3 Reasons the Montreal Canadiens Could Break Through in 2025–26

Every so often, a young team crosses a threshold you can’t quite define. The roster doesn’t change that much, but something inside the group shifts — from hope to belief. Watching the Montréal Canadiens this fall, I get the feeling they’re right on that edge. The scars of the last few years might finally be turning into the calluses of a team ready to climb.

Reason 1. The Canadiens Have Been Knocked Around — and Learned From It

Recently, I listened to an interview where Jason Bukala called this group “scarred in the right ways.” He nailed it. The Canadiens have already lived through their growing pains — a long rebuild, too many injuries, and stretches where nothing seemed to go right. But that kind of frustration teaches patience. Players like Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield have been through the grind long enough to know that momentum is fragile and confidence has to be earned shift by shift. They’re not a team that gets rattled anymore.

Reason 2. The Core Is Finally Aligned

Every successful rebuild reaches the moment when the front office, coaching staff, and players start pulling in the same direction. Montréal looks close to that now. Martin St. Louis has found the balance between teacher and motivator, and his players respond because they trust him. The leadership group feels settled — Suzuki wears the “C” with quiet assurance, Caufield brings the spark, and youngsters like Juraj Slafkovský and Kaiden Guhle are starting to grow into their skin. You can sense a real identity forming.

Reason 3. Help Is on the Way

Maybe the most exciting part of Montréal’s future isn’t even on the ice yet. Prospects like Ivan Demidov and Lane Hutson give this team another gear. The pipeline is full, and management seems willing to wait until players are truly ready — a rare kind of discipline in a market that usually screams for shortcuts.

The Bottom Line for the Canadiens

Put all that together, and 2025–26 could be the season the Canadiens stop surviving and start climbing. They’ve taken their lumps. Now they might finally be ready to make them count.