Montreal @ Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 15, 2019 ) Florida 1, Montreal 5

The Montreal Canadiens have been unable to improve their standing in the Eastern Conference playoff race of late as they've dropped three straight contests (0-2-1). Two of those losses have come during their three-game road trip, which concludes Sunday against the Florida Panthers.

Montreal remained two points ahead of Pittsburgh for the second wild-card spot after being blanked 3-0 in Tampa Bay on Saturday. The Canadiens were playing well prior to the trek, going 4-1-2 during a seven-game homestand and earning points in 10 of their previous 11 overall contests (8-1-2). Florida has failed to take advantage of a home-heavy portion of its schedule thus far, going 4-4-0 at BB&T Center during a stretch in which it plays 12 of 13 games in its own building. The Panthers are 1-2-0 on their current seven-game homestand after posting a 3-2 shootout victory over Calgary on Thursday, but with their mediocre results during this stretch, they are likely to miss the playoffs for the 18th time in 21 seasons as they have a double-digit deficit for a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet, RDS (Montreal), FS Florida

ABOUT THE CANADIENS (31-20-7): Max Domi leads the team with 49 points but has been kept off the scoresheet in four of his last five games. The 23-year-old center is close to setting career highs in a number of offensive categories, as he needs two goals and four points to eclipse the personal bests of 18 and 52 he recorded as a rookie with Arizona in 2015-16 and is five assists away from surpassing the 36 he registered with the Coyotes last season. Phillip Danault is one point shy of topping the career high of 40 he collected in 2016-17, but has gone three games without landing on the scoresheet.

ABOUT THE PANTHERS (24-24-8): Vincent Trocheck, who netted the decisive tally in the shootout win over the Flames, is four goals shy of 100 for his career. The 25-year-old center set a career high with 31 tallies last season but has recorded only five in 29 contests this campaign and enters Sunday with an eight-game drought. Mike Hoffman scored his team-leading 26th goal on Thursday and is three away from matching the career high he set in 2015-16 with Ottawa.

OVERTIME

1. Panthers C Aleksander Barkov leads the team with 53 points and needs one tally to hit the 20-goal mark for the fourth consecutive season.

2. Montreal LW Jonathan Drouin's next appearance will be his 300th in the NHL.

3. Florida rookie F Jayce Hawryluk (ankle) returned to the lineup Thursday after missing four games and recorded two hits along with a blocked shot in 6 minutes, 17 seconds of ice time.

PREDICTION: Canadiens 4, Panthers 1