Montreal Canadiens at Detroit Red Wings
· National Hockey League5 - 1
Canadiens score three first-period goals to spoil Red Wings' season opener, 5-1
Zachary Bolduc, Oliver Kapanen, Alexandre Carrier and Juraj Slafkovsky also scored for the Canadiens, who bounced back from a 5-2, season-opening loss at Toronto on Wednesday night.
Patrick Gallagher and Nick Suzuki had two assists apiece, while Jakub Dobes made 30 saves.
Dylan Larkin scored on a first-period power play for the Red Wings.
Goaltender John Gibson, who was acquired from Anaheim in an offseason trade, had an inauspicious Detroit debut. He was pulled with 2:48 remaining in the second period after allowing Slafkovsky's power-play goal off a rebound. Gibson made just eight saves on 13 shots before he was replaced by Cam Talbot.
Matheson scored with 6.7 seconds left in the first period to give the Canadiens a 3-1 lead. He lifted a shot from the left side that eluded Gibson's catching glove.
The Canadiens took advantage of Red Wings defensive breakdowns to score their first two goals.
Bolduc, who also had a goal at Toronto, converted on a breakaway. Kapanen scored in front off a pass from Alex Newhook on a two-on-one break to give Montreal a 2-1 lead.
Carrier scored on a slap shot from the point at 5:19 of the second period. Slafkovsky's goal off a rebound gave the Canadiens a 5-1 advantage.
Red Wings: Host Toronto on Saturday night.
Regular Season SeriesMTL leads series 1-0
Scoring Summary
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Goal | 1st Period 3:50 | Dylan Larkin Goal (1) Snap Shot, assists: Patrick Kane (1), Moritz Seider (1) |
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Goal | 1st Period 10:14 | Zachary Bolduc Goal (2) Wrist Shot, assists: Brendan Gallagher (2), Mike Matheson (1) |
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Goal | 1st Period 12:43 | Oliver Kapanen Goal (2) Snap Shot, assists: Alex Newhook (1), Ivan Demidov (1) |
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Goal | 1st Period 19:53 | Mike Matheson Goal (1) Wrist Shot, assists: Nick Suzuki (1), Noah Dobson (1) |
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Goal | 2nd Period 5:19 | Alexandre Carrier Goal (1) Wrist Shot, assists: Arber Xhekaj (1), Brendan Gallagher (3) |
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Goal | 2nd Period 17:12 | Juraj Slafkovský Goal (1) Snap Shot, assists: Cole Caufield (1), Nick Suzuki (2) |
Statistics
MTL |
DET |
|
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Blocked Shots | 13 |
| 25 | Hits | 34 |
| 3 | Takeaways | 4 |
| 17 | Shots | 31 |
| 1 | Power Play Goals | 1 |
| 3 | Power Play Opportunities | 4 |
| 33.3 | Power Play Percentage | 25.0 |
| 0 | Short Handed Goals | 0 |
| 0 | Shootout Goals | 0 |
| 17 | Faceoffs Won | 23 |
| 42.5 | Faceoff Win Percent | 57.5 |
| 14 | Giveaways | 18 |
| 4 | Total Penalties | 3 |
| 8 | Penalty Minutes | 6 |
Detroit Red Wings Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Viktor Arvidsson, LW | Out | Jul 1 |
| Mason Appleton, C | Out | Apr 15 |
| Michael Rasmussen, C | Out | Apr 7 |
Montreal Canadiens Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|
Game Information
Little Caesars Arena
Location: Detroit, MI
Attendance: 19,515 | Capacity:
Location: Detroit, MI
Attendance: 19,515 | Capacity:
2025-26 Atlantic Division Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PTS | OTL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/buf.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Buffalo | 50 | 23 | 109 | 9 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tb.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Tampa Bay | 50 | 26 | 106 | 6 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/mtl.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Montreal | 48 | 24 | 106 | 10 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/bos.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Boston | 45 | 27 | 100 | 10 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/ott.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Ottawa | 44 | 27 | 99 | 11 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/det.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Detroit | 41 | 31 | 92 | 10 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/fla.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Florida | 40 | 38 | 84 | 4 |
| <img src="https://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tor.png" style="padding: 0 4px; width: 25px; vertical-align: inherit;">Toronto | 32 | 36 | 78 | 14 |




MTL
DET