Montreal Canadiens' Alexandre Texier (85) scores on Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) during third period NHL hockey action in Montreal on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

MONTREAL — Alexandre Texier’s hat trick led the Montreal Canadiens to a 6-2 win over the Florida Panthers on Thursday in front of a raucous Bell Centre crowd.

It was Texier’s second straight three-point night after he recorded one goal and two assists in Montreal’s 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday.

Noah Dobson, Oliver Kapanen and Juraj Slafkovsky also scored as Montreal (25-13-6) won its third straight. Kapanen and Mike Matheson added two assists.

The win also gave the Canadiens their fourth straight victory at the Bell Centre, their longest such stretch this season.

Samuel Montembeault made 24 saves in his first start in Montreal since Dec. 2.

The Becancour, Que., native has won all three of his starts since being recalled from his conditioning assignment with the Laval Rocket of the American Hockey League on Dec.27.

Sam Bennett scored both Panthers goals on the night.

Florida (22-18-3), the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions, have dropped the first two games of its season-long six-game road trip.

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 14 shots in the losing effort. The veteran Russian netminder has dropped three straight games since the calendar flipped to 2026.

The Panthers were without leading scorer Brad Marchand. The 37-year-old is day-to-day after leaving his team’s 4-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at the end of the second period Tuesday with an undisclosed injury.

Takeaways

Panthers: Florida’s power-play woes continued without Marchand. The Panthers failed to score on all three of their man-advantage opportunities, running their power-play drought to 0-for-11.

Canadiens: Montreal has killed off 15 straight penalties on home ice. The Canadiens have not allowed a power-play goal at the Bell Centre in five games.

Key moment

With Montreal up 2-0, Montembeault gave the Panthers some life thanks to a misplay behind his own net. The goalie's errant no-look backhand pass was picked off by Bennett, who deposited the puck into the vacated net. Nevertheless, the Habs faithful showed their support for their goaltender, chanting “Mon-ty! Mon-ty!” on multiple occasions thereafter.

Key stat

The Canadiens have won seven straight games against the Panthers, a streak that dates back to April 2024.

Up Next

Panthers: Visit the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.

Canadiens: Host the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 8, 2026.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2026