Pre-season game 3: Montreal Canadiens vs. Ottawa Senators
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
In Canada: Sportsnet One (English), TVA Sports (French)
Streaming: Sportsnet
Fresh off two split-squad wins over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, the Canadiens have made the trip to Trois-Rivières for the Hockeyville game. This match, and the final two of the pre-season that will also be played in split-squad fashion, will be versus the Ottawa Senators.
With half as many players in action on this night, there are some notable lineup decisions. David Reinbacher, the standout performer from the game in Toronto, hits the ice opposite Lane Hutson in what has been an intriguing alignment option since the Austrian was first drafted. We will see how he fares alongside one of the game’s elite defencemen, and how his game adjusts from the shutdown role he just played.
The top bubble options at forward are also grouped together on a line, with Florian Xhekaj at the centre and Brett Berard and Sasha Pastujov on the wings. With the pre-season being so short those players know they have to make their shifts count, and they’ll all try to build on good impressions in their first games.
The top six that played in Montreal is mostly intact, with the full second line set to build up more chemistry and the top line seeing Alex Newhook swap in for Chris Kreider. It should be a game featuring a lot of offensive chances as the team tries to get up to speed for next week’s season-opener.
Montreal Canadiens projected lineup
| Left Wing |
Centre |
Right Wing |
| #13 Cole Caufield |
#14 Nick Suzuki |
#15 Alex Newhook |
| #20 Juraj Slafkovský |
#91 Oliver Kapanen |
#93 Ivan Demidov |
| #76 Zachary Bolduc |
#77 Kirby Dach |
#85 Alexandre Texier |
| #37 Brett Berard |
#63 Florian Xhekaj |
#40 Sasha Pastujov |
| Left Defence |
Right Defence |
| #48 Lane Hutson |
#64 David Reinbacher |
| #42 Adam Engström |
#53 Noah Dobson |
| #47 Jayden Struble |
#72 Arber Xhekaj |
| Starter |
Backup |
| #35 Samuel Montembeault |
#75 Jakub Dobeš |
Ottawa Senators projected lineup
| Left Wing |
Centre |
Right Wing |
| William Eklund |
Dylan Cozens |
Fabian Zetterlund |
| Andre Burakovsky |
Stephen Halliday |
Drake Batherson |
| Nick Cousins |
Shane Pinto |
Michael Amadio |
| Hayden Hodgson |
Ridly Greig |
Sammy Blais |
| Left Defence |
Right Defence |
| Jake Sanderson |
Samuel Bolduc |
| Tyler Kleven |
Carter Yakemchuk |
| Jordan Spence |
Ben Hutton |
| Starter |
Backup |
| Samuel Ersson |
Leevi Meriläinen |
