The Canadiens skated Saturday morning ahead of tonight’s game against the Buffalo Sabres at the Bell Centre, and the practice answered most of the lineup questions. Jacob Fowler will start in goal, David Reinbacher and Oliver Kapanen will both play their first games of the season, and Juraj Slafkovsky, who was on the ice, is expected to play.

Fowler Gets the Net Again

Fowler was the first goalie on the ice and the first one off it, the usual sign of the starter, and the team confirmed it after practice. Tonight will be his fourth start of the season.

His numbers explain the decision. Fowler is 2-1-0 this season with a 1.91 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage (58 saves on 64 shots). That includes a 30-save shutout in the shootout win over Detroit on October 10, and 13 saves on 16 shots in Tuesday’s 4-3 shootout win over Buffalo. Since his recall from Laval, he has been the goalie the Canadiens trust, and he is now ahead of Jakub Dobes, who is 1-2-1 with a .842 save percentage in four games. Across his 20 career NHL games, Fowler is 11-7-2 with a 2.35 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage.

Reinbacher Replaces Engstrom

On defence, Reinbacher goes in for Adam Engstrom, who played four games this season, and will skate next to Arber Xhekaj. It is Reinbacher’s first NHL game of 2026-27. The fifth overall pick in 2023 has only two NHL games behind him, both last season, with one assist and an average of 13:09 of ice time, so tonight will be his third.

Kapanen Is Back on the Fourth Line

Kapanen finally makes his season debut after missing the first seven games with an injury. He takes the spot of Owen Beck on the fourth line with Jake Evans and Kirby Dach, so no line has to be broken up to fit him in.

The Canadiens are getting back a useful scorer. Last season, in his first full NHL year, Kapanen played all 82 games and scored 22 goals with 37 points. Twenty of those 22 goals came at even strength, with one on the power play and one shorthanded. A fourth line with that kind of finishing is a real option for the coaching staff, especially for a team that has struggled to get secondary scoring.

Slafkovsky Expected to Play

Slafkovsky took part in the practice after missing Friday’s session following two hits in Washington, and he is expected to play tonight. He has three points (one goal, two assists) and 22 shots in seven games this season.

Tonight’s Game

The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. ET at the Bell Centre. Montreal (3-3-1) won the first meeting this week 4-3 in a shootout, and Fowler will try to deliver another strong game against the same opponent. You can follow the full lines on our Lineup Tonight page, check the Injury Report for the latest news, and read what Martin St-Louis said about the team’s penalties and power play in our latest article.