Every Montreal Canadiens season begins with a question. The 2025-26 campaign begins with several of them with a few wild card players who could vault the team into contention or see them slip in the standings.

Topics in this edition of the HW Podcast include Montreal’s final roster moves and the preseason, Lane Hutson’s contract talks, what type of rookie season Ivan Demidov might have, and much more.

It turns out that Samuel Blais’ time with his hometown team was rather short-lived.  After being placed on waivers on Sunday, the Maple Leafs announced Monday that they have claimed him off waivers from Montreal.

With season-opening rosters due on Monday, Sunday is a busy day in the NHL as teams make cuts and send many, many players to waivers.  The Habs were active on both fronts, sending three players to Laval while placing two more on the waiver wire.

Saturday’s rematch against the Senators didn’t feature anywhere near the level of physicality of Tuesday’s game but it also didn’t feature much offence from the Habs as they fell 3-1.

Lane Hutson was one of the wild cards heading into last season. After a Calder-winning campaign, he’s now someone the Canadiens are heavily counting on. What should they be expecting from him in his sophomore year?

As the 2025-26 regular season approaches, let’s look at some common arguments about the Canadiens last season and see how those themes held up statistically.

There are few consistencies in preseason hockey. One is a complaint about fitness testing. One is that people say it’s too long. Evidently, another one is Montreal and Ottawa matchups devolving into sheer stupidity, most recently evidenced by Tuesday’s contest.

Tuesday’s penultimate preseason game was an eventful affair as the Habs and Senators combined for over 150 penalty minutes. Meanwhile, the Canadiens had plenty of on-ice success, leading to a 5-0 victory.