Oct 9, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes (75) makes the save on Detroit Red Wings right wing Alex Debrincat (93) in the second period at Little Caesars Arena. (Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images)

Bolduc & Dobes Help Lead Canadiens to 5-1 Victory Over the Red Wings

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Jordan Orth | Last updated Oct 9, 2025 9:57 PM ET

Two Original Six organizations locked horns on Thursday night (Oct. 9), as the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens squared off in Detroit. The Canadiens made their way to Motown after dropping their season opener on Oct. 8 to the Toronto Maple Leafs, while the game marked the first one of the 2025-26 season for the Red Wings. In a fast-paced game, the Canadiens pulled off a 5-1 victory.

Game Recap

In the opening minutes of the game, the Red Wings came out quick and made their presence felt by throwing their weight around. The pace they played at ended up leading to a power play opportunity in the first four minutes, and they took full advantage of it. Captain Dylan Larkin tallied the first goal of the season for the Red Wings after working his way into the slot and was the beneficiary of Patrick Kane’s great pass out front, giving his team an early 1-0 lead on a quick shot that beat Canadiens netminder Jakub Dobes . As the period progressed, the Canadiens began to get some momentum going and took advantage of a defensive breakdown by the Red Wings, leading to Zach Bolduc getting in alone on John Gibson and beating him to tie the game at one.

The Red Wings had another opportunity on the power play, but could not cash in on a handful of high-danger chances. But on the flip side, the Canadiens took full advantage of the chances they were given and added two more goals to take a 3-1 lead after the opening 20 minutes. Oliver Kapanen scored the second goal of the game for the Canadiens off another defensive lapse by the Red Wings, while Mike Matheson scored in the final 10 seconds of the period.

The second period saw the Canadiens once again take advantage of their chances, scoring twice on only five shots. Bolduc tallied his second goal of the game after deflecting a shot from the point by Alexandre Carrier to give the Canadiens a 4-1 lead. They would then cash in on their third power play opportunity of the game, with Juraj Slafkovsky burying a loose puck out in front of Gibson after a shot by Cole Caufield to push the lead to 5-1. Cam Talbot replaced Gibson in net for the Red Wings following the Slafkovsky goal.

In a scoreless third period, Dobes made a handful of strong saves to preserve the Canadiens’ four-goal lead and stopped all nine shots he faced in the period. In total, he made 30 saves on 31 shots for his first victory of the 2025-26 season. In the loss, Gibson stopped eight of the 13 shots he faced before giving way to Talbot (who stopped all five shots he faced).

What’s Next

The Canadiens move to 1-1-0 on the young season and look to build on the win on Saturday (Oct. 11) when they travel to Chicago to take on Connor Bedard and the Blackhawks. The Red Wings fall to 0-1-0 and return to action on Saturday as well, taking on the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first of a home-and-home against the Auston Matthews-led Maple Leafs.