HabsWorld.net --
The Habs opened up the home portion of their 2026-27 schedule this past week, doing so in not the best of fashions. They struggled mightily in their home opener and only managed one win out of three, though they deserved a better fate than that.
The Week That Was
Oct. 6: Hurricanes 6, Canadiens 4 – In the first period, goals were aplenty with both goalies struggling out of the gate. The Habs held the advantage after one thanks to Zach Bolduc’s second of the game, a rare power play goal. But things went downhill from there as the defending Cup champs picked up where their third-round series left off with total dominance in terms of puck control and chances. Jakub Dobes didn’t fare much better as the game went on and while a late goal from Juraj Slafkovsky provided some hopes for a comeback, this was a score that flattered the home side.
Oct. 8: Predators 5, Canadiens 2 – Last weekend, the Habs stole a point with their late comeback in Pittsburgh. In this one, Nashville stole two. Montreal had a two-goal lead (plus a goal called back for offside) but couldn’t hold it late in the second. Mike Matheson took a bad penalty late and the penalty kill couldn’t get the job done, giving the Preds the lead. Then, Martin St. Louis pulled the goalie twice on an offensive zone draw without puck possession. It backfired both times as they lost the draw with Adam Edstrom scoring twice soon after.
Oct. 10: Canadiens 1, Red Wings 0 (SO) – This game might be more remembered for what didn’t count. Cole Caufield thought he had scored on the second shift of the game but replays were unclear as to if the puck actually crossed the line so it was taken off the board. Bolduc scored seconds after a penalty but that was called back for goalie interference with the Habs declining to challenge. Alexandre Texier scored in overtime but Bolduc was offside on the play. But Bolduc made up for that in the shootout, scoring the only goal to give the Habs the two points while Jacob Fowler picked up the shutout.
StatPack
Skaters:
| # | Player | GP | G | A | +/- | PIMS | SOG | ATOI |
| 8 | Mike Matheson | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 4 | 4 | 23:05 |
| 13 | Cole Caufield | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 2 | 13 | 20:21 |
| 14 | Nick Suzuki | 3 | 2 | 1 | E | 2 | 6 | 22:59 |
| 15 | Alex Newhook | 3 | 1 | 1 | -2 | 0 | 1 | 16:52 |
| 17 | Josh Anderson | 3 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 4 | 4 | 13:56 |
| 20 | Juraj Slafkovsky | 3 | 1 | 0 | -3 | 2 | 12 | 19:46 |
| 21 | Kaiden Guhle | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 0 | 0 | 15:35 |
| 22 | Chris Kreider | 3 | 0 | 2 | -1 | 0 | 3 | 15:37 |
| 24 | Phillip Danault | 3 | 0 | 1 | E | 0 | 6 | 16:37 |
| 42 | Adam Engstrom | 2 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 0 | 1 | 9:22 |
| 45 | Alexandre Carrier | 3 | 0 | 0 | +2 | 2 | 3 | 19:30 |
| 47 | Jayden Struble | 1 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 0 | 0 | 9:05 |
| 48 | Lane Hutson | 3 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 2 | 8 | 26:51 |
| 53 | Noah Dobson | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 4 | 5 | 21:38 |
| 63 | Florian Xhekaj | 2 | 0 | 0 | -4 | 0 | 2 | 7:36 |
| 71 | Jake Evans | 3 | 0 | 0 | -3 | 2 | 2 | 12:57 |
| 72 | Arber Xhekaj | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 12 | 2 | 9:34 |
| 76 | Zachary Bolduc | 3 | 2 | 0 | +1 | 2 | 8 | 15:15 |
| 77 | Kirby Dach | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 2 | 0 | 8:18 |
| 85 | Alexandre Texier | 3 | 0 | 2 | +1 | 2 | 3 | 14:32 |
Goalies:
| # | Player | Record | GAA | SV% | SO |
| 32 | Jacob Fowler | 1-0-0 | 1.46 | .938 | 1 |
| 75 | Jakub Dobes | 0-1-0 | 5.24 | .844 | 0 |
Shootout – Skaters:
| # | Player | G/ATT |
| 13 | Cole Caufield | 0/1 |
| 14 | Nick Suzuki | 0/1 |
| 20 | Juraj Slafkovsky | 0/1 |
| 48 | Lane Hutson | 0/1 |
| 76 | Zach Bolduc | 1/1 |
| 85 | Alexandre Texier | 0/1 |
Shootout – Goalies:
| # | Player | SVS/SF |
| 32 | Jacob Fowler | 6/6 |
Team Leaders:
Goals: Bolduc/Suzuki (3)
Assists: Hutson/Suzuki (4)
Points: Nick Suzuki (7)
+/-: Carrier/Suzuki (+3)
PIMS: Arber Xhekaj (12)
Shots: Cole Caufield(19)
News And Notes
– Jayden Struble was traded to Nashville (after the game against Nashville, no less) for a 2027 second-round pick (previously acquired from Vegas). We’ll have a separate commentary piece on that swap this week so we won’t cover it here.
– Samuel Montembeault was injured in practice, leading to Jacob Fowler’s recall from Laval. He’ll miss the next 10-14 days with a lower-body injury and was placed on injured reserve. So was Oliver Kapanen, whose lower-body issue from before the start of the season hasn’t healed yet. Assuming that placement was backdated, he can be activated as soon as he’s medically cleared.
– Kaiden Guhle was activated off injured reserve for Saturday’s game. The Habs had to dress only 11 forwards for that one with Florian Xhekaj dealing with an undisclosed injury of his own.
– Nick Suzuki has now failed to score in 18 straight regular season shootouts.
– Jacob Fowler is the first goalie in franchise history to record a shutout and stop every single shootout attempt in a single game.
Last Game’s Lines:
Slafkovsky – Suzuki – Caufield
Kreider – Newhook – Anderson
Texier – Danault – Bolduc
Evans – Dach
Hutson – Carrier
Matheson – Dobson
Guhle – Xhekaj
Engstrom
The Week Ahead
Tuesday and Saturday vs Buffalo – Yes, a scheduling oddity has the Sabres in town twice in the same week. Buffalo is off to a quiet start to the year as well, particularly offensively where they’re only averaging 2.2 goals per game. Tage Thompson and Jack Quinn are the only players to score more than once, though Thompson and Owen Power are each averaging a point per game. They’re also dealing with some injuries as winger Jason Zucker, defenceman Conor Timmins, and goalie Alex Lyon have all yet to suit up this season.
Wednesday at Washington – The Capitals are going all in this season, Alex Ovechkin’s last. They added Alex Tuch, Jordan Kyrou, and Boone Jenner to their offence this summer while a full season from Ilya Protas (who plays at times alongside his brother) further deepens their attack. Cole Hutson gives them some more firepower on the back end as well. After missing the playoffs last year, they could give Carolina a run for the top seed in the Metropolitan Division if things go according to plan.
Final Thought
While five games is still a very small sample size, I suspect Kirby Dach might be getting a little worried about where he stands right now. His brief move into the top six didn’t last a game and he’s now part of a fourth line that hasn’t seen much ice time yet. With Alexandre Texier looking like he has found a home on the third line, the pecking order looks a little clearer now. Without going into all the specifics, let’s just say that Dach is at the bottom of it for the veterans.
Right now, with Oliver Kapanen and Ivan Demidov injured, there’s a pathway for Dach to stay in the lineup, albeit on that rarely-played fourth line. But when those two are back, he’s starting to look like the clear candidate to be scratched. And that’s not even factoring in Florian Xhekaj who could still be up by then although his first two games this year haven’t been pretty. Being 13th on the forward depth chart in a contract year is hardly a good spot to be.
It’s not as if Dach is playing poorly either. No, he’s not doing much offensively but his defensive game has been decent and they’ve even had him killing penalties a bit. Yes, things could be better production-wise but his play could be a whole lot worse. And even with that, he’s not playing much.
Following the Struble trade, Martin St. Louis spoke about giving the blueliner the opportunity he deserved but couldn’t get in Montreal. While the Habs have been hesitant to move Dach thus far, I’m starting to wonder if we might be hearing a similar refrain from St. Louis about the young forward before long. Given that it’s a contract year and that the team tries to do right by its players when they fall out of the lineup, Dach could be the next one to continue that approach.
