The Montreal Canadiens (33-18-10) are set to face the Los Angeles Kings (25-22-4), with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
The Habs are less than 24 hours removed from a disappointing loss against the Anaheim Ducks, in which the team overcame a third period deficit to establish a very fragile one-goal lead. But as has been the case on many occasions this year, the Canadiens struggled to hold off their opponents, ultimately losing to the Ducks 6–5 in a shootout.
All things considered, it was a better effort than their previous game in California, a 6–2 loss to the San Jose Sharks. And the Canadiens managed to pick up a point in Anaheim thanks to great efforts from young stars like Cole Caufield, Lane Hutson, Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkowski.
With a shootout point in the bank, the Habs keep their playoff chances above 80%, but it must be said that they aren't generating a lot of confidence from their recent play, which has seen a very low level of consistency, especially from a defensive standpoint.
Simply put, the Canadiens can score a lot of goals, but they have a very hard time defending, and this issue goes beyond the huge save percentages produced by their netminders.
Lineup changes, starting goalkeeper
Neither the Canadiens nor the Kings practiced Saturday. Any changes to the lineup will be revealed when they take to the ice for pre-game warm-ups.
However, the Habs are expected to start Jacob Dobbs, their strongest option among available goaltenders. Again, Montreal's defensive situation makes life very difficult on the netminders, but it must be said that Dobbs gives the Habs the best chance to win on any given night.
As far as the skaters are concerned, we saw some very encouraging play from the front line on Friday night. The Slafkovsky experiment on the second line was mercifully ended, yielding immediate and fairly aggressive results from the top trio.
All three players scored at least two points, with Caufield scoring two goals.
With all due respect to Canadiens head coach Martin Saint-Louis, this was a decision taken a long time ago.
Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup
Cole Coffield - Nick Suzuki - Juraj Slafkowski
Alex Newhook - Oliver Kapanen - Ivan Demidov
Zach Bolduc - Jake Evans - Kirby Dach
Josh Anderson - Philip Danault - Brendan Gallagher
Mike Matheson - Caden Guhle
Lane Hutson - Noah Dobson
Jaden Struble - Alex Carrier
jacob dobbs
Los Angeles Kings Projected Lineup
Artemi Panarin - Anze Kopitar - Adrian Kempe
Trevor Moore - Alex Turcotte - Alex Laferriere
Jared Wright - Kenny Connors - Matthew Joseph
Jeff Malott - Samuel Helenius - Taylor Ward
Mickey Anderson - Drew Doughty
Joel Edmondson - Brandt Clark
Brian Dumoulin - Cody Ceci
Darcy Kuemper
How to watch Hubs Vs. King
Montreal Canadiens vs. Los Angeles Kings, Saturday, March 7, 2026, will be broadcast on Sportsnet East, Citi TV and TVA Sports. A quick recap with highlights will be available on SportsNote once the final whistle blows.
