Game 80: Montreal Canadiens vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French) In the Blue Jackets region: FanDuel Sports Network Ohio Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
The Ottawa Senators closed off the Columbus Blue Jackets’ path to a wild-card spot with a win this afternoon. That leaves just the third seed in the Metropolitan Division as an option for them to make the post-season. To get there, they wil...
Game 80: Montreal Canadiens vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French) In the Blue Jackets region: FanDuel Sports Network Ohio Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
The Montreal Canadiens and Columbus Blue Jackets were separated by one point when they met on March 26. The Habs were third in the Atlantic Division with 88 points, and the Blue Jackets had just overtaken the Pittsburgh Penguins a couple of...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
“He always said he wasn’t going to show me how to score goals, but deep down, I think he knows he did,” Cole Caufield said of Martin St-Louis after scoring his 50th of the season. [ La Presse ]
Caufield has become a more selective shooter, and will complete one of the most efficient 50-goal campaigns in NHL history. [ RDS ]
John Wroblewski, former coach of the USNTDP, saw a standout hockey player in Caufield, even when he started his time in t...
The Montreal Canadiens played the absolute biggest remaining game on their schedule Thursday night, hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning with a chance to pass them for second place in the Atlantic Division. It had every bit of intensity you would expect from a playoff game, and with good reason, as the odds that these teams will meet in the first round seem to strengthen by the game. The Habs controlled the play well through three periods, and though it was a very tight margin of victory, they foun...
It’s an easy narrative. The Montreal Canadiens, the youngest team in NHL history to make the playoffs (for the second year in a row, beating their own record), are filled with smaller skilled players and might not be ready for playoff success.
The playoffs are where time and space gets taken away. It’s less about skill and more about making your opponent miserable.
Last year, you could argue that the series against the Washington Capitals turned on the Tom Wilson hit on Alexandre Car...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Cole Caufield is the seventh player in franchise history to reach 50 goals in a season. [ NHL.com | TSN | Sportsnet | CBC | La Presse ]
A look back at prior 50-goal campaigns for the CH. [ La Presse | RDS ]
Cole Caufield in five moments. [ La Presse ]
Captain Nick Suzuki is the team’s nominee for the 2025-26 King Clancy Memorial Trophy. [ Montreal Canadiens ]
Martin St-Louis has a fan in Hall of Famer Larry Robinson. [ Montreal Gazet...
First period
The puck has been in Tampa Bay’s zone a couple of times in the opening minutes, so it’s already a better start than Montreal had been having over the past week.
The top line, Lane Hutson, and Jayden Struble have the Lightning chasing in their own zone. Tampa Bay’s final act on the shift is a desperation stick lift that hits Struble in the face and draws blood, giving Montreal a four-minute power play.
They’re getting shots, and that’s what you want to see. The Lig...
Game 79: Montreal Canadiens vs. 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+
Just before the Olympics we looked at the remaining schedules for the Atlantic Division teams and highlighted just how compressed the final third of the season was going to be for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tonight will be their 14th contest in the past 24 days, and they’ll fin...
Game 79: Montreal Canadiens vs. 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 Montreal Canadiens haven’t been putting up convincing results recently, with their last two wins coming via shootout versus some teams not in the playoff chase. Being unable to get engaged for teams not in the post-season battle has been an issue for the club in an otherwise s...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Can the Canadiens disarray in the last two games be attiributed to helping Cole Caufield on his quest for 50 goals? [ Journal de Montreal ]
Martin St. Louis acknowledges how difficult it is for Brendan Gallagher to be left out of the lineup for a second time. [ Journal de Montreal ]
St. Louis has a decision to make if Michael Hage is signed to an entry-level contract before the end of the regular season. [ Sportsnet ]
If Montreal can take...
After a disappointing shutout loss on Sunday, the Montreal Canadiens were back at it on Tuesday night, hosting the already playoff-eliminated Florida Panthers. It would seem like a perfect opportunity to get back on track with a convincing win, but the Habs struggled yet again, and found themselves staring down a one-goal deficit in the dying minutes. As they have many times before, they pulled a rabbit out of their hat, forcing overtime, and ultimately a shootout to take the two points, tying...
The Montreal Victoire took control in the second period and didn’t look back, beating the Seattle Torrent 4–1 on Tuesday night.
With the win, Montreal stays on top of the league and inches closer to locking up home-ice advantage for the first round of the playoffs. On the other side, Seattle is running out of time and is now on the verge of being the first team eliminated from postseason contention.
The win was Montreal’s 10th of the season at Place Bell, and they became the first PW...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
50 goals is just the beginning for Cole Caufield, says Tony Granato. [ RDS ]
Joe Veleno dishes out bangs for the buck. [ Montreal Gazette ]
Where might Michael Hage be going once the Frozen Four ends? [ The Athletic ]
Three unsung heroes for the Habs during their recent success. [ A Winning Habit ]
Josh Jacobs provides experience and stability on the Laval Rocket blue line. [ Montreal Gazette ]
Around the league and elsewhere ...
Lots of changes to the lineup after Sunday’s loss. Joe Veleno is ill and Brendan Gallagher is a scratch to make the math work on the returns of both Kirby Dach and Alexandre Texier. Adam Engström is also in as Kaiden Guhle needs a therapy day.
First period
A difficult opening shift for Engström, who sees A.J. Greer skate around him and he has to haul down the Panthers forward.
Newhook did a nice job on the first PK unit to get a clear, but it was a shooting gallery on Jakub ...
Game 78: Montreal Canadiens vs. Florida Panthers
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Panthers region: SCRIPPS Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
There are five games left for the Montreal Canadiens to play in the regular season, and the next three will be contested at the Bell Centre. Before ending the campaign versus Metropolitan Division opponents, the Habs will face two final division rivals before the playoffs begin. B...
Game 78: Montreal Canadiens vs. Florida Panthers
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Panthers region: SCRIPPS Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
Streaks can be funny things in the NHL. On Saturday, the Montreal Canadiens beat the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center in Newark for an eighth win in a row. On Sunday, playing the rematch at the Bell Centre, Montreal scored zero goals for an 11th consecutive loss to the Devils on ...
Montreal Canadiens News and Notes
Mats Naslund knows the pressure on Cole Caufield to score 50. [ La Presse | Radio-Canada ]
Is this Nick Suzuki’s year to win the Selke? [ La Presse | TVA Sports ]
Montreal’s first step back to the playoffs was to remember how to have fun playing hockey. [ Montreal Gazette ]
The Habs have come a long way from last year. [ The Athletic ]
The Victoire want to keep up their momentum, despite still missing key players. [ La Presse ]
...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
While teams pluck coaches loaded with experience off the carousel, the longest tenures in the NHL belong to first-time head coaches, with Martin St-Louis included in that group. [ La Presse ]
Mats Naslund thinks it’s good that a Canadiens player is on the verge of having a 100-point season, even if he wants to stay the last player to achieve one. [ NHL.com ]
When Ivan Demidov scored a power-play goal on Saturday night, he was the fifth player ...
First period
The crowd chants “Cau-field!” as Cole steps on the ice for his first shift. When this crowd last saw him, he had 44 goals.
The Devils are checking the Canadiens’ sticks very tightly to start this game, not allowing anyone space to shoot the puck. It’s needed strategy with Jacob Markstrom in net. Montreal will need to work a little harder to test the netminder tonight.
Kaiden Guhle gets his stick in Jack Hughes’s feet as the forward loses the puck on his zone entry...
Game 77: Montreal Canadiens vs. New Jersey Devils
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Devils region: MSGSN Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
The Montreal Canadiens sent Jacob Fowler back to Montreal before yesterday’s game in New Jersey so he could sleep in his own bed before playing the Devils in today’s rematch. Fowler’s contributions to the current eight-game winning streak have been three wins including the one versus...
By virtue of the Detroit Red Wings’ loss to the Minnesota Wild this afternoon, the Montreal Canadiens have clinched a playoff spot, set to head to the post-season for the second consecutive season.
With the loss, the Red Wings can now achieve a maximum of 98 points, two fewer than the 100 the Canadiens improved to last night in New Jersey. They were the only team currently outside the playoff picture that had a mathematical possibility to pass Montreal, because the Philadelphia Flyers, wh...
Riding a seven-game winning streak, the Montreal Canadiens wrapped up their road trip with a visit to the New Jersey Devils on Saturday night. After opening up a three-goal lead in the second period, they seemed a tad preoccupied, surrendering two goals to set up a stressful third frame. The Devils would equalize with their net empty in the final minutes, and the game would ultimately go all the way to a shootout as the Habs looked to save their winning streak.
Oliver Kapanen put home a c...
Game 77: Montreal Canadiens vs. New Jersey Devils
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French) In the Devils region: MSGSN Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+
It wasn’t the way the Montreal Canadiens wanted to do it after getting out to a 3-0 lead last night in New Jersey, but they recovered from allowing three consecutive goals to win the game in a shootout, running their record to a perfect 5-0-0 on the road trip. It was just Montreal’s ...
Montreal Canadiens news and notes
Jakub Dobeš says 100 points are nice, but the team is trying to win the conference. [ RDS ]
How the Canadiens can clinch a playoff spot today. [ Journal de Montreal ]
Jack Hughes is happy to see Cole Caufield on the verge of hitting 50 goals. [ NHL.com ]
Noah Dobson and Alexandre Carrier get to know each other better in a chat. [ Canadiens.com ]
The Laval Rocket put an end to their four-game losing streak with a shootout win over the...
First period
Cole Caufield accepts a bank-pass and tries to go across the top of Jake Allen’s crease, but former teammate Johnny Kovacevic makes the stick-check just before he can fire the puck.
Ivan Demidov gets past a couple of players at the defensive blue line to go in on a two-on-one, but can’t see a lane to Alex Newhook to get a pass through. His initial shot gets stopped, but he collects the rebound, curls back to the slot, and gets another shot that deflects out of play.
...