Game 2: Canadiens vs. Penguins: Moving On Up

Last year, Montreal and Pittsburgh met in three games, all in December. The Habs won two of the duels, and their only loss came in the shootout in the final faceoff on December 21. Over the season, the Canadiens outscored the Penguins 11-5 and will no doubt be looking to improve on that. However, Pittsburgh has won seven of the last 10 games between the two teams, but that goes back to March 2023; the Habs have come a long way since then.

The Pens brought in some new players this offseason, including Nicholas Robertson, Andrei Kuzmenko, Hendrix Lapierre, Declan Carlile, Trevor Van Riemsdyk, and Kaeden Korczak. Just like Martin St-Louis' men, Sidney Crosby and co. won their first game of the season, but they did it in dominating fashion, beating their Pennsylvania rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers , 7-0.

The starting netminders have yet to be confirmed, but it would be a shock if Jakub Dobes wasn't back between the posts after his first-game performance. Dobes has only faced the hosts once; he was on duty in last season's 4-3 shootout loss and therefore has a 2.77 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage. Meanwhile, Samuel Montembeault has a 2-3-1 record in seven games against the Pens with a 3.72 GAA and an .880 SV.