November 18, 2025
On Monday night, the Montreal Canadiens were in Columbus for their 19th game of the season. A beaten up lineup played with heart and the result was a 4-3 shootout loss.
Here are some things I noticed.
Some of Marty’s new lines worked… others, not so much.
Creating four decent lines of who’s at his disposal is a tough task. The coach’s offering in Columbus had some surprises, nonetheless. I thought Slafkovsky looked pretty good with Kapanen and Demidov. On the other hand, I didn’t love what Bolduc brought to the Suzuki line.
The Evans line was solid, but I’m not sure Roy is a fit there. The Veleno line was rough. Is Gallagher injured or just suddenly in decline? Some gaps and questions are to be expected as long as the forward group is short two or more legitimate NHLers.
Is it time to give up on Roy and Veleno?
How many more looks will HuGo give Joshua Roy before they call it? How long will the Joe Veleno experiment last? The answer to that question is fairly straightforward. Both players will be in the lineup until there are better options to choose from.
Laval has some good players in development, but they’re all very green still and not ready for a long stint in Montreal. Perhaps there will be a waiver claim or a small trade, but those options only make sense if the incoming player is actually an upgrade.
There won’t be a panic move, and my sense is that any move they make will be for cheap depth, or a trade they would have made regardless of the injuries.
Lane Hutson had a strong recovery game.
He has not been his usual of late, but last night he was phenomenal. He wanted that win badly.
The Habs are excellent in the overtime and bland in the shootout.
Suzuki and Caufield have been way more reliable in the shootout in past seasons than we have seen in their two attempts so far this year. They dominated the 3-on-3 last night, wave after wave.
The loser point never feels satisfying, but the Canadiens played a good road game in Columbus with a depleted lineup. The losses won’t continue forever.
Hab At Her 