After losing to the third worst team in the league, the Montreal Canadiens (32-14-3) will get a chance to bounce back against the league worst Buffalo Sabres (14-33-3) when they host them at the Bell Centre Tuesday night. The game starts at 7:30 and airs on RDS and Sportsnet East.

Match Up



This is the fourth and final meeting between the Habs and Sabres this season. Buffalo has points in each of the three previous meetings, while the Canadiens have a 1-1-1 record against their divisional foes this year.

Tyler Ennis scored what will undoubtedly stand as the goal of the series en route to a 2-1 win in Buffalo on November 28.

What to Watch



Canadiens: Alex Galchenyuk provided the offense for the Habs when they fell 3-2 against the Coyotes on Sunday, with both goals in a losing effort. Galchenyuk came into that game with a career best 32 points, the 15 goals on the season he had at the finish are also a career best.

Sabres: The Sabres are in the midst of an unimaginable 14-game losing streak, one that includes a 0-12-0 record in January. Former Habs captain, Brian Gionta, is having a dreadful season with the last place Sabres, he has just 4 goals and 13 points in 37 games.

What’s at Stake



The Canadiens have one last chance to prove they can hang with the worst of them. The team will get one last crack at the league worst Buffalo Sabres, an opponent that’s already taken five of six possible points from them. Factor in losses this season to the Oilers and now the Coyotes and you could be forgiven for wondering just which end of the standings the Habs deserve to be on.

Who’s Out



It looks like Lars Eller (lower body) will join P.A. Parenteau (concussion) on the sideline Tuesday. Eller left Sunday’s game after being hit hard in the second period. Jacob De La Rose has been called up from Hamilton and may get a chance to play his first career NHL game.

Update: Lars Eller is a game time decision but expected to play against the Sabres. Michel Therrien also indicated that Jacob De La Rose will be in the line up as well, perhaps leaving Manny Malhotra as the odd man out.

The Sabres are missing Mikhail Grigorenko (lower body), Cody McCormick (leg), Marcus Foligno (hand), and goalie Michal Neuvirth (lower body).

What Else



With January coming to an end the Canadiens are set to hand out the Molson Cup award for the month, and to the surprise of no one, Carey Price will once again be honored. With a 7-1-1 record, 1.53 GAA and .951 save percentage, Price is still the only player to be named Habs MVP of the month this season.

Along with the Molson Cup, Price was also named the league’s First Star of the week after posting a 3-0-0 record with two shutouts in the final week of January.

The Question Mark

The Habs motto is: No Excuses. Since they can’t make any, give us your best excuse as to why the Canadiens have struggled so badly against the worst teams in the league.

As always, we’ll be going over your answers on the Montreal Hockey Talk Habs Pregame Show, which comes to you live an hour before each game on montrealhockeytalk.com.