Seven players on the ice (despite the Canadiens' day off)

Last night, after the Canadiens' victory, the team announced a day off from practice ahead of Friday the 13th—which is this morning. That means we shouldn't expect a medical update on Chris Kreider today.

Still, we could have expected to see a few players on the ice. My colleague Patrick Guillet headed over to the CN Complex and saw six healthy skaters take to the ice.

Owen Beck, Florian Xhekaj, and Adam Engstrom—the three players who were on the bench for last night's game—were there. Alexandre Texier, Oliver Kapanen, and Lane Hutson—who loves to skate more than anything in the world—were also there.

Even though the team has a day off from practice today, six players are still on the ice under the supervision of Adam Nicholas: Lane Hutson, Alexandre Texier, Oliver Kapanen, Owen Beck, Florian Xhekaj, and Adam Engstrom. 🏒👀⬇

@DLCoulisses #GoHabsGo #Hutson #NHL

— Patrick Guillet (@PatGuillet) November 13, 2026

Seeing the bench players skate is normal, in a way. But it's also nice to see that three guys who played yesterday took the time to jump on the ice.

Especially Hutson, who played “only” 21 minutes last night… and who skated longer than the others. #Passionate

Practice is over. Everyone has left the ice… except Lane Hutson, of course! 😅😜🔥👀⬇

@DLCoulisses #GoHabsGo #Hutson #NHL https://t.co/QC12LovdxQ

— Patrick Guillet (@PatGuillet) November 13, 2026

But it's also worth noting that Samuel Montembeault was there with them. Remember that he and Ivan Demidov are the only two players who couldn't start yesterday's game due to injury.

The goalie from Mauricie even faced shots for the first time (as far as we know, at least) since he got injured.

This is the first time since the start of his rehab that I've seen Samuel Montembeault face shots from his teammates. 🔥👀⬇

@DLCoulisses #GoHabsGo #Montembeault #NHL https://t.co/kXskirB9tu

— Patrick Guillet (@PatGuillet) November 13, 2026

The Canadiens still haven't announced anything regarding Monty and Demidov (which prompted my colleague Maxime Truman to write about their situation this morning) regarding their health status. But at least the goaltender is skating.

When will he be ready to return to action? He'll spend some time in Laval, but what happens after that?

In Brief

– Stay tuned.

“I don't even know who else is really in the conversation.” https://t.co/J7fBItVgFR https://t.co/g4CPkofip1

— Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) November 13, 2026

– Marc-Antoine Dequoy, the spy? [JdeM]

– Worth noting.

Advice from someone very well-connected in Quebec's political AND business circles this morning:

If you want the #CFMTL to stay in Montreal—and not move south of the border—make sure the PM has coverage about the club in his daily press briefing.

In short, let's not stop talking about this topic in the coming weeks. On the contrary!

— Maxime Truman (@MaximeTruman) November 13, 2026

– Makes sense.