The 2023-24 season has yet to begin for the Montreal Canadiens. In fact, so does the preseason.
But fans eager for some action can watch their team’s ensemble of young talent on Friday night when the Habs take on the Buffalo Sabres prospects in their first of three games at the 2023 Prospects Challenge in Buffalo.
Like many games throughout the regular schedule, puck drop for the matchup at LECOM Harborcenter is set for 7 pm ET.
While it won’t be shown on any cable networks, Montreal fans will be able to watch the game via live stream on the Canadiens’ official YouTube channel.
Watch the game live below:
Montreal’s roster includes exciting prospects like 2023 first-round pick David Reinbacher on defence, French-Canadian forward Joshua Roy, and Sean Farrell, who was called up to the NHL for a six-game stint last season.
The full lineup for Game 1 is as follows:
Forwards:
Emil Heineman – Owen Beck – Joshua Roy
Sean Farrell – Riley Kidney – Filip Mesar
Xavier Simoneau – Jan Mysak – Cedrick Guindon
Florian Xhekaj – Jared Davidson – John Parker-Jones
Defencemen:
William Trudeau – David Reinbacher
Christopher Merisier-Ortiz – Logan Mailloux
Stanislav Demin – Miguel Tourigny
Goalies:
Jakub Dobes
Quentin Miller
The Habs’ rookies will take part in the Buffalo tournament until Monday, September 18. Along with the Sabres and Canadiens, this year’s Prospect Challenge features talent from four other NHL teams: the Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, Ottawa Senators, and Pittsburgh Penguins.
Coached by Laval Rocket bench boss Jean-François Houle, Montreal’s rookies will face off against the Boston Bruins on September 16 and the Ottawa Senators on September 18.
They will return to Montreal on Tuesday to wrap up Rookie Camp.
The team’s training camp will begin towards the end of the month. Last year saw four rookie defencemen earning a spot on the Habs blueline.
By that metric, it’s fair to say that we can be in for a few more surprises this time around.