Game 53: Montreal Canadiens vs. Vegas Golden Knights

Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Golden Knights region: Scripps
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+

The Vegas Golden Knights posed no challenge to the Ottawa Senators on Sunday, only managing to save themselves the embarrassment of being shut out in a blowout loss with a late goal from newcomer Rasmus Andersson to makes the score 7-1. It was the Golden Knights’ third loss in four games, and their largest margin of defeat in 2025-26. Like a lot of teams in the NHL this year, their results have come in streaks, having just won seven consecutive contests before the current skid.

Maybe the loss in Kanata was just the latest game during a bit of a slump for the team, or it could be that the result was just further proof of the difference in quality between the Atlantic and Pacific Divisions. Las Vegas leads the westernmost section with 62 points, which is now seven more than the Sens hold in last place in the Atlantic. That loss dropped the Golden Knights’ record to 4-6-2 versus the teams in the Montreal Canadiens’ group, an no team in the Pacific has won more than half of the games it’s played versus Atlantic Division opponents. In contrast, every one of the eight clubs in the Atlantic has at least a .500 points percentage versus the section on the opposite coast, with the majority of the records being decidedly one-sided.

Montreal has feasted on the division with an 8-2-0 record, and that includes a loss in Edmonton that would have been a win without an intervention from the officiating. One of those wins was a 4-1 victory in Las Vegas during a short road trip out west in November. The Golden Knights had handled Montreal easily since the Habs beat them for the Clarence Campbell Bowl back in the 2021 playoffs, with seven consecutive wins in the head-to-head battle, but Montreal has now claimed the last two as they ramp up to playing at that contending level again.

Tale of the Tape

Canadiens
Statistics
Golden Knghts

28-17-7
Record
25-14-12

49.7%
Expected-goal share
51.5%

3.37
Goals per game
3.33

3.29
Goals against per game
3.06

23.8%
PP%
26.0%

76.5%
PK%
80.5%

1-0-0
Head-to-Head Record
0-1-0

Cole Caufield (29)
Most goals
Pavel Dorofeyev (22)

Lane Hutson (44)
Most assists
Jack Eichel (42)

Nick Suzuki (59)
Most points
Jack Eichel (61)

Last week the Canadiens didn’t leave much room for doubt about their overall quality this season by generally outplaying all of the Minnesota Wild, Buffalo Sabres, and Boston Bruins, with five-on-five expected-goal shares of 60.9%, 62.1%, and 55.1%, respectively. Unfortunately, they only have two points to show for those efforts because they took too long to get into the game in Buffalo, then spoiled their night versus Boston with unfocused play on the penalty kill to allow the Bruins three power-play goals, including the game-winner.

The penalty kill had been improving with just one goal against in seven games from January 3 to 13, but four of their last five games have seen opponents score multiple goals on the man advantage. On Saturday, it looked like players were terrified of seeing a shot reach Samuel Montembeault and sent multiple defenders at the puck-carrier, leaving Boston players open for some easy chances.

Montreal can’t afford to do that tonight. The Golden Knights possess the league’s fifth-best power play at 26.0%. As is the case for Montreal, Las Vegas’s top five overall scorers are also its top power-play performers, the difference being that the Golden Knights run a top unit of five forwards: Jack Eichel (22 power-play points), Mark Stone (21), Pavel Dorofeyev (21), Tomas Hertl (19), and Mitch Marner (16). The rest of the roster has a combined 17 points on the man advantage, led by Noah Hanifin, the first defenceman on the list, with six.

The good news for Montreal is that Samuel Montembeault isn’t alone among the goaltenders who made Team Canada for the 4 Nations Face-Off last season who are having a season to forget. Adin Hill just returned to action on January 15 after being out since October 20 with a lower-body injury. He has started four games since, and hasn’t achieved a .900 save percentage in any of them, dropping to last place in the league among goalies to play at least as many games this season as he has (all of Hill, Jordan Binnington, and Montembeault rank in the bottom six of that list).

Despite Hill getting four of the six starts since returning, head coach Bruce Cassidy may choose to go with Akira Schmid tonight, who leads all of the club’s goalies in save percentage at .896. Martin St-Louis has already made the decision to play Jakub Dobeš in this game, and hopefully the Canadiens skaters won’t feel the need to tend the net with him in the crease. Dobeš may have some issues of his own, but the team tends to win when he plays regardless. He has now earned a positive result in six consecutive starters with 5-0-1 record, and Montreal needs him to stabilize things so their good play will result in two points.