Canadiens Analysis
Habs Daily: Xhekaj Brothers Shine, First Line, Molson
Here are the Montreal Canadiens news items, stories, and content you may have missed on Tuesday.
Montreal Canadiens News
Montreal’s top line was reunited for their first taste of preseason action. Shockingly, or not, both Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield scored versus the Flyers. [Canadiens Preview: Preseason Lines Versus Penguins]
Speaking of the top line, there was a scary moment early in the game when former Hab Christian Dvorak greeted Juraj Slafkovsky with an accidental skate to the face. Fortunately, Slafkovsky was okay.
Juraj Slafkovsky takes a skate to the face by former teammate Christian Dvorak.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/us4NWDpGVG
— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) September 24, 2025
Even though it was the top line that led the offensive charge on Tuesday, it was Arber and Florian Xhekaj who stole the show. Not only did they both score goals, their mother was in attendance to see the entire event, which led to a great moment following Florian’s goal. [Canadiens Instant Recap: First Line, Xhekajs Stand Out]
Geoff Molson is now part of the ownership group of the WNBA’s Toronto Tempo. France-Margaret Belanger will also serve as a co-owner. Hey, I know it’s Toronto, but it’s always a good thing to see Canadian support for women’s sports. The Tempo will play two regular-season games at the Bell Center next season.
#Habs owner Geoff Molson and President of Sports and Entertainment at Groupe CH, France Margaret Bélange, have joined the ownership group of #WNBA team, the Toronto Tempo.
— Priyanta Emrith (@HabsInHighHeels) September 23, 2025
Every year I pick a few hard-working prospects to watch closely, with players such as Jared Davidson and F.Xhekaj catching my attention in previous seasons. This year, I think I’m going to watch Tyler Thorpe in action as often as possible, because he’s highly entertaining, and has a penchant for (relatively controlled) violence. More importantly, he makes simple plays that help his team win.
Great work by Thorpe down low. Florian Xhekaj sneaks one through, 2-0 #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/FuyMG0DTOZ
— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) September 23, 2025
There’s been some concern about the lack of preseason games for Kirby Dach, but the latest information suggests he’s still on track to start the season in the NHL. For what it’s worth, he was practising with Patrik Laine and Ivan Demidov on Tuesday. I wouldn’t be surprised if he plays on Thursday, versus the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Patrik Laine, Kirby Dach & Ivan Demidov at Habs practice today.
— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) September 23, 2025
National Hockey Now Network
The Florida Panthers really do not need any more motivation in their quest to be the first NHL team to threepeat as Stanley Cup champions since the early 1980s — but Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman may have given them a little. [Florida Panthers]
The young players in the Pittsburgh Penguins‘ lineup got after it Monday night against the Montreal Canadiens in the team’s first preseason game. In what is usually a lopsided loss as teams send lesser rosters to face the home team’s NHL regulars, getting ready for the season, the Penguins’ supposedly lesser roster allowed only one goal and took Montreal to a shootout in a 2-1 SO loss. [Pittsburgh Penguins]
Whatever your opinion is of Detroit Red Wings forward Andrew Copp as a player, you can’t deny one facet about the man. He calls it as he sees it. And in Copp’s opinion, if he sees anything other than the Red Wings occupying a playoff spot at the end of the regular season, in his mind, the season can only be deemed as a failure. [Detroit Red Wings]
