Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Yields goal on low volume
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Montembeault turned away seven of eight shots on net he saw in Monday's 3-2 overtime preseason win over the Senators.
While Montembeault started the preseason off on the wrong foot by allowing a goal to William Eklund just under 90 seconds into regulation, he recovered decently and kept the Senators off the scoresheet for the remaining 30 minutes he played. The 29-year-old netminder has played solid this preseason, now totaling 20 saves on 21 total attempts across two preseason outings. He'll continue to face the tough task of winning back one of the team's top two goalie spots, as Jakub Dobes and Jacob Fowler currently appear to be the favorites for Montreal's goalie tandem in the 2026-27 campaign.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Expected to start Monday's preseason game
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Montembeault is slated to patrol the home blue paint in Monday's preseason game versus Ottawa.
Montembeault started Saturday's preseason game against Toronto and was perfect, turning aside all 13 shots he faced. Montembeault was relegated to being Montreal's No. 3 netminder once Jacob Fowler was called up toward the end of last season, so the former likely has an uphill battle for playing time in 2026-27 at this point.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Successful in preseason opener
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Montembeault turned aside all 13 shots he saw during Saturday's 4-1 preseason win over the Maple Leafs.
Montembeault drew the start in the road goal during Saturday's preseason opener and played just over half of the game before being replaced by Kaapo Kahkonen. Montembeault made 25 regular-season appearances last year -- his lowest mark since the 2019-20 campaign -- and he'll likely have to battle with Jacob Fowler during camp for the No. 2 goaltending job behind Jakub Dobes.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Guarding road goal
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Montembeault is set to start on the road against Toronto for Saturday's preseason game.
Montembeault had a 10-8-4 record, 3.43 GAA and .872 save percentage in 25 regular-season appearances with the Canadiens in 2025-26. While he's playing in Toronto, Jakub Dobes will man the home net against the Maple Leafs in Montreal. Once the campaign starts, Dobes is set to serve as the No. 1 netminder. There's a strong chance Montembeault will open the season as Montreal's backup, but Jacob Fowler also has a reasonable shot at getting that job.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Squanders comeback effort
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Montembeault stopped 28 of 33 shots in Friday's 6-5 shootout loss to the Ducks.
Montembeault helped the Canadiens get back in the game in the third period, and the offense was able to pull ahead 5-4. Chris Kreider scored in the final minute of regulation to tie it up again, and Montembeault couldn't steal the win in the shootout, taking his second consecutive loss past regulation time. He's down to 10-8-4 with a 3.43 GAA and an .872 save percentage over 25 appearances this season. Montembeault will likely be on the bench for Saturday's game versus the Kings, which should be a start for Jakub Dobes to close out this road trip.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Sunk by Isles in OT
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Montembeault made 22 saves in Thursday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Islanders.
Rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer had the netminder's number in the second period, wiring home two goals in a 55-second span, but it was Jean-Gabriel Pageau who ended the night by slipping the puck through Montembeault's five-hole on a clear break in OT. Montembeault has given up three or more goals in five of his last six starts dating back to Jan. 13, going 2-2-2 over that stretch with a 3.32 GAA and .886 save percentage.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Sharp in Wednesday's win
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Montembeault made 36 saves in Wednesday's 5-1 win over the Jets.
Kyle Connor scored a power-play tally early in the first period, but Montembeault shut the door the rest of the way as the Canadiens took control. The 29-year-old netminder is likely looking forward to the Olympic break, having gone 2-2-1 over his last five starts with a 3.20 GAA and .893 save percentage.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Between pipes versus Jets
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Montembeault will tend the twine on the road against Winnipeg on Wednesday.
Montembeault has watched from the bench for the last four outings, as Jakub Dobes featured in each of those contests. The 29-year-old Montembeault has allowed three or more goals in five of his past six outings, going 3-2-1 with an .880 save percentage during that span.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Yields four goals in loss
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Montembeault stopped 17 of 21 shots on goal in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Bruins.
Montembeault kept Montreal's net tidy in the first period before allowing two goals in each of the final two periods of Saturday's contest. Three of the four goals he surrendered came on power plays for the Bruins, who took advantage of Montreal's 26th-ranked penalty kill. Overall, the 29-year-old Montembeault now has a 9-8-2 record with a 3.46 GAA and an .869 save percentage across 22 appearances this season. Since winning each of his first three starts following his recall from an AHL conditioning stint, he has lost three of his last four outings with a 3.75 GAA and an .867 save percentage. With the Canadiens trending down in the Atlantic Division standings, Montembeault is a risky fantasy option and will have to turn things around soon if he wants to fend off Jakub Dobes and Jacob Fowler for opportunities in net.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Starting in Boston
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Montembeault will defend the road net against the Bruins on Saturday.
Montembeault has gone 1-1-1 in his last three outings while allowing 11 goals on 92 shots. He has posted a 9-7-2 record with a 3.42 GAA and an .871 save percentage across 21 appearances this season. Boston ranks ninth in the league with 3.29 goals per game during the 2025-26 campaign.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Between pipes Thursday
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Montembeault will defend the home crease versus Buffalo on Thursday, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports.
Montembeault is 4-0-1 in his last five starts, allowing 15 goals on 160 shots (.906 save percentage). Montembeault is 9-6-2 with the Canadiens this season and while his record is good, his peripherals of a 3.44 GAA and an .873 save percentage are not. The Sabres are scoring 3.27 goals per game, tied for 10th with Ottawa this season.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Set to start Tuesday
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Montembeault will defend the road net against Washington on Tuesday, per Patrick Friolet of RDS.
Montembeault will get the second half of Montreal's back-to-back after Jakub Dobes plays in Monday's home matchup against Vancouver. The 29-year-old Montembeault has won his last three outings while stopping 77 of 84 shots. He has gone 8-6-1 with a 3.39 GAA and an .869 save percentage across 18 appearances this season. Washington is tied for eighth in the league during the 2025-26 campaign with 3.26 goals per game.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Guarding home goal
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Montembeault will start at home against Floirda on Thursday.
Montembeault has a 7-6-1 record, 3.48 GAA and .865 save percentage in 17 appearances in 2025-26. He's won his past two starts while stopping 52 of 57 shots (.912 save percentage). Florida is tied for 17th in goals per game with 3.05.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Picks up win
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Montembeault stopped 24 of 27 shots in Sunday's 4-3 overtime win over the Stars.
Montembeault made his second start since ending his loan at AHL Laval on Dec. 16, and he's earned back-to-back OT wins against Florida and Dallas. In those two games, the 29-year-old has allowed five goals on 57 shots faced. He should continue as the Canadiens' No. 1 goaltender ahead of Jakub Dobes and Jacob Fowler going forward.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Starting Sunday
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Montembeault will start Sunday's contest against the Stars, Canadiens insider Patrick Friolet reports.
After just two starts in December, Montembeault will make his first start of 2026 on Sunday in Dallas. The 29-year-old is 6-6-1 with a 3.53 GAA and an .863 save percentage on the campaign. He'll get another shot at a Stars team that beat him twice on six shots after he came on in relief of Jakub Dobes on Nov. 13 in a 7-0 Stars win.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Bailed out in OT win
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Montembeault made 28 saves in Tuesday's 3-2 overtime win over the Panthers.
The game was still scoreless midway through the third period, but Brad Marchand and Sam Reinhart struck to give Florida a 2-0 lead with less than five minutes left in regulation. Montembeault buckled down and didn't allow another goal, giving Montreal a chance to rally before Nick Suzuki potted the winner in OT. It was the 29-year-old netminder's first start since Dec. 9, as he's fallen to third on the Habs' depth chart behind Jakub Dobes and rookie Jacob Fowler, while the win was Montembeault's first since Nov. 28. On the season, he sports a 6-6-1 record with a shaky 3.53 GAA and .863 save percentage.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Will join team in Tampa
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Montembeault (not injury related) will join the Canadiens ahead of their Dec. 28 game against the Lightning, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports Sunday.
Montembeault was loaned to AHL Laval for a conditioning stint. He has played only twice in the month of December so far, so the conditioning move will allow him to sharpen his skill set at the AHL level. He'll have a couple more practices with Laval before joining the Canadiens on the trip in Tampa next Sunday. In the meantime, Jacob Fowler and Jakub Dobes will continue to handle goaltending duties.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Appears in relief
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Montembeault allowed three goals on 12 shots in relief Tuesday in a 6-1 loss to the Lightning.
Neither Montembeault nor starter Jakub Dobes has been good through November and into December, and the Habs have slipped out of a wild-card spot. Montembeault is 5-6-1 with a 3.65 GAA and an .857 save percentage in 13 starts (15 appearances). Bench him until he rights the proverbial ship.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Will miss Sunday
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Montembeault (illness) will not dress in Sunday's game against the Blues.
Montembeault was set to start Sunday after Jakub Dobes started Saturday's front end of Montreal's back-to-back, but an illness has thrown a wrench in those plans. Kaapo Kahkonen has been called up from AHL Laval to back up Dobes in Montembeault's absence. It remains to be seen if Montembeault will be available for Montreal's next game, Tuesday against the Lightning.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Stumbles against Sens
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Montembeault made 24 saves in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to Ottawa.
It was the first time since Oct. 23 that Montembeault had given up more than four goals. The 29-year-old netminder has just one win in his last six outings, going 1-3-0 during that stretch with a shaky 3.86 GAA and .855 save percentage.
