Eric Engels

Montreal

Writer, TV and Radio Reporter at Sportsnet Canada

Sr. Columnist @Sportsnet. Montreal Canadiens/NHL Beat https://t.co/iTh63l47bh Insta: https://t.co/XnHmSOM9sW

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Articles

Canadiens must be mindful of balance to keep progressing

1 week ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

MONTREAL— Here’s a scenario for you Montreal Canadiens fans to chew on as you continue to work on your 2025-26 roster simulations while Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes contemplate their next moves: Sidney Crosby decides he’s going to stay with the Penguins in Pittsburgh, but the New York Islanders decide they’re diving head-first into a rebuild and auctioning off Mathew Barzal to the highest bidder. Would you be able to resist Barzal?
How Josh Anderson helped drive culture propelling Canadiens through next phase

1 week ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

BROSSARD, Que. — Josh Anderson wouldn’t detail what he suffered after New York Rangers forward Arthur Kaliyev fell on his leg in a game at the Bell Centre on Jan. 19. He just said on Friday, after he and his Montreal Canadiens teammates completed exit meetings with management and collected their belongs at their practice facility, that the collision with Kaliyev spawned the first of multiple injuries he fought through before the season ended in Washington on Wednesday.
Pain of playoff loss will drive Canadiens, who proved they're on the rise

2 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A season of bending finally broke the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and then there was pain. It hurts but also hardens, which is exactly what these Canadiens need from it at this moment.
Canadiens' youngsters playing to extend opportunity for veterans

2 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

ARLINGTON, V.A. — Cole Caufield offered a used line from some old players he once ran to the Stanley Cup Final with. “You only get so many chances to do this,” he said prior to this first-round series, and we’d imagine he’s thinking that as his Montreal Canadiens travel to Washington on the brink of elimination, down 3-1 to the Capitals. He’s 24 years old, and this is just his second time in the playoffs.
Young Canadiens face biggest challenge yet down 3-1 in series to Capitals

2 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

MONTREAL — At one end of the ice, Juraj Slafkovsky finished a play he started, with magical touches in between from Lane Hutson and Ivan Demidov. At the other, Kaiden Guhle and Arber Xhekaj got crossed up in front of rookie goaltender Jakub Dobes, leaving Andrew Mangiapane the opening to score the goal that ultimately sent the Capitals back to Washington with a chance to eliminate the Canadiens from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Canadiens' first-round series could be decided by backup goaltenders

2 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

MONTREAL — We’re a little over 24 hours from Game 4 between the Montreal Canadiens and Washington Capitals and neither goaltender that started this series appears likely to be in their respective Bell Centre crease for it. Both coaches said on Saturday that they were still waiting for updates on the condition of their goaltenders after both left Friday’s Game 3 with apparent injuries, and both expressed confidence in the expected replacements for Game 4.
Anderson sets tone as Canadiens punch back in series

2 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

MONTREAL — With the Montreal Canadiens edging closer to grabbing a foothold in their series with the Washington Capitals — up two goals late in Game 3 — Élise Béliveau popped up on the scoreboard. Fans pushed the decibels to eardrum-popping levels as soon as they saw her. Then, as cameras panned away from Élise and over to husband Jean’s retired jersey, the fans began chanting: Béliveau! Béliveau! Béliveau!.
Canadiens Notebook: Needing more from Laine, cross-checks and Bell Centre boost

3 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Brendan Gallagher would’ve been the ideal candidate to speak to about this series between his Montreal Canadiens and the Washington Capitals shifting to the Bell Centre. As the only player on the Canadiens to have experienced playoff hockey with the building full—after Covid restrictions robbed him and several holdovers from the 2021 team that ran to the Stanley Cup Final of that unique atmosphere—he was the logical choice for Thursday morning’s media availability.
Time for Canadiens to act on lessons learned in losses

3 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Juraj Slafkovsky's face was flushed and his voice was trembling as he repeated several times that his Montreal Canadiens just needed to play better following a 3-1 loss that put them down 2-0 in their series with the Washington Capitals on Wednesday. The 21-year-old was one of seven Canadiens playing just their second Stanley Cup Playoff game. Their first one on Monday had already taught them so much about what post-season hockey entails.
Xhekaj could help Canadiens gain physical edge lost in Game 1

3 weeks ago | sportsnet.ca | Eric Engels

WASHINGTON, D.C. — It took just seconds for the Washington Capitals to capitalize on their physical advantage over the Montreal Canadiens in this series, but it appears as though it’ll take at least one more game for Martin St. Louis to make a change that could help neutralize that factor. Arber Xhekaj is a six-foot-four, 240-pound deterrent, and there’s a strong case to be made St. Louis shouldn’t hesitate to deploy him in Game 2.