The Montreal Canadiens home opening ceremony of the 2026-2027 season was a glittering show of history and fan appreciation, with each player on the roster receiving raucous applause. Montreal’s newest addition, Chris Kreider was cheered as the team was announced alongside an identical roster to that which the fans spent the Spring riding to a Conference Final. Florian Xhekaj made his season debut and got his chance to stand for a photo as revamped music played over the Bell Centre’s speakers, “Fix You” replaced with ‘Ramones’ classic “Blitzkrieg Bop”. Head Coach Martin St. Louis, Suzuki, Dobes, Anderson and Hutson received the loudest cheers – in that order.
At the other side of the ice skated the Stanley Cup champions responsible for knocking off Montreal last Spring: the Carolina Hurricanes. A different team from that which suffocated Montreal in five games, the Canes still have the identity which drove them to the top of the mountain – and the skill. Officiating was, well, dismal at best. The professional referees continued to call plays reactively and inconsistently, demonstrating more nervousness that led to hesitations for obvious penalties and the “make-up” calls satisfying nobody. Montreal lost their home opener but scored another four goals and showed their characteristic resilience once more. Hopefully, for Habs fans, that resiliency can be bottled a bit more for later in the season rather than spent early.
Habs Lineup
Cole Caufield — Nick Suzuki — Chris Kreider
Juraj Slafkovsky – Alex Newhook — Kirby Dach
Zachary Bolduc – Phillip Danault – Alexandre Texier
Florian Xhekaj – Jake Evans – Josh Anderson
Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson
Lane Hutson — Alexandre Carrier
Arber Xhekaj – Jayden Struble
Jakub Dobes
Game Points
Montreal got the crowd going two minutes into the game when Florian Xhekaj followed up his giveaway behind the Carolina net with a solid hit, but the Storm Surge struck quickly after. Carolina had gained the Montreal zone with their patented forecheck, and a broken play led to the Canes putting the puck on net. Jakub Dobes, bumped by Taylor Hall, was unable to corral the rebound and Juraj Slafkovsky attempted to pivot his way out from the slot. Unfortunately, the pressure and a good stick by the Hurricanes knocked the puck way and back into their possession, where Hall was able to spin and fire the puck over Dobes’ shoulder.
Zach Bolduc answered back for the Canadiens within the minute. Lane Hutson kept the puck in at the blue line after Montreal pushed the forecheck early in the new shift, supported by the physical play of Bolduc and Phillip Danault. Hutson fed Alexandre Texier through an opening in the coverage, the Frenchman then skated higher in the slot and sent a pivot shot towards the net. The puck rebounded along the ice near Bolduc, who brought it to his backhand and skated to the open ice near the goal line. A glorious and on-target backhand evened the game for Montreal and stirred the crowd back up into their frenzy.
Soon after, Suzuki put a fluttering puck over Brandon Bussi’s shoulder after being fed in the middle by Chris Kreider. Suzuki had entered the zone with possession before firing it around the net, where Hutson fought for retrieval. A quick bump pass into the middle got the puck to Kreider, who then duplicated the move further along and Suzuki’s shot deflected off a stick just enough to beat Bussi.
Despite the offence shown so far in the first period, Dobes had been the Canadiens’ best player. He stopped two point-blank chances as the Habs were gassed at the 12-minute mark and his positioning was superb for three more low-percentage shots from near the goal line by Sebastian Aho’s line. It would be a tipped shot from the blue line which would next beat Dobes, a faceoff win by Eric Robinson getting the puck back to Jalen Chatfield. Jake Evans backed into Dobes as the netminder attempted to catch the puck headed his way, but Evans’ stick got caught under Dobes’ arm and both Evans and the puck ended up in the cage.
The first penalty of the game came from an outrageous sequence of Dobes refusing to act like an NHL goaltender – playing the puck 15 feet away from his net – giving the puck away – making a diving save much too far in front of his net on the way back – and then Carrier drew the penalty by holding Hall’s stick in front of him as if Hall was hooking him. The top unit was unable to get themselves set up in the zone and were ripped off the ice less then a minute in, but the Bold Duke comes to play at the start of the season. Bolduc made a power move toward the net after Texier and Alex Newhook won their battles along the wall and bumped the puck out to him. He made a deke and put it around Bussi, reestablishing the lead.
Tempers began to boil as familiar foes were tangled behind the play; Cole Caufield was called for tripping up Ehlers and the ensuing scrum resulted in four total players sitting due to infractions. The penalty kill took up the diamond, pressuring the puck carrier whenever they strayed too close to the wall and a Habs player. The Canadiens made it to overwhelm down low, and only gave up one significant chance when a cross-ice pass sailed unmolested through the blue paint horizontally. The battles continued as the seconds trickled down in the opening frame, and the Hurricanes took another minor penalty when Aho hooked Noah Dobson. When Hutson made a burst to carry the puck into the zone on the power play, Logan Stankoven tripped him to put his team down two men for just under a minute to start the second period.
Carolina’s penalty kill was efficient and concise, swarming loose pucks and clearing them with excruciating selflessness. An interference call came soon after the Carolina penalties expired, Carrier rung up for interference along the wall as the puck was cleared out of Montreal’s zone. Montreal had been playing the penalty kill well initially, but a well-executed line rush and Mike Matheson continuing to forget how to position himself led to a quick shot by Aho beating Dobes down low. The Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal took a pass from skilled winger Ehlers as they broke into the zone and was left alone to come deep into the circle and give Dobes little chance swinging to the other side.
Arber Xhekaj sent the Canadiens back to the penalty kill on a holding call behind Dobes’ net. Shortly into the kill, Jackson Blake was sent to the box for pushing into the crease and sideswiped his head, bowling him over. The four-on-four hockey opened up the ice significantly, and just as much opened up the opportunity for the officials to receive always-deserved vitriol from both squads. Neither team capitalized, however, the Hurricanes tried to get away with too many extra seconds of early changes and were busted for another minor infraction, nearly completing the set with too many men on the ice. About twenty seconds of five-on-three play resulted in a great Caufield chance which missed the net and Kreider missing a tap-in goal when his stick was chopped in half, a perfect Hutson pass into the paint sliding harmless through. Kreider’s shattered stick watched from the Carolina corner as the Habs then gave up another two-on-one chance that Dobes was forced to stop.
Dobes continued to make key saves through the latter half of the second period, but a giveaway behind him led to Mark Jankowski roofing a backhand to gain the lead. Dobson turned the puck over as a result of a failed swipe and intense forecheck by that incredibly effective bottom six of the Hurricanes, exemplified by Robinson, Jankowski and Staal. Florian Xhekaj did not do himself any favours to stay in the lineup as the puck passed through him to Jankowski, another easy goal.
Dobson and Hall are both called for minors – hooking and holding, respectively – as they pursued the puck towards Dobes following another turnover by the Habs. More special teams play for two special teams who especially seem to despise each other. Shayne Gostisbehere labelled the post with a wrist shot when Carolina’s forwards won another battle in the Habs corners, and the Canadiens were called for another penalty in the second period within the last minute. Matheson sat in the box again for hitting Aho high as they fought for position in front of the net.
The Canadiens needed to fight off just over a minute of disadvantage to start the third period, and the game shots totaled a three-to-one ratio by the end of it. Lines changed to start the third as well, Hutson paired with Dobson and Slafkovsky back with the top line. The diminutive Calder winner drew a roughing penalty on the part of Staal. Two players clashed over a loose puck and the forward’s stick rode up into Hutson’s face, but the power play lasted less than a minute as Suzuki was called for goaltender interference. Danault was unable to finish a perfect net-front chance when Carrier fed him, but for the most part Carolina carried the majority of possession for the entirety of the special teams gameplay in the third period.
With ten minutes remaining, Montreal’s skaters’ pace began to increase noticeably. Carolina matched them, their mental toughness and muscle memory driving them to score the insurance marker with approximately seven minutes left. A point shot from Slavin collided into the bodies of Hall and Florian Xhekaj in front of Dobes, and Hall batted the puck past Dobes as soon as it hit the ice. Unfortunately for Xhekaj, he was left staring at the goal with one hand on his stick and no idea how to defend the former number one pick.
Slafkovsky was able to get the extra goal once Dobes was pulled with about three minutes to go, meeting the energy of the fans that never wavered and redeeming himself for an abysmal game of turnovers and loose puck play. He scooped a loose puck near the crease after Bussi and a number of other players were sprawled in a scrum. Despite this glimmer of positivity for his game, he erased that spark when he skated face first and upright into Slavin, gave him the puck, and then watched as Aho put an easy puck into the open cage.
HabsWorld Habs 3 Stars
1st Star – Zach Bolduc
Bolduc continued his start-of-year standout performances with two goals and an energized performance akin to that of Newhook’s normal speed. Bolduc was engaged in play from the start and kept his feet moving at a pace that makes fans believe his statement that the best thing that happened to him over the summer was “[his] new contract!”
Stats: 2 goals; +1 rating; 3 shots; 1 block; 2 hits; 14:07 TOI
2nd Star – Jakub Dobes (again)
Montreal’s maverick goaltender was solid but frantic Tuesday night against the Hurricanes. From losing his glove on an audacious challenge to playing the puck like a defenceman along the wall, Dobes continues to delight and terrify Habs fans simultaneously. For at least another three years, Dobes will get the chance to show off his talents and how his emotions affect them in a Montreal Canadiens uniform. His crucial saves in the third as the game appeared out of reach actually kept Montreal in the game and gave them their chance at a point.
Stats: 28 SV; 5 GA; .848 SV%
3rd Star – Lane Hutson
Perhaps the only defender with a positive performance on Tuesday, he clearly remembered how to play Carolina. He skated for half of the game time – nearly 30 full minutes! Hutson facilitated all the offence from the back end aside from the single Carrier rush, and was punished for it by his coworkers in the Players Association wearing white jerseys. They certainly remembered how to play the Canadiens, too.
Stats: 1 assist; +1 rating; 2 shots; 1 block; 29:21 TOI