Atlantic Division
·
Est. 1909
Montréal Canadiens
2026–27
·
3–3–1
·
7 pts
·
#7 Atlantic
24 Cups all-timeGM: Kent HughesHC: Martin St. Louis
STANLEY CUP
1993
1986
1979
1978
1977
1976
1973
1971
1969
1968
STANLEY CUP
1966
1965
1960
1959
1958
1957
1956
1953
1946
1944
STANLEY CUP
1931
1930
1924
1916
Team xGF%
52.2
% · all situations · HighDanger xG
13th in NHL
Identity
Young-and-fast
Rebuild graduation
Contention window
Opening
Conference Final run
Coach
St. Louis
Skill-first system
Avg age · forwards
26.1
Youngest group in division
Team Identity
Young-and-fast · Rebuild graduation
After graduating their rebuild a year early, and riding one of the NHL's youngest rosters (a 26.1 average age, fifth-youngest leaguewide), Montreal ran all the way to the Eastern Conference Final: they knocked off Tampa Bay in a seven-game first round, ousted Buffalo in the second, then fell to eventual Cup champion Carolina 4-1 in the conference final. Captain Nick Suzuki won the Selke Trophy as the league's top defensive forward and anchors a top six with real depth, while Ivan Demidov, the NHL's leading rookie scorer, is locked up long-term (an eight-year, $9.125M extension from 2027-28) and Lane Hutson's elite puck-moving backed up his Calder run. In net, Jakub Dobeš turned a massive playoff performance into a new contract and now headlines the crease. Martin St. Louis's skill-first system has the Habs ascending fast.
2026-27 team profile · ranked against teams that have played
52.2%
xGF%
13th of 32
+1.9
xG diff
12th of 32
3.22
xGF / game
14th of 32
2.95
xGA / game
13th of 32
-2
Finishing
22th of 32
-6
Goaltending
29th of 32
313
Unblocked att. for
6th of 32
268
Unblocked att. against
15th of 32
All situations, not 5-on-5. Our own xG model.
Player stats · 2026-27
Forwards15
PlayerPosGPGAPShotsTOI/GP2026-27 proj
Nick SuzukiC74592022:01103Josh AndersonRW74261513:3427Zachary BolducRW73251113:4237Alex NewhookC7134816:1442Chris KreiderLW7134515:0450Cole CaufieldLW73142419:5590Juraj SlafkovskýRW71232219:1576Alexandre TexierLW70221113:0934Ivan DemidovRW2112415:3764Kirby DachC701129:3035Phillip DanaultC70111015:5931Florian XhekajLW200027:3616Jake EvansC7000613:3030Brett BerardLW––––––17Oliver KapanenC––––––30Defense7
PlayerPosGPGAPShotsTOI/GP2026-27 proj
Lane HutsonD72681626:2780Alexandre CarrierD7112918:4823Noah DobsonD70221421:3655Mike MathesonD5011924:0942Adam EngstromD4000311:0014Arber XhekajD7000211:559Kaiden GuhleD3000421:0727Goaltending
GoalieGPRecordSV%GAAGSAx
Samuel Montembeault–None-None-None–––Jakub Dobes41-2-1.8424.63-5.0Jacob Fowler32-1-0.9061.91+0.5Current lineup, this season's numbers. A dash means no games played yet.
Player contracts · 2026-27
Forwards15 · $56.20M
Player
202720282029203020312032203320342035
Cap hit
Signed thru
Nick SuzukiC
$7.88M
2030
Cole CaufieldLW
$7.85M
2031
Juraj SlafkovskýRW
$7.60M
2033
Phillip DanaultC
$5.50M
2027
Josh AndersonRW
$5.50M
2027
Zachary BolducRW
$4.20M
2030
Kirby DachC
$3.60M
2027
Alex NewhookC
$2.90M
2027
Extension
$5.55M
2031
Jake EvansC
$2.85M
2029
Alexandre TexierLW
$2.50M
2028
Chris KreiderLW
$2.15M
2027
Oliver KapanenC
$942K
2028
Florian XhekajLW
$942K
2027
Ivan DemidovRW
$941K
2027
Extension
$9.125M
2035
Brett BerardLW
$850K
2027
Defense7 · $36.05M
Player
202720282029203020312032203320342035
Cap hit
Signed thru
Noah DobsonD
$9.50M
2033
Lane HutsonD
$8.85M
2034
Mike MathesonD
$6.00M
2031
Kaiden GuhleD
$5.55M
2031
Alexandre CarrierD
$3.75M
2027
Arber XhekajD
$1.50M
2027
Adam EngstromD
$897K
2027
Goalies3 · $5.06M
Player
202720282029203020312032203320342035
Cap hit
Signed thru
Samuel MontembeaultG
$3.15M
2027
Jakub DobesG
$965K
2027
Extension
$5.36M
2030
Jacob FowlerG
$946K
2028
Burned cap2 · $5.18M
Player
202720282029203020312032203320342035
Cap hit
Signed thru
Bonus Carryover Overage-Overage
$1.93M
2027
25 active-roster contracts, $102.49M committed. Bars run 2027 to 2035, the longest deal in the league, so their lengths are comparable between teams. 10 run only through 2027. Burned cap is money charged for players not in the lineup above: $5.18M across 2. AHL and non-roster deals are off-cap and not shown.
Value for money
Forwards13 · average -0.2 vs pay
Player
belowgoing rateabove
Cap hit
Rating
Vs cap hit
Nick SuzukiC
$7.88M
58
+6
Cole CaufieldLW
$7.85M
52
+1
Juraj SlafkovskýRW
$7.60M
51
-1
Phillip DanaultC
$5.50M
49
-3
Josh AndersonRW
$5.50M
51
-0
Zachary BolducRW
$4.20M
51
+0
Kirby DachC
$3.60M
47
-3
Alex NewhookC
$2.90M
50
-1
Jake EvansC
$2.85M
49
-1
Alexandre TexierLW
$2.50M
49
-1
Chris KreiderLW
$2.15M
50
-0
Florian XhekajLWELC
$942K
48
-0
Ivan DemidovRWELC
$941K
50
+1
Defense6 · average +0.5 vs pay
Player
belowgoing rateabove
Cap hit
Rating
Vs cap hit
Noah DobsonD
$9.50M
57
-1
Lane HutsonD
$8.85M
61
+3
Mike MathesonD
$6.00M
60
+3
Alexandre CarrierD
$3.75M
57
+0
Arber XhekajD
$1.50M
52
-3
Adam EngstromDELC
$897K
55
+0
Rating scores each player out of 100 against others at his position, across the three areas we grade: offence, defence, and the rest of his game. Vs cap hit compares that score to what his salary normally buys around the league, so +10 means he plays ten points better than his price tag suggests and -10 means ten points worse. Forwards are only ever measured against forwards and defensemen against defensemen, which is why the two are listed separately: a forward and a defenseman on the same number are not the same player. Green and red mark a gap of more than 10 points either way, which is wider than 7 in 10 players in the league, so most of a normal roster sits grey. Grey means the contract is priced about right, not that the player is unremarkable. Not shown: 3 goalies and 3 skaters without enough NHL games to grade.
Contract breakdown
Paying market rateAbout what the money buys league-wide.
$84.90Mpriced about right
Forwards-0.2priced about right
Defense+0.5priced about right
Every skater above is compared to what his salary normally buys, then the roster is added up. The bar splits this team's cap money three ways by how those contracts are playing. We show a band rather than a place from 1 to 32 because the order of the middle of the league is too tight to call. Goalies are not included.
Cap situation · 2026-27
Cap committed
$102.49M
of $104.0M
Cap space
$1.51M
Players signed
25/23
2 over limit
Pending RFAs
0
team-controlled
Cap utilization99%
Lines · cap by group
Forwards15 signed · $56.2M committed
Line 1$23.32M
F1
Line 2$12.2M
F2
Line 3$10.55M
F3
Line 4$6.45M
F4
Defense7 signed · $36.05M committed
Pair 1$9.3M
D1
Pair 2$18.35M
D2
Pair 3$2.4M
D3
Press Box$6.0M
D
Goalies3 signed · $5.06M committed
Cap Charges$5.18M committed
$
--Bonus Carryover Overage
$1.93M · thru 2027 · Overage
RETBrendan Gallagher
$3.25M · Retained
8 GP · 0G · 1A · 1P
Cap & contracts FAQ · 2026-27
How much salary cap space do the Montreal Canadiens have in 2026-27?
The Montreal Canadiens have $1.51M in salary cap space for the 2026-27 season, with $102.49M committed against the $104.0M cap (99% utilization).
Who is the highest-paid player on the Montreal Canadiens?
Noah Dobson is the Montreal Canadiens' highest-paid player with a $9.5M cap hit, signed through 2033.
How many players do the Montreal Canadiens have signed for 2026-27?
The Montreal Canadiens have 25 players signed toward the 23-man active roster (2 over limit).
Who are the Montreal Canadiens' highest-paid players?
The Montreal Canadiens' top cap hits for 2026-27 are Noah Dobson ($9.5M), Lane Hutson ($8.85M), Nick Suzuki ($7.88M).
5-year points history
Regular-season points, last five seasons.
Organization strength
Current NHL lineup only, weighted by NHL Equivalency. Bar shows team vs league average (marker at center).
Forwards · 11 of 15
41.5
top Nick Suzuki (105.4)
league 44.8 NHLe pts/82
Defense · 5 of 7
31.4
top Lane Hutson (93.7)
league 28.6 NHLe pts/82
Goalies
no data
Similar historical cores
Closest historical team-seasons by points pace, goals for, and goals against (era-normalized z-score, since 1967–68). Click any card to open a side-by-side compare.
Similar historical cores
Teams with comparable roster construction and competitive window.
2015–18 Maple Leafs
Matthews · Marner · Nylander
76% match
SimilarityYoung core emerging
CeilingContender within 2 yrs
TimingStill need 2 D pieces
2018–20 Avalanche
MacKinnon · Rantanen · Makar
70% match
SimilarityYoung skill pre-breakthrough
LessonPatience paid off
PathNeeded to add depth
2014–16 Oilers
McDavid · Draisaitl · Nurse
62% match
WarningYoung stars still needed more time
LessonTop-heavy isn't enough
DifferenceMTL deeper than EDM was
2026 Draft Class
Full board →3 selections in rounds 1-3. Prospect pages; NHL roster spots come as they sign.
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