Marc Dumont
The Montreal Canadiens (44-21-10) will face the New Jersey Devils (39-34-2) on Saturday night, with the puck drop scheduled for 7 pm ET.
It will the first of back-to-back games versus the Devils, with the first game taking place in Newark, and the second leg scheduled for the Bell Centre on Sunday.
The Canadiens can’t officially qualify for the playoffs by beating the Devils on Saturday, but given that they’re embroiled in a tightly-contested race for first place in the Atlantic Division, a pair of wins would go a long way in ensuring home-ice advantage in the first round.
But first, the task at hand.
The Devils are in the midst of an underwhelming season, but they’ve managed to win seven of their last 10 games, and they tend to give the Canadiens fits when the teams meet. In other words, the Habs cannot afford to take them lightly if they wish to improve their playoff odds.
It’s also worth noting the Canadiens have won seven-straight games, a season high. It’s the type of streak that fills most players with an abundance of confidence, however, it can also give a young roster the impression they’re unbeatable.
Seeing as the Canadiens and Devils will play twice within 24 hours, the late-season meetings can serve as a sort of preparation for the playoffs, where hitting the ground running is crucial to winning a seven-game series.
Lineup Changes
Head coach Martin St-Louis continues to hold his cards close to his chest, which means any significant lineup change will be cleared up once the teams take to the ice for the pregame warm-up.
With that in mind, we expect to see Jakub Dobes guard the net for the Habs. He will be looking to win a fifth game in a row, while also maintaining a save percentage above .900.
Dobes, along with Jacob Fowler, has been Montreal’s most important player throughout the seven-game winning streak. That may seem counterintuitive, especially since Cole Caufield is quickly approaching the 50-goal mark, and captain Nick Suzuki has a legitimate chance to hit 100 points, but the fact remains that Fowler and Dobes’ .956 save percentage at 5v5 is the driving force behind Montreal’s extended winning streak.
Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup
Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Juraj Slafkovsky
Alex Newhook – Oliver Kapanen – Ivan Demidov
Zach Bolduc – Jake Evans – Josh Anderson
Joe Veleno – Phillip Danault – Brendan Gallagher
Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson
Jayden Struble- Lane Hutson
Kaiden Guhle – Arber Xhekaj
Jakub Dobes
New Jersey Devils Projected Lineup
Timo Meier – Nico Hischier – Dawson Mercer
Jesper Bratt – Jack Hughes – Connor Brown
Lenni Hameenaho – Cody Glass – Nick Bjugstad
Evgenii Dadonov – Paul Cotter – Maxim Tsyplakov
Jonas Siegenthaler – Dougie Hamilton
Luke Hughes – Jonathan Kovacevic
Brenden Dillon – Simon Nemec
Jake Allen
How To Watch The Habs Vs. The Devils
The Montreal Canadiens versus the New Jersey Devils, Saturday, April 4, 2026, will be aired on Sportsnet East, CityTV, and TVA Sports. An instant recap complete with highlights will be available on Sportsnaut as soon as the final whistle blows.
