2025-26 Second Quarter Grades: Goalies and Defencemen
In the second quarter of the season, the Canadiens’ blueliners stayed relatively healthy, but a rookie got his first NHL game experience. That depth move meant some of the bottom six were healthy scratches, as coach Martin St. Louis tried to keep the defenders fresh. This grade article focuses on the goaltenders and defencemen.
Players must have played in at least five games to receive a grade.
Goaltenders
Jacob Fowler: Writer Vote Average 8.43
Jacob got a somewhat unexpected call-up to start his NHL career after playing well in his rookie AHL season. Fowler’s first game against Pittsburgh drew comparisons to Habs legends Ken Dryden, Patrick Roy, and Carey Price, all of whom started and won their first NHL games against the Penguins. Price phoned Fowler before the game to offer him words of encouragement. Five days later, he faced Pittsburgh again, and this time shut them out. Jacob’s presence in the lineup seemed to have helped stabilize the team. He is excellent positionally and does not overcommit. His play has been very consistent, and he has given Montreal fans a glimpse of what his future will be.
Stats: 7 GP, 2.57 GAA, 0.903 SV%, 3-3-1 Record
Jakub Dobes: Writer Vote Average 6.14
Dobes had a roller coaster second quarter, to say the least. In early December after allowing only three goals in two games against Toronto and Winnipeg, he allowed seven goals against St. Louis and Tampa Bay in his next two starts. Given his struggles and those of Samuel Montembeault, it’s likely this was the reason Jacob Fowler was called up in early December. After missing the next two starts to Fowler, Dobes won his next two games with strong performances, allowing only two goals in total. Dobes needs to work on his positioning since he can sometimes put himself in the wrong spot and that leads to a bad goal against.
Stats: 10 GP, 3.15 GAA, 0.883 SV%, 6-3-1 Record
Samuel Montembeault: Writer Vote Average N/A
Montembeault, like Dobes, was very inconsistent this second quarter. While he played well in a late November win versus Vegas, his next two starts against Ottawa and Tampa were terrible, allowing eight goals. This led to a two-game conditioning stint in the AHL, where he played one good game and one bad one. The demotion was agreed on by Samuel and the team in order for the move to happen. When he was back in Montreal, he spent extra time practicing with the goaltender coach Eric Raymond to fine-tune his game. His next start was twenty-one days later against the defending Stanley Cup winners Florida, and he won 3-2. If he can maintain this level of play, then Montreal’s management should be content without needing the three-goalie system again this season.
Stats: 4 GP, 2.97 GAA, 0.893 SV%, 2-2-0 Record
Defencemen
Lane Hutson: Writer Vote Average 9.43
Hutson continues to be a dominating presence on Montreal’s blueline. In the second quarter, he led the team in assists, points, and plus/minus. He did this and scored four more points than in the first quarter. Lane continues to be a creative play driver, loving to carry the puck and command the play from the opponents’ end of the ice. It seems like his energy level is always at an eleven out of ten, regardless of the time of the game, which is remarkable for a smaller player. Although Hutson was not selected for the American Olympic hockey team, I believe he must have been asked to be a replacement player in case of injury, so it’s possible he will get a chance to show his skills in Milan this February.
Stats: 20 GP, 3 G, 19 A, 22 PTS, 8 PIM, +12, 36 Shots, 6 Hits, 30 Blocked Shots, 24:37 ATOI
Noah Dobson: Writer Vote Average 8.29
Dobson continued his strong play in this quarter and led the defencemen with four goals. With his usual partner, Mike Matheson, injured for three games, he was forced to play with different partners and adapted pretty well. Dobson’s strong skating and good size are very helpful in the shutdown role where he usually faces the opponents’ top players. In the last game of 2025 versus Florida, Dobson was paired with Hutson for most of the last half of the third period. The team was behind by two goals, and that pairing helped drive their offence to get the two goals needed to tie the game late in that period. In overtime, both Dobson and Hutson assisted on the game-winning power play goal to win the game. I would like to see Dobson play more with Hutson, but since he’s highly successful in a shutdown role with Matheson, this may not happen that often. If in the future another defenceman can rise to the shutdown role, then this dream pairing may happen.
Stats: 20 GP, 4 G, 8 A, 12 PTS, 12 PIM, +2, 41 Shots, 9 Hits, 53 Blocked Shots, 23:04 ATOI
Mike Matheson: Writer Vote Average 8.14
Matheson continued his consistent game for Montreal during the second quarter. Despite two different spans of three missed games, his re-entry into the lineup was welcomed. The second injury was due to an egregious elbow to the head courtesy of Habs-hater Brad Marchand. The play should have at least warranted a call from NHL’s inept “Department of Player Safety,” but an intentional headshot appears to be allowed when Florida’s next game was their planned outdoor match. I thought Matheson would have suffered a concussion on that dirty play, but he only missed one game. What is interesting to note is that Mike scored 10 fewer points in the second quarter. It’s possible those injuries have had some toll on his play.
Stats: 17 GP, 0 G, 4 A, 4 PTS, 4 PIM, -3, 23 Shots, 8 Hits, 40 Blocked Shots, 25:16 ATOI
Adam Engstrom: Writer Vote Average 6.71
After a strong performance in the AHL which was capped by a five-point game, Engstrom was called up. His presence took some ice time away from Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble. His adjustment to the NHL was as expected for a rookie; some games he played, and some he was a healthy scratch. He has shown some offensive ability; Adam is a good skater who likes to carry the puck. His defensive game looks average but that’s not unexpected for a rookie trying to adapt to the NHL pace. When he’s behind the Habs net with the puck, he has shown a tendency to always carry it out of the zone instead of passing it. That trait could be exploited by the opposition unless he learns to balance that better. Although Engstrom shoots left, he plays the right side very well. Most of his time playing in Europe, he played on his off-side, which has helped him adapt to that switch. With Montreal having only two natural right-shooting defenders, Engstrom’s ability will help him earn his ice time.
Stats: 11 GP, 0 G, 0 A, 0 PTS, 6 PIM, +3, 7 Shots, 4 Hits, 5 Blocked Shots, 12:32 ATOI
Arber Xhekaj: Writer Vote Average 5.71
Arber’s tough style of play continued during the second quarter. He led the team in penalties again but did bring those totals down by nine minutes. When I watch him some games, I can see he is trying to rein in taking bad penalties but still being an intimidating player who led Canadiens defenders in hits. Sometimes he takes himself out of position with an ill-timed hit, which leads to a scoring chance against. In another game, he was deep in his defensive zone with the puck under pressure, and instead of eating the puck or rimming it back around the boards, he made a poor pass that directly led to a goal against. It’s during those times I wonder if he doesn’t have the hockey sense to play at the NHL level.
Stats: 17 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 PTS, 31 PIM, -3, 10 Shots, 57 Hits, 13 Blocked Shots, 11:55 ATOI
Alexandre Carrier: Writer Vote Average 5.43
Alex continued to have a disappointing season in the second quarter (but has picked things up since then). With Guhle’s absence, he was forced to play more often on the second pairing and may not be ideally suited for that role in five-on-five situations. His offence dropped five points from the previous quarter. His plus-minus improved overall, but he was still in the negative zone. Carrier continues to be targeted by the opposition who appear to hit him hard and often. If this continues I wonder how long he will last in the NHL before a serious injury takes him out of the game.
Stats: 20 GP, 0 G, 2 A, 2 PTS, 8 PIM, -2, 13 Shots, 8 Hits, 37 Blocked Shots, 20:28 ATOI
Jayden Struble: Writer Vote Average 4.57
Struble continued to bring some aggression into his game this quarter, but did so while only taking two penalty minutes. He’s still a young player learning the game and having to deal with being in and out of the lineup. Jayden was a healthy scratch for four games and missed one game due to an upper-body injury. He only provided two points which was half of his first-quarter production. If he were a right-shot defender, there is a chance he could get some time on the second pairing occasionally. But like most lefty shooters on the Habs blueline, he is barely adequate out of his natural position.
Stats: 15 GP, 0 G, 2 A, 2 PTS, 2 PIM, -3, 1 Shot, 23 Hits, 5 Blocked Shots, 14:21 ATOI