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Montreal Canadiens forward Phillip Danault – (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Montreal Canadiens Make New Year’s Resolutions for 2026

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Ryan Szporer | Last updated Dec 31, 2025 8:25 AM ET

Things look bright for the Montreal Canadiens heading into 2026, at least significantly brighter than on recent New Year’s Eves past. After years of rebuilding and just sneaking into the postseason in 2025, the Habs have built on that modest success. They currently sit well within the Eastern Conference playoff picture this time around, as the youngest team in the NHL, no less.

So, expectations, while heightened, remain relatively low for the Canadiens. That having been said, there’s obviously always room for team-wide and personal improvement, as this list of their (satirical) New Year’s resolutions shows:

Nick Suzuki

To take the entire Olympic break to give my body some much needed rest… unless I make the Canadian team… in which case “Yay?”

Cole Caufield: to become the type of complete player that regularly scores goals again; Good times.

Zachary Bolduc: to get a better idea of what I did to get bumped off the first line, so I can correct course

Juraj Slafkovsky: to get a better idea of what I did to get bumped off the first line, so I can keep doing it

Ivan Demidov: to shoot more

Oliver Kapanen: To pass more, I guess.

Joe Veleno

Next time, to remember the golden rule, as a native Quebecer: Only sign with the Canadiens to live out a boyhood dream ONCE you’re past your prime. Oh, wait. Ohhhh…

Sammy Blais: to get new representation

Phillip Danault: to cut down on the carbs. It’s going to be hard if this team gets healthy and peaks at the right time, though.

Josh Anderson and Brendan Gallagher: despite our reduced roles, to try our best to continue to end the current terms of our respective contracts on high notes

Jake Evans and Alex Newhook: to get healthy

Kirby Dach and Kaiden Guhle: to stay healthy once we get healthy

Patrik Laine: to get better (at hockey) once I get healthy

Owen Beck: to hedge my bets and find a place in Cartierville(?)

Adam Engstrom and Alexandre Texier: to learn the local language

Arber Xhekaj: to become more of a well-rounded hockey player and not use fighting as a crutch

Lane Hutson: to become more of a well-rounded hockey player and not use all-world offensive abilities as a crutch

Alexandre Carrier: to hit the gym and justify being seen as the “muscle” on my pairing

Jayden Struble: to be of more use to the team and spot Carrier

Mike Matheson

To rebrand myself in light of my new, admittedly rich contract; Out is the fun-loving, high-risk/high-reward shoot-first, ask-questions-later power-play quarterback.

In is the defensively responsible father figure, who leads the team in ice time — including shorthanded with 4:11 per game on the penalty kill. So, adjust production expectations and your standards for my success accordingly (just anything but the success of said penalty kill).

Noah Dobson: in light of my own new, admittedly rich contract, to give to a good cause: spreading awareness of how I not only have more points than 40-goal-forward Emil Heineman (as a defenseman), but more points at even strength than any New York Islanders player; I’ll probably also donate to an actual (non-sarcastic) good cause, for good measure.

I don’t know if I mentioned, but I do have a new, rich contract, after all.

Sam Montembeault: to get in as many games as possible to get back to where I was last season

Jakub Dobes: to get in as many games as possible to keep my game where it is currently

Jacob Fowler: to get in as many games as possible to take my game to the next level

Martin St. Louis: to pick up darts; Should come in handy when deciding which goalie to play.

Kent Hughes: to give a three-goalie rotation a fair shake; Last time that it failed miserably, it was clearly due to extenuating circumstances: That team was already a non-playoff team.

See the difference?