Canadiens Pre Game
Game Preview And Lines: Montembeault Will Start Vs. Jets

The Montreal Canadiens (24-20-5) are set to host the Winnipeg Jets (34-14-3) on Tuesday night, with the puck drop scheduled for 7 pm ET.
Before we get going, I do apologize for the lack of content on Monday. Even though I did my best to pretend I wasn’t sick, my body decided otherwise on Sunday afternoon, and if I’m being honest, I’m still quite ill, but the show must go on.
The Canadiens will attempt to regain the momentum that had powered them up the NHL standings since mid-December, but the recent results are starting to cast a shadow on the team’s playoff hopes. The Canadiens did manage to secure one point on Saturday versus the New Jersey Devils, but it was mostly due to the top line dragging them to overtime, not to mention a few key saves by rookie goaltender Jakub Dobes.
Such is life in a rebuild. There are ebbs and flows, but no such things as consistency, at least not yet.
There are no lineup changes expected for the Habs versus the high-flying Jets, except for the goaltending, as Samuel Montembeault will start rather than Dobes.
This also means Josh Anderson will take part in Tuesday’s game despite missing the last few practices. Consequently, Rafael Harvey-Pinard will once again watch the game from the press box as a healthy scratch, while Michael Pezzetta features on the fourth line.
ON TOPIC: Finding A Role For Canadiens Defenceman Jayden Struble
Winnipeg is currently tied with the Washington Capitals for the top spot in the entire league, and as per usual, goaltender Connor Hellebuyck is leading the charge. The two-time Vezina Trophy winner could make it three this season. He’s currently sporting a 30-7-2 record, paired with a fantastic .926 save percentage. That being said, his career record against the Canadiens is just 12-6-2 with a .910 save percentage, which is still quite good, but certainly not as dominant as his results versus other organizations.
Kyle Connor leads the Jets in scoring with 27 goals and 36 assists in 51 games, followed by Mark Scheifele (56 pts), Gabe Vilardi (47 pts), and Nikolaj Ehlers, who has 44 points in 42 games.
Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup
Cole Caufield | Nick Suzuki | Juraj Slafkovsky |
Alex Newhook | Kirby Dach | Josh Anderson |
Owen Beck | Christian Dvorak | Brendan Gallagher |
Patrik Laine | Jake Evans | Joel Armia |
Mike Matheson | Alexandre Carrier |
Lane Hutson | Logan Mailloux |
Arber Xhekaj | David Savard |
Jakub Dobes |
Samuel Montembeault |
Winnipeg Jets Projected Lineup
Connor – Scheifele – Vilardi
Ehlers – Namestnikov – Perfetti
Niederreiter – Kupari – Appleton
Barron – Gustafsson – Iafallo
Morissey – DeMelo
Samberg – Pionk
Stanley – Fleury
Hellebucyk
How to Watch The Montreal Canadiens vs. Winnipeg Jets, Tuesday, January 28, 2025.
Game 50 of the regular season will be aired on RDS and TSN2. Once the game is over, an instant recap complete with highlights will be available on Montreal Hockey Now.
Get well soon, Marc.