Montréal Canadiens at Washington Capitals: game preview
MontréalCanadiens2026-27: 1-1-1 · 3 pts · 2025-26: 48-24-10 · 106 pts · 6that
WashingtonCapitals2026-27: 1-1-0 · 2 pts · 2025-26: 43-30-9 · 95 pts · 12thEleven points apart last season
Montréal finished last season 6th in the league on 106 points. Washington finished 12th on 95.
Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.
Meeting number 203
Across 202 completed games, Montréal lead the head-to-head 101-78-23.
Last 5 meetings
See all: Last 5 meetings →The table on each 2025-26 meeting night
League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 20 Nov 2025, Montréal were 22nd in the league and Washington 16th. By 28 Feb 2026 it was 9th and 19th.
Washington out-attempted Montréal 314 to 280
Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.
Montréal Canadiens
Washington Capitals
Montréal and Washington are level on chances, last 10 games
Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.
This season: 3 games for Montréal, 2 for Washington. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.
Last 10 games: 10 games for Montréal, 10 for Washington.
2025-26: 82 games for Montréal, 82 for Washington.
Power play and penalty kill, season and series
This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.
All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings
Montréal
Small sampleWashington
Small sampleDylan Strome has 9 points in the last 5 meetings
Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away, then who has produced in the last meetings.
Dylan Strome vs Montréal · game by game
See all: Dylan Strome vs Montréal · game by game →Jakub Dobes has been the difference
Jakub Dobes faced 105 shots across 4 appearances against Washington and conceded 12, a .886 save percentage against a season figure of .857. Starters are confirmed on game day.
Expected starter after their game on 18 Jan: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.
Expected starter after their game on 18 Jan: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.
Jakub Dobes
See all: Jakub Dobes →MTL · 1-1-1 in 2026-27 Starter estimate from 16 Jan
Logan Thompson
See all: Logan Thompson →WSH · 1-0-0 in 2026-27 Starter estimate from 16 Jan
Also on the roster, 2026-27: Charlie Lindgren .931 (1 GP)
Full game logScoring rates point to about 6.5 goals
No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.
Goals in the last 5 meetings
Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.
Scoring rates
Montréal4.004.673.453.12
Washington3.002.503.212.98Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.
8 on the injury lists
Montréal · injuries
Washington · injuries
Latest moves
See all: Latest moves →Placed D Reilly Walsh, D Maksymilian Szuber, D Ethan Samson, C Sam Poulin, RW Sasha Pastujov, C Hunter McKown, G Kaapo Kähkönen, LW Brett Berard, and RW Alex Belzile on waivers for the purpose of loaning them to Laval (AHL).
Signed F Chris Kreider to a one-year contract.
Loaned F Vinzenz Rohrer to EV Zug (Switzerland).
Placed G Clay Stevenson, D Louie Belpedio, C Mike Brodzinski and RW Spencer Smallman on waivers. Released G Cal Petersen and D Jonathan McDonald from their professional tryout agreements. Assigned LW Maxim Schäfer to Cape Breton (QMJHL).
Placed G Clay Stevenson, D Louie Belpedio, C Mike Brodzinski and RW Spencer Smallman on waivers. Released G Cal Petersen from his professional tryout agreement.
Placed D Justin Holl on waivers for the purpose of being loaned to Hershey (AHL).
Montréal · 2026 draft
See all: Montréal · 2026 draft →Washington · 2026 draft
See all: Washington · 2026 draft →
Updated after every final