The Montreal Canadiens have a young and vastly talented core ready to have that special breakthrough season.
Last year, Montreal took that giant step towards being a serious contender when they went from 91 points two years ago to an amazing 106-point season, which saw those young core players enjoy breakout campaigns.
Montreal Canadiens Are Accelerating Their Timeline
Canadiens Are an Up-and-Coming Team
Among the core Canadiens players who last year produced career stats and are just reaching their prime include forwards Cole Caufield (51 goals, 88 points, +29), captain Nick Suzuki (29 goals, 101 points, +37), Juraj Slafkovsky (30 goals, 73 points, +9), and defenceman Lane Hutson (12 goals, 78 points, +36).
Besides these core players, another reason why the Canadiens will have such a successful season is the talent of forwards Ivan Demidov, who is coming off a solid rookie season of 62 points (19 goals and 43 assists) and Oliver Kapanen, who scored 22 goals along with 37 points as a rookie. With a full NHL season under their belts, watch for these two players to take a big step forward this season.
As all hockey fans know, goaltending is the most important position in hockey, and the Canadiens look like they have found a young potential star in goalie Jakub Dobes, who in his rookie year went 29-10-4 with a 2.78 GAA and a .901 save percentage.
Proving to be a money goalie, Dobes excelled in the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs, where he went 9-10 with a 2.66 GAA and a .908 save percentage in the Canadiens run, which saw them make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost against the eventual Stanley Cup Champions, the Carolina Hurricanes. The emergence of Dobes could mean that Samuel Montembeault will be on the move sooner rather than later.
Forward Chris Kreider Brings Veteran Leadership to Young Team
While it might not have received a lot of attention, the Canadiens made a major move on September 12, 2026. After being let go by the Anaheim Ducks, veteran forward Chris Kreider signed a one-year deal $2.15 million with Montreal.
Kreider, who is 35 years-old and starting his 15th NHL season, will bring veteran leadership on the ice and dressing room to this young team.
Ironically enough, Kreider, as all hockey fans might remember was public enemy number one among Montreal fans since Game 1 of the 2014 Eastern Conference Finals when on a breakaway he crashed into Canadiens goalie Carey Price and took him out of commission with a major knee injury.
Since then, whenever Kreider came to Montreal as a visiting player he was booed. That was until last Saturday night, when on September 19th at the Bell Centre, Kreider received a thunderous ovation from fans prior to the Canadiens’ exhibition win against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Besides veteran leadership, Kreider who has 958 NHL games under his belt also provides secondary scoring, as he has scored 348 goals along with 632 points, 609 PIM’s and has an impressive plus/minus of +117.
Kreider, who has played 13 seasons with the New York Rangers and one year with the Ducks, should be a big veteran influence on Slafkovsky given that they both play the same style of game.
Kreider has scored a majority of his goals on deflections from in front of the net which is something Slafkovsky does as well.
During training camp, Kreider has been seen tipping pucks and giving some pointers to his younger teammate.
Is This the Year Slafkovsky Emerges Into a True Superstar?
Back in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, Montreal in a bit of a controversial move, selected the 6’3″ 225-pound Slovakian forward Slafkovsky.
Heading towards the draft, an argument could be made for either Slafkovsky or forward Shane Wright for being the legitimate number one pick.
Back on July 7, 2022, history was made when Slafkovsky became the highest picked Slovakian player.
During the first couple of seasons Slafkovsky battled injuries, inconsistent play, and heard some criticism from fans and media alike.
Following an injury plagued rookie season which saw this talented Slovak score 10 points (4 goals and six assists) in only 39 games, the criticism slowly disappeared as Slafkovsky’s point production steadily climbed over the next three years starting in the 2023-24 season when as a sophomore he produced a respectable 50 points (20 goals, 30 assists).
The next season Slafkovsky recorded 51 points (18 goals, 33 assists) before enjoying an incredible breakout season last season, which saw him score 30 goals along with 73 points while continuing to be a physical force.
Now the question is can Slafkovsky at just 22 years of age, go from being a great player to an undisputed star?
One thing is certain and that’s with all due respect to Wright, the Canadiens management made the right choice going with Slafkovsky who is emerging into a star forward.
Main Image: David Kirouac-Imagn Images
