The Montreal Canadiens (11-7-3) are set to face the Utah Mammoth (12-8-3), with the puck drop scheduled for 9:30 pm ET.
The last time these two teams met, the Habs emerged with a 6-2 win, but much has changed since November 6. The Canadiens went on to lose five consecutive games, a streak that only ended once the struggling Toronto Maple Leafs arrived in town on Saturday.
Starting Goaltender, Engstrom Debut
It’s fair to say November hasn’t been overly kind the Canadiens, with losses and injuries piling up at an alarming rate. The good news is that rookie Jakub Dobes found his rhythm versus the Maple Leafs, saving 24 of the 26 shots sent his way.
Dobes will be called upon to make the start on Wednesday night, playing behind a newcomer, defenceman Adam Engstrom. He was named the Player Of The Week in the AHL before his promotion to the NHL, and will indeed make his NHL debut versus the Mammoth, featuring on the third pairing alongside Alex Carrier.
When we evaluated the best possible landing spot for Engstrom, we came to the conclusion that the third pairing did not fit his playing style, and that an assignment in the top-four would make more sense, but head coach Martin St-Louis likely wanted to limit his ice time so that he could acclimatize to the choppy waters of NHL hockey.
Arber Xhekaj is the player St-Louis had decided to send to the press box to watch the game as a healthy scratch.
As for Alexandre Texier, he practiced on the third line, but for the time being, it seems he’ll have to wait a little longer before making his Canadiens debut.
Montreal Canadiens Projected Lineup
Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Zachary Bolduc
Juraj Slafkovsky – Oliver Kapanen – Ivan Demidov
Florian Xhekaj – Jake Evans – Josh Anderson/Alexandre Texier*
Jared Davidson – Joe Veleno – Brendan Gallagher
Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson
Jayden Struble – Lane Hutson
Adam Engstrom – Alexandre Carrier
Jakub Dobes
Utah Mammoth Projected Lineup
Clayton Keller — Barrett Hayton — Nick Schmaltz
Kailer Yamamoto — Logan Cooley — Dylan Guenther
JJ Peterka — Jack McBain — Lawson Crouse
Michael Carcone — Kevin Stenlund — Brandon Tanev
Mikhail Sergachev — Nick DeSimone
Nate Schmidt — John Marino
Ian Cole — Dmitri Simashev
Karel Vejmelka
How To Watch The Habs Vs. The Mammoth
The Montreal Canadiens versus the Utah Mammoth, Saturday, Wednesday 26, 2025, will be aired on TSN2 and RDS. An instant recap complete with highlights will be available on Sportsnaut as soon as the final whistle blows.
