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Jacob Fowler chose his night to play goalie like Carey Price or Patrick Roy: a night when there were only two games on the NHL schedule. This morning, everyone is talking about the young American goalie. And not just in Montreal!
A few minutes after the final whistle, I asked people on X who their starting goalie would be if the playoffs were to start today. It was a good question, and the answers were varied.
What a performance by Jacob Fowler.
1. I don't think the Habs would have won that game with Montembeault. 2. If the playoffs started tomorrow night, who would be your starting goalie? Dobes or Fowler? https://t.co/dBeJb59kYh
— Maxime Truman (@MaximeTruman) March 12, 2026
This morning, Anthony Désaulniers, Gilbert Delorme, and Anthony Marcotte asked BPM Sports listeners the same question. Max Lalonde, whose show follows the morning show, titled his program for the day: The new #1 in Montreal?
Even if Martin St-Louis doesn't like it, sooner or later he will have to explain the new role and plan involving Samuel Montembeault. Because no one is currently placing Montembeault ahead of Dobes or Fowler…
We may not all agree on the identity of the new #1 for the Canadiens, but we all agree on the identity of the new #3 goalie.
No, the Canadiens are not in the middle of a love triangle right now. There is competition between two goalies who will share the net, and then there is Samuel Montembeault, clearly identified behind them.
And this third goalie, whom we all love like no other, may have played his last game with the Canadiens.
Dach, Reinbacher, and Guhle available?
When we heard Kent Hughes say last week that he had a deal on the table… a deal that didn't go through, but could be “revisited” during the summer, we all put our contacts to work with the sole goal of finding out who the mystery (talented) player was who almost came to Montreal (and who could be traded there in June).
On Sunday evening, a good contact wrote to me: it's Matthew Knies.
He also named some guys who were in discussions on the Montreal side; guys who could have ended up in Toronto.
On Monday morning, I called or texted about ten people, and about five of them had also heard Matthew Knies' name mentioned in the trade rumors. One of them even told me they believed the information was 80% reliable.
No one dared to mention Knies' name in Quebec because 1) no one was 100% sure and 2) we all knew that the Canadiens weren't going to confirm anything and would tell certain reporters that it wasn't true. In short, if I had brought it up, even as a rumor, the traditional Quebec media would have taken great pleasure in making me look bad. So I decided to wait a while and continue digging before bringing up anything…
Except that Nick Kypreos took everyone by surprise and dropped Matthew Knies' name.
On Tuesday, on the Stanley25 podcast, I took the time to share three names: three players who, according to my information, were in talks with the Maple Leafs.
1. Kirby Dach
There are no surprises here: Kirby Dach is no longer part of the Canadiens' (major) plans. And he will be a restricted free agent this summer…
2. David Reinbacher
To give, you have to receive. So it's not surprising to see a guy like Reinbacher's name come up in such discussions.
3. Kaiden Guhle
With Dach and Reinbacher valued lower than they were a few months/years ago, it's understandable that the Maple Leafs would demand a player like Guhle in return for Matthew Knies.
Not as convinced as I am? I explain it in detail here:
It should be noted that another source mentioned Anthony Stolarz and Samuel Montembeault to me, but it was the only one.
Stolarz, 32, would have what it takes to play the role of mentor behind Jakub Dobes or Jacob Fowler. And he is under contract for another four full seasons…
Why still looking for a second center?
I was watching Oliver Kapanen play on Tuesday and Wednesday, and I asked myself: why are people still calling for a second center in Montreal?
Think about it.
The guy is in his first full season in the NHL and already has 20 goals (with 18 games left to play). There are only 34 centers with more goals than Kapanen in 2025-26.
He's played in the Olympics, he's reliable defensively, and he seems to complement Ivan Demidov well. And Alex Newhook since his return…
At five-on-five, you could even say he's among the NHL's elite. Or at least in his country!
While we waste precious time trying to guess whether Oliver Kapanen will be a “real” second center, he is the CH's second-best scorer at 5-on-5, six goals behind Cole Caufield and… 8 goals ahead of his closest rival.
At 20 years old, Saku Koivu took 82 games to… pic.twitter.com/fd0GZrjPVZ
— Anthony Martineau (@Antho_Martineau) March 11, 2026
I wrote this on October 6, a few hours before the start of the regular season, and I'll say it again today: the Canadiens have (finally) found their second center.
Let's solidify the defense, add a top-six winger, and identify the two goalies for next season, but Kapanen, let's leave him where he is—and where he's successful—right now.
Overtime
Curious about what's going on with CF Montréal right now? Check out yesterday's episode of IMFC Radio. I share some interesting and relevant information, particularly in relation to my conversations with Luca Saputo.
