The Montreal Canadiens (19-10-2) hope to vault back into first place in the Atlantic Division tonight against a conference-last Carolina Hurricanes (8-18-3) team that has scored two goals or less in their last nine games.

No tough lineup decisions will be required tonight, as veteran defenceman Mike Weaver and Danish centre Lars Eller are still not healthy enough to return to action.

As a result, roughly the same line-up that beat the L.A. Kings on Friday is expected to dress tonight, including Sven Andrighetto on the wing and Alex Galchenyuk at centre.

Galchenyuk's transfer to his natural position at centre has been a revelation and Therrien said that managing the positions isn't always easy.

“You need depth at defence and centre, the centre needs to be able to play wing, while the winger usually can’t play centre,” said Coach Michel Therrien prior to the game.

The Hurricanes have lost five straight and have won just two of their last 10 games. Their 61 goals scored is tied for last in the league, although their 83 goals against ranks them a relatively respectable 16th ranking in the league.

The Hurricanes have a large and experienced defence corps led by 22-year-old Justin Faulk who leads the team in scoring with 17 points in 29 games.

Starting goaltender Cam Ward, 30, has a goals against average of 2.46 and a save percentage of .910 this season with a record of 8-11-1.

Habs goaltender Carey Price enters the game with gaudier numbers, including a record of 16-8-1 a GAA of 2.38 and a save percentage of .922.

The Canadiens might be happy to face a team with less offensive thrust than the Kings after Carey Price faced 46 shots in the last outing, a 6-2 win over the L.A. Friday.

The Canadiens, who got a mere 20 shots on net, won in spite of enduring their worst shot differential since December 26, 2009.

The Habs, who are 4-5-1 in their last 10 are ranked 12th in the league with 79 goals against and 15th in goals scored with 83.

With a win the Canadiens could leap ahead of Detroit and Tampa Bay, who have 41 points to the Canadiens’ 40. The Lightning have lost two straight while the Red Wings lost their last outing.

The Habs will have their hands full with 30-year-old Eric Staal, the lanky Thunder Bay native who has scored 40 goals or more twice in his career, although he only scored 21 goals last season and now has 7 goals in 24 games.

Riley Nash is tied with Staal for the points lead among Hurricanes forwards with 16 points. Speedy winger Jeff Skinner has 14 points while Jiri Tlusty has 10 goals but only 3 assists in 28 games this year.