In case they missed it, the signs the Montreal Canadiens saw along the road to Saturday's game read "Beware of Coyotes."
Good advice, and something the Habs should remember until the final horn at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz. Why? Glad you asked.
The Canadiens are 0-2-1 entering the final game of a Western swing. That should be enough to slap them awake … except there is a glow ahead that might distract them. It's Tuesday's home game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, a showdown of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.
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Want more? The 'Yotes won the first time these teams met, back on Feb. 1 when rookie goaltender Louis Domingue, a Montreal native, held off his hometown team while his pack rallied. In Montreal, no less.
"We went in there and played well," coach Dave Tippett told The Arizona Republic. "It was at the end of a trip. We didn't play very well the night before in Ottawa. We played a pretty strong game."
OK, so the Habs are 41-18-6, 25 points better than the Coyotes. Yet, they were embarrassed in losses at San Jose and Anaheim. And while they rallied from 2-0 down, they lost in overtime at Los Angeles. Losing to the Sharks, Ducks and Kings is one thing. Failing against the Coyotes?
At least they know what to do.
"We've got to find a way to choke teams out. It's frustrating that we weren't able to," forward Max Pacioretty told the Canadiens' official website.
That L.A. loss stung, defenseman P.K. Subban said, "but do we have some positives going into our next game? For sure."
One more warning about the Coyotes: Their power play is sixth-best, so they do have fangs. They have four goals in nine tries against the Habs. But they are among the bottom five teams in scoring and team defense. And they face NHL goaltender leader Carey Price, who The Toronto Star says is not only likely to win the Vezina Trophy but the Hart Trophy as league MVP.
The Habs know what the signs say.
"Last game wasn't the outcome we wanted," Tom Gilbert told The Montreal Gazette. "We had a great pushback and now we want to come back with a win. It's always about the last game and we want to go home with some confidence."