Samuel Montembeault
Montréal Canadiens Goaltender #35
The incumbent starter who lost the job, in the worst season of his career.
| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | GA | GAA | SO | SA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 25 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 81 | 3.43 | 0 | 635 | .872 |
| Career | 231 | 90 | 92 | 32 | 698 | 3.23 | 5 | 6727 | .896 |
Last Season
Twenty-five 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 fifty-nine games of experience.
The Physical Game
Six-three 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 thirty, third on a depth chart behind two younger goaltenders who both outplayed him, his position here is difficult. A change of scenery is the likeliest thing.