Chicken and pasta for breakfast?

Canadiens rookie Brendan Gallagher hasn’t ruled it out this weekend as the Canadiens play back-to-back 2 p.m. games at the Bell Centre.

“I might. I’ve done that before,” Gallagher said, recalling a 1 p.m. game where he woke up and tried that fare.

“But it wasn’t too good,” he laughed.

The matinee games at the Bell Centre are a tradition for the Canadiens on Super Bowl weekend. The 2 p.m. starts — on Saturday against the Buffalo Sabres and Sunday against the Ottawa Senators — are a sharp break from the players’ usual routine of a morning skate and pregame nap in the afternoon. But they weren’t grumbling about it on Friday after practice.

“It’s just different,” said Gallagher when asked about the biggest adjustment to afternoon games.

“It’s a little easier for me because I don’t nap before games,” he said.

“For me, I enjoy them because you think about (the game) the whole day and that’s all you’re thinking about. It’s nice to get it out of the way early.”

Defenceman Josh Gorges said he likes the fact that you can just wake up, grab a bite to eat and get ready to play.

“You don’t have to sit around for a full day thinking about the game. You can just show up, get ready and get on the ice,” Gorges said.

As for the timing of a pre-game meal, Gorges said everyone is different.

“I know guys that have gotten up at 9 a.m. and had spaghetti. I won’t do that. But I’ll eat sometime around there in the morning, have a big breakfast and get ready to go.”

Travis Moen said he enjoys afternoon games.

“I like them for the fact that after the game you can go for dinner with your family and you’re not going to bed at 2 in the morning from winding down from a game,” Moen said.

Afternoon and evening games have their benefits and disadvantages, he said, adding he likes playing at 7 p.m. on a Saturday.

For a 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. game, he’ll usually still take a nap. But for a 2 p.m. start, Moen said he might sleep in a little more but go to bed a lot earlier.

Instead of his typical pre-game meal of chicken or salmon, Moen will opt for a big breakfast.

“I can’t choke down chicken at 8 in the morning,” he laughed.

Players will go to the rink mid-day and then have a snack, too, such as cereal, Moen said.

The 2 p.m. start for the Canadiens game on Sunday means fans can also see the Super Bowl on television afterward— something Canadiens players plan to watch together.

In 42 games on Super Bowl weekend since the 1990-91 season, the Canadiens have a 22-16-4 record.

bbranswell@montrealgazette.com Twitter:@bbranswell