A tough week for the Canadiens ended on a good note. They went 1-2-0 for two points, with a six-goal collapse at home against Carolina, a 5-2 loss to Nashville that they could have won, and a shootout win over Detroit on Saturday night. The Rocket, meanwhile, were perfect, winning twice on the road. The Lions open their season at home on Friday, October 16.
Canadiens: 1-2-0, 2 Points
Game 1: Loss 6-4 vs Carolina
The home opener on Tuesday, October 6 started with a burst of goals. Carolina scored first at 2:25, then Zachary Bolduc tied it at 3:23 and Nick Suzuki put Montreal in front at 4:27. Five goals were scored in the first thirteen minutes, and when Bolduc scored his second of the night on the power play at 12:54, the Canadiens led 3-2.
That was the high point. Sebastian Aho tied the game on the power play early in the second period, and Carolina added goals from Mark Jankowski in the second and Taylor Hall in the third to take a 5-3 lead. Juraj Slafkovskรฝ scored with the extra attacker at 16:57 to make it 5-4, but Andrei Svechnikov sealed the game with an empty-net goal at 18:45.
Carolina outshot Montreal 33-20, which includes the empty-netter. Jakub Dobes stopped 27 of 32 shots (.844), while Brandon Bussi made 16 saves on 20 shots (.800). The Canadiens went 1-for-6 on the power play and Carolina went 1-for-5. Read the full recap: Canadiens lose home opener 6-4 to Hurricanes.
Game 2: Loss 5-2 vs Nashville
Two days later, the Canadiens did most things right except finish. Suzuki scored at 3:12 of the second period and Alex Newhook made it 2-0 at 8:50, but Nashville answered with three goals: one at 15:06 of the second period, a power-play goal at 19:28 that tied it 2-2, and a power-play goal at 16:44 of the third period that turned out to be the winner. Two empty-net goals late made it 5-2.
The Canadiens outshot Nashville 33-20, and Jacob Fowler made 15 saves on 18 shots (.833) in his first game of the season, while Juuse Saros stopped 31 of 33 (.939). Montreal took five minor penalties and a misconduct, and the penalties led directly to two of Nashvilleโs goals. The power play went 0-for-3. More in Canadiens dominated Nashville and still lost.
Game 3: Win 1-0 (Shootout) vs Detroit
Saturday, October 10 was a goalie duel. Neither team scored in regulation or overtime, and the game went to a shootout. Fowler was perfect, stopping all 30 shots he faced in 64:46 and then all six Detroit shooters in the shootout. Detroitโs Daniil Tarasov was just as good, with 30 saves on 30 shots until the shootout.
Montrealโs first five shooters could not beat him (Caufield, Texier, Slafkovskรฝ, Suzuki, Hutson), and the teams went to a sixth round. That is when Bolduc scored the only goal of the night, and Fowler stopped Detroitโs sixth shooter to end it. The shots were 30-30. Each team took four minor penalties, and neither scored on the power play (0-for-4 for both). The Canadiens were also denied three times by disallowed goals during the game (Caufield, Bolduc and Texier).
Canadiens: Team Performance Overview
Here is how the Canadiens look after five games. The Week 2 numbers cover the three games from October 6 to October 10, and the season numbers cover all five. NHL rank is the league ranking as of Sunday, October 11.
Shootout goals are not counted in goals for or against, which is how the NHL records them. Rank 1 is the best in the league for every category, including goals against and shots against.
Canadiens: The Week in Review
Heading into a three-game homestand, I expected at least four points from the Canadiens, three in the worst case and five at best. I was wrong. The week ended at 1-2-0 for two points, and the main culprit was discipline: in both losses, Montreal took penalties at the worst possible moments, and the special teams could not make up for it.
Tuesday’s home opener brought the Carolina Hurricanes to the Bell Centre, the reigning Stanley Cup champions and the team that eliminated Montreal in five games in last spring’s Eastern Conference Final. The building was ready for the first home game of the season, but the night went the other way. Once again the Canadiens struggled in the second period, when Carolina scored twice to take control. Costly minor penalties and a power play that went 1-for-6 decided a 6-4 loss.
Thursday against Nashville followed the same script. Jacob Fowler made his season debut, and Montreal controlled 5-on-5 play from start to finish. But the penalties and a 0-for-3 power play erased that advantage, and Juuse Saros stopped 31 of 33 shots. The Canadiens deserved better, yet they lost 5-2.
After three straight losses, Martin St-Louis responded. He dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen against Detroit and reshuffled his lines during the week. His most surprising decision was starting Fowler over Jakub Dobeลก, and it paid off: Fowler stopped all 30 shots he faced and all six shootout attempts. Montreal had three goals disallowed and went 0-for-4 on the power play, but still found a way to win 1-0 in the shootout.
The 1-2-0 week came down to four things: discipline, special teams, finishing, and the inability to protect a lead. The challenge now is to turn Saturday’s resilience into consistency.
Canadiens: 3 Stars of the Week
Canadiens: Weekly News
- Goaltender Samuel Montembeault was injured Wednesday and has been placed on injured reserve for 10 to 14 days.
- Forward Oliver Kapanen did not skate and has been placed on injured reserve.
- Forward Florian Xhekaj was injured Thursday and missed Saturday’s game.
- The Canadiens recalled goaltender Jacob Fowler from Laval on Thursday morning.
- Montreal traded defenseman Jayden Struble to Nashville for a 2027 second-round pick.
- No other player was recalled, so the Canadiens are playing with only 21 players on their roster.
- Defenseman Kaiden Guhle made his season debut Saturday against Detroit.
Canadiens Stats of the Week: click here
Rocket: 2-0-0, 4 Points
The Rocket went on the road and won both games by the same 5-2 score, a perfect weekend. They are now 3-1-0 and have won three in a row. The full recap is in Perfect Weekend for the Rocket.
Game 1: Win 5-2 at Springfield
Saturday, October 10. Reilly Walsh and Luke Mittelstadt scored in the first period, and Brett Berard scored a shorthanded goal in the second that turned out to be the game-winner. Filip Meลกรกr and Alex Belzile (empty net) finished it. Laval outshot Springfield 34-20, and Kaapo Kรคhkรถnen stopped 18 of 20 (.900). Laurent Dauphin had three assists.
Game 2: Win 5-2 at Hartford
Sunday, October 11. Hartford scored first, but Mittelstadt tied it and Josh Nadeau scored his first professional goal on the power play before the first period ended. Sasha Pastujov scored on the power play late in the second period, and Dauphin and Xavier Simoneau scored in the third. Laval outshot Hartford 32-21, and Kรคhkรถnen stopped 19 of 21 (.905). Dauphin had four points (1 goal, 3 assists).
Rocket: The Weekend in Review
It was a perfect weekend for the Rocket: two road wins, and the same 5-2 score both nights. With so many new players in the lineup, it was important for the veterans to take charge, set the standard in the locker room and lead by example on the ice. Laurent Dauphin, Alex Belzile and Kaapo Kรคhkรถnen did exactly that. Dauphin finished the weekend with seven points, and Kรคhkรถnen won both of his starts.
My closest attention, however, goes to the Canadiens’ prospects, and to Luke Mittelstadt in particular. The departure of Adam Engstrom for the Canadiens could have left a big hole on the Rocket’s blue line, but Mittelstadt has filled it right away. He scored twice over the weekend and formed a solid pairing with David Reinbacher, who added an assist and played well in both games.
It was also a better weekend for Filip Meลกรกr and Owen Beck, with Meลกรกr scoring a goal and Beck adding an assist. The two players the Canadiens acquired in trades over the summer contributed too: Brett Berard and Sasha Pastujov were both on the score sheet, and Berard scored the game-winning goal Saturday night in Springfield.
The Rocket are off to a 3-1-0 start and have won three in a row. A great weekend for the group.
Rocket: 3 Stars of the Week
Rocket Stats of the Week: click here
Prospects: Hage Keeps Rolling as the NCAA Season Gets Going
It was a busy week for the Canadiens’ prospects, with several players starting their seasons in the NCAA.
NCAA
Michael Hage had another monster weekend at Michigan, with five assists in two games. He now has 12 points (3 goals, 9 assists) in four games this season. Logan Sawyer had three assists for Providence on Friday night. Goaltender Quentin Miller, who transferred from Denver last summer, made a strong start with Western Michigan: he won both of his games, posted a shutout, and finished the weekend with a 0.50 goals-against average and a .979 save percentage. Hayden Paupanekis, a true freshman at St. Cloud State, scored his first NCAA goal.
Four NCAA prospects still have not played this season. LJ Mooney (Minnesota) is injured, and his team was off last weekend. Timmy Runtso (Miami) is also injured, while Emmett Croteau and Cooper Cleaves (Dartmouth) have not yet played a game.
CHL
Brayden Klimpke (WHL) added two more assists on Friday night, then was held off the scoresheet on Saturday for the first time this season. He still has 12 points in seven games. Tyler Deakos (WHL) had a strong weekend with three points (1 goal, 2 assists), including the game-winning goal.
Defenseman Jean-Samuel Daigneault was traded from the Brantford Bulldogs to the North Bay Battalion on October 9, in a deal that sent two draft picks to Brantford.
Europe
It was a quiet week for the European prospects. Only Filip Eriksson (SHL) had a multi-point week, with a goal and an assist in two games.
Prospects: 3 Stars of the Week
Prospects Stats of the Week: click here
Preview Week
Canadiens: 3 Games
Rocket: 2 Games on the Road
Lions: Home Opener
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