NHL: 5 things to know for Thursday night

The Habs and Jets go head-to-head, the Senators try to extend their streak and the Canucks bid to open up more daylight in the playoff race. Those stories plus round 1 of the Connor McDavid Bowl are among our five things to know for Thursday's NHL games.

Canadiens look to keep Jets grounded

Although they were the first National Hockey League team to hit the century mark in points, the Montreal Canadiens (46-20-8) weren't overjoyed with how they arrived there, picking up a single in a 3-2 overtime loss Tuesday to Nashville.

Reaching 100 points put the Habs one point up on the New York Rangers and divisional rival Tampa Bay Lightning for first place overall. A more pressing concern is Thursday's visit to Winnipeg (38-24-12), where the Jets are also coming off a loss, 5-2 to Vancouver on Tuesday. Montreal has taken 10 of its last 12 meetings with Winnipeg.

Montreal does have an opportunity to officially lock up a playoff spot with a win (though it's pretty much a no-doubter for the post-season) and will go with backup Dustin Tokarski in goal. Up front, they'll look to a hot Brendan Gallagher. The smallish forward has scored in three straight games, raising his season's total to 22 goals.

The Jets will likely turn to Ondrej Pavelec in goal as he's riding a personal five-game winning streak. Pavelec, though, hasn't had much luck with the Canadiens. He's 0-7-0 lifetime against Montreal.

​Senators' streak up against Rangers

So, how do the Ottawa Senators (37-24-11) like their perch in the second Eastern Conference wild card spot? Mum's the word as the Sens try to extend their winning streak to eight games and stay ahead of Boston and Florida in the standings. They face a tough opponent in the Rangers (46-19-7), who have 99 points — a six-point edge over the Islanders for the Metropolitan lead with a couple of games in hand.

For Ottawa, Andrew Hammond has a chance to match another NHL record. The Senators netminder is 14-0-1 in his first 15 NHL starts, putting him one away from the league mark for consecutive games with points at the start of a goaltender's career, held by Patrick Lalime with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Hammond was up to his usual brilliance Monday in a 5-2 win against San Jose and got a little help from his friends.

Cam Talbot's been impressive as well for the Rangers, filling in for the injured Henrik Lundqvist by providing a 15-4-3 record. Lundqvist, coming back from a throat injury, is expected to back up Talbot Thursday and start on the weekend.

Canucks aim to capitalize

Vancouver (43-26-4) has won three in a row, the latest Tuesday, downing the Jets 5-2 after trailing 2-0. That's allowed the Canucks to build their advantage over Calgary to four points. Vancouver catches the Colorado Avalanche (33-28-12) at the end of a five-game road trip where they've dropped three in a row.

Radim Vrbata's produced seven points in the last three games, including three goals, to pace the offence.

McDavid Bowl in Buffalo

At the opposite end of the spectrum, the Arizona Coyotes (22-44-8) arrive in Buffalo (20-46-7) and can expect a warm reception from the fans at the First Niagara Center. With a five-point lead over the last-place Sabres, the Coyotes can help assure that Buffalo finishes with the NHL's worst record. That would give the Sabres the best chance of landing Connor McDavid with the top pick in the June draft, and the guarantee of getting either McDavid or Jack Eichel, the presumptive No. 2 pick.

The two teams meet again Monday in Phoenix, so if Thursday's outcome doesn't send the Sabres deeper into the NHL basement, there's always round 2 of the McDavid Bowl.

Leafs look to spoil Panthers' plans

Rounding out the Thursday evening line-up, the Toronto Maple Leafs (27-41-6) welcome the Florida Panthers (33-26-14) to the Air Canada Centre. The Leafs,13 points up on Buffalo (so pretty secure that they won't finish last) are carrying a six-game losing streak.

The Panthers have much more to play for, trailing the final-wild-card Senators by five points, with Boston in between, four points ahead of the Panthers.