Montreal Canadiens vs. Florida Panthers: 3 things to watch

Division rivals with very different post-season futures face off at the Bell Centre tonight.

The Panthers are on the tail end of a back-to-back, while the Habs play the first of two games in two nights.

Game time: 7:30 p.m. ET 

Here are three things to watch:

1. 44 years joung 

Jaromir Jagr was well into his NHL career when most players on tonight's Habs' roster were still wearing cheese cutters and asking to stay up late to watch his flowing mullet before being put to bed with a story and a glass of warm milk.

It is always a treat to welcome the preternaturally young Jagr to the Bell Centre, especially in the midst of another stellar season.

Jagr recently passed Gordie Howe on the NHL's all-time points list, resting comfortably in third place behind Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier. The 44-year-old veteran also leads his Panthers teammates in goals and points.

Is now a good time to remind Montreal hockey fans that Jagr has made no secret of wanting to wear the Bleu-Blanc-Rouge?

2. Tough to swallow

The Panthers were 20 minutes away from first place in the Atlantic division before a bad six minutes resulted in a 3-2 loss to the Islanders last night.

The team will be hungry to replicate the outcome of its game against the Habs earlier this season: a 3-1 win Dec. 29.

That would get them back in the win column after the recent stumble that's left them losers in four of their last six games.
 

3. Subbanator on the fritz

The list of wounded Habs grew by one with the injury to P.K. Subban.

He is expected to miss at least two more games before he is able to play, after suffering a neck injury.

Nathan Beaulieu has also been out with a lower body injury, leaving the Habs pretty thin on defence.

Both he and Lars Eller will make the trip to Buffalo for tomorrow's matchup against the Sabres, but no word yet on whether either will take to the ice.