Canadiens face sur‑fire Penguins in early road test in Pittsburgh

Penguins’ resurgence sets the stage in Pittsburgh

The Montreal Canadiens play their second game of the season tonight, travelling to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins at 7:00 p.m. ET (Sportsnet East and TVA Sports in Canada, SportsNet Pittsburgh regionally, streaming on ESPN+, Sportsnet+ and TVA Sports+). After opening with a win in Toronto, Montreal now runs into a Penguins team that has started its schedule with a statement performance.

Pittsburgh is coming off a lopsided 7-0 victory in Philadelphia, outshooting the Flyers 38-19 on Wednesday. That result fits the larger pattern of change that began last season, when the franchise moved on from Mike Sullivan after nine years and installed Dan Muse behind the bench. Under their new coach, the Penguins burst out of the gate with an 8-2-2 record to sit first in the NHL after the opening month, then secured a playoff berth and home-ice advantage in the first round.

Their run ended in six games against the Flyers, but after three straight years outside the playoffs, the step forward was significant. The focus now is proving that last year’s turnaround is sustainable, and another sharp start has been identified as a key pillar of that plan.

Montreal’s start-on-time lesson meets elite Penguins offence

For the Canadiens, the main takeaway from the opener in Toronto was the need to be ready from the first drop of the puck. The Maple Leafs exploited their early push on Tuesday, and Pittsburgh presents an even more dangerous offensive test. The Penguins finished last season with the third-highest goal total in the league, and their first outing suggests that profile has not changed.

Despite that firepower, Montreal held Pittsburgh to a combined five goals across last season’s three-game series, with the only blemish being a shootout loss just before the Christmas break. Those stretches of solid team defence helped the Canadiens finish in the middle of the pack in goals against, but their evolution from rebuilding club to contender depends on pushing that defensive level into the league’s upper tier.

Early numbers frame the challenge: Pittsburgh shows an expected-goal share of 81.5%, is averaging seven goals per game while allowing none, and has a power play operating at 50% with a perfect penalty kill. Montreal is also 1-0-0, averaging three goals for and two against, with a power play yet to score but a penalty kill at 100%.

Canadiens’ depth scoring looks to match Pittsburgh’s punch

If the Canadiens can at least slow the Penguins’ attack, their own offensive depth gives them a path to compete. Montreal’s win over the Maple Leafs came without a point from any top-six forward or from Lane Hutson, with secondary lines and the blue line driving the offence instead. That performance underscored the potential for scoring spread throughout the lineup.

Tonight, the question is whether that depth can deliver again while the top six starts to appear on the scoresheet. Pittsburgh opens its home schedule confident and ambitious after its blowout win, while Montreal is looking to string together strong road efforts early in the calendar. In an Eastern Conference where the Metropolitan Division is tightening behind the Carolina Hurricanes, each matchup against an improving team like the Penguins offers an early measure of where the Canadiens truly stand.