Overview
- The Canadiens currently roster three NHL-caliber goalies after Samuel Montembeault was injured and Jacob Fowler was recalled from Laval, creating a roster imbalance the team says it does not want to carry long term.
- Twenty-one-year-old Jacob Fowler has taken the hot hand and started seven games with a 1.54 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage while earning national praise from analysts.
- Jakub Dobeš is under a three-year, $16 million extension but has struggled early this season, increasing pressure on management to decide whether to keep, bench, or trade him if play does not improve.
- Samuel Montembeault remains in an injury recovery pattern that is expected to end in the near future, a return that would re-create the three-goalie logjam and force a roster move or a temporary carry of all three.
- GM Kent Hughes has publicly said he does not want a three-goalie regular-season system but insiders report the club is taking a wait-and-see approach and will evaluate performance and trade fits before making a decisive move.