Game 5: Montreal Canadiens vs. Nashville Predators
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Predators region: FanDuel Sports Network South
Streaming: ESPN+, TSN+, RDS+
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Four games into the season, with the Canadiens having won three in a row, the Montreal Canadiens have made their first change to the opening-night lineup. Arber Xhekaj will come out to allow Jayden Struble to step in on the third pairing for his first game of the year.
Xhekaj has been on the ice for four five-on-five goals for versus only three against, but the duo of him and Alexandre Carrier had been allowing a high number of high-danger chances — a dozen when the highest number for any other player is eight — so a chance for Xhekaj to see the game from a higher perspective was in order.
The Predators have been scoring goals much more easily than last year, and temporarily tied their game in Toronto with two in quick succession before ultimately losing that match. It was Nashville’s first regulation loss of the season, so they are clearly enjoying better success than they did a year ago. The Canadiens can’t expect this to be an easy match versus a struggling opponent as it was in 2024-25, so Jakub Dobeš will need to be sharp to help the Canadiens improve to 4-1 on the campaign.
Montreal Canadiens projected lineup
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| #13 Cole Caufield | #14 Nick Suzuki | #20 Juraj Slafkovský |
| #15 Alex Newhook | #91 Oliver Kapanen | #93 Ivan Demidov |
| #76 Zachary Bolduc | #77 Kirby Dach | #11 Brendan Gallagher |
| #92 Patrik Laine | #71 Jake Evans | #17 Josh Anderson |
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| #21 Kaiden Guhle | #48 Lane Hutson |
| #8 Mike Matheson | #53 Noah Dobson |
| #47 Jayden Struble | #45 Alexandre Carrier |
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| #75 Jakub Dobeš | #35 Samuel Montembeault |
Scratched: Joe Veleno, Arber Xhekaj
Nashville Predators projected lineup
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| Filip Forsberg | Ryan O’Reilly | Steven Stamkos |
| Tyson Jost | Fedor Svechkov | Luke Evangelista |
| Michael Bunting | Erik Haula | Jonathan Marchessault |
| Cole Smith | Michael McCarron | Ozzy Wiesblatt |
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| Adam Wilsby | Roman Josi |
| Brady Skjei | Nick Perbix |
| Spencer Stastney | Justin Barron |
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| Juuse Saros | Justus Annunen |
