Montembeault allowed five goals on 10 shots and was removed early in the second period of Tuesday's 8-2 loss to the Kraken.
Montembeault let in a couple goals that took odd redirects on the way to the net, but this was the second time in three outings he was pulled early. Montreal has allowed 21 goals in three of his starts, and Montembeault exited Tuesday's game with a 3.67 goals-against average and an .891 save percentage. The Canadiens are back it Thursday when they go on the road to face Washington.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Guarding goal Tuesday
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Montembeault will patrol the home crease Tuesday against Seattle, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports.
Montembeault ended his three-game losing skid with a 29-save performance in Saturday's 5-2 win over St. Louis. He has a 3-3-0 record with a 2.94 GAA and a .914 save percentage through six appearances this season. Seattle has registered 27 goals in nine games during the 2024-25 campaign.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Back in win column
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Montembeault stopped 29 of 31 shots in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Blues.
Montembeault had three long days to dwell on his previous outing after being pulled in the first period of Tuesday's 7-2 loss to the Rangers. The win snapped a three-game losing skid for Montembeault. He has a 3-3-0 record with a 2.94 GAA and a .914 save percentage for a team that entered the night with the second-most high-danger scoring chances allowed (95), per Natural Stat Trick.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Starting Saturday
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Montembeault will defend the home net versus St. Louis on Saturday, J.F. Chaumont of the NHL.com reports.
Montembeault gave up four goals on 10 shots Tuesday versus the Rangers, before he was pulled in the opening period. Montembeault lost his third straight game after starting the season with a pair of victories. He has a 3.17 GAA and a .909 save percentage in five appearances in 2024-25. The Blues are averaging 3.00 goals per game.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Chased early in loss
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Montembeault allowed four goals on 10 shots and was removed during the first period of Tuesday's 7-2 loss to the Rangers.
Montembeault has hit the skids following a strong start to the season. He's allowed 12 goals on 70 shots (.829 save percentage) over his last three starts. Cayden Primeau finished out the game. Montreal is off until Saturday when it hosts the Blues, which gives head coach Martin St. Louis plenty of time to mull which goalie will start.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Set to start Tuesday
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Montembeault is slated to start Tuesday's home game against the Rangers, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports.
Montembeault has started in four of Montreal's first six games of the season, and he'll attempt to bounce back Tuesday after taking losses in his last two outings. Despite his recent losses, he's had a solid start to the 2024-25 season, logging a 2-2-0 record, 2.30 GAA and .932 save percentage.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Takes loss at home
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Montembeault stopped 31 of 34 shots in Thursday's 4-1 loss to Los Angeles.
Montembeault had a nice bounce-back effort Thursday after the Penguins tagged him for five goals in his previous start. He's started three of Montreal's first four games and sports a 2.03 GAA and .933 save percentage. The Canadiens will hit the road for their next matchup, which comes Saturday against the Islanders.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Set to start Thursday
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Montembeault is slated to start Thursday's home game against the Kings, Patrick Friolet of RDS reports.
Montembeault has started in three of the Canadiens' first four games of the season, posting a 2-1-0 record, 2.03 GAA and .942 save percentage. He struggled during his most recent start Monday against the Penguins, turning aside just 25 of 30 shots, but he'll attempt to bounce back Thursday.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Falters in third outing
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Montembeault allowed five goals on 30 shots in Monday's 6-3 loss to the Penguins.
Montembeault had been a wall through his first two starts, giving up one goal on 73 shots, but he was more of a window than a wall Monday. The Habs managed to hang in after falling behind, 2-0, but Pittsburgh scored three times in the third period, twice against Montembeault before they added an empty-netter. The Canadiens next play Thursday at home against Los Angeles.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Facing Penguins
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Montembeault will be between the pipes in Monday's home contest against Pittsburgh, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports.
Montembeault has opened the 2024-25 campaign with a 2-0-0 record while turning aside 72 of 73 shots. Pittsburgh has potted eight goals through three contests this season.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Second strong outing Saturday
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Montembeault stopped 24 of 25 shots in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Senators.
Montembeault, who won his second straight start, has been stellar to open the season. He's allowed just one goal over 73 shots in wins over Toronto and Ottawa. The 27-year-old remains the team's primary netminder after taking over the role in 2023-24. The Canadiens host the Penguins on Monday.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Starting versus Senators
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Montembeault will protect the home goal versus the Senators on Saturday, per TSN 1200 Ottawa.
Montembeault earned a 48-save shutout in his season debut Wednesday versus the Maple Leafs. He'll look to keep things going against another Atlantic Division rival in his second start of the year. If the Canadiens struggle offensively again this season, Montembeault must be excellent to keep the team competitive.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Dazzles in season opener
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Montembeault turned aside 48 shots in Wednesday's 1-0 win over the Maple Leafs.
Toronto fired at least 13 shots at Monty in every period, but the 27-year-old shone in the spotlight of Montreal's season opener and completely shut down Auston Matthews and company for his second career shutout. Montembeault has never posted a GAA below 3.00 in the NHL, so while he's locked in as the No. 1 netminder for the Canadiens, nights like this are likely to be few and far between without a significant improvement by the defense in front of him.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Between pipes versus Leafs
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Montembeault will tend the twine at home against Toronto on Wednesday.
Montembeault is expected to carry the load for the Habs this season and could surpass his career-high 41 games played from last year. The Quebec native went 16-15-9 with a 3.14 GAA and zero shutouts in those contests, so he'll probably need to step up his game to avoid losing starts. With Montreal kicking off the 2024-25 campaign with a back-to-back, Cayden Primeau should get the nod on the road against Boston on Thursday.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Tough night against Sens
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Montembeault turned aside 15 of 19 shots in Saturday's preseason loss to the Senators.
A hat trick by Shane Pinto, including goals on the power play and shorthanded, accounted for most of the damage against Montembeault in a 4-2 loss. The 27-year-old netminder has struggled to produce useful fantasy ratios the last two seasons behind a leaky Montreal defense, but he still heads into 2024-25 as the top man in the crease for the Canadiens.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Set to start Saturday
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Montembeault is slated to start in Saturday's road game against Ottawa, per Murray Pam of Full Press Hockey.
Montembeault will play in Montreal's preseason finale. He posted a 16-15-9 record, 3.14 GAA and .903 save percentage in 41 regular-season appearances in 2023-24. The 27-year-old netminder will likely be in the net for the Canadiens on Opening Night against Toronto on Wednesday. Cayden Primeau is set to begin the season as Montreal's No. 2 netminder.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Set to start
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Montembeault will patrol the home crease Saturday in preseason action against Toronto, per Simon-Olivier Lorange of La Presse.
Montembeault made 11 saves on 11 shots in a 3-0 exhibition win over New Jersey on Tuesday in 31:28 of playing time. He is expected to share Saturday's contest with Cayden Primeau. Montembeault is projected to start the upcoming campaign as Montreal's No. 1 netminder, while Primeau will be the backup.
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Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Gets starting nod Tuesday
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Montembeault will guard the home goal versus the Devils in Tuesday's preseason game, Guillaume Lefrancois of La Presse reports.
Montembeault enters his first preseason game as the presumptive No. 1 in goal for the Canadiens. He posted a 16-15-9 record with a 3.14 GAA and a .903 save percentage over 41 appearances last year, which was his best of five NHL campaigns. That said, his grasp on the starting job is tenuous, especially if Cayden Primeau takes a large step forward in 2024-25.
Canadiens' Sam Montembeault: Suffers overtime loss
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Montembeault gave up five goals on 35 shots (.857 save percentage) in Monday's 5-4 overtime loss to Detroit.
Montembeault likely has played his final game of the season with the Habs back in action versus Detroit at home Tuesday. The netminder needed just one more win to top the 16 he put up last campaign, but he's instead poised to finish the year tied with that number again. Looking ahead to 2024-25, the 27-year-old Montembeault should enter the campaign as the presumptive No. 1, though Cayden Primeau could challenge for more opportunities.
