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The Canadiens played a very good game last night at the Bell Centre, outshooting the mighty Wild 33-19 on shots on goal. And then, as fate would have it, Cole Caufield gave his team the win with only 15 seconds left in the third period. #ForTheShow
Caufield (winning goal) and Lane Hutson (two points) probably gave headaches (or heartaches) to Bill Guerin, GM of the Wild, but also of the American team which will fly to Italy in two weeks' time. If the Americans are unable to get the goal that could have made the difference as they did in the 4 Nations, we'll have to remember that Caufield and Hutson were available.
Back to yesterday's game: the Wild players had gone to bed around 3:00 yesterday morning, due to a back-to-back and complications at the airport. If we all used this reality to explain or forgive the CH's defeat last week in Washington, we must also be consistent when this same reality is applied to the team that faced the Habs: the Canadiens couldn't lose their game last night. Good thing they didn't.
The Canadiens on course for the playoffs
The Habs woke up this morning with 63 points (28-15-7), one point behind the Red Wings and three points behind the Lightning in the Atlantic.
However, they continue to be chased by the Sabres (59 points), Bruins (5 points) and Maple Leafs (56 points). In short, no team can afford to take its foot off the pedal in the Canadiens' division; the Habs' final 32 games will all be important, obviously.
However, the Canadiens are still very well positioned for the spring series; according to MoneyPuck and its mathematical models, the Habs have about a four-in-five chance of extending their season beyond mid-April. Only eight teams in the entire NHL have a better chance of making the playoffs than the Habs as of today.
The Montrealers' last regular games could be more about home-ice advantage than just a playoff ticket, if things keep going the way they're going. #SpeakNotOfMix
The Habs currently control their destiny. It's up to them not to drop the ball.
Jakub Dobes wins after all-
Jakub Dobes scored his 15th win of the season yesterday against the Wild (15-5-3).
15 is two more than Samuel Montembeault and Jacob Fowler combined.
Jakub Dobes is a real enigma for the Habs, their management, and their fans. He's quite erratic in front of the net, his moves are constantly haphazard, and he inspires no confidence in anyone (who wears blue, white, and red). But he wins his games!
Dobes hasn't lost in regulation time since December 9, posting a 5-0-1 record since losing to the Lightning.
He's now won three in a row… three wins in which he failed to stop 90% of the shots he received.
How do you explain Dobes' success? I don't know.
For the time being, Martin St-Louis has to find a way to give him the net at least once a week, because frankly, you can't say that Dobes isn't doing the job as #2 goaltender. The goal in hockey is to win… and Dobes wins! He mustn't be left without a game for 10 to 14 days.
And the day he stops winning, we'll have to find a way to fix him. Marco Marciano fixed Samuel Montembeault, now it's up to him to fix Jakub Dobes.
We'll do it in Laval, if we have to… but I hope that, in the medium term, we'll bring Marciano to Montreal.
David Reinbacher on the move
It wasn't just the Habs who won their game in spectacular fashion, 4-3, yesterday; the Rocket did the same in Abbotsford.
David Reinbacher, who we still hope to see in Montreal one day to solidify the right side of the defense, picked up an assist in the win. He ended a nine-game drought without a point.
With an assist on Sean Farrell's goal, David Reinbacher ends a 9-game pointless streak.
This will do him good, as the Austrian was showing less and less confidence with the puck.
First 12 games: 3 goals, 6 assists
last 19 games: 4 assists– Vincent Demuy (@VDemuy) January 21, 2026
After a strong start to the season (nine points in 12 games), Reinbacher has clearly lost confidence with the puck (four assists in 19 games). According to Vincent Demuy, Rocket game analyst with Sick Media, Reinbacher is afraid of making mistakes right now.
Reading this, you'd think Reinbacher wasn't about to be recalled by the Habs, play his first NHL game and settle into the Montreal defensive brigade. What a shame!
Reinbacher only played 41 regular games in 2024-25 and 2025-26 (so far). He needs reps.
I'm willing to believe that many players selected the same year as Reinbacher have disappointed so far in the NHL, but the fact remains that yes, the Austrian defenseman's development is enough to worry Habs fans.
Do you still believe in Reinbacher's chances of becoming an impact defenseman for the Canadiens? Do you still advocate patience in his case? Would you trade him at the first opportunity? I'm curious to hear what you have to say.
