March 7, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Montreal Canadiens center Nick Suzuki (14) passes the puck during the first quarter of a game against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Image The Canadiens aim to strengthen their postseason aspirations and deal another blow to the Toronto Maple Leafs when the Original Six rivals meet in Montreal on Tuesday.
Montreal tentatively occupies the wild card spot atop the Eastern Conference, one point behind the third-place Detroit Red Wings in the Atlantic Division.
The Maple Leafs can find themselves in the basement of the division, as the team has lost all seven games (0-5-2) since returning from the Olympic break.
Juraj Slafkovsky collected two goals and an assist to help Montreal to a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday. The former No. 1 overall draft pick has recorded just four assists since returning from the Olympics.
“I want to be the one who drives the game. There are a lot of people here who can do that. Of course, I want to be one of them,” Slafkovsky said. “Today it could be me. Next game it could be someone else, that’s fine, but I feel it’s important to have the mindset of wanting to be the one to change the flow.”
Montreal coach Martin St. Louis is pleased with Slavkowski’s progress.
“I think this is just an evolution. I don’t think we’re surprised,” he said. “Three years ago, two years ago, you were always trying to make sure he was improving and thinking about the big picture. … He’s still very young, so he knows how high his ceiling is, but it’s very high.”
Captain Nick Suzuki scored one goal and had two others while Jake Evans also scored on Saturday. The former has 9 points (3 goals, 6 assists) during a 4-game point streak, while the latter has 5 points (2 goals, 3 assists).
Jakub Dobes improved to 10-1-2 in his last 13 games after making 36 saves against the Kings.
“I feel like I’ve bounced back better,” said Doves, who gave up six goals on 27 shots in last Tuesday’s 7-5 loss at the San Jose Sharks. “I accomplished that (Saturday). I just tried to be myself. I just played my game. I don’t think it was any different from the last game.”
The Maple Leafs certainly want to bounce off their last game, a 5-2 loss to Tampa Bay on Saturday. The team was booed off the ice after the results were announced.
“We have 18 games left, so we have to fight and win,” said goalkeeper Anthony Stolaz. “You don’t like hearing boos with one minute left.”
Matias Marchelli scored a goal against the Lightning, extending his point streak to five games (three goals, two assists).
Toronto captain Auston Matthews, who leads the team with 26 goals, has gone on a goal drought for 11 consecutive games. He scored in the Maple Leafs’ 5–2 win over the Canadiens on October 8.
Montreal’s Cole Caufield, who leads the team with 37 goals, has five goals and two assists in his last five games. He scored in regulation and again in the shootout in the Canadiens’ 2–1 win over Toronto on December 6.
–Field level media
