The Ottawa Senators (12-9-4) travel to face their historic rivals, the Montreal Canadiens (13-8-3), in a Battle of the Boulevard matchup that’s equal parts fireworks and frustration for both sides. Ottawa enters as slight favorites after a grueling road trip, aiming to build on a solid November while snapping a two-game skid, but Montreal’s home-ice passion at the Bell Centre could fuel a desperate bounce-back following an ugly blowout loss. With key injuries thinning both blue lines, this Atlantic Division clash hinges on offensive firepower—expect Tim Stützle’s creativity to test Montreal’s patchwork defense, while Nick Suzuki’s two-way play could exploit Ottawa’s turnover-prone forwards. It’s a winnable spot for the Sens on paper, but the Habs’ crowd and recent OT thriller on November 1 make this anything but a guarantee.
Venue
Venue: Bell Centre, 1909 Avenue des Canadiens-de-Montréal, Montréal, QC H3C 5H7, Canada. Capacity: 21,105. This iconic Forum successor, opened in 1996, is the spiritual home of Canadiens lore with its five Stanley Cups since and a fanbase that turns every rivalry game into a cauldron—perfect for the “Original Six” vs. expansion-era tension.
Puckdrop: 7:00 PM ET (4:00 PM PT). Broadcast: ESPN+ (national streaming), TSN2 (Canada), Sportsnet East (regional). Pre-game coverage on NHL Network highlights the intrastate bad blood, with puck drop aligning for East Coast prime time.
Team Records
| Team | Overall Record | Home/Away Split | Atlantic Division Standings | Key Stats (GF / GA / Power Play %) |
| Ottawa Senators | 12-9-4 | 6-3-2 Home / 6-6-2 Away | 4th (3-3-1 div.) | 3.4 / 3.2 / 22.1% |
| Montreal Canadiens | 13-8-3 | 7-4-2 Home / 6-4-1 Away | 3rd (4-2-1 div.) | 3.3 / 3.1 / 19.8% |
Ottawa sits fourth in the Atlantic, buoyed by top-10 scoring but leaky defense (24th in GA), while Montreal clings to third with balanced play but ranks 20th in penalty kill—exposing vulnerabilities in high-event rivalries.
Recent Team Forms
Both squads enter on the heels of losses, but Ottawa’s November surge offers momentum in a season of parity.
Senators (2-3-0 in last 5): Ottawa capped a demanding six-game road swing with a 6-1 drubbing at Dallas on November 30, dropping their second straight after a shootout thriller W over Vegas (4-3 SO) on November 26. Prior: L at Minnesota (3-2), W at Colorado (5-3 on Nov. 23), and W vs. Utah (4-2 on Nov. 20). They’ve averaged 3.2 GF while allowing 3.6 GA in the stretch, with road form dipping to 2-3 but a gritty 6-4-3 November overall—their best in years. Turnovers (12.4 per game) and special teams lapses haunt them away.
Canadiens (2-3-0 in last 5): Montreal’s skid hit rock bottom with a 7-2 shellacking at Colorado on November 29, following a solid 4-3 home W over Vegas on November 28. Earlier: L vs. LA Kings (5-1 on Nov. 11), W vs. Utah (6-2 on Nov. 8), and L at New Jersey (4-3 OT on Nov. 6). Averaging 3.4 GF but hemorrhaging 4.2 GA lately, home ice has been a savior (7-4-2, +1.2 goal diff.), though November’s 5-3-2 mark masks defensive woes (bottom-10 xGA).
Injury Report
Blue-line ailments dominate, potentially turning this into a forward-fueled shootout. Updates as of December 1, 2025 (NHL official report).
| Team | Player | Status | Injury Details | Impact |
| Senators | Thomas Chabot (D) | OUT | Upper-body (IR since Nov. 29; week-to-week). | Top-pair anchor (0.6 PTS/GP) sidelined; Jake Sanderson logs 25+ MPG, exposing right-side depth (-15% xGA without). |
| Senators | Brady Tkachuk (LW) | PROBABLE | Thumb (injured late November; practiced fully Dec. 1). | Captain’s grit (0.9 PTS/GP) nearing return—85% chance, boosting power play if active. |
| Senators | Ilya Lyubushkin (D) | DAY-TO-DAY | Undisclosed (missed Nov. 30; re-eval post-practice). | Physical shutdown (1.2 HIT/GP); 60% play chance—rotation shuffle if out. |
| Canadiens | Jayden Struble (D) | DAY-TO-DAY | Upper-body (scratched Nov. 30; no practice Dec. 1). | Emerging blueliner (0.4 PTS/GP); missed last game—Kaiden Guhle’s absence amplifies gap. |
| Canadiens | Alex Newhook (C) | OUT | Broken ankle (surgery Nov. 14; 4 months). | Depth center (0.5 PTS/GP); line shuffling hurts faceoff % (-8% team drop). |
| Canadiens | Kaiden Guhle (D) | OUT | Abductor tear (surgery; 8-10 weeks from Nov.). | Top defender (0.7 PTS/GP, +5 rating); Arber Xhekaj steps up, but PK suffers. |
| Canadiens | Kirby Dach (C) | OUT | Undisclosed (IR-LT; return mid-Dec.). | Second-line pivot; forward depth thins, forcing rookies into fire. |
Montreal’s D corps is hit harder, tilting special teams toward Ottawa.
Series History
This Quebec corridor feud, ignited in 1992, spans 200+ meetings with Montreal holding a slight all-time edge: 97 wins to Ottawa’s 88 (84-5-6 OTL), good for a .513 win% for the Habs. Playoff clashes are rare but intense (1-1 series, including Montreal’s 2010 upset).
Last 10 Meetings: Split 5-5, with Montreal’s 4-3 OT W on November 1, 2025 (Newhook’s breakaway GWG). Ottawa’s last win: 3-1 on March 11, 2025.
At Bell Centre: Canadiens 55-28-3 all-time vs. Senators; Ottawa’s last victory there: April 2024 (5-2).
Trends: Overs in 5 of last 7 at MTL (avg. 6.8 goals); games hit OT/SO in 4 of last 10. Ottawa 4-1 ATS last 5 as road favorites vs. Habs.
Rivalry parity favors chaos—expect goals and grudge-settling hits.
Key Player Matchups
Injuries shift focus to forwards and netminders; these duels could swing momentum.
Tim Stützle (Senators C) vs. Nick Suzuki (Canadiens C): Stützle’s elite edges (0.9 PTS/GP, 12 G/A last 10) test Suzuki’s two-way reliability (0.8 PTS/GP, +8 rating); faceoff battle (Stützle 52% vs. Suzuki 54%) sets tone—projected 3+ combined points.
Brady Tkachuk (Senators LW, probable) vs. Cole Caufield (Canadiens RW): Tkachuk’s snarl (14 G, 200+ HIT) bullies Caufield’s sniper shot (15 G, 38% PP); if Tkachuk plays, edge Sens physicality—watch for net-front wars.
Jake Sanderson (Senators D) vs. Juraj Slafkovsky (Canadiens LW): Sanderson’s poise (0.6 PTS/GP, top-pair minutes) contains Slafkovsky’s breakout (11 G); Habs’ rookie eyes even-strength edge if Struble sits.
Linus Ullmark (Senators G) vs. Samuel Montembeault (Canadiens G): Ullmark’s .912 SV% clashes with Montembeault’s .905 (31 saves in Nov. 1 W); winner steals the show in a projected 6.5-goal affair.
Ottawa’s health gives matchup tilts.
Betting Trends
Moneyline: Ottawa 7-3 ML last 10 vs. MTL; Habs 6-4 home dogs.
Puck Line: Sens cover 4-2 last 6 road PL; combined O/U record 32-15-2 over.
Total (O/U): Overs 18-7-1 in Ottawa road/MTL home; 5-2 over in last 7 Habs-Sens at Bell Centre.
Game Odds
Ottawa Senators – 113
Montreal Canadiens 6
Odds Courtesy of Sports Odds Direct as of Monday, December 1, 2025
