre. It is the busiest Halloween game day since 2015, with 10 games on the schedule and four shown on Sportsnet in Canada.

The two home teams arrive in very different form. Montreal are 8-3-2 and going for a fifth straight win. Vancouver are 3-11-1, last in the Pacific Division, and still looking for a run of results that holds together for a full game.

Canadiens chase five in a row against Crosby and the Penguins

Montreal return home after sweeping a four-game road trip, capped by a 5-2 win in Dallas. They have done it without captain Nick Suzuki. NHL.com says Suzuki is expected to miss his fifth straight game with an upper-body injury and could be out for another one to three weeks. Forward Ivan Demidov is also out, and defenseman Mike Matheson is day to day with a lower-body injury after missing the Dallas game. Alex Newhook has stepped in as the first-line center during the road trip.

Pittsburgh are 5-6-2, but they have taken points from three straight games at 2-0-1. Sidney Crosby remains the player Montreal have to stop. He needs one power-play point to tie Phil Housley for 10th place in NHL history at 612, and he has 73 points in 56 career games against Montreal. Evgeni Malkin has 67 points in 53 games against them, and Pittsburgh have taken points in 21 of the last 27 meetings.

The teams already met once this season, with Pittsburgh winning 6-5 in overtime on October 3. Montreal will want a cleaner game at home, with a young team that keeps finding goals from different lines while its captain watches.

Canucks need a full 60 minutes against the Leafs

In Vancouver, puck drop is 4 p.m. PT at Rogers Arena. Toronto are 7-6-2 with 16 points and sit sixth in the Atlantic Division. This is the last stop on their four-game trip through the Pacific Division, and they come in on a two-game losing run after a 5-4 loss in Seattle on Wednesday. Reuters reported that Toronto played that game without John Tavares and Kirill Marchenko, both out with lower-body injuries, and managed a season-low 22 shots.

There is better news on defense. Former Canuck Chris Tanev, out since October 10, looks set to return for Toronto, and Dakota Joshua could also return for his first game of the season. Vancouver placed Filip Chytil on injured reserve on Friday after his injury in San Jose. Jacob Quillan was called up and could debut against his former team.

Vancouver's problem is not effort, it is endings. On Thursday they gave up three goals in 2 minutes 50 seconds in the third period and lost 3-2 in San Jose. Reuters put their recent run at 1-10-1 in the last 12 games. Elias Pettersson gives them a chance most nights. He comes in on a six-game point streak with 16 points in 15 games, and Jonathan Lekkerimaki leads the team with six goals. History at home also helps. The Canucks are 18-2-1 in their last 21 home games against Toronto, a record that will be tested hard by a Leafs team that needs the two points before flying home.

Friday night: Flames pour in six against Seattle

The weekend started with a loud result in Calgary. The Flames beat the Seattle Kraken 6-2 at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday. Matt Coronato had the first four-point game of his career, with one goal and three assists. Joel Farabee added a goal and two assists, and Morgan Frost and Matvei Gridin each had a goal and an assist. Aydar Suniev and Ryan Strome scored the other Calgary goals. Freddy Gaudreau and Mackie Samoskevich scored for Seattle, and starter Philipp Grubauer was pulled after allowing four goals on 14 shots.

Calgary are now 6-7-0, have won five of their last six, and have won five straight at home. It was also their 61st straight win when scoring four or more goals, tying Boston for the second-longest run of that kind in league history. The Flames get no rest. They play the second game of a back-to-back on Saturday night in Denver.

The wider Saturday slate

The rest of the Halloween schedule is full from early afternoon to late night. Chicago play at Boston and St. Louis play at Detroit, both at 1 p.m. ET. Tampa Bay visit Nashville and Edmonton visit the New York Islanders at 2 p.m. ET. Buffalo play at Los Angeles in the afternoon as well. Columbus play at Dallas at 8 p.m. ET, and Calgary close the night at Colorado at 10 p.m. ET at Ball Arena.

What the night means

It is still early, but patterns are forming. Montreal can prove their hot start is real by beating Pittsburgh at home without their captain. Toronto can end a long trip with a win. Vancouver need a result that holds. A Saturday night win over the Leafs would give a team short on confidence something solid to build on.