Canadiens visit Blackhawks without injured center Nick Suzuki
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
The Montreal Canadiens (4-3-2) play the Chicago Blackhawks (3-6-0) in Chicago on Friday night.
Montreal is missing captain Nick Suzuki, out two to four weeks, on the road.
Background
The Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Blackhawks are NHL teams meeting for the first time this season. Montreal enters at 4-3-2 and Chicago at 3-6-0, and both are coming off losses: the Canadiens fell 4-3 in overtime to the San Jose Sharks, while the Blackhawks were shut out 4-0 by the Dallas Stars. Montreal ruled out center Nick Suzuki, who led the team with five goals and seven assists, for two to four weeks, and defenseman Lane Hutson (9 points, 7 assists) has been described as stepping up in his captain's absence. Montreal won both meetings last season and has won six of the last eight overall.
How it unfolded
- Oct 6, 2026Montreal lost 6-4 to the Carolina Hurricanes.
- Oct 8, 2026Montreal lost 5-2 to the Nashville Predators.
- Oct 10, 2026Montreal beat the Detroit Red Wings 1-0.
- Oct 13, 2026Montreal beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-3.
- Oct 14, 2026Montreal lost 5-4 to the Washington Capitals.
- Oct 22, 2026Montreal ruled out center Nick Suzuki for two to four weeks.
- Oct 23, 2026Montreal (4-3-2) visits Chicago (3-6-0) at United Center at 8 p.m. ET on NHL Network, opening a four-game road trip.
Who’s saying what
- Analysts
- Fox Sports 1070's computer model projects Blackhawks 4, Canadiens 3, picking Chicago on the moneyline (+116) and the Over 6 total.
- Analysts
- Fox Sports Radio 1230 also calls for Blackhawks 4, Canadiens 3, with a Blackhawks moneyline pick (+115).
- Analysts
- Sports Betting Dime's top best bet is Montreal to win outright, saying the underlying numbers lean hard toward the visitors.
- Analysts
- David Racey of Pick Dawgz picks the Blackhawks moneyline, saying Chicago plays its best hockey at home and Montreal hasn't been great.
- Analysts
- Covers.com betting editor Luc LeBlanc's top pick is Canadiens -1.5, noting the Blackhawks rank bottom-three in the NHL in most offensive and defensive stats.
Still unverified
BetMGM had not posted player props for Friday at the time of writing, so Sports Betting Dime skipped shots plays; the same writer expects Montreal to shuffle its forward lines and advises watching warmups before betting.