Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports

• Juraj Slafkovský will be closely watching Brendan Gallagher to gauge whether his own intensity is as high as the veteran’s standard. [TVA Sports]
• He’s just one of several players who aren’t sure what to expect after the drop of the puck tonight. [RDS]
• The Habs are bracing for a long, physical series with Washington. [NHL.com]
• The players commend Martin St-Louis on his ability to read the room and know which coaching tactic is needed in a certain situation. [The Athletic]
• Five keys for the Canadiens to beat the Capitals. [TVA Sports]
• The Athletic models the Capitals as two-to-one favourites over the Canadiens. [The Athletic]
• Spencer Carbery sees a confident, assertive player in Ivan Demidov that he will have to gameplan around. [TVA Sports]
• Past cases of players making instant impacts in the post-season to open their NHL careers. [TVA Sports]
• Demidov already has his first sponsorship deal in North America. [TVA Sports]
• Four candidates to elevate their game to a team-leading level. [TVA Sports]
• Photos from the Habs’ touchdown in Washington. [Canadiens.com]
• Florian Xhekaj showed some of the “unicorn” traits this season that Nick Bobrov saw in his draft year. [TVA Sports]
• Carbery encouraged the Capitals players to bring their families to the rink on Easter Sunday. Alexander Ovechkin knew the underlying reason for the skate: it was their last chance to be dedicated fathers until the playoffs were done. [La Presse]
• Linus Ullmark and the Ottawa Senators were no match for the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 1. [NHL.com]
• Newcomer Logan Stankoven played a key role in the Carolina Hurricanes opening win over the New Jersey Devils. [NHL.com]
• The Vegas Golden Knights are out to a 1-0 series lead over the Minnesota Wild. [Knights On Ice]
• After 15 NHL seasons, Jeff Skinner is finally set to play his first post-season game. [NHL.com]
• A busy season of transactions made the Colorado Avalanche a deeper team. [NHL.com]
• Gabriel Landeskog could be in Colorado’s lineup tonight for the injured Ross Colton. [Sportsnet]
• Colorado signed Zakhar Bardakov to a one-year entry-level contract. [TSN]
• Zayne Parekh and Porter Martone will play exhibition games for Canada ahead of the World Championship. [TSN]
• Players participating in the post-season could be called to testify in the Hockey Canada sexual assault case. [The Athletic]