TORONTO — Montreal opened its season by absorbing Toronto’s early push, then finding enough finish around the blue paint and from the point to leave Scotiabank Arena with a 3-2 win Tuesday night.
Canadiens answer Nylander’s fast start
William Nylander put the Maple Leafs in front just 48 seconds into the opener. He held the puck inside the Montreal blue line, stepped around Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and carried it to the right circle before beating Jakub Dobes short side.
- Kirill Marchenko collected an assist on Nylander’s goal, his first point for Toronto after arriving in a Monday trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
- Josh Anderson pulled Montreal even at 10:53 of the first period. He redirected Alexandre Carrier’s point shot, then knocked his own rebound out of the air from the top of the crease.
- Anderson finished with a goal and an assist, while Carrier also posted a goal and an assist.
The Canadiens had a key stop from Dobes early in the middle frame. Seventeen seconds into the second period, the goaltender flashed the glove on Marchenko’s one-timer from the left faceoff dot to keep the score level.
Montreal took its first lead at 4:52 of the second. Mike Matheson drove the puck toward the net and sent it into the slot, where Zachary Bolduc fired past Sergei Bobrovsky’s glove for a 2-1 edge.
Carrier’s point blast creates late cushion
Carrier gave the Canadiens breathing room at 13:12 of the third period. His shot from the right point worked through traffic and beat Bobrovsky high on the glove side, putting Montreal ahead 3-1.
Toronto made the closing minutes uncomfortable, cutting the deficit to one with 4:14 remaining. Nylander worked a give-and-go with Easton Cowan: Cowan took the puck near the side of the net and returned it into the low slot, where Nylander buried his second goal past Dobes’ glove.
The Leafs could not find the equalizer before the horn, leaving Montreal with the opening-night result.
Notebook from the opener
- Dobes stopped 25 shots for Montreal.
- Bobrovsky made 21 saves in his first appearance with the Maple Leafs.
- Toronto was playing its first game with Jim Hiller behind the bench as coach.
- Gavin McKenna, selected first overall in the 2026 NHL Draft, made his NHL debut for Toronto. He logged 15:19, registered one shot on goal and finished minus-2.
- Nylander accounted for both Toronto goals.
