Canadiens Preview: Rookie Opportunities With New Forward Lines

The Montreal Canadiens are set to face the Toronto Maple Leafs, with the puck drop scheduled for 7 pm ET.

Even though the Canadiens managed to emerge with a win in their initial preseason games, the poor effort versus the Leafs on Thursday was enough to leave a sour taste in everyone’s mouth, including the fans and the players.

The top line of Nick Suzuki, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Cole Caufield pulled their weight, but the rest of the lineup struggled to generate offence, and the team’s overall defensive performance was tumultuous to say the least.

On the bright side, Ivan Demidov seems to have re-energized the powerplay, while Kirby Dach’s return to play from his latest season-ending injury went quite well. Dach holds the key to the potential success of the second line, a situation that is complicated by the lack of 5v5 chemistry between himself and Laine.

MUST READ: Canadiens Second-Line Issues Take Centre Stage

This time around, the Canadiens have fewer established NHLers in their lineup, with some rookies given a spot in the top six to prove their worth. Oliver Kapanen will play with Zachary Bolduc and Alex Newhook on the first line, whereas Owen Beck will line up on the second line alongside Sammy Blais and Joe Veleno. Interestingly, both players are natural centres, but they will be used on the wing by head coach Martin St-Louis on Saturday night.

Not only is this a test of their versatility, it may also be their last chance to make an impact before the next round of training-camp cuts. Both Beck and Kapanen are aiming to start the year in the NHL, but given the logjam among forwards, it’s an uphill climb, which means Saturday’s game may end up deciding which player is given a call-up further down the road.

As for the Maple Leafs, they will be icing a much stronger roster than they brought to Montreal on Thursday, though captain Auston Matthews is not expected to play. The Habs will once again face their former teammate, Michael Pezzetta, the player who happened to lead the team in hits per 60 last season (5v5).

Auston Matthews with game group, but not taking line rushes

Said earlier in camp he felt he only needed two exhibition games to get ready

Already played once; regulars likely get into one more on Thursday @TSN_Sports

— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) September 27, 2025

Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup

Toronto Maple Projected Lineup

Jarnkrok – Tavares – Nylander
Knies – Domi – Robertson
Joshua- Roy- Maccelli
Pezzetta -Quillan – Valis

McCabe – Tanev
Rielly – Carlo
Ekmann-Larsson- Benning

Stolarz
Akhtyamov

How to Watch The Montreal Canadiens vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, Saturday, September 27, 2025

The Canadiens’ preseason game versus the Maple Leafs will be aired on Sportsnet and RDS.