Normally, I prefer to get my pregame out in the morning, or at the latest in the early afternoon. However, since I just got off work, I’ll settle for posting it late in the afternoon. For those who don’t know, I work at PlaygroundPoker, which is hosting MSTPPoker for a second straight year. During their first visit in 2025, the Major Series of Poker Tour was a great success, and everything suggests this second appearance at Playground will be even better than the first. Anyway, for those interested, here’s the list of tournaments through the end of the event, which wraps up on October 12!
https://www.playground.ca/poker/tournaments/mspt-canadian-poker-championship-2026
Now on to tonight’s game against the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena, the second game of the season for both teams. It will be the home opener for the Penguins, who won their first game of the season 7-0 against the Flyers in Philadelphia. Martin St-Louis’s men will try to stay undefeated on the road after winning their season opener 3-2 against the Leafs in Toronto.
Even though my headline says “What to expect against the Penguins,” I have to admit I don’t really know what to expect tonight. One thing I’m sure of: MSL will use the same lines as in Tuesday’s win over the Leafs. As I’ve said all week, the Bleu-Blanc-Rouge head coach very rarely changes a winning lineup. That means the deputy will watch the game from the press box for a second straight game, whether some people like it or not! As for Oliver Kapanen, he should be able to return for the home opener at the Bell Centre on Tuesday against the Stanley Cup champions.
When I asked the players at the poker tables today and throughout the week who would win tonight’s game, they were unanimous in picking the Habs, despite our opponents’ impressive win!
For my part, I didn’t like what I saw from Suzuki’s line, and the same goes for Alex Newhook’s line Tuesday night at Scotiabank Arena. If not for Jakub Dobes’s brilliant performance and the bottom six, the Canadiens would be looking for a first win tonight. Anyway, as I said in my headline for the first game, “One game does not make a season,” so let’s not jump to conclusions about either the poor performance of the top two lines or Jakub Dobes’s strong one. The good news is that the Sainte-Flanelle has not lost in October.
I hope we see a better effort from the captain and his two linemates, as well as from Juraj Slafkovsky and Ivan Demidov tonight. In short, if the Canadiens hope to pick up two points in the standings, they will definitely need offensive support from their best players and another big performance from their goaltender.
Season prediction: 0-1
Prediction:
MTL 3
PIT 4
With that, have a good rest of your evening, and enjoy the game!