The Montreal Canadiens (7-3-0) are set to face the Seattle Kraken (5-2-2), with the puck drop scheduled for 10:30 pm ET.
It’s the final game of the team’s western swing before heading back to the Bell Centre, a road trip that has led to intense levels of frustration, not to mention elation, thanks in part to the excellent play from rookie Ivan Demidov.
Demidov currently leads all first-year players with nine points in 10 games, which means he’s on a 73-point pace in a prorated, 82-game season. It remains to be seen if he can maintain his fantastic play, but for now, he’s in good shape to offer the most productive season in Canadiens franchise history.
It’s also worth noting that he immediately reinvigorated the team’s first powerplay unit, a considerable area of weakness for the Canadiens.
MUST READ: Canadiens Analysis – Ivan Demidov Impact On The Powerplay
Tuesday’s game is part of the NHL’s ‘Frozen Frenzy’, which essentially features all 32 teams on the same night. With all due respect to the league’s marketing department, fans would rather have a handful of staggered games every evening, giving them a few more viewing options once their main game goes to intermission.
In over 30 years of being a practising member of the Church of Hockey, I can’t remember anyone ever asking for every team in the league to play on the same night, because there’s very little value in terms of actual viewership. It’s a decent idea in theory, but one with little to no worth in practice. It feels like something a marketing executive who doesn’t actually watch NHL games would come up with, as it doesn’t focus on delivering anything exciting to the people who matter most, the fans.
There’s also very little chance fans in Canada, especially those who do not cheer for the Habs, will want to pay attention to regular-season games rather than the World Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers, but I digress.
Montreal Canadiens Goaltending Situation
Due to the late start time on Tuesday, we’re yet to receive an update as to the potential starter, but statistically speaking, the decision should be an easy one for head coach Martin St-Louis.
Jakub Dobes continues to be one of the most dominant netminders in the league, while Samuel Montembeault is yet to find his rhythm.
On the flip side of the coin, given that this will be the Canadiens’ last game of the work week, with their next match-up on Saturday versus the Ottawa Senators, he may want to throw a line to Montembeault in a bid to instill a little confidence in the goalie who has provided the team with underrated efforts throughout the rebuild.
In previous seasons, providing Montembeault with a longer runway would have been a logical decision, as the team did not have Stanley Cup aspirations, but the situation in Montreal has changed considerably, and they can’t afford to leave any points on the table.
As a reminder, the Habs barely qualified for the playoffs last season, and though they’re currently sitting atop the Atlantic Division standings, St-Louis has to ensure he gives his team the best chances of winning, and for now, that involves giving Dobes the lion’s share of the starts.
Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup
Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Juraj Slafkovsky
Alex Newhook – Oliver Kapanen – Ivan Demidov
Josh Anderson – Jake Evans – Brendan Gallagher
Zach Bolduc – Kirby Dach – Joe Veleno
Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson
Jayden Struble – Lane Hutson
Arber Xhekaj – Alexandre Carrier
Samuel Montembeault
Seattle Kraken Projected Lineup
Berkly Catton – Matty Beniers – Jordan Eberle
Mason Marchment – Chandler Stephenson – Eeli Tolvanen
Jaden Schwartz – Shane Wright – Jani Nyman
Tye Kartye – Ben Meyers – Ryan Winterton
Vince Dunn – Adam Larsson
Josh Mahura – Jamie Oleksiak
Ryan Lindgren – Cale Fleury
Joey Daccord
How To Watch The Montreal Canadiens Versus The Seattle Kraken
The Montreal Canadiens versus the Seattle Kraken, Tuesday, October 28, 2025, will be aired on Sportsnet West, TSN2 and RDS. An instant recap will be available on Sportsnaut as soon as the final whistle blows.
Marc has been covering the Habs for over a decade. He previously worked for Journal Metro, The Athletic, The … More about Marc Dumont