WINNIPEG — The rink at Princess Auto Stadium offered the old-school backdrop Saturday: families on the ice, alumni in town and an outdoor sheet under clearing prairie skies. By Sunday night, though, the Winnipeg Jets and Montreal Canadiens will be treating the Heritage Classic as a needed chance to straighten out their seasons.
The clubs meet in the 2026 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET, with Winnipeg bringing a 4-3-3 record and four straight one-goal defeats into its home outdoor game. Montreal is 5-3-2 and has taken five of a possible eight points over its last four, but arrives without captain and top-line center Nick Suzuki.
“We started well, then ran into a rough patch,” Jets captain Adam Lowry said after the stadium practice. “There are things in our game we have to tighten up, and a Heritage Classic is a pretty good place to do it. Everybody is excited.”
Winnipeg’s skid stands at 0-2-2, and coach Scott Arniel knows the Central Division does not leave much room for a prolonged slide. The Jets have been beaten by one goal in every game of the streak, turning Sunday into more than a celebration for a team trying to stay within reach of the conference’s heavyweights.
“When the puck is dropped, this is not an exhibition,” Arniel said. “It is real hockey. Those are important points, and that will be our message.”
Outdoor stage follows a turbulent Winnipeg week
The Heritage Classic comes two days after the Jets completed a major goaltending trade, sending Connor Hellebuyck to the New Jersey Devils after honoring the request he made months earlier. Winnipeg received forwards Dawson Mercer and Nick Bjugstad, goaltender Nico Daws, the rights to prospect Alexander Command and two draft selections.
The weekend also brought together players from earlier Jets teams. Winnipeg alumni attended a fundraising event Friday before facing Canadiens alumni Saturday, a reminder of both the franchise’s past and the standard Arniel wants his current club to carry. Arniel played for Winnipeg himself and watched the club’s more recent rise from NHL benches elsewhere, including the run to the 2018 Western Conference Final. In his first year behind the Jets bench two seasons ago, Winnipeg captured the Presidents’ Trophy as the League’s top regular-season team.
Arniel said the alumni presence fits the identity of the city and province, but he also made clear where the sentiment ends. Families and former players can enjoy the occasion; the game itself is worth two points in the standings.
For Scheifele, the setting has not lost any of its pull. Sunday will mark his third NHL outdoor appearance after games in 2016 and 2019.
“They are the kinds of moments you carry with you forever,” Scheifele said. “I remember both of the earlier ones, and this will be another incredible experience. I feel very fortunate to have played long enough to be in a third outdoor game.”
Lowry sees the event as a direct line back to the ponds and neighborhood rinks that shaped so many NHL players. Playing outside in Winnipeg, he said, gives that childhood picture a home-ice version on a much larger scale.
Canadiens adjust without Suzuki
Montreal’s challenge is immediate. Suzuki suffered a lower-body injury during Tuesday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks and is expected to miss two to four weeks. He sat out Friday’s 4-1 win in Chicago, ending his NHL ironman streak at 546 consecutive games — the first absence of his career.
The Canadiens also remain without forward Ivan Demidov, who is dealing with a lower-body injury. With two significant absences already testing the roster, Montreal sees the outdoor game as an opportunity to build on its win over the Blackhawks rather than let the injury losses alter its early-season direction.
Juraj Slafkovsky said every night carries the same objective, but an outdoor victory would have extra weight because these games are rare.
“You want to win every game,” Slafkovsky said. “But when you win one like this, it feels a little more enjoyable because it is special and you do not get this chance every year.”
Saturday’s weather cooperated after earlier wind and rain moved through the area. Temperatures settled near 50 degrees Fahrenheit as Montreal practiced and held a family skate. Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis encouraged his players to make the most of that time, while keeping the boundary between the weekend spectacle and game time clear.
St. Louis told his players to be fully present with the people who support them when they are away from hockey. Once the game begins, however, their attention must shift completely to the ice.
That balance will be tested Sunday. The Heritage Classic will provide the photographs, the packed stadium and the familiar outdoor-hockey feeling. For two teams searching for a firmer foothold after 10 games, it will also provide a meaningful early-season measuring stick.
