A career night in net for Montreal's rookie
Jacob Fowler turned aside an NHL-career-high 46 shots for his sixth consecutive victory, and the Montreal Canadiens blanked the St. Louis Blues 2-0 at Enterprise Center on Tuesday. The clean sheet was Fowler's second this season and the third of his NHL career, and he has conceded no more than one goal in each of his past three appearances.[S1][S2][S3]
Fowler described finding a rhythm as the game wore on, saying he was somewhat fatigued afterward but expected a few days off to be enough to recover. He credited his teammates with clearing traffic in front of him and letting him track the puck, adding that he felt fortunate on the night.[S1]
Canadiens forward Florian Xhekaj said Fowler rises to the occasion and stays calm in the crease, making it easy for the group to play in front of him when he performs at that level.[S1]
Bolduc strikes against his former club
Zachary Bolduc opened the scoring against the team that drafted him, and Xhekaj recorded his first NHL goal for Montreal (7-3-2), which has won three in a row and stretched its point streak to five games (4-0-1). Mike Matheson contributed two assists.[S1]
Bolduc's goal came at 8:37 of the second period, moments after a Montreal power play had expired, when he finished a one-timer from the bottom of the right circle off Matheson's pass from the high slot. Acquired from St. Louis for defenseman Logan Mailloux on July 1, 2025, Bolduc scored for the first time in his third meeting with the club that took him in the first round, No. 17 overall, of the 2021 NHL Draft.[S1]
Xhekaj doubled the lead at 2:17 of the third period by getting his stick on Matheson's wrist shot from the blue line twice, first deflecting it off Jordan Binnington and then tipping it again once it slipped behind the goaltender. The play was reviewed for a high stick and the goal stood. Xhekaj admitted he was anxious on the bench during the review and said he was relieved it counted.[S1]
Blues push hard but cannot solve Fowler
Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said his team bent without breaking but does not want to spend that much time in its own zone. The game followed a 2-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets in the 2026 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic on Sunday.[S1]
Binnington made 18 saves for St. Louis (5-6-1), which has now been shut out in consecutive games after winning the first two of a five-game homestand, following a 4-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. Blues captain Robert Thomas said the team generated plenty of good looks and had to credit the opposing goaltender, while stressing that St. Louis must bear down and convert more of its chances.[S1]
Fowler made 24 saves in the third period alone, when Montreal was outshot 24-3. St. Louis pulled Binnington for an extra attacker with seven minutes remaining and played much of the rest of the game with a 6-on-5 advantage. Blues coach Jim Montgomery said he wanted to inject urgency and felt the move created a firestorm, though his team could not beat Fowler, whom he called incredible on the night.[S1]
Records and notes from Enterprise Center
Fowler's 46 saves rank third in Canadiens history for a shutout, behind Jacques Plante's 52 on Nov. 13, 1955, against the Chicago Blackhawks in a 2-0 win and Sam Montembeault's 48 on Oct. 9, 2024, against the Toronto Maple Leafs in a 1-0 win. He also set a Montreal record for saves in a shutout by a rookie since shots on goal were officially tracked in 1955-56, surpassing Cayden Primeau's 41 on March 12, 2024, and Tony Esposito's 41 on Dec. 21, 1968.[S1]
St. Louis was shut out in back-to-back games for the first time since Nov. 17, 2018, a 4-0 loss to the San Jose Sharks, and Nov. 19, 2018, a 2-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings. The Blues' 46 shots were the second most in a shutout defeat in franchise history, behind 48 in a 1-0 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Jan. 25, 1986. Forward Alexey Toropchenko returned after missing 10 games with a shoulder injury and had two shots on goal in 10:25 of ice time.[S1]
