The Montreal Canadiens begin a new week at home, preparing for a four‑game homestand. First, the Stanley Cup champions Carolina Hurricanes visit the Bell Centre on Tuesday for the home opener. The Nashville Predators, Detroit Red Wings, and Buffalo Sabres are the remaining opponents in this stretch.
The Canadiens collected three of the possible four points in their two road games to start the season, though Saturday’s contest in Pittsburgh left a sour taste. Cole Caufield opened the scoring 3:49 after puck drop, but the Penguins answered back with the next five goals to get a comfortable lead late into the second period. Montreal forced overtime with four goals in the final 21 minutes of play. Pittsburgh took advantage of an odd-man rush to seal the victory.
Martin St. Louis kept the exact same lineup in Pittsburgh that got the win against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The coach gets the benefit of the doubt for his decision not to change a winning formation. Saturday’s performance now opens the door for adjustments to the lineup.
Here are some of the available options.
Xhekaj Patiently Waiting
Florian Xhekaj is waiting his turn to suit up for a game. He earned a spot with a physical presence during training camp. Last year, he played five games during his recall, all on the road. Opening night at the Bell Centre is a memorable stage to play your first home game.
Based on usage, Alexandre Texier is at the top of the list of candidates to sit out to make room for Xhekaj. On Saturday, he was the least used Canadiens forward with 9:14 of ice time. He had only a nine‑second shift in the final 13 minutes. Texier was on the second power play unit.
Canadiens Potential Injury May Open Door
Alexandre Carrier left the game early in the second period due to an undisclosed injury. The defenceman appears to have injured his neck from a fall following a contact in the defensive zone. An update on his condition is expected on Monday.
If needed, Adam Engstrom is a likely candidate to step in. Kaiden Guhle has started skating with his teammates in a no‑contact jersey, but the staff does not expect him to be ready before mid‑October. In this scenario, David Reinbacher may receive a call from management. If Carrier is available for Tuesday’s contest and St. Louis wants to give ice time to Engstrom, Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble likely end up in the press box. Other than Lane Hutson, Montreal’s defence struggled in Pittsburgh.
The coaching staff expanded Xhekaj’s role to include a regular spot on the penalty kill. Through two games, he’s averaged 13:02 ice time, an increase of 1:37 from last season. Carrier’s potential absence makes it harder for him to come out of the lineup.
Finally, Samuel Montembeault has yet to appear in a regular season game. St. Louis admitted they considered pulling Jakub Dobes when the Penguins built a commanding lead. He added that after speaking with goalie coach Marco Marciano, they decided to keep him between the pipes. While Dobes did not have a great night in Pittsburgh, there might not even be a conversation of sitting him for the symbolic home opener.
Rocket Notes
The Laval Rocket opened up their regular season with a double header against the Syracuse Crunch (Tampa Bay Lightning) at Place Bell over the weekend. On Friday, the Crunch blanked the Rocket 2-0, and Laval got their revenge the following afternoon with an easy 6-1 win.
Here are notes from the weekend.
- Jacob Fowler started both contests and delivered two solid performances. If not for Fowler, Friday’s match would have been a blowout.
- The referees ejected David Reinbacher along with three other players with 3:19 left in regulation. Reinbacher threw punches after a 10-player scrum started after Alex Belzile scored an empty netter.
- Reilly Walsh collected four points, while Luke Mittelstadt and Sasha Pastujov each had three.
- Daniel made Jared Davidson a healthy scratch on Saturday. Pascal Vincent sat the 24‑year‑old for the final two playoff games last season. Jacob removed him from the lineup again this weekend.
