The Buffalo Sabres visit the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday at Bell Centre, with puck drop set for 6:30 p.m. ET. This Sabres vs Canadiens preview looks at a matchup between two Atlantic Division teams trying to find consistency early in the 2026-27 season, with Buffalo sitting at 3-3-0 and Montreal at 2-2-1. Montreal eliminated Buffalo from the playoffs last season, and the two clubs are set to play twice this week, giving Tuesday’s opener added weight for both rosters.
Sabres Vs Canadiens Game Information
- Date: Tuesday, Oct. 13
- Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
- Venue: Bell Centre, Montreal, QC
- TV/Streaming: ESPN+, MSGB
How Have Both Teams Played Entering Tuesday?
Buffalo enters having split its last two games, beating the Florida Panthers 5-3 on Oct. 12 after a 4-1 loss to the Utah Mammoth on Oct. 10. The Sabres also dropped a 4-0 decision to the Dallas Stars on Oct. 8 sandwiched between overtime and regulation wins over the Minnesota Wild and Chicago Blackhawks. That uneven stretch has Buffalo at 6 points in the Atlantic Division standings, tied for fifth with Toronto on points but trailing on record.
Montreal has been just as streaky. The Canadiens dropped three straight before snapping the skid with a 1-0 shootout win over the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 10, a stretch that included a 6-4 loss to Carolina and a 5-2 loss to Nashville. Montreal’s five points leave it last in the division standings provided, though the shootout win offers a building block heading into the two-game set with Buffalo.
Who Is Expected To Start In Net?
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is projected as the probable starting goalie for Buffalo, while Jakub Dobes is listed as Montreal’s probable starter. Both designations are projections and not confirmed until the lineups are finalized. Montreal is already without backup goaltender Samuel Montembeault, who remains on injured reserve with a lower-body injury and a return date of Oct. 20, leaving Dobes as the clear option in net regardless of how the matchup unfolds.
What Does The Injury Report Look Like For Both Teams?
Buffalo is managing a thin blue line and crease. Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin is out with an upper-body injury and a return date of Oct. 15, while backup goaltender Alex Lyon remains on injured reserve with an upper-body issue tied to an Oct. 24 return. Forward Jason Zucker is on injured reserve recovering from abdomen surgery, and defenseman Conor Timmins is out with a lower-body injury. Both Zucker and Timmins carry an Oct. 15 projected return date, and goaltending prospect Topias Leinonen is also on injured reserve with a lower-body injury.
Montreal’s injury list is deeper. Forward Florian Xhekaj is listed day-to-day with an undisclosed injury after sitting out the Oct. 10 game against Detroit; his status for Tuesday had not been confirmed. Winger Ivan Demidov remains on injured reserve with a lower-body injury and a return date of Oct. 31, while center Oliver Kapanen (lower body) and defenseman Bryce Pickford (undisclosed) are also on injured reserve, with Kapanen listed with an Oct. 13 return date and Pickford targeting Oct. 17.
Which Matchup Could Decide The Game?
Tage Thompson leads Buffalo with 4 goals and 7 points through six games, and his production against a Montreal defense that has allowed 19 goals and carries an .884 save percentage on the season will be a central thread. Owen Power leads the Sabres with 6 assists, giving Buffalo’s attack multiple ways to create offense through its blue line.
Montreal counters with captain Nick Suzuki, who paces the Canadiens with 3 goals, 4 assists and 7 points. Suzuki’s ability to produce against a Buffalo team that has scored 11 goals as a group this season, fewer than Montreal’s 14, will matter in a game between two offenses still searching for consistency. Zachary Bolduc has already scored three goals for Montreal after netting 12 in 78 games last season, and Chris Kreider has contributed four points through five games, giving the Canadiens secondary scoring options beyond Suzuki.
What To Watch
Both teams own identical 3.80 goals-against averages this season, and neither power play has found much traction. Montreal has converted just 1 power-play goal on the season with 2 assists, while Buffalo has also scored only 1 power-play goal. Special teams efficiency could be a difference-maker in a tight, low-scoring environment given how both defenses have performed through the early schedule.
The game also opens a stretch in which Montreal and Buffalo meet twice in the same week, adding context to how each team manages its injury list and goaltending workload. Buffalo was last in action Oct. 12 against the Florida Panthers, while Montreal’s win over Detroit on Oct. 10 snapped a three-game losing streak heading into the home set with the Sabres.
For more on this story, see Total Apex Sports’ Montreal Canadiens coverage.
Additional reporting via NHL.com and the Canadiens’ official site.
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