Habs Daily: Playoff Preparations, Stanley Cup Prediction, Goalies

Jakub Dobes hasn’t been one of the best goaltenders this season, but the mere fact that he’s not too far outside the top-5 is rather encouraging. Unfortunately for the Canadiens, Andrei Vasilevskiy is ranked fourth in the NHL.

Unsurprisingly, seeing as they were the youngest team during the regular season, the Habs will also ice the youngest lineup in the playoffs. It’s a fairly wide margin, too.

Head coach Martin St-Louis left no grey area when discussing his allegiance to the Canadiens, and his time with the Lightning.

Many journalists expected the Lightning to make quick work of the Habs, and statistically speaking, there’s a lot of logic behind their opinion. The good news is that the games are played on the ice, not on paper.

ICYMI: With Game One of the first-round series between the Habs and the Tampa Bay Lightning scheduled for Sunday, we continue with our in-depth series previews, including a comparison of their respective special teams. [Playoff Preview: Canadiens Vs. Lightning Special Teams]

ICYMI: We evaluated some of the X-Factors heading into the series, including the importance of finding open space for Nick Suzuki and the rest of the first line. The Canadiens score a lot of goals, but if Tampa Bay’s shutdown line finds its rhythm, things will quickly turn sour for Montreal. [Playoff Preview: Canadiens Vs. Lightning Top X Factors]

ICYMI: There’s no doubt about it, the Tampa Bay Lightning have been the better team at 5v5 this season. However, when evaluating Montreal’s numbers versus the Lightning in their four games against each other, the discrepancy is less noticeable, with the Canadiens managing to control more shots than the Bolts. [Playoff Preview: Canadiens Vs. Lightning Head-To-Head]

Sportsnaut Network

The New Jersey Devils won the general manager free agent frenzy. Sunny Mehta was named the Devils GM on Thursday evening. Mehta, an analytical guru, will bring a new approach to the position left by former GM Tom Fitzgerald. Said approach starts right away. The Devils have a laundry list of things to address leading up to the 2026 NHL Draft and the Free Agent Frenzy. So, where does he begin? [New Jersey Devils]

The San Jose Sharks have one of the best players in the NHL right now in 19-year-old Macklin Celebrini. Coming off a record-breaking season where he nearly carried the team into the playoffs, it appears the phenom will get rewarded with a new deal this summer. [San Jose Sharks]

How can the Sens upset the best team in the Eastern Conference? Let’s dive into the details with five keys to victory for the Ottawa Senators versus the Carolina Hurricanes. [Carolina Hurricanes]

Related Headlines

• New Canadiens Lines And Pairings Before Playoffs Begin
• Habs Daily: Playoff Previews, Top X-Factors, Suzukis Have Child
• Playoff Preview: Canadiens Vs. Lightning Top-3 X Factors