from Jeff Svoboda of the CBJ website,

Now comes perhaps the most important game of the rest of the season. The Canadiens come to Columbus just two points ahead of the Blue Jackets for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

With Columbus holding the tiebreaker over Montreal, a Blue Jackets victory in regulation would knot the teams in points and put the CBJ on the right side of the playoff line. A Columbus loss in regulation would put the Jackets four points down with just five Blue Jackets games left this season. Any combination of overtime would make the game in hand the Blue Jackets hold a critical factor in the final sprint to the finish line of the regular season.

The key is to blend the confidence the team has gained through its past two shutout victories, won by a combined score of 9-0, and the urgency needed to not rest on their laurels.

"They should be confident, but I trust they are going to keep it level here," Tortorella said Tuesday night in his postgame availability. "We won a couple of games but we haven't gained on Montreal. Gained the other night, didn't gain tonight, so we have to keep on banging away here."

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from Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette,