The Montreal Canadiens already checked a major box by getting back to the playoffs and then pushing all the way to the Eastern Conference Final last season. That kind of jump naturally raises the bar, but it also makes the next step a little harder to define.
A year ago, nobody would have blinked if Montreal had bowed out in seven games to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round or even fallen short in Round 2. That kind of result would have still fit the arc of a young team moving forward, setting up a deeper run this season.
Instead, Martin St. Louis’ group sped past that stage and reached the East final, which changes the conversation.
The success is real, but so are the expectations.
That doesn’t mean the Canadiens have reached some all-or-nothing point where anything short of the Stanley Cup Final counts as failure. The way the Atlantic Division played out last season matters here.
The Florida Panthers and Toronto Maple Leafs both missed the playoffs, and both are expected to rebound this time around. The Lightning, too, should be in the mix again, which means Montreal’s regular-season goal should be to stay near the top of the division rather than simply repeat last year’s playoff finish.
If the Canadiens can sit among the top three in the Atlantic and hang with the Lightning and Panthers, that would count as a strong regular season. Better still would be separating themselves from the Buffalo Sabres, Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, and Boston Bruins group while keeping pressure on the two Florida clubs for the division’s top spots.
The postseason picture is trickier, because matchups can tilt everything. A first-round exit wouldn’t automatically be a disaster if Montreal ran into a brutal opponent.
If the Lightning win the division and the Canadiens lose a seven-game series to the Panthers, that doesn’t automatically erase the season. With the current playoff format, quality teams get knocked out early all the time when they’re forced to battle through their own division.
So what does success actually look like for Montreal? Another regular season north of 106 points.
More growth from the young core. Signs that Jacob Fowler’s NHL future is coming into focus.
And, ideally, at least one or two playoff series wins. If the Canadiens don’t make it back to the Eastern Conference Final, that still doesn’t mean they’re sliding backward - even if some fans are bound to treat it that way.
In Other News...
Canadiens Suddenly Have A Sam Montembeault Decision Worth Watching
With the Canadiens carrying more than enough goaltending depth to at least entertain the idea of a move, Sam Montembeault has quietly become a name worth monitoring. Montreal has spent enough time building up its crease to create options, and that alone makes the veteran netminder a different kind of asset than he might have been a year ago. For a team that is still sorting out its bigger picture, it is the sort of situation that can turn a stable position into a trade chip if the right market opens.
Kent Hughes also does not usually operate in the most obvious lanes when he is looking for value, which matters here because a simple goalie-for-pick deal may not be the path he prefers. If Montreal decides Montembeault belongs in play, the return could hinge on a more creative type of transaction, the kind that comes with a player who needs a reset or a contract another club wants to move. The broader goalie market could end up shaping how far that idea goes, and the Canadiens will be watching closely to see whether the right opening ever appears. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Reopen Practice But Dach Questions Are Only Growing
After a one-day closed-door session, the Canadiens were back in front of the public on the ice at the CN Sports Complex in Brossard, and the usual practice rhythm returned with it. Fans in attendance got a look at the group as it skated, with Kirby Dach among the players spotted during the open session, a small but notable sight for anyone following the clubs day-to-day health and lineup picture.
The brief shutdown has only added to the curiosity around why the team chose to shut things down in the first place. Montreal has not offered an official explanation for the one-day closed-door practice, leaving the move open to interpretation and keeping attention fixed on the details that matter most to a team that is already being watched closely every time it hits the ice. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Suddenly Have More Urgency To Get Arber Xhekaj Signed
Kaiden Guhles recent absence from practice has given the Canadiens another reason to be uneasy as training camp approaches, especially after he was spotted in a tracksuit and then missed the last two sessions in Brossard. Any uncertainty around a young defenseman who has already become a key part of the blue line tends to ripple quickly through the rest of the roster picture, and in Montreal it has only sharpened the focus on the teams defensive depth.
It also adds a little more urgency to Kent Hughes work with Arber Xhekaj, who remains unsigned even while continuing to train with the club. The Canadiens have been carrying on as if the situation will sort itself out, but if Guhle is slowed early in the season, the need for reliable bodies on defense becomes harder to ignore and makes Xhekajs unresolved contract situation loom a lot larger. [Read more 🡒]