CANADIENS GAME DAY

Canadiens play third game against Leafs this season

Here are five things you should know about the Canadiens-Maple Leafs game at Air Canada Centre Saturday (7 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN 690 Radio):

1.

The matchup The oldest rivalry in the NHL has lost some of its lustre this season because the Leafs are good and the Canadiens are very bad. This is the third of four meetings between these teams and Toronto won the first two games at the Bell Centre. The Leafs needed overtime to win 4-3 on Oct. 14 and romped to a 6-0 win on Nov. 18. The Canadiens will return to Toronto to close the season on April 7.

2.

Price getting closer

Goaltender Carey Price, who has been out since he suffered a concussion on Feb. 20, accompanied the team to Toronto, but hasn’t been cleared to play. The start will go to Charlie Lindgren, who has lost his last three starts after shutting out the Philadelphia Flyers on Feb. 26. Lindgren gave up 16 goals in the three losses and that left the rookie with a 4-7-2 record, a 2.95 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage. 3. Lehkonen finding the range

Artturi Lehkonen’s second NHL season has been marked by bad luck and injuries, but the Finn has regained his scoring touch, which produced 18 goals in 73 games last season. Lehkonen, pictured, has four goals in the past four games for a total of nine goals in 55 games. He has been playing on the second line with Alex Galchenyuk and Jacob De La Rose.

4.

Leafs weathering storm

Toronto star Auston Matthews has missed the last eight games with a shoulder injury, but the Maple Leafs haven’t missed a beat. They have won three in a row and are 6-2-2 in their last 10 games. Starting goaltender Frederick Andersen is day-to-day with an upper-body injury, which opened the door for Curtis McElhinney, who has been a winner in each of the past two games to boost his record to 9-4-1.

5.

The trade you don’t make

There was pressure on Leafs GM Lou Lamoriello to trade James Van Riemsdyk at the deadline because he is in a position to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Lamoriello elected to keep him because he didn’t see a player who represented an upgrade. It has been a good decision because Van Riemsdyk has five goals in the last two games for a career-high 31.