When they began the 2025-26 regular season, the Montreal Canadiens were looking to improve on a 2024-25 campaign that saw them finish in fifth place in the Atlantic Division and qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs before they were eliminated by the Washington Capitals in the first round.

To their credit, the Canadiens did exactly that this year, finishing in third place in the Atlantic while earning impressive post-season series wins over the Tampa Bay Lightning and Buffalo Sabres.

Unfortunately, the Habs ran into an extremely strong Carolina Hurricanes team in the Eastern Conference final, and Montreal was eliminated by the Canes with relative ease, losing in five games. The Canadiens won the opening game of the series against Carolina, but after that, they ran into a brick wall in the final four games, scoring only five goals in that span. 

Montreal management should be praised for painstakingly assembling a swift, skilled roster that is going to be a year-in, year-out playoff threat. But there’s still room for this young team to grow, and the Canadiens will have to keep making additions to keep up with the always-competitive Atlantic.

The Habs have shown they’re deserving of the affection Canadiens fans have for them, but getting past the Eastern final next season is going to be an extremely tall order.

The Canadiens wound up with the 12th-best penalty kill in the post-season, as well as the ninth-best offense at an average of 2.84 goals per game, and the eighth-best defense at an average of 2.95 goals-against per game.

They were able to win two Game 7s against the Lightning and Sabres, thanks in no small part to the heroics of goaltender Jakub Dobes. But against a Hurricanes squad that was just as fast and talented as Montreal, the Canadiens’ lack of experience this deep in the playoffs was obvious.

Carolina only got more confident as the Eastern final unfolded, and the Canes outscored the Habs 10-1 in the final two games of the series. Juraj Slafkovsky, Noah Dobson and captain Nick Suzuki were all held without a point in the final four games of the Eastern final, which leaves too much of the heavy lifting for Dobes.

Dobes had a roller-coaster post-season, as he posted a save percentage of .923 or higher in three of five games against Carolina, but in the other two games, he had an SP of .885 or worse.

That inconsistency was also apparent against Buffalo – as Dobes had an SP of .882 or worse in three of seven games against the Sabres – and the same rate was displayed against Tampa Bay. Dobes was solid for the majority of the games in the three series he played in, but the Habs need more steady play from him in next year’s playoffs.

Ultimately, the series loss to the Hurricanes showed the Canadiens how deep and fast you have to be to win at this late stage of the post-season. Montreal’s core is still relatively young, so they can be forgiven for not having what it takes to get past an impressive Canes team.

But at this time next year, the expectations on the Habs will be sky-high – and progressing into the Cup final is going to be the only thing that’s going to please Canadiens fans.

The Canadiens have approximately $11 million in salary cap space going into next season. With that,  they also have RFAs to sign, including Kirby Dach and Zack Bolduc.

So, Montreal GM Kent Hughes will have to be crafty to improve his team this summer. It will be intriguing to see if the Habs want to retain UFA right winger Patrik Laine, but it’s looking more likely that Laine will leave, as his unfortunate health history will almost assuredly dissuade Hughes from paying Laine what he might get in another market. 

The Habs also have to decide what to do with goaltender Samuel Montembeault, as he probably no longer fits with Hughes’ blueprint for success.

Montembeault is under contract for 2026-27 at $3.15 million, but his sub-par regular-season – including an SP of .872 and a GAA of 3.43 in 25 games – means the writing is on the wall for the 29-year-old.

Montreal will likely go with Dobes as the starter and Jacob Fowler as backup next season. So, unless Hughes finds a taker for Montembeault, Montreal may have to bury Montembeault in the AHL. 

Regardless of their goalie situation, the Canadiens have the talent and coaching to continue thriving in the Atlantic next season and beyond. Montreal bench boss Martin St-Louis showed he knew what buttons to push with his team, but the Hurricanes also have a terrific coach in Rod Brind’Amour, so St-Louis also has to grow and improve along with his players next year.

We got a great reminder this spring of how special the city of Montreal can be when the Canadiens are flourishing at this time of year. But the Canadiens still have a ways to go before they can count themselves as a legitimate Stanley Cup front-runner.

The Habs are a team on the rise, but there’s still more rising to do to get them into the winner’s circle and their first championship since 1993.

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