It was the season opener for each team.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe focused on a lot of things in camp, paying attention to detail,\u201d Anderson said. \u201cObviously, we had a little bit of a slow start (tonight), but we got some momentum on our hands and started to roll from there. I liked our compete level, and obviously Jakub Dobes<\/a>\u00a0made some huge saves for us tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n Zachary Bolduc<\/a> scored, and Dobes made 26 saves for the Canadiens.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI saw a group just trying to find a way to win a game,\u201d Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said. \u201cWe don\u2019t play until Saturday (at the Pittsburgh Penguins). We\u2019re going to get together and spend some quality time and team bonding. To go get a win in the first game, I\u2019m really happy.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cDo we have things to address and correct? I\u2019m sure we do and it\u2019s nice to be able to do that after a win. The tone of positivity can stay around and (we can) still do some teaching.\u201d<\/p>\n William Nylander<\/a> scored twice, and Sergei Bobrovsky<\/a>\u00a0made 21 saves in his debut for the Maple Leafs, who were playing their first game under coach Jim Hiller.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought we played pretty well to be honest with you,\u201d Hiller said. \u201cMost of the chances they got, we gave them. We turned the puck over in the defensive zone, so that was really our Achillies\u2019 heel. Outside of that, I thought we played pretty well.\u201d<\/p>\n Gavin McKenna<\/a>, the No. 1 pick in the 2026\u00a0NHL Draft, was minus-2 with one shot on goal in 15:19 of ice time in his NHL debut.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a lot of fun,\u201d McKenna said. \u201cObviously you want to get the win but to get that first one under my belt, it feels good.<\/p>\n \u201c(My game was) not great. I had a couple turnovers. I\u2019m glad we are playing again (on Wednesday against the New York Islanders),” McKenna said. “Montreal is a really good team, they don\u2019t give you much time and space.\u201d<\/p>\n Bolduc put the Canadiens up 2-1 at 4:52 of the second period. Mike Matheson<\/a>\u00a0drove to the net and put the puck into the slot, where Bolduc shot past Bobrovsky\u2019s glove.<\/p>\n