Dach on the ice, Montembeault gets his chance, and Dobson needs to score

Maxime Truman
Dach on the ice, Montembeault gets his chance, and Dobson needs to score
Credit: Getty Images

The captain's presence changed everything yesterday for the Canadiens.

Not only did Nick Suzuki rack up three points—which earned him the first-star of the game award—but he also rallied all his teammates toward a common goal: coming out strong against one of the best teams in the NHL.

His return to the lineup also restored better balance at center, which is essential in today's NHL. You know, that famous concept of being in the right seat…

Is Kirby Dach about to be traded?

No, I'm not the biggest fan of Kirby Dach. I really liked him during his first few months in Montreal, but he's left me wanting more ever since.

Yesterday, he had one of his best games of the year: one goal, one assist, a +2 rating, two shots on goal, and one check. And he did that even though he was the second-least-used forward by Martin St-Louis…

Dach had to miss Saturday's game due to a virus, but he also had to miss Tuesday's game. Was he still sick, or did the coaches just decide to sit him out for one more night?

With Florian Xhekaj and Owen Beck performing well, Kirby Dach is in the hot seat. There are currently 14 forwards on the main squad, and two of them will have to be left out each night (as long as there are no demotions, trades, or waivers).

Reminder: Martin St-Louis doesn't like having two extra forwards on his roster.

The Rocket will host the Phantoms tonight and tomorrow afternoon at Place Bell, while the Canadiens will head to Toronto later today. We'll have to see if Beck or Florian is sent down to the Rocket.

If that doesn't happen, I think we'll have to draw another conclusion: Kirby Dach will be traded soon. Just as Jayden Struble was when Adam Engstrom came in to challenge him and he wasn't sent back to Laval.

When a young player performs as well—if not better—than you, it forces the organization to make decisions. And decision time is approaching for the Canadiens: we should see a demotion or a trade sooner rather than later. Dach may even already be on the trading block, just as Struble was before he was traded.

And I haven't even mentioned Ivan Demidov, who will be returning to action very soon…

Both goalies need to step up, or else…

Jakub Dobes has just notched two consecutive wins, while Jacob Fowler finished his last two starts with save percentages of .862 and .894.

Things change quickly in the world of hockey…

Fowler seems to have accumulated some fatigue, while Dobes appears to be quietly regaining the form he showed last spring. And Samuel Montembeault is getting closer to returning to action…

With three goalies soon to be available, Marco Marciano and Martin St-Louis will put the best one in net—that's it. And maybe the one who's the least lost…

Fowler has just had two so-so games…

Dobes has allowed four or more goals in five of his last six starts…

There's a world out there where Samuel Montembeault will have a real chance to shine. Timing is everything, as they say…

Noah Dobson Needs to Regain His Offensive Touch

There's only one player currently on the Canadiens who, after 16 games played in the 2026–27 season, still hasn't found the back of the net: Noah Dobson.

The right-handed defenseman has eight assists, but he still hasn't scored a goal.

Is that a problem? No! After all, he isn't paid to score goals. However, Dobson is the team's highest-paid player ($12 million) this year. He also has the highest cap hit ($9.5 million).

We can expect him to score a goal here and there…

Dobson hasn't had a great start to the season, but at least he's taking shots on goal. He's bound to break out sooner or later; he's used to scoring about ten goals per season.

Only Six Defensemen for the Habs

The Canadiens are heading to the City of Queens today, and unless otherwise noted, they'll be doing so without any extra defensemen. Since Mike Matheson has been sidelined (again), Stéphane Robidas and Martin St-Louis have been rotating six defensemen.

Except that this time, the team won't be playing at the Bell Centre, and they won't have their farm team just minutes away to make a potential call-up.

Arber Xhekaj and Adam Engstrom are holding down the fort on the third pairing, playing about ten minutes per game. Calling up a guy like David Reinbacher or Luke Mittelstadt without intending to play him wouldn't help either the Canadiens or the Rocket.

But a virus can strike so quickly: what will the Canadiens do if Kaiden Guhle wakes up with a bad case of the flu or a stomach bug tomorrow in Toronto?

The Habs will eventually need a seventh defenseman. Because the team can't keep playing with fire for months on end.

Let's hope that Mike Matheson's eventual return won't be just temporary this time around.

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