Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Kirby Dach is giving the Habs what they need in playoff-style games. [ Sportsnet | La Presse ]
The Canadiens did not bring their A-game to Minnesota, but they earned a point a more immature version of them never would have earned. [ The Athletic | RDS ]
Management has provided coach Martin St-Louis with the type of defencemen he needs to play the system he has put in place. [ Montreal Gazette ]
“Every day I’m thinking about what I can do ...
about 4 hours ago
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With the National Hockey League’s Olympic roster freeze going into effect on Wednesday, the Montreal Canadiens have placed forward Samuel Blais on waivers.
Blais has played 13 games for the Canadiens in the NHL with two goals and three assists, but his last game was on January 15. It is fair to assume he wouldn’t have played in the team’s final game before the break on Wednesday in Winnipeg, so he was staring at over a month without a game if he wasn’t placed on waivers with the expectati...
about 17 hours ago
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Montreal Canadiens News and Notes
The case for Nick Suzuki getting more Selke votes. [ Montreal Gazette ]
Juraj Slafkovský awarded the Molson Cup for January. [ Canadiens ]
Putting Kirby Dach back on the first line, now that he’s back, worked out. [ La Presse ]
The surprising similarities between Cole Caufield and Mike Matheson, Suzuki’s role on Team Canada, and more. [ The Athletic ]
Matheson gets some of the hardest assignments, not just on the Habs, but in the lea...
1 day ago
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First period
Thirty-eight seconds in, Minnesota scores on its first shot as Joel Eriksson Ek sends the puck higher than Jakub Dobeš’s pad but lower than his blocker on a shot off the rush.
Oliver Kapanen immediately goes to the box for hooking Zuccarello, and a hot power play goes to work.
Phillip Danault races onto a puck in the neutral zone and goes in for a shot. It looks like Montreal is going to be aggressive versus this Wild man advantage tonight.
Noah Dobson gets t...
1 day ago
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Game 56: Montreal Canadiens @ Minnesota Wild
Start time: 7:30 PM EST / 4:30 PM PST In the Canadiens regions: RDS (French) In the Wild region: FanDuel Sportsnet North/Wisconsin Streaming: Prime Monday Night Hockey
It’s a very different team the Montreal Canadiens will face tonight in St. Paul, Minnesota, not just because almost all of the Wild’s players are now healthy after a handful were kept home for the first game in Montreal, but because they’ve come out of the doldrums they wer...
1 day ago
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Game 56: Montreal Canadiens @ Minnesota Wild
Start time: 7:30 PM EST / 4:30 PM PST In the Canadiens regions: RDS (French) In the Wild region: FanDuel Sportsnet North/Wisconsin Streaming: Prime Monday Night Hockey
In previewing the recent Montreal Canadiens game against the Colorado Avalanche, it was pointed out how mediocre the leaders of the Central Division were in January. Starting the first month of 2026 with a 5-4-2 record, the Minnesota Wild finished strong with three con...
2 days ago
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NHL Player of the Month: Cole Caufield
Cole Caufield wasn’t playing at his usual level in December, outscored by two teammates after only scoring five goals of his own. On January 2, he found out that he hadn’t been named to the U.S. National Men’s Team for the Olympics, and, like Michael Jordan, he took that personally.
Caufield couldn’t be stopped in the first month of 2026, and with more game days than off days to kick off the new year, that resulted in 13 goals through 16 games p...
2 days ago
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Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Mike Matheson has become the defenceman most used versus elite opponents in the entire NHL. [ La Presse ]
No one has been more clutch than Cole Caufield this NHL season. [ TVA Sports ]
Bill Guerin answered questions about his roster makeup for Team USA, speaking about Caufield, Lane Hutson, and others who weren’t named. [ TVA Sports ]
Montreal got quality goaltending and timely penalty-killing to beat the Buffalo Sabres, things that had b...
2 days ago
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The Montreal Canadiens played the biggest game of their season to date on Saturday night, visiting the Buffalo Sabres, who entered the game just ahead of the Habs in the standings. A win would not only move Montreal into third place, but close the gap between them and the teams at the very top of the division and conference. They opened the game with a strong first period, taking a one-goal lead with a power play goal, before a disastrous second period saw them enter the final frame trailing b...
3 days ago
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The Laval Rocket came into Saturday’s matchup against the rival Toronto Marlies looking to build some momentum. After dropping five of its previous seven games, Laval won a tight matchup against the Syracuse Crunch on Friday, taking a step in the right direction.
The lines were nearly identical to those of Friday. Unfortunately, just one game after returning from injury, Xavier Simoneau drew back out of the lineup again. The ailment is most likely due to the massive impact he had with the...
3 days ago
| 1 read
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
The post-game award of the wolf hat is bringing the Canadiens’ pack together. [ Montreal Gazette ]
The Canadiens could use a penalty-killing forward at the trade deadline. [ The Athletic ]
Kaiden Guhle blamed himself for getting into a bad position on the hit from Josh Manson versus Colorado, but said the hit he threw shortly after returning was his way of showing everyone he was okay. [ TVA Sports ]
“He has a lot more skill than I do,” Z...
3 days ago
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I would have rather seen Sammy Blais in the lineup than Joe Veleno to make up for the loss of Alexandre Texier, but for whatever reason NHL coaches just don’t seem to trust him.
First period
There’s a whole lot of red in the lower bowl in Buffalo.
The pace is as high as I expected it to be in such a big game. The crowd seems pretty anxious to start however, or maybe they’re just enjoying the tempo.
The players on both teams are little too amped maybe, making passes that...
3 days ago
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Game 55: Montreal Canadiens @ Buffalo Sabres
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French) In the Sabres region: MSG Buffalo Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
The Detroit Red Wings had a rare bad game this afternoon, losing 5-0 to a Colorado Avalanche squad that clearly got tired of losing after its 7-3 defeat in Montreal. That means one of the Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres will pull within one point of the Red Wings a...
4 days ago
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Game 55: Montreal Canadiens @ Buffalo Sabres
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French) In the Sabres region: MSG Buffalo Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
It was a weakened Colorado Avalanche team that came to the Bell Centre on Thursday. The Canadiens, who had been guilty of playing down to opponents in recent years, were able to pounce and get out to a quick lead, carrying that all the way to a 7-3 win. It improved their...
4 days ago
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Laval came into Friday’s matchup against the Syracuse Crunch looking to get headed back in the right direction. Laval had dropped five of its previous seven games and had averaged less than 2.5 goals per game during the stretch.
With Syracuse sitting just three points behind Laval in the North Division, the Rocket needed to regain some distance in the standings.
The lines stayed fairly consistent from Monday, with the only change to the forward core being Xavier Simoneau’s return. Fl...
4 days ago
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Montreal Canadiens news and notes
If Juraj Slafkovský and Ivan Demidov continue to develop their chemistry over the next few years, there’s no telling what their offensive contributions could look like. [ TVA Sports ]
Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Lane Hutson are all on pace for career years and developing as a group of stars the like of which the Canadiens haven’t seen in decades. [ RDS ]
Caufield should get consideration for the Hart Trophy. [ TVA Sports ]
Caufield he...
4 days ago
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The best team in the National Hockey league, the Québec Nordiques Colorado Avalanche, rolled into the Bell Centre on Thursday night for the final game there before the Olympic break. Keeping pace in the hotly contested Atlantic Division required the Montreal Canadiens to find a way to earn points against a formidable opponent that had routed them 7-2 in their last meeting. As a group, they came together to do precisely that, returning the favour from back in November with a 7-3 rout of their o...
5 days ago
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Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Jakub Dobeš’s competitive fire impresses his teammates. [ Montreal Gazette ]
New goalie coach Marco Marciano got his start in Cape Breton. [ CTV News ]
Eric Raymond’s firing shocked Samuel Montembeault. [ Journal de Montreal ]
Laurent Dauphin is perched atop the AHL’s scoring summit. [ Montreal Gazette ]
Is there an opportunity for Montreal to pursue Jesper Wallstedt? [ The Hockey Writers ]
Zachary Bolduc is becoming more of a p...
5 days ago
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I’m a big fan of this blue versus red jersey battle with the Avalanche in Nordiques blue. I wouldn’t mind seeing the Canadiens wear their reds when they go to Minnesota next week either.
First period
It’s a pretty quick start for the Avalanche, but Jakub Dobeš is quicker to make the first couple of saves.
Lane Hutson and Noah Dobson are making up a pairing tonight, and they just combined for the opening goal of the game. Hutson walked into the slot looking at the net the who...
5 days ago
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Game 54: Montreal Canadiens vs. Colorado Avalanche
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Avalanche region: Altitude Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
The Canadiens conclude the first two-thirds of the 2025-26 season with a measuring stick game against the Colorado Avalanche. The Avs are dealing with a few injuries and are not at the same level they were through the opening half of the year, but even without Gabriel Landesko...
6 days ago
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Game 54: Montreal Canadiens vs. Colorado Avalanche
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Avalanche region: Altitude Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
A couple of months into the season, it seemed clear that the best teams in the NHL resided in the Central Division: the Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, and Minnesota Wild. As the calendar was set to flip to 2026, they ranked first, second, and third, respectively in the overall s...
6 days ago
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Montreal Canadiens news and notes
After struggling under Dominique Ducharme, Cole Caufield hasn’t looked back since Martin St-Louis first sat him down when he took over the reins. [ Montreal Gazette ]
Goaltending coach Eric Raymond was fired by Montreal on Wednesday and is a cautionary tale for his replacement, Marco Marciano. [ Sportsnet ]
Has Jakub Dobeš earned the number-one spot? [ Montreal Gazette ]
Rejean Houle, Chris Nilan, and Michel Lacroix remember the excitemen...
6 days ago
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After a few months has seen the collapse of the Montreal Canadiens goaltending, President of Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton announced that the team’s goaltending coach Eric Raymond has been relieved of his duties.
The Canadiens have relieved goalie coach Eric Raymond of his duties. News release ↓ #GoHabsGo https://t.co/6mWGKeRClL — Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) January 28, 2026
Raymond will be replaced by Marco Marciano, who had the same role with the Laval Rocket. Marc...
7 days ago
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After a wildly disappointing third-period collapse against Boston on the weekend, the Montreal Canadiens had two days off to forget about it and prepare for the Vegas Golden Knights to visit the Bell Centre. With the Atlantic division race becoming more heated by the day, the Habs found another one of their overtime thrillers to secure two points that will help keep pace with their rivals as we approach the Olympic break.
In tight games like that, goaltending will often play a crucial rol...
7 days ago
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With 29 games remaining in the 2025-26 season, the Montreal Canadiens are sitting in the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference with 65 points, a +5 goal differential, and 49.6% control of expected goals at five-on-five, adjusted for score and venue. Compared to the same point in 2024-25, they are 12 standings points better, six places higher in the standings, +28 better in goal differential, and +3.17 percentage points better at controlling play. Yet, the vibes at the moment are not g...
7 days ago
| 0 reads