The Montreal Canadiens enter the 2026-27 season looking to build on one of the most successful seasons the franchise has had in years. Montreal finished the 2025-26 season with a 48-24-10 record and 106 points, finishing third in the Atlantic Division. The Canadiens then reached the Eastern Conference Final before losing to the Carolina Hurricanes in five games.

The 2026-27 season will start on Tuesday, September 29, while Montreal will begin its season on the road against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Canadiens will then travel to Pittsburgh before returning home for their home opener against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday, October 6.

Montreal will play an 84-game schedule for the first time since the NHL expanded its regular season. The Canadiens will face each team in the Atlantic Division four times, with two games at home and two on the road. They will play the eight teams in the Metropolitan Division three times each, while facing every Western Conference team twice, once at home and once on the road.

Montreal enters the season with a young core that already has significant playoff experience. Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, Ivan Demidov, Lane Hutson, Noah Dobson, and Kaiden Guhle are all under contract through at least 2029-30, while Jakub Dobes also signed a long-term extension this offseason.

The biggest challenge now will be taking another step after reaching the conference final. The Canadiens largely kept their core intact while adding young depth and moving on from several veterans.

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Offseason Moves

Additions:

F – Brett Berard – Trade/New York Rangers/1-year
F – Hunter McKown – Trade/Columbus Blue Jackets/1-year
D – Maksymilian Szuber – Trade/Utah Mammoth/1-year
F – Sasha Pastujov – Trade/Anaheim Ducks/1-year
D – Reilly Walsh – Free Agency/1-year
F – Samuel Poulin – Free Agency/1-year
D – Ethan Samson – Free Agency/1-year
G – Kaapo Kahkonen – Free Agency/1-year
F – Chris Kreider – Free Agency/1-year

The Canadiens focused primarily on adding organizational depth this offseason rather than making a major splash.

Berard represents one of the more interesting additions. Montreal acquired the 23-year-old forward from the Rangers for defenseman William Trudeau. Berard appeared in 13 NHL games last season and recorded 22 points in 41 AHL games with Hartford.

Montreal also acquired McKown from Columbus for Luke Tuch. The 23-year-old center has 31 goals and 49 assists in 184 AHL games and provides the Canadiens with another right-shot forward.

Szuber gives Montreal another large defenseman after the Canadiens acquired him from Utah for Joshua Roy. The 6-foot-3 defenseman recorded 27 points in 65 AHL games last season.

Pastujov adds another intriguing young forward after Montreal acquired him from Anaheim for Sean Farrell. He led San Diego with 57 points in 71 AHL games last season, including 21 goals and 36 assists.

Walsh also provides defensive depth after recording 46 points in 68 games in the KHL last season.

Kreider brings in some veteran leadership, coming off a 50-point season in which he scored 22 goals while playing with the Ducks.

Re-Signings:

F – Ivan Demidov – Contract Extension/8-years
F – Kirby Dach – Free Agency/1-year
F – Brett Berard – Free Agency/1-year
D – Maksymilian Szuber – Free Agency/1-year
F – Jared Davidson – Free Agency/1-year
F – Hunter McKown – Free Agency/1-year
G – Jakub Dobes – Contract Extension/3-years
F – Zach Bolduc – Contract Extension/4-years

The Canadiens’ most important offseason move came when they signed Demidov to an eight-year, $73.2 million contract. The deal carries a $9.15 million annual average value and begins with the 2027-28 season.

Demidov had an impressive rookie season, leading all rookies with 62 points on 19 goals and 43 assists in 82 games. He also added nine points in 19 playoff games and finished second in Calder Trophy voting.

Montreal also signed Dobes to a three-year extension. The young goaltender emerged as an important part of the team’s playoff run and should enter the season competing for the No. 1 job.

Dach returns on a one-year contract after dealing with injuries throughout last season. The Canadiens will hope he can remain healthy and provide another option down the middle.

Subtractions:

F – Brendan Gallagher – Trade/Vancouver Canucks
F – Patrik Laine – Free Agency
F – Joe Veleno – Free Agency/New York Rangers
F – Luke Tuch – Trade/Columbus Blue Jackets
F – Joshua Roy – Trade/Utah Mammoth
D – William Trudeau – Trade/New York Rangers
F – Sean Farrell – Trade/Anaheim Ducks
F – Sammy Blais – Free Agency/Ottawa Senators

The biggest departure came when Montreal traded Gallagher to Vancouver for future considerations. The Canadiens retained 50 percent of his salary. Gallagher spent 14 seasons with Montreal and finished his Canadiens career with 487 points, 246 goals, and 911 games played.

Laine also left after an injury-plagued season. He remains an unrestricted free agent after playing only five games last season and recording one assist.

Veleno signed with the New York Rangers after Montreal did not issue him a qualifying offer. Blais signed with Ottawa, while the Canadiens moved Tuch, Roy, Trudeau, and Farrell in trades.

2026-27 Montreal Canadiens Roster

Forwards

Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Juraj Slafkovsky
Alex Newhook – Jake Evans – Ivan Demidov
Chris Kreider – Phillip Danault – Josh Anderson
Zachary Bolduc – Oliver Kapanen – Kirby Dach

The Canadiens enter the season with one of the deepest young forward groups in the NHL.

Suzuki is coming off a historic season in which he became the fifth player in Canadiens history to reach 100 points. He finished with 101 points, including 29 goals and 72 assists, and played all 82 games for the fifth consecutive season.

Caufield also reached another level. He scored 51 goals and 88 points in 81 games, becoming the first Montreal player to score at least 50 goals in a season since Stéphane Richer in 1989-90. His 51 goals ranked second in the NHL.

Caufield and Suzuki should once again form one of the league’s most dangerous offensive duos. Slafkovsky also enters the season after taking another step and could become a consistent 30-goal threat.

Demidov will be another major storyline. He produced 62 points as a rookie, and a full season alongside Montreal’s top offensive players could lead to an even bigger sophomore campaign.

Newhook, Evans, Danault and Dach give Montreal significant depth at center. Meanwhile, Bolduc, Kapanen and Anderson should provide production and physicality throughout the bottom six.

The biggest question may be how much the Canadiens miss Gallagher and Laine. Neither player was expected to carry the offense; Montreal will need its younger forwards and the addition of Kreider to replace that depth.

Defense

Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson
Jayden Struble – Lane Hutson
Kaiden Guhle – Alexandre Carrier

Montreal’s defense is headlined by one of the NHL’s most exciting young players, Hutson.

Hutson followed his Calder Trophy-winning rookie season with 78 points in 2025-26, becoming the first Canadiens defenseman to reach 75 points in a season since Larry Robinson in 1985-86. He also led NHL defensemen with 16 multi-assist games.

Hutson should once again be one of the team’s primary offensive catalysts from the blue line.

Dobson provides another major offensive option after Montreal acquired him from the New York Islanders before last season. Matheson remains a veteran presence, while Guhle gives the Canadiens a physical, shutdown option.

Carrier and Struble round out the projected group, although David Reinbacher and Adam Engstrom could push for NHL opportunities throughout the season.

Reinbacher could be particularly important. The former sixth-overall pick has dealt with injuries during his development, but the Canadiens still view him as an important part of their long-term defensive core.

Power Play

Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Ivan Demidov – Lane Hutson – Juraj Slafkovsky
Alex Newhook – Kirby Dach – Chris Kreider – Zach Bolduc – Noah Dobson

The Canadiens should once again have one of the NHL’s more dangerous power plays.

Caufield recorded 29 power-play points last season, while Suzuki finished with 43 power-play points. Hutson also provides an elite puck-moving option from the blue line.

Demidov’s development could make the first unit even more dangerous. He has the creativity to create chances from the half wall, while Caufield remains one of the NHL’s best shooting threats.

Hutson should continue to quarterback the first unit, with Suzuki and Demidov providing playmaking ability and Slafkovsky creating space around the net.

If the Canadiens can continue generating chances with the man advantage, their young offensive core should make them difficult to defend.

Goalie

Jakub Dobes – Jacob Fowler

The Canadiens’ goaltending situation is one of the most intriguing in the NHL.

Dobes emerged during Montreal’s playoff run and started every game during the Eastern Conference Final. He finished the postseason with an 8-6 record, a 2.52 goals-against average, and a .910 save percentage.

Montreal rewarded him with a three-year contract extension in July.

Fowler gives the Canadiens another highly regarded young goaltender. He spent last season developing in the AHL and could eventually challenge Dobes for the starting job.

The Canadiens also signed Kahkonen to provide experienced depth.

For now, Dobes should enter the season as the favorite to receive the majority of the starts, but Fowler’s development could make this one of the league’s more interesting young goaltending situations.

Wrap Up:

The Canadiens enter the 2026-27 season with expectations that are significantly higher than they were one year ago.

Montreal went 48-24-10 and finished with 106 points last season before reaching the Eastern Conference Final. The Canadiens eliminated Tampa Bay and Buffalo before falling to Carolina in the conference final.

Now, the expectation is to build on that success.

The Canadiens have one of the NHL’s most exciting young cores. Suzuki and Caufield are already established stars. Slafkovsky, Demidov and Hutson give Montreal three more players with legitimate elite potential.

Caufield is coming off a 51-goal season. Suzuki reached 100 points. Demidov produced 62 points as a rookie, and Hutson recorded 78 points from the blue line.

The organization also has more young talent coming. Fowler, Reinbacher and Engstrom could all become important NHL players.While Montreal added Berard, McKown, Pastujov and Szuber to its organizational depth this offseason.

However, the Canadiens will face a different challenge this season. They are no longer an emerging team hoping to sneak into the playoffs. After reaching the conference final, the standard has changed.

The Atlantic Division also remains extremely competitive. Montreal finished with 106 points last season, tied with Tampa Bay, and still had to settle for third place in the division.

Montreal’s success will ultimately depend on whether its young core can continue improving. Suzuki and Caufield need to remain elite, Demidov needs to take another step, Slafkovsky needs to continue developing, and Hutson needs to prove that his 78-point season was only the beginning.

The biggest question will come in net. If Dobes establishes himself as a reliable starter and Fowler continues developing behind him, Montreal could have the foundation of a strong goaltending tandem for years.

The Canadiens already proved they can win in the postseason. Now, they need to show that last season’s run was the beginning of something bigger.

With a talented young core, significant playoff experience, and several more prospects pushing toward the NHL, Montreal enters 2026-27 with a legitimate opportunity to remain near the top of the Atlantic Division and make another deep Stanley Cup Playoff run.