After deploying his top-six against the Toronto Maple Leafs [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs] at the Bell Centre on Thursday night, Montreal Canadiens [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens] coach Martin St-Louis decided to send a much less experienced group to Toronto. None of the members of the normal leadership group were on the ice, so Alex Newhook, Alex Carrier, and Arber Xhekaj all wore an alternate captain’s A on their jersey. YOU WIN THE GAME ON THE ICE As silly as it may sound, a hockey game is won on the ice and definitely not on paper. On Thursday, the lineup led us to believe that the Canadiens were the favorite to win the game, but when all was said and done, the Leafs skated away with the win. On Saturday night, the roles were reversed with the Leafs sending out a more veteran-heavy lineup and the visitors keeping their number of regulars to a strict minimum. Former Canadiens Forward Hits Waivers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/former-canadiens-forward-hits-waivers] Canadiens Lite To Take On The Maple Leafs Tonight [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/canadiens-lite-to-take-on-the-maple-leafs-tonight] Canadiens: Another Camp, Another Lot Of Injuries [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/canadiens-another-camp-another-lot-of-injuries] But it was the Canadiens who had the better opportunities in the first frame and who were the only ones to find the back of the net through Newhook with assists to Carrier and Zack Bolduc. Earlier in the frame, Oliver Kapanen also did well early on to create a scoring chance, but Anthony Stolarz would have none of it. After 40 minutes, Montreal had 18 shots to Toronto’s 13—an actual reversal of Thursday’s game. HUTSON DID IT ALL Lane Hutson was everywhere on the ice in Toronto. When each team had a man in the box, we were reminded of how mobile a defenseman he is and just how dangerous he can be with extra space. He’s quick, he’s shifty and deceptive, and he does what he wants on the ice. Last year, he wasn’t shooting that much, but on Saturday night, he didn’t miss a single opportunity to take a shot. Through 40 minutes, he had already taken five of the Canadiens’ 18 shots. Just three minutes after John Tavares had brought the Leafs within one goal of the Canadiens, Hutson gave them their two-goal lead back on the power play. With fantastic poise, he walked in, picked his spot, and unleashed a quick wrist shot that found its way through Stolarz. THE FIGHT ISN’T OVER Kapanen, Owen Beck, Joe Veleno, and Samuel Blais, the players who are competing for the 12th and 13th forward spots, all had a pretty good night. Clearly, none of them wanted to be cut post-game, and they weren’t. The same cannot be said for Joshua Roy, however, who has had numerous opportunities throughout the camp but has not risen to the challenge. The Canadiens may not have won 7-2, but they put on a dominating display, similar in every aspect but the final score to the Maple Leafs’ win on Thursday night. Montreal now only has two preseason games remaining, and the coach will likely want to ice as complete a lineup as possible. Fans attending the game against the Ottawa Senators in Quebec City can expect a near-complete lineup. The Habs will enjoy a day off on Sunday before getting back to work on Monday morning in Brossard. They’ll also hold a morning skate in Brossard on Tuesday before travelling to Quebec to face Ottawa in the evening. St-Louis’ men will then have a day off in la vieille capitale, before holding two public training sessions on October 2 and 3. They’ll play their final preseason game on Saturday at the Bell Centre. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Follow Karine on X @KarineHains [https://x.com/KarineHains] Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/karinehains.bsky.social] and Threads @karinehains [https://www.threads.net/@karinehains]. Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/] for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens. Join the discussion by signing up to the Canadiens' roundtable [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens] on The Hockey News.
