Samuel Montembeault

This Season So Far

The 2026-27 season has not started. The empty row above is his, and both it and this paragraph fill in on their own from the morning after he first plays: what he has done, what it is worth against his own last season, and the run he is on when the two disagree.

Last Season

25 games, a .872 save percentage and a 3.43 goals-against average, going 10-8-4. That is a long way below his career .896, which was itself ordinary, and he finished the year behind a fifth-round pick with 59 games of experience.

The Physical Game

6-3 and athletic rather than technically precise. At his best he makes difficult saves look difficult — scrambling, reaching, getting a piece of pucks he has no business reaching. That style produces highlights and an inconsistent save percentage.

The recurring technical problem is depth and squareness. He drifts and reaches rather than moving his feet, which turns clean shots into scrambles and puts him out of position for the rebound. Rebound control has never been good.

He handles the puck well, which is a genuine asset behind a young defence that gets forechecked.

The Mental Game

This is the part that has been visible. He has been the goaltender in a market that examines the position more closely than any other, has had good runs and bad ones, and last season the bad ones did not stop.

The Intangibles

He gave this club competent goaltending through a rebuild when there was no alternative, which counts for something and does not count for much once there is an alternative.

At 30, 3rd on a depth chart behind 2 younger goaltenders who both outplayed him, his position here is difficult. A change of scenery is the likeliest thing.