Every year, as the calendar slowly turns into the month of April, you start to get some real previews of what the NHL playoffs will look like. Tuesday night was one of those previews, with the Montreal Canadiens taking on a likely first-round foe in the Tampa Bay Lightning. It had all the checking and intensity of a playoff game, as the players knew how important the game could be for the final standings, on top of wanting to set the tone for a potential seven-game series to start between them...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Cole Caufield can become the Montreal player to hit the 50-goal milestone since 1990. [ NHL.com ]
Four years after Martin St-Louis took over as head coach, Habs players now understand exactly what he expects from them. [ Montreal Gazette ]
The Habs are turning to Arber Xhekaj to fill-in for Alexandre Carrier. [ Sportsnet | La Presse ]
A look at the Canadiens’ potential first-round opponents. [ The Hockey Writers ]
Montreal’s goaltend...
Cole Caufield’s second period goal broke a 1-1 tie and Jakub Dobes stopped 36 saves as Tampa Bay’s eight-game point streak comes to an end in a 4-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. Jake Guentzel had the Lightning’s lone goal while Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 19 shots, including several big saves early in the third period when the game was 2-1.
Nikita Kucherov was held off of the scoreboard (and had two penalties) in his return to action after missing two games with an illness. Scott Sabouri...
The Montreal Canadiens have some big-time prospects on the way. And two of those top three, David Reinbacher and Adam Engström are quite likely to be lining up on the blueline for the big club next season. With seven d-men already on the active roster, plus those two, that's three too many. Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette says in his latest mailbag that two Montreal defenders are likely in their last days & weeks with the Habs. I wouldn’t be surprised if (Jayden)...
First period
This is an encouraging start from Montreal. They’re quickly moving the puck with support to get out of the defensive zone, and have gotten out to a 3-0 shot advantage in the opening couple of minutes.
Jayden Struble loses body position and reaches out to give himself a boost to correct that. The referee is 20 feet away to see it and call the holding penalty.
Tampa Bay uses the power play to take the lead in shots, but the game remains 0-0. That’s the type of urgen...
Game 74: Montreal Canadiens @ Tampa Bay Lightning
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Lightning region: The Spot Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
For much of the 2025-26 season, the Montreal Canadiens have won games despite their goaltending, getting impressive performances on offence to outproduce what they were giving up. They may currently be on their longest winning streak of the season at five games, but now they’re...
Game Seventy-Four: Montreal Canadiens (42-21-5) at Tampa Bay Lightning (46-21-6)
Time: 7:00 PM EST
Location: Benchmark International Arena, A stone’s throw away from the home of Phoebe the Flamingo
TV/Stream/Radio: The Spot, ESPN+, 102.5 FM, Lightning App
Odds: Lightning -170
Know the Opponents: Eyes on the Prize
While everyone (and by everyone, we mean us) has been focused on catching the Buffalo Sabres, the Montreal Canadiens have slowly been lingering right beh...
The Montreal Canadiens have recalled defenceman Adam Engström from the Laval Rocket on Monday, the team announced.
Les Canadiens ont rappelé le défenseur Adam Engstrom du Rocket de Laval. The Canadiens have recalled defenseman Adam Engstrom from the Laval Rocket. #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/gfUinQLG1P — Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) March 30, 2026
UPDATE (9am Eastern, March 31): We now have more context on why the Montreal Canadiens recalled Engström, announcing on Tuesd...
Game 74: Montreal Canadiens @ Tampa Bay Lightning
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Lightning region: The Spot Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
The Tampa Bay Lightning were in a serious slump when the NHL schedule resumed after the Olympics, going 3-7-0 in the next 10 games, and the three wins were versus a shockingly bad Toronto Maple Leafs team which has since fired its GM, and the free-falling Detroit Red Wings. With two...
Montreal Canadiens News and Notes
Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield are the best goal scoring duo Montreal has had since Pierre Turgeron and Vinny Damphousse. [ TVA Sports ]
Caufield could become the first Canadien to hit 50 goals since 1990. He’s got 9 games to score 9 goals. [ NHL ]
Breaking down what makes Suzuki such a powerhouse. [ Canadiens ]
How Ivan Demidov’s family built a star. [ The Athletic ]
The Habs have hit 94 points only twice, in the past 33 years, inclu...
There are 18 days remaining in the NHL’s regular season. Two teams, Colorado and Dallas, have officially clinched playoff spots, while Carolina, Tampa Bay, Buffalo, Minnesota, Montreal and Anaheim are locks to get in. The Edmonton Oilers’ three-game winning streak, only their second of the season, has them in a very favourable position to get…
The Montreal Canadiens finished off their season-series sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday, riding a 34-save performance by Jakub Dorbes and a three-goal second period explosion to a 3-1 win at Lenovo Center. Carolina outshot Montreal 35-18 and held a 1-0 lead after a dominant first period. For the second time in a week, […]
Josh Anderson is unable to play with his illness, so Arber Xhekaj comes into today’s game. Not as a defenceman, but as a fourth-line forward.
First period
The Hurricanes have come out as the better team, so it seems the Habs didn’t learn anything from the previous meeting. They might give up more than 16 shots at this rate.
Five minutes in, the Canadiens haven’t won a single puck battle. How do they go from last night’s performance to this?
The puck has barely been out ...
Game 73: Montreal Canadiens @ Carolina Hurricanes
Start time: **5:00 PM EDT / 2:00 PM PDT** In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Hurricanes region: FanDuel Sports Network South Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
Ivan Demidov had the best performance of his NHL career to date last night, a force in all three zone as he quickly turned possessions for the Nashville Predators into scoring chances for the Canadiens. The result was the 14th multi-point game of his ro...
The Carolina Hurricanes are back in action this afternoon with a 5:00 PM puck drop against the Montreal Canadiens at the Lenovo Center. After taking care of the New Jersey Devils 5-2 on Saturday night, the Canes will look to avoid the season sweep versus the Habs this evening. Montreal owns the season series so […]
Game 73: Montreal Canadiens @ Carolina Hurricanes
Start time: **5:00 PM EDT / 2:00 PM PDT** In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Hurricanes region: FanDuel Sports Network South Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
The Carolina Hurricanes had an almost ideal performance in the first game of a back-to-back on Saturday, outshooting the New Jersey Devils 34-19 and winning 5-2. The Montreal Canadiens put in a similar effort versus the Nashville Predators, bringing an end t...
While 77 points would barely have a team out of the basement in the Eastern Conference, for the Nashville Predators, it is currently enough for a wild card spot. Battling to hold on to their spot, they hosted the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night, a team embroiled in their own heated battle, and theirs being in the most competitive division in hockey right now. The Habs outclassed their hosts for most of the game, opening up a 4-0 lead, and nearly earning a shutout for Jacob Fowler if not f...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
“I didn’t feel like I had much to do,” Jacob Fowler offered up as compliment for how the players worked for all 60 minutes in last night’s game. [ Journal de Montreal ]
Fowler was also wearing a new mask, trading in his Florida license plate for a Quebec one. [ Journal de Montreal ]
The change of goalie coach has made a big difference for Jakub Dobeš, who has been among the league’s best netminders since Marco Marciano was promoted. [ Journal ...
Game 72: Montreal Canadiens @ Nashville Predators
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French) In the Predators region: FanDuel Sports Network South Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
The Canadiens play their first match of a five-game road trip, and also their last one versus a Western Conference opponent this season, in Nashville versus the Predators, seeking to run their winning streak to four. After Jakub Dobeš claimed the...
Game 72: Montreal Canadiens @ Nashville Predators
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French) In the Predators region: FanDuel Sports Network South Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
The Nashville Predators made headlines for their moves in summer of 2024, but all the commentary last season focused on how much of a disappointment the team that looked so good on paper turned out to be once the games started. They ended up in 3...
The Columbus Blue Jackets will try to maintain their playoff spot in the Eastern Conference without one of their best defenceman. Damon Severson has suffered an upper-body injury, and will be out multiple weeks as the team has placed the right-handed blueliner on injured reserve. Blue Jackets' head coach Rick Bowness spoke to the media on Friday and informed the media of Severson's condition. He suffered the injury during Thursday night's game against the Montreal Canadiens. Canadiens' forward...
As the Laval Rocket prepare for what is expected to be a deep playoff run, the focus has shifted from standings to development. With several important prospects in the lineup and a few new additions arriving, the final stretch of the season is becoming a critical evaluation period for the Montreal Canadiens. Will Shoukri joined to the podcast once more as we went through the prospects in Laval.
Luke Mittelstadt
Mittelstadt has arrived as a classic depth defenceman: steady, intelligen...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Five game on the road might seem like a daunting schedule for the Canadiens, but that’s where Lane Hutson does his best work. [ TVA Sports ]
An easier schedule than those of their competitors might provide the Canadiens the opportunity to go for home-ice advantage in the opening round. [ La Presse ]
Montreal’s top line has become too productive to split up in an attempt to spread the wealth. [ TVA Sports ]
The Canadiens are building towar...
The Columbus Blue Jackets will have to continue their Cinderella push for the playoffs without top-pairing defenseman Damon Severson. The team has revealed today at practice that Severson will be out "week to week" after leaving last night's game with an upper-body injury in the third period. Columbus lost a tough one, 2-1 to the Montreal Canadiens. #CBJ coach Rick Bowness says D Damon Severson is week-to-week with an upper body injury. “Terrible timing for us, terrible timin...
The majority of the remaining games for the Montreal Canadiens are against playoff, or playoff-hopeful teams, and Thursday night was no different. To finish their three-game home stand before hitting the road, they hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets, who have been major risers in the Metropolitan division of late. Once again overcoming a lethargic start to the game, the Habs took a very close 2-1 victory, allowing them to head off for their road trip on a high note.
A third period marker fr...