The Montreal Canadiens take on the Florida Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena tonight. Here are the projected/expected lineups sourced from NHL.com staff writers, independent correspondents, and others.
CANADIENS (20-12-6) at PANTHERS (21-15-2)
7 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, TSN2, RDS
Canadiens projected lineup
Cole Caufield — Nick Suzuki — Alexandre Texier
Juraj Slafkovsky — Oliver Kapanen — Ivan Demidov
Zack Bolduc — Phillip Danault — Josh Anderson
Sammy Blais — Joe Veleno — Brendan Gallagher
Mike Matheson — Noah Dobson
Lane Hutson — Adam Engstrom
Arber Xhekaj — Alexandre Carrier
Sam Montembeault
Jacob Fowler
Scratched: Jayden Struble, Owen Beck, Jakub Dobes
Injured: Kirby Dach (broken foot), Alex Newhook (broken ankle), Kaiden Guhle (lower body), Patrik Laine (lower body), Jake Evans (lower body)
Status report
Neither team held a morning skate. … Montembeault is expected to make his first start since Dec. 2. He last made a relief appearance on Dec. 9. … Texier moved up to the top line at practice on Monday.
Latest for THW:
- NHL Rumors: Suzuki & Team Canada, Maple Leafs & Marchment, Mangiapane Trade
- 5 Canadiens Forcing Their Way Into Olympic Consideration
- Canadiens’ Slafkovsky Finds New Gear to Game with Demidov
Panthers projected lineup
Eetu Luostarinen — Anton Lundell — Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe — Sam Bennett — Brad Marchand
Mackie Samoskevich — Evan Rodrigues — A.J. Greer
Luke Kunin — Jack Studnicka — Jesper Boqvist
Gustav Forsling — Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola — Seth Jones
Uvis Balinskis — Jeff Petry
Daniil Tarasov
Sergei Bobrovsky
Scratched: Donovan Sebrango, Noah Gregor
Injured: Aleksander Barkov (knee), Matthew Tkachuk (lower body), Tomas Nosek (knee), Jonah Gadjovich (upper body), Dmitry Kulikov (shoulder), Cole Schwindt (arm)
Status report
The Panthers are expected to have Tarasov in goal after Bobrovsky made 22 saves in a 5-3 win against the Washington Capitals on Monday.
Latest for THW:
- NHL Morning Recap – December 30, 2025
- Projected Lineups for Capitals vs Panthers – 12/29/25
- Panthers Week Ahead: Schedule & Storylines – Winter Classic, Marchand and More
