Mon, Jan 18, 2:00 p.m. ET · All games
MTL at BUF
Montréal Canadiens at Buffalo Sabres. Preview from the model, the licensed feeds and last season's measures. Nothing here is a betting recommendation.
- Model now
- Expected score
- Market
- —
- Venue
- KeyBank Center
Pre-game price · not yet frozen
What the model says now
Lineups not yet published: each club's usual lineup assumed. Starting goalie not confirmed: goaltending held at league average. This estimate moves until the ledger freezes it before puck drop.
Source: CapOrCup game model (derived from club ratings, rest and starters)
Schedule spot
What the schedule did to each side
Nights off, back-to-backs, third games in four nights, road-trip position and travel since the last game, from the statistical schedule. Shown as facts; rest is in the price, travel is not.
1 night off · fourth in six · game 3 of a road trip
1 night off
Starters · depth chart 2026-10-12
In goal
The league names no starter before puck drop. First on each club's depth chart, from the licensed feed, is the expected starter.
Jacob Fowler
Colten Ellis
Projected lineups · Sportradar NHL API v7, team depth charts · as of 2026-10-12
Expected lines
What each club intends per the feed's depth chart, with each forward's shooter rating (Elo, against the goalies faced last season). A listing is the club's statement, not a game sheet.
Montréal Canadiens
L1 Cole Caufield (top tenth of the league) · Nick Suzuki (above the league middle) · Juraj Slafkovský (above the league middle)
L2 Chris Kreider (below the league middle) · Alex Newhook (top tenth of the league) · Josh Anderson (below the league middle)
L3 Zachary Bolduc (below the league middle) · Phillip Danault (bottom tenth of the league) · Alexandre Texier (above the league middle)
D1 Lane Hutson (above the league middle) · Noah Dobson (above the league middle)
D2 Mike Matheson (above the league middle) · Kaiden Guhle (below the league middle)
PP1 Chris Kreider (below the league middle) · Nick Suzuki (above the league middle) · Juraj Slafkovský (above the league middle) · Cole Caufield (top tenth of the league) · Lane Hutson (above the league middle)
Buffalo Sabres
L1 Josh Norris (above the league middle) · Tage Thompson (top tenth of the league) · Jack Quinn (below the league middle)
L2 Zach Benson (below the league middle) · Noah Ostlund (above the league middle) · Josh Doan (above the league middle)
L3 Peyton Krebs (below the league middle) · Ryan McLeod (above the league middle) · Justin Danforth
D1 Mattias Samuelsson (top tenth of the league) · Rasmus Dahlin (above the league middle)
D2 Olen Zellweger (below the league middle) · Owen Power (above the league middle)
PP1 Jack Quinn (below the league middle) · Zach Benson (below the league middle) · Noah Ostlund (above the league middle) · Tage Thompson (top tenth of the league) · Rasmus Dahlin (above the league middle)
Injury listings · as of 2026-10-18
Who the clubs list as out
Club-announced listings relayed by the licensed feed. No cause is inferred; Day To Day players are shown but not counted as out.
Montréal Canadiens
Mike Matheson (D): Day To Day (lower-body), listed since 2026-10-13, expected back 2026-10-17
Bryce Pickford (D): Out (undisclosed), listed since 2026-09-29, expected back 2026-10-31
Florian Xhekaj (LW): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-10-10, expected back 2026-10-31
Ivan Demidov (RW): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-10-03, expected back 2026-10-31
Lucas Condotta (LW): Out (undisclosed), listed since 2026-09-30, expected back 2026-10-31
Samuel Montembeault (G): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-10-07, expected back 2026-10-20
Buffalo Sabres
Alex Lyon (G): Out (upper-body), listed since 2026-09-29, expected back 2026-10-24
Conor Timmins (D): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-09-28, expected back 2026-10-24
Jack Rathbone (D): Out (undisclosed), listed since 2026-09-28, expected back 2026-10-24
Jason Zucker (LW): Out (abdomen), listed since 2026-09-28, expected back 2026-10-21
Matt Grzelcyk (D): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-10-13, expected back 2026-10-21
Rasmus Dahlin (D): Out (upper-body), listed since 2026-10-12, expected back 2026-10-21
Officials
Who has the whistle
Named by the league, usually near puck drop. Each referee's record is from last season's play-by-play penalties; ranks are distance from league norms.
Not on file (the league has not named the officials yet)