The last thing the Bruins wanted to do against the Predators was to come out with a lackluster effort against the Predators on Monday night. Granted, the B’s were coming off a three-game road trip to Western Canada, but they needed to show something before hitting the road once again for another trip to Canada on Wednesday night.

That team awaiting them north of the border just happens to be the Montreal Canadiens, who have won seven straight regular season meetings against the Black and Gold.

“I think the last time we beat them was in the playoffs a couple of years ago,” said Torey Krug.

That last time was Game 5 of their second round series in 2014. Including regular season and postseason, the Habs have won nine straight against their rivals.

Wednesday’s meeting at the Bell Centre will bring the familiar atmosphere and hostility from the Bleu Blanc et Rouge supporters. The Bruins nearly came away with a victory as they held a third period lead against their rivals, but couldn’t get the job done against a Canadiens team that was without Carey Price, who, along with Brendan Gallagher, will be out again for the third Bruins-Habs matchup of the season.

“It’s a tough place to play, and obviously they get a lot of energy from their crowd,” Krug added following Tuesday’s media availability at TD Garden. “I thought last time we played them; we let one slip away. So we just have to come in there with the right mindset like we did to start the game and just move on from there.”

Not only will the Bruins be looking to start strong, but they’ll also look to sustain a solid 60-minute effort. They are going to need it against the Atlantic Division-leading Canadiens.

“First time that we played against them, we didn’t have a good game at all. The second game I thought was one of our best games of the year,” Ryan Spooner said about the first two Bruins-Habs meetings in 2015-16. “They’re skilled, and they’re fast. As a team, I think we’re going to need to slow them down and do well in the neutral zone, so I think that’s our focus.”

Wednesday is the final Bruins-Canadiens meeting before the Winter Classic. Both teams will want to prove a point before they move on to the rest of their December slate.

For the Bruins, who will not have Joonas Kemppainen available due to an undisclosed injury, the emphasis is on generating zone time, establishing a presence in all three zones, transitioning from defense to offense and using the power play and penalty kill to their advantage. For the Habs, it’s about showing the disparity that currently exists between the two teams and continuing their dominance over the Black and Gold before the New Year’s Day matchup at Gillette Stadium.

All of this will likely be documented when Epix debuts their four-episode series of the ‘Bruins-Canadiens road to the Winter Classic’ a week from Wednesday.

“It’s obviously going to be a big game,” said Jimmy Hayes, who was a healthy scratch the last two games. “They’ve gotten us twice this year, so we’re going to have to fight back and figure out how to get a win for our team, especially with the Winter Classic coming up.”