My take on the Canadiens’ goaltending controversy is simple — go with the hot goalie and, right now, that would be Jakub Dobes.
Martin St. Louis shouldn’t overthink it. The 6-foot-4 netminder from Czechia with unorthodox moves is getting you the wins. So stick with him. Dobes is 3-0 this season and, as of Tuesday afternoon, was second in the NHL with a save percentage of .939 and third in goals-against average (1.63).
Samuel Montembeault, who came into the season as the Habs’ No. 1 goalie, is 50th in save percentage (.857) and 41st in GAA (3.26). Those are brutal stats.
Of course, it’s early in the season. Dobes has only played three games, Monty four. But still, Dobes has been great and Montembeault has been just okay to mediocre.
I’m not suggesting this is a permanent state of affairs. Maybe Montembeault is just off to a slow start and will return to last season’s form. All good. When that happens, he can win back the No. 1 job. But why pass on the dude who can give you the win?
Dobes is a gamer and has been since he made his debut between the pipes last season, netting a shutout in his first game with a 34-save performance against the Panthers in Florida. He isn’t the most graceful of goalies, to put it mildly, but he somehow stops the puck from getting to the back of the net.
It was telling that after the awesome goal scored by Cole Caufield with three seconds left in overtime to clinch the dramatic comeback win against the Nashville Predators on Thursday, Caufield immediately raced the length of the ice to give Dobes a big hug. That’s partly because he made an incredible glove save off of Filip Forsberg on a two-on-none breakaway in OT, but it also shows how much his teammates respect him.
And he’s rapidly become a favourite with fans, as the Doby, Doby, Doby chants rang out across the Bell Centre for much of the late going in the team’s 4-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres Monday.
Montembeault’s problem is something that has plagued him since the beginning of his tenure with Montreal — he lets in completely stoppable shots from the blue line. I remember arguing with a hockey journalist on social media last season, suggesting I had my doubts about Monty. The writer countered my point, saying Montembeault’s advanced statistics were stellar. I said: “Fair enough, but he fails the eye test.”
Canadiens’ Cole Caufield celebrates his overtime goal against the Nashville Predators with Jakub Dobes in Montreal on Oct. 16, 2025.
And he failed that eye test again Saturday night, when he let in three goals on six shots in the third period, losing the game against the New York Rangers almost single-handedly. Montreal came into the third up 2-1 and left the game down 4-3. Just not good enough.
Earlier in the week, coach St. Louis said of the goalie situation that internal competition is a good thing, and it is. That competition only gets hotter when you realize there’s a fellow named Jacob Fowler just up Highway 15, playing some incredible hockey with the Laval Rocket. So, yeah, competition is great. It can only help the team.
It’s hard not to think back to the 2009-10 season, when another backup goalie from the same part of the world as Dobes — Slovakian netminder Jaroslav Halak — stole the top job from a young Carey Price. Halak went on to provide fans with one of the greatest runs in 21st-century Canadiens history, stoning the Washington Capitals and then the Pittsburgh Penguins to drag that Habs team into the conference final.
Over at McLean’s Pub, a.k.a. Habs Central, on Monday before the Sabres game, opinion was split on what the kindly ol’ coach should do regarding his goalies.
Danny Venditti thinks they should go with Dobes.
“I never liked Montembeault,” said Venditti. “I don’t trust him. He’s inconsistent. He can have a really great game or a really bad game. We’re all waiting for Fowler. I always thought Montembeault should be here in the meantime. But I do believe the team plays better in front of Dobes. They feel more confident. Dobes seems to be more aggressive in front of the net.”
Harry Aggrey-Fynn is with Team Monty.
“I think Montembeault is our No. 1,” said Aggrey-Fynn. “He’s always been a slow burner, but once he gets into the season, he’ll be back on his flow. Honestly, let’s not give up on him, guys. He’ll be ready in the next 10 games.”
Ian Graham, who lives in Belfast and often visits Montreal, became a Habs fan when he was working for Bombardier here 12 years ago. Graham says you go with Dobes.
Stephanie Carter argues you have to back Monty.
“You have to let Monty catch his stride,” said Carter. “I feel he always starts slow. Doby is doing great, don’t get me wrong. But I think Monty will pull up his straps and will come through for us.”
bkelly@postmedia.com