10 Herculean Challenges Canadiens Face in the Way of 2025 Playoffs – The Hockey Writers –

This is going to be tougher than initially thought for the Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens temporarily found themselves in a wild-card spot on Jan. 6, after having gone 8-2 since Dec. 16, at which point they had literally been in last place in the entire Eastern Conference.

Since that point, the Habs have gone a fairly impressive 3-1-1 and they’ve actually lost ground, having fallen two points out, as of their latest game, a disappointing 7-3 loss to the rival Toronto Maple Leafs on Jan. 18. The moral of this story? It’s significantly harder to permanently pass playoff-calibre teams in the standings.

Speaking of stories, in Greek mythology, Heracles (Hercules) carried out a series of originally 10 (but eventually 12) nigh-impossible challenges to redeem himself after killing his wife and child in a fit of madness (plot points which failed to make the Disney movie). The Canadiens themselves face a series of obstacles in the way of a spot in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Stretching the definition of “Herculean” with a little understanding on the part of readers, you may possibly consider the following 10 obstacles the Habs’ own labours:

10. 17 Straight Games in a Different Arena

The loss to the Maple Leafs was undeniably horrible. However, it actually marked the end of an incredibly impressive stretch that coincidentally began on Dec. 12, bookended by a separate humiliating defeat, 9-2 to the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins at the Bell Centre.

Starting at that point, the Canadiens went on the road only to immediate come back for one game, rinse and repeat. Altogether, including their annual holiday road trip, the Habs never played consecutive games in the same arena for 17 total games (10-5-2). They went 7-2-1 on the road and a surprising 3-3-1 at home, which only serves to prove the friendly confines of the Bell Centre don’t mean a whole lot when you don’t have time to catch your breath and take advantage of the comforts of playing where they’re actually a decent 11-8-3.

9. 7 Remaining Back-to-Backs

After the loss to the Maple Leafs, the Canadiens finally get to stay at home. They don’t have much time to rest though, as they play the New York Rangers on Jan. 19 (the next night).

Thankfully, the Canadiens have already rectified their lack of trust in their backup, by demoting Cayden Primeau; 4.70 goals-against average and .836 save percentage) and replacing him with Jakub Dobes (0.98 GAA, .963 SV%)….