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Practice: Demotion for Patrik Laine, promotion for Brendan Gallagher

Originally posted on Dose.ca | Last updated Sep 30, 2025 1:06 PM ET

Patrik Laine is the talk of the town these days. At practice this morning, Patrik Laine started it off by being alone on rink #1 at Complexe CN de Brossard before the official start of practice. The other guys were on rink #2, sothey joined him and Laine chatted with Martin St-Louis.

All the Habs players are on rink #2 for morning skate.

They’re all there… except Patrik Laine, who’s alone on rink #1 working on his shot. Hmm… @DLCoulisses pic.twitter.com/PCQY3KpPQz– Marc-Olivier Cook (@Cook_Marco) September 30, 2025

Then, when practice started, we saw that Laine was on a line with Owen Beck and Joe Veleno, two guys who aren’t guaranteed to play on October 8. How much does that line, which we should see tonight in Quebec City, mean? Do we want to give Veleno a chance or send a message to Laine?

Oh, Martin St-Louis has really been stirring the pot for tonight…

Gallagher – Dach – Bolduc Newhook – Kapanen – Demidov Laine – Beck – Veleno Xhekaj – Evans – Anderson Xhekaj – Hutson Struble – Carrier Engström – Matheson Monty Dobes @DLCoulisses pic.twitter.com/WQoSzN4S2A– Marc-Olivier Cook (@Cook_Marco) September 30, 2025

While the regular first line won’t be playing (and practiced separately this morning), we saw Brendan Gallagher get a promotion to the top-6. Tonight, he’ll be with Kirby Dach and Zachary Bolduc. That trio will work… except at center? The line-up of Oliver Kapanen, Ivan Demidov and Alex Newhook was intact, and Florian Xhekaj took Gally’s place with Jake Evans and Josh Anderson. Defensively, the six healthy defensemen will basically play. So no Kaiden Guhle and Noah Dobson, who practiced with the others yesterday and apart from this morning, in action at the Centre Vidéotron. # On the

second ice

,

we find the guys who won’t be in uniform tonight: Slafkovsky, Suzuki, Caufield, Blais, Dobson, Guhle and Kahkonen. Seeing Veleno dressed in Quebec City and not Blais says a lot to me. @DLCoulisses pic.twitter.com/yiW8pVFC07– Marc-Olivier Cook (@Cook_Marco) September 30, 2025

Expect Samuel Montembeault to start the game. Note that this is probably his last chance to test himself. On Saturday, on the heels of the last preparatory game, expect the line-up to be fairly complete.