Montréal Canadiens at Buffalo Sabres: game preview
MontréalCanadiens2026-27: 1-1-1 · 3 pts · 2025-26: 48-24-10 · 106 pts · 6that
BuffaloSabres2026-27: 2-1-0 · 4 pts · 2025-26: 50-23-9 · 109 pts · 4thThree points apart last season
Montréal finished last season 6th in the league on 106 points. Buffalo finished 4th on 109, and the 2025-26 season series went MTL 6-5-0.
Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.
Meeting number 353
Across 352 completed games, Montréal lead the head-to-head 179-141-32.
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 10 May 2026, Montréal were 6th in the league and Buffalo 4th. By 18 May 2026 it was 6th and 4th.
Buffalo out-attempted Montréal 336 to 305
Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.
Montréal Canadiens
Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo have created the better 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, 3 for Buffalo. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.
Last 10 games: 10 games for Montréal, 10 for Buffalo.
2025-26: 82 games for Montréal, 82 for Buffalo.
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 sampleBuffalo
Small sampleRasmus Dahlin has 10 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.
Rasmus Dahlin vs Montréal · game by game
See all: Rasmus Dahlin vs Montréal · game by game →Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has been the difference
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen faced 97 shots across 4 appearances against Montréal and conceded 10, a .897 save percentage against a season figure of .784. Starters are confirmed on game day.
Jakub Dobes
See all: Jakub Dobes →MTL · 1-1-1 in 2026-27 Starter estimate from 15 Dec
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
See all: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen →BUF · 1-1-0 in 2026-27 Starter estimate from 15 Dec
Also on the roster, 2026-27: Colten Ellis .900 (1 GP)
Full game logScoring rates point to about 6.7 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
Buffalo3.333.673.512.94Goals 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.
11 on the injury lists
Montréal · injuries
Buffalo · 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).
Loaned D Dennis Gilbert to Rochester (AHL).
Recalled D Dennis Gilbert from Rochester (AHL). Placed G Alex Lyon and D Olen Zellweger on injured reserve. Signed D Louis Crevier to a four-year contract. Transferred F Matthew Savoie to long-term injured reserve.
Signed C Noah Östlund to an eight-year contract.
Montréal · 2026 draft
See all: Montréal · 2026 draft →Buffalo · 2026 draft
See all: Buffalo · 2026 draft →
Updated after every final