Watch Live Montreal Canadiens vs Colorado Avalanche

At the top of the Eastern North Eastern tree there is no star and no fairy but there is the Le Bleu-Blanc-et-Rouge, La Sainte-Flanelle, the Habs… that’s the Montreal Canadiens. And the Canadian team is sitting slightly pretty with 40 points, and at time of press Montreal have pushed on after busting a three game winless run (losing to the Flyers, Leafs and Wings) by beating the Bruins JUST 3-4. It might be a jolly festive season for the Canadiens after all.

Will the winning continue when the Canadiens face the Avalanche on Sunday?  

After a shaky run the Colorado team is certainly a side to be reckoned with.  Much of the good times at Colorado of late being thanks to Tomas Fleischmann, who has now notched up his first Avalanche hat trick, and hoped to play his part in helping the Avalanche establish a season best winning streak of five games when they hosted the Ottawa Senators on Friday night.

And what a big game that was!

It was another come-from-behind game, as for a second time at the Pepsi Center this week, the Avalanche staged a late third-period rally.  The Avalanche tied the game 5-5 with 3:13 remaining in regulation when Ryan O'Reilly drove to the net to convert Daniel Winnik's pass, finding the top right corner past Elliott, and then onto a 6-5 overtime win thanks to a goal at 2:36 of OT by Matt Duchene, his second of the game.

"It's amazing," Duchene said. "It's my first (overtime goal) ever. It's a pretty great feeling. It's one of those things where you score and you kind of think, 'Did I just score?' You kind of black out. It's pretty cool. It's definitely a pretty good feeling and a huge win for us.”

It was the Avs' fifth consecutive win, and moved them into sole possession of first place in the Northwest Division, two points up on Vancouver (but don’t forget the Canucks have played three fewer games).

"We make it interesting, don't we?" Avalanche coach Joe Sacco said.

Earlier in the week, on Monday, the Avalanche scored goals in the third period to record a 7-5 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.

As merry as the man in the big red suit, Duhene, who has 10 goals and 7 assists in the past 12 games and has taken over the team scoring lead with 34 points, said, "It's Christmas time, so I guess there were a few gifts out there." "That one just came to me and I just had to get it off the ice and put it in."

Fleischmann has played a big part in the last four games of their current streak; he’s scored five goals and sett up five others in seven games since he arrived.

"We're trying to put him in a position where he can succeed," coach Joe Sacco said. "I think it's a fresh start for him." Fleischmann's surge showed little signs of slowing on Wednesday, as he completed his first career hat trick in a 4-3 win over Chicago.

Fleischmann is a big reason Colorado has tied its season-high four-game winning streak, and is in position for its longest run since winning six in a row Jan. 9-24.

Montreal’s last game was also a close one, most interesting as it was a top of the table clash with the Bruins.

Max Pacioretty had a goal and an assist in his second game since being called up from the minors and the Canadiens snapped out of their season worse three-game losing run as they beat the Boston Bruins 4-3 on Thursday.

"I told people I was confident in my game last night, and hopefully I can build off that," said Pacioretty, named the game's first star. "I think our line did build off that and had a pretty good game."

Michael Cammalleri and Maxim Lapierre also scored for the Canadiens (who are now 19-11-2), who would have dropped off first in the Northeast Division for the first time since Oct. 23 with a loss. Thankfully for their fans it never was.

But don’t forget the Bruins (now 16-10-4) still have two games in hand and rest just four points back in the division standings.

So between the Canadiens and the Avalanche, we should see a lovely scrap and a close game.

Prediction:  Canedians are back to their winning ways, and will push on past the Avalanche 4-3

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