2026 Eastern Conference final: Canadiens look to halt home struggles in Game 3 against Hurricanes

The Montreal Canadiens have yet to suffer back-to-back losses in the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. They’re hoping to overcome their postseason struggles at home and avoid a second straight setback on Monday.

Montreal attempts to answer a defeat with a victory for the seventh time this postseason and take a 2-1 lead in the 2026 Eastern Conference Final when it hosts the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 3 at the Bell Centre. Dating back to the regular season, the Canadiens haven’t lost consecutive games since March 14 and 15, when they were beaten at home by the San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks.

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Despite its ability to bounce back, Montreal hasn’t fared well at home in these playoffs, losing four of its six contests over the first two rounds. However, three of the setbacks were by one goal — including one in overtime.

The Canadiens missed a golden opportunity to go up 2-0 in the conference final as they dropped a 3-2 decision in overtime on Saturday. Josh Anderson scored his second goal of the game with 7:09 remaining in the third period to forge a tie, but Carolina’s Nikolaj Ehlers scored 3:29 into the extra session to even the series.

For the second straight game, the Hurricanes struck early as Eric Robinson scored at 2:33 of the first period. The 30-year-old left wing has goals in both conference final contests after failing to convert in the first two rounds of the playoffs.

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William Carrier, Mark Jankowski and defenseman Jalen Chatfield each have notched two assists for the Hurricanes, who have yet to receive production from their hottest line of the postseason. Taylor Hall (12 points), Jackson Blake (11) and Logan Stankoven (eight) all have been kept off the score sheet by the Canadiens thus far.

Juraj Slafkovsky has scored two goals and set up another for Montreal while Phillip Danault has recorded a tally and three assists. The 33-year-old Danault has collected nine points over his last eight games after having registered just one assist in his first eight contests this postseason.

Frederik Andersen entered the Eastern Conference Final leading the NHL in goals-against average (1.12) and save percentage (.950) but has been less than stellar against the Canadiens. The 36-year-old Danish goaltender has allowed seven goals on 33 shots and yielded a pair of goals while facing only 12 shots in Game 2.

The NHL betting odds at the major sportsbooks see the Hurricanes as favorites in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference final, as they are listed around -136 on the money line. Meanwhile, the Canadiens are priced at about +114. Learn how to read betting odds here.

Game 3 Best Bets

Hurricanes ML (-134, FanDuel)

Carolina is 9-1 overall this postseason and 4-0 on the road. Montreal’s 2-4 record at the Bell Centre is a bit concerning, even though three of the losses were by one goal. One of the Canadiens’ two home wins came in overtime, so they easily could be 1-5 in their own building. The Hurricanes have allowed 22 shots or fewer in their road games and Montreal hasn’t surpassed that total in the series thus far, so if those trends continue, I believe Andersen will do enough to help lead his team to victory.

Logan Stankoven – Anytime goal scorer (+260, FanDuel)

After beginning the postseason with a five-game goal-scoring streak, Stankoven has been quiet of late, scoring in just one of his last five contests. But dating back to the regular season, the 23-year-old center has gone more than two straight games without a goal just once since early March, as he endured a five-game drought from March 20-29. Two of those contests were against the Canadiens, and Stankoven hasn’t scored in nine career meetings with Montreal (including this series), but I like him to get the puck past Jakub Dobes in Game 3.

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