The Tampa Bay Lightning, losers of four straight heading into Tuesday night’s tilt against the Montreal Canadiens, were admittedly always going to come out like just-wakened sleeping giants. Look at it another way, though: The Habs had had a day of rest, whereas the Bolts had played the last night, having gotten shut out for the second time in a row no less. The Habs then went out and lost 6-1.
With a win, the home side — and the Canadiens were indeed hosting, giving them yet another advantage — could have propelled into at least a temporary tie for top spot in the Atlantic (just how temporary was largely dependent on the outcome of the still-ongoing Boston Bruins game that night). The Habs nevertheless let one more opportunity slip through their fingertips. This is obviously becoming a trend as they dropped to below .500 at the Bell Centre this season (7-8-1) and out of a playoff spot altogether.
Canadiens Lose to Struggling St. Louis Blues
Flash back to the Canadiens’ previous game against the St. Louis Blues. The Habs far from played horribly. However, when you give up two goals in less than 40 seconds to start the second to not just give up the lead but lose it altogether and then muster a meagre eight shots in a lacklustre, disjointed effort in the third to lose against one of the few sub-.500 teams in the league, it’s nothing of which to be especially proud all the same. With a win then, the Habs could have similarly jumped into first in the Atlantic for the first time since Nov. 14. In the process they would have assuaged any concerns their slump of five straight defeats at the time was a sign of things to come rather than just a minor setback.
Now Canadiens fans have to wonder.
To be fair, a loss to the Lightning in a vacuum isn’t an embarrassment. Going on a decade, they’ve been perennial powerhouses, having won two Stanley Cups in that time, including of course in 2021 at the Canadiens’ expense. However, when you look at the forest for the trees, it’s clear the Bolts are about as vulnerable as they’ve ever been in that time, especially in the context of their four straight losses and their current injury situation. While the Habs are obviously suffering through their own struggles, including on the injury front, that can’t be an excuse when you’re facing Jonas Johansson instead of a hurt Andrei Vasilevskiy and top-defenseman Victor Hedman plays just 6:14 in the game, leaving after the first.
In short, the Canadiens got embarrassed (again)… or rather they embarrassed themselves. The score may not have indicated as much, but the Lightning game was as winnable as the one against the Blues. It goes beyond a lack of a killer instinct, as they were never exactly in a position to deal the Bolts a final blow, unless you count the few chances they had at the start of the game, before the visitors blew it open with two quick breakaway goals on the part of Brayden Point and Pontus Holmberg. It’s much more of an inability on the part of the Habs to seize opportunities as they present themselves… on veritable silver platters.
Dobes and Montembeault to Blame Along with Everyone Else
It might be easy to blame goalies Jakub Dobes and Sam Montembeault, who have each struggled to seize the net. However, at least against the Lightning, despite the six goals against, the loss arguably wasn’t on either of them. Dobes probably could have played the Point breakaway better, but so could have defenseman Jayden Struble. And, at the end of the day, a breakaway is a breakaway. On the third Lightning goal, after which he was mercifully pulled, the whole team was left scrambling before Nikita Kucherov buried it and the Habs.
While Montembeault looked horrible in relief, it was hard to envision the Habs mounting a comeback down three goals against a team that has historically given them fits. The entire team must own these losses, including head coach Martin St. Louis, whose job it is to adequately prepare his charges ahead of every game and every period. The Habs have looked anything but in the recent past.
To be clear, this is NOT a call to fire St. Louis. It is a suggestion that he is far from infallible or blameless in all this though, in what is an admittedly salvageable situation. The Canadiens may be out of a playoff spot currently, but they’re also within striking distance of one just over a third of the way into the season.
Something needs to change, though.
What Moves Can Hughes Make?
General manager Kent Hughes, who made a slew of call-ups after the game, presumably out of desperation, has his work cut out for him. He must assess if his recent moves to sign Alexandre Texier and re-acquire American Hockey Leaguer Sammy Blais, are enough to compensate for the losses the Habs have sustained. If not, which is clearly the case, is it worth it to make another move and potentially give up valuable assets in a trade just to enable the team to tread water (instead of sink further) before the hopefully impending return of Kirby Dach and co. up front and, most significantly, Kaiden Guhle on defense?
Related: Canadiens Probably Miss Guhle Despite Wins with Him Injured
If there’s even a trade to be made, it depends on the player coming back the other way. Keep in mind, the Canadiens aren’t Stanley Cup contenders. They’re more than a single piece away, as has been made clear by their recent embarrassing performances. So, acquiring a veteran who’s well past his best-before date doesn’t make much sense, while getting even younger than they already are also doesn’t, especially considering this should be a team on the rise after they reached the playoffs in 2024-25.
All that to say, a move would only be justified were it to address the team’s clear shortcomings into the medium or long terms, along the lines of the trade Hughes made to acquire defenseman Alexandre Carrier at around this time last season. While Carrier hasn’t been as impressive as he was upon first being acquired, it’s important to note at the time he did stabilize the team’s defense, which is arguably its biggest weakness at the moment. You don’t give up four goals to an offensively stunted team like the Blues or six to a talented by struggling-offensively team like the Lightning unless your defense is the culprit.
You’re also probably not going to trade for goaltending help with a top prospect like Jacob Fowler on the way (potentially as soon as now with the call-ups). So, the defense (or lack thereof) must be Hughes’ focus, which must be especially frustrating for him after he went out and got Noah Dobson last summer to round out an impressive-on-paper top three that also features Lane Hutson and Mike Matheson.
Les Canadiens ont rappelé Owen Beck, Adam Engstrom et Jacob Fowler du Rocket de Laval.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) December 10, 2025
The Canadiens have recalled Owen Beck, Adam Engstrom and Jacob Fowler from the Laval Rocket.
You’re not going to trade either of those three players. And the value of a Struble or Arber Xhekaj isn’t all that high to bring back anyone significant, meaning Hughes finds himself in a relative holding pattern for now, with Guhle projecting as his biggest potential add… albeit only as early as January, by which point the Canadiens can have fallen out of the playoff race if things continue as they have.
The point is, a trade isn’t the answer. Relying on call-ups to turn the ship around around arguably isn’t either, but, again, something had to be done.
It may be back to the drawing board (and back to bag skates). However, based on how well the Canadiens played in consecutive victories over the Winnipeg Jets and Toronto Maple Leafs to start the month, they clearly have the capability to put together a strong 60 minutes. At least the solution remains within the organization. How far deep will be determined by how successful the call-ups are. It’s their opportunity now.