We've officially hit the two-week mark since the NHL's 2026-27 season began and so far, it's been a bit of a rollercoaster for the Montreal Canadiens both on and off the ice.
Heading into Tuesday's game against the Buffalo Sabres, the Canadiens sit 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 2-2-1 record through five games and are coming off a 1-0 shootout win over the Detroit Red Wings and are 27th in the NHL in goals against with 19, so far.
Off the ice, the injuries are starting to pile up. Forward Oliver Kapanen and goaltender Samuel Montembeault were both placed on injured reserve over the weekend as they deal with lower-body injuries. Meanwhile, Ivan Demidov is currently out with a lower-body injury of his own and was given a two-to-four week timeline to return, Florian Xhekaj is dealing with an undisclosed injury and earlier today, it was announced that Mike Matheson is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
Montreal's big guns, including Juraj Slafkovsky, are going to need to step up, especially this week as they have three games in five nights - Buffalo tonight, Washington on Wednesday and Buffalo, again, on Saturday.
Six Montreal Canadiens Named to ESPN's Top-100 Players List
The Canadiens have arguably one of the best young cores in the entire National Hockey League and last week, six members of the organization were named to ESPN's top-100 players list for the 2026-27 season, which has them tied with the Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning for the most.
Captain Nick Suzuki is the first Montreal Canadien to appear on ESPN's list. After recording his first career 100+ point season in 2025-26, Suzuki saw a considerable jump on ESPN's list, going from 70 all the way up to 19th this year. Suzuki is already off to a solid start this season, registering seven points (three goals, four assists) in five games.
The second member of the Montreal Canadiens on ESPN's list for the 2026-27 season is Cole Caufield, which isn't a surprise to anyone. Caufield is coming off a 51-goal campaign during the 2025-26 season, becoming just the seventh player in Montreal Canadiens history to reach that plateau. This time last year, ESPN had Cole Caufield ranked 39th, but this year he rose 14 spots and sits in 25th.
Coming in at 34th as the third member of the Montreal Canadiens on ESPN's list is defenseman Lane Hutson. Since arriving in Montreal, Hutson's game has continued to grow and he's quickly become one of the best offensive defensemen in the entire National Hockey League. In his second full season in the NHL, Hutson became the third defenseman in franchise history to record a 75+ point campaign and tied Larry Robinson's single season assist record with 66.
"Hutson is the Canadiens' No. 1 defender of the present and the future. He is deceptive with the puck, can practically see through the competition to find space to set up teammates, collapses play well in front of the net and uses an active stick to break up chances through the neutral zone. He also is a pillar on the power play, which is no surprise given how well-rounded his game has quickly become." ESPN's Kristen Shilton said.
Further down the list, Juraj Slafkovsky makes his debut at 70th. After back-to-back 50+ point campaigns in 2023-24 and 2024-25, Juraj Slafkovsky took a big step last season. The 2022 first overall pick recorded his first career 30-goal season, while added 43 assists for 73 points in 82 games. The Kosice native has always been a bit of a slow starter and with just one goal in five games thus far, he's one player the Canadiens need to get going as we get deeper into October.
The penultimate Montreal Canadien on ESPN's list is defenseman Noah Dobson, who actually fell 15 spots from 62nd in 2025-26 down to 77th for the 2026-27 season. Dobson, who was traded to the Montreal Canadiens in the summer of 2025, enjoyed a pretty productive first year in La Belle Province, registering 47 points (12 goals, 35 assists) in 80 games.
2024 fifth overall pick Ivan Demidov, who wowed many in North American during his rookie season in the National Hockey League, the final Montreal Canadiens to appear on ESPN's top-100 players list. Demidov led all rookies with 62 points in 82 games, but finished second in Calder Trophy voting to Matthew Schaefer of the New York Islanders. As mentioned, Demidov is currently sidelined with a lower-body injury and might not be back until the first week of November. At this time next year, following what the Canadiens are hoping to be a jump in production, don't be surprised if Ivan Demidov cracks the top-50 on ESPN's list.