The Penguins made a move with a direct impact on their next trip to Montreal, landing defenseman Spencer Stastney from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for forward Filip Hallander ahead of their October 31 visit to the Canadiens.
For Pittsburgh, the return is a defenseman who is under contract through the end of the 2026-27 season at an average annual value of $1.525 million. Stastney is coming off the busiest year of his career, appearing in 66 games in 2025-26, a career high, split between Edmonton and Nashville. He also handled penalty-kill work in Nashville, where he averaged 1:27 per game on the NHL's fifth-best unit.
The timing matters because the Canadiens just dropped a 6-5 overtime decision in Pittsburgh a few days ago, and the Penguins’ blue line already looks steady. Pittsburgh is giving up 2.7 goals per game and sits at 2-1-0, with a defense that does not appear to need help to hold its own.
Montreal’s situation is much less settled. The Canadiens are allowing 4.7 goals per game, and if that continues, adding a defenseman who can help on the penalty kill only makes the October 31 matchup harder for their offense.
On the Edmonton side, Hallander gives the Oilers another option up front, and the fit could be immediate. The 26-year-old has three points in two games this season and carries a +4 rating. Edmonton’s 2-0-1 start and 5.7 goals per game suggest there’s plenty of firepower to work him into the lineup, even potentially in the top six.
The Canadiens will also see Edmonton at home on December 14 and then again in Edmonton on January 30, so Hallander’s role will be worth tracking over the next few months. For now, the cleanest takeaway is simple: Pittsburgh added a defenseman who can help right away, and Montreal may feel that effect soon.
In Other News...
Canadiens Suddenly Have A New Lineup Concern Beyond Demidov
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Kapanens absence has added another layer of intrigue because the Canadiens have not offered much to explain it, and the timing matters with games coming up quickly. St-Louis now has to keep sorting out combinations and depth options while trying to cover for Demidovs absence, and the clubs next few days may say a lot about how flexible the roster really is. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens May Have Found The Answer To A Big Top-Line Debate
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The appeal is obvious: Slafkovskys size, puck protection and improving play can help drive a line that already has skill to burn, while the alternative is sending him back down to a second unit where he might carry more of the puck and the playmaking load. Montreal now has a decision to make about whether the experiment is a short-term fix or something worth keeping in place once the roster is back closer to full strength. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Suddenly Face A Goalie Decision They Didn't Expect
A routine practice took an unwelcome turn for the Canadiens when Sam Montembeault went down with a non-contact right leg injury, and the team is expected to update his status later. For a club that had not exactly planned on revisiting its crease chart this way, the timing matters, especially with the goaltending picture still being shaped by what Jakub Dobe does with his opportunities.
Jacob Fowler is the name that naturally enters the conversation if Montreal needs help from Laval, where the young netminder has already made a strong impression in limited looks at both the NHL and AHL levels. If Montembeault is sidelined, the Canadiens could be looking at more than a short-term patch, with a possible extended evaluation in the crease depending on how Dobe holds up in the meantime. [Read more 🡒]