Montreal @ Calgary preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 15, 2018 ) Montreal 3, Calgary 2

The Calgary Flames won their first seven games with Geoff Ward behind the bench but have hit their first rough patch under their interim coach with back-to-back losses at home. The Flames will look to earn salvage a split of a four-game homestand on Thursday night when they host the Montreal Canadiens, who have won the last three in the series.

The Flames scored 28 goals during their winning streak but were limited to one tally in losses to Metropolitan Division foes Carolina (4-0) and Pittsburgh (4-1). "It was a game where we've got to come out there and we've got to win," forward Sean Monahan said after the setback to the Penguins. "We don't want to lose two games in a row. Good hockey teams don't do that." The Canadiens opened their seven-game road trip with a 3-1 victory over Vancouver, improving to 8-4-3 away from home. "That's a gutsy, character win for sure on the road," forward Max Domi said. "... Overall it was a gutsy effort and we grinded it out, and it's a great way to start a road trip."

TV: 9 p.m. ET, TSN2, RDS (Montreal), Sportsnet West (Calgary)

ABOUT THE CANADIENS (16-12-6): Defenseman Shea Weber extended his point streak to four games with a power-play goal in Vancouver to push his season totals to 11 tallies and 28 points in 34 games. The 34-year-old captain is doing it at both ends of the ice, leading Montreal with a plus-11 and 66 blocked shots while also topping the team in ice time. "The puck's been finding him in the offensive zone, and he's a force in our end," goaltender Carey Price said. "There's no question that he's a big presence in our locker room."

ABOUT THE FLAMES (18-14-4): Johnny Gaudreau finally found his scoring touch once the calendar turned to December, scoring five times in seven games this month to match his output in the first 29 contests of the season. Gaudreau, who failed to score in his last 10 games of November, has two goals and nine assists in 10 games versus Montreal. Netminder David Rittich, who had a five-start winning streak snapped in Saturday's loss to Carolina, has surrendered five goals while splitting a pair of starts against the Canadiens.

OVERTIME

1. Price is 7-5-1 with a 2.59 goals-against average versus Calgary.

2. Monahan has six goals and as many assists in a dozen meetings versus Montreal.

3. The Canadiens are 4-for-8 on the power play over the past four games.

PREDICTION: Flames 3, Canadiens 2