The red-hot Montreal Canadiens (43-21-10), currently riding a six-game winning streak, continue their road trip tonight when they visit the New York Rangers (31-35-9). Despite being in last place in the Eastern Conference, the Rangers have won three straight games as they played with no pressure against other teams that won’t be making the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Habs have been playing with a ton of pressure and have beaten top-end teams like the Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning during their winning streak. While the Habs are coming into a game against the Eastern Conference’s worst team, tonight’s matchup could easily be a trap game if they take their opponent lightly and don’t continue playing with the same intensity that they have for the past two weeks.

Team rosters and stats ahead of tonight’s game between the Canadiens and Rangers in New York (7 p.m., TSN2, RDS) with #Habs looking for a seventh straight win: pic.twitter.com/DPfEpVi44Q

— Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) April 2, 2026

A win tonight for the Habs will nearly guarantee a playoff spot that feels almost inevitable now. However, the Rangers playing with no pressure to perform could be a dangerous opponent, as they have been over their past few games. Nonetheless, the Canadiens are a much better team than the opponents the Rangers have seen lately. With that being said, if the Habs stick to their game plan, they shouldn’t have too much of an issue extending their winning streak to 7 games. Although the Habs have underperformed against the Rangers this season, where they lost both games but got a point in a 5-4 overtime loss to them in the last meeting back on December 13th. Can the Habs turn their luck against the Rangers around tonight?

Jacob Fowler expected starter tonight vs the Rangers #habs pic.twitter.com/UEltW1Rv9d

— HabsHQ (@Habs_HQ) April 2, 2026

Jacob Fowler is expected to be the starting netminder for the Habs tonight. While Jakub Dobes has been putting up insanely good numbers, earning him the majority of the games as of late, Fowler’s numbers since being recalled from the Laval Rocket have been solid as well. In his 4 starts since returning with the Canadiens, he has a 3-1 record alongside his solid 2.52 GAA and .907 save percentage. Fowler obviously isn’t performing to the level that Dobes has of late, but he has been able to keep the Habs in games when they need him, and aside from a rough 1st period a few weeks ago against the New York Islanders, he has been playing very well when he gets the call to play.

A lot of people would say that the Canadiens should start Dobes tonight so he can keep rolling on his hot streak, but given that Fowler needs to get games for development purposes, a non-playoff team like the Rangers may be a good matchup for the 21-year-old to be able to do that. With the Habs close to clinching a playoff spot, we should likely see Fowler get starts a little more often to rest Dobes for the playoffs. Tonight Fowler will have a chance to show that he can be just as reliable as Dobes with a big performance tonight. He was actually the goaltender during the Habs’ 5-4 overtime loss in the last meeting against the Rangers, where he allowed 5 goals on 29 shots. He will be looking to bounce back from that tough performance vs. the Rangers tonight.

Canadiens lines vs Rangers:

Caufield – Suzuki – Slafkovsky
Newhook – Kapanen -Demidov
Bolduc – Evans -Anderson
Veleno – Danault -Gallagher

Matheson -Dobson
Struble-Hutson
Guhle – Xhekaj

Dobes
Fowler

Injured: Carrier, Dach, Laine, Texier
Scratched: Engstrom, Montembeault…

— 32 Hockey Updates (@32HockeyUpdates) April 2, 2026

Aside from the goalie change, the Canadiens aren’t expected to make any lineup changes to their defence and forward groups. However, this comes as a surprise on defence considering that prospect Adam Engstrom was called up by the Habs. It seems odd that Engstrom would be called up if he wasn’t going to play. With that being said, if they called him up just to be an extra body, they could have called up Marc Del Gaizo to sit in the press box while Engstrom continues his development in the AHL. There is the chance that things change, but as of now, it seems like Arber Xhekaj (who had a good game against the Lightning on Tuesday, but given the call-up, it makes sense to play Engstrom) will be in the lineup instead. Hopefully, Engstrom at least gets to play Saturday if the defensive lineup for tonight is actually confirmed.

In the nets for the Rangers will be Igor Shesterkin, who, despite his team’s struggles, has had a very solid season to say the least. He has a 24-16-6 record with a good 2.52 GAA and .912 save percentage. In each of his last two games, he has allowed just one goal, which has allowed the Rangers to have their winning streak. Shesterkin has also done well against the Habs throughout his career, posting a 6-1 record, including the last four matchups with a. 916 save percentage and 2.26 GAA through 7 career games vs. the Canadiens. It won’t be easy to solve the Russian, but the Habs do have the offensive pieces to do it.

Shesterkin starting in net vs Canadiens#NYR

— 32 Hockey Updates (@32HockeyUpdates) April 2, 2026

It will be a tough defensive game tonight, and the team that wins will likely need to settle for around 2 or 3 goals against two netminders who have looked very solid in their recent starts. Having said that, the Under 6.5 Goals Total will likely look like a solid bet in tonight’s Original Six matchup. The Habs are a much improved team from the last time these teams played in December, and despite having lost 6 of the last 7 meetings, they are listed as -125 road favourites. Do you think the Habs will keep their winning streak going tonight?

5 points in the last 24 hours for Habs captain Nick Suzuki.

Only 6 players have more points than him THIS season.pic.twitter.com/viG0q8RGPz

— Jason Gold (@JayGold85) March 29, 2026

Captain Nick Suzuki has had a ton of success offensively in matchups vs. the Rangers, scoring 5 goals and 8 points in their last 5 meetings. He has 3 goals and 6 points in his last 3 games overall. Suzuki is listed at +140 to record 2+ points and +175 to score 1+ goals. Will he have another big night against the Rangers?

While the Rangers may be in last place in the East, it won’t be an easy game, especially with Shesterkin in nets. Nonetheless, the Habs have the momentum to get the job done and continue rolling on their winning streak.