Canadiens Game 2: Montembeault Starts as Habs Face Bedard

The Montreal Canadiens (0-0-1) will face the Chicago Blackhawks (1-1-0) on Saturday night at the Bell Centre. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.

It will be the first time Habs fans have a chance to get a glimpse of super rookie Connor Bedard, who already has two points in his first two NHL games.

The Canadiens are not expected to make any changes to their lineup and will run the same lines as they did on Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The lone exception will be that goaltender Samuel Montembeault will be given the start, whereas Jake Allen will serve as his backup.

Even though they lost in overtime against the Maple Leafs, the Canadiens did a great job controlling the high-danger scoring chances at 5v5. The Canadiens also outscored Toronto 4-1 at even strength thanks to goals from Alex Newhook (2), Jake Evans, and Jesse Ylonen.

The Juraj Slafkovsky, Kirby Dach, and Newhook line was particularly good, which does not come as a surprise considering Dach always improves his linemates thanks to his ability to quickly drive the play up the ice with control of the puck.

Speaking of Dach, his shooting coach, Tim Turk, will be joining Game Over: Montreal after the game against the Blackhawks. Turk is one of the most entertaining people in the industry, not to mention, a great instructor. Here’s the link to join the live show.

Chicago Blackhawks

The Blackhawks started their season with an impressive 4-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins, following it up with a 3-1 loss against the Boston Bruins.

Unsurprisingly, Bedard has been the talk of the town since he was drafted first overall at the 2023 NHL Entry Draft in Nashville. The 18-year-old has not looked out of place in the NHL, though it’s probably more accurate to say he has immediately stood out from the crowd.

Bedard registered an assist against the Penguins to earn his first career point, and he did not have to wait long for his first career goal, which occurred the following game against the Bruins.

The rest of the Blackhawks lineup is, well, terrible, especially since Taylor Hall picked up an injury and will miss the game against the Habs. Bedard is expected to play on the top line with Taylor Raddysh and Ryan Donato.

Montreal Canadiens Injuries

• Christian Dvorak (week-to-week)
• Carey Price (IR)
• Chris Wideman (IR)

Chicago Blackhawks Injuries

• Taylor Hall (out)
• Luke Philp (IR)
• Samuel Savoie (IR)

Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup

Chicago Blackhawks Projected Lineup

Raddysh – Bedard – Donato

Johnson – Reichel – Athanasiou

Foligno – Dickinson – Perry

Katchouk – Guttman – Johnson

Defence:

Vlasic – Jones

Korchinski – Murphy

Kaiser – Tinordi

Goalie:

Mrazek

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