The Canadiens once again had to rely on a tie-breaker to secure victory on Saturday evening at the Bell Centre. Cole Caufield scored his second goal of the match in overtime, and the Montreal side defeated the Buffalo Sabres 4-3. The Habs played well five-on-five for most of the match. However, they struggled to pull away from their opponents, and the Sabres came back from a 3-1 deficit. Caufield finally emerged as the hero 54 seconds into overtime. He beat Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen with a precise shot to the glove side. Zachary Bolduc and Alexandre Texier also scored for the Canadiens (4-3-1). Alexandre Carrier and Juraj Slafkovsky each recorded two assists, whilst Jacob Fowler made 23 saves. The Canadiens still have only one regulation-time win to their name. They recorded it in their first game of the season, on 29 September, against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Josh Norris, Jack Quinn and Tage Thompson found the net for the Sabres (4-3-2). Luukkonen made 30 saves. Forward Oliver Kapanen and defender David Reinbacher were making their first appearances for the Canadiens this season. Owen Beck and Adam Engström were left out of the line-up. Kapanen missed the first seven games of the campaign due to a lower-body injury, whilst Reinbacher had been sent down to the Laval Rocket in the American Hockey League at the end of pre-season camp. The Canadiens will play their next match on Tuesday, when they host the San Jose Sharks at the Bell Centre. Unable to pull away sufficiently The Habs controlled the game early on, but were unable to register a single shot on goal during the first 10 minutes of play. The Sabres were more opportunistic. Fowler failed to control a rebound when Norris deflected a shot from Konsta Helenius, and Norris took advantage, picked up the loose puck, and shot into an open net at 8:21. The Canadiens equalised at 11:45 with their first shot on goal. Bolduc deflected a shot from Nick Suzuki into the net during a power play. Caufield then put the Canadiens ahead at 14:01. Slafkovsky won the race to retrieve a puck behind the Sabres’ net and harpooned it towards Caufield, who caught Luukkonen off guard from a tight angle. There were more scoring chances in the second period. Lane Hutson hit the crossbar early in the period. Texier extended the lead to 3–1 at 7:39, capitalising on a rebound from a long-range shot by Kaiden Guhle. The Sabres pulled one back at 9:52, whilst shorthanded. They capitalised on a poor line change by the Canadiens, with Zach Benson joining Quinn in front of the opposition’s net, leaving Fowler with no chance. Alex Newhook almost scored in turn whilst the Canadiens were shorthanded. However, Luukkonen closed the gap between his pads at just the right moment to frustrate the Canadiens forward, who had broken clear. The Canadiens came up against Luukkonen a few times early in the third period and paid dearly for their inability to extend their lead. Thompson equalised at 10:12, capitalising on a fine pass from Josh Doan whilst he had been left unmarked at the front of the net. Fowler saved the day with a fine save from a great chance by Doan from the slot shortly afterwards. Caufield finally scored the winning goal in extra time. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Oct. 18, 2026.
