By 
The Montreal Canadiens faced the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night, a classic match-up between rival organizations in very different situations.
While the Habs have already completed a few crucial steps of their rebuild, and are looking to become legitimate Stanley Cup contenders, the Maple Leafs are struggling to find an identity, sitting 11th in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Canadiens emerged victorious, beating Toronto 4-2, while dealing with some questionable officiating to say the least. More on that later.
Let’s dive into the highlights!
Fortuitous Start
Alex Newhook opened the scoring for the Habs, though he wasn’t the last player to touch the puck. He wasn’t even the penultimate player, as the pass hit Jack McCabe, before Sergei Bobrovsky accidentally deflected it into his own net.
As the old saying goes, you have to be lucky to be good, and you have to be good to be lucky.
Or you have to hail from Newfoundland.
Either way, it’s a win-win situation.
The #GoHabsGo are up 1-0 thanks to a broken play that hit McCabe and Bobrovsky before going in.
Newhook gets credit. https://t.co/OsJtGJ3eAP
— Montreal Hockey Now (@MTLhockeynow) November 8, 2026
He’s The B’y
Newhook, who has done a great job plugging holes all over the lineup since he’s joined the Canadiens, doubled his nightly tally midway through the first period, using a perfect tip to change the trajectory of the Kaiden Guhle point shot.
Overall, the Maple Leafs controlled the flow of the game, outshooting and outchancing the Canadiens by a decent margin, making Newhook’s second goal crucial, as it quickly deflated the home team.
Newhook, again!
The Newfoundlander finds the back of the net for the second time of the night, this time with a great tip on the Kaiden Guhle point shot.
2-0 #GoHabsGo https://t.co/DSeM5ZUPJj
— Montreal Hockey Now (@MTLhockeynow) November 8, 2026
You’re Going The Wrong Way!
Much ink has been spilled when discussing rookie Gavin McKenna‘s ice time with the Leafs this season. Of course, fans want to see the No. 1 overall pick play as many shifts as possible, but on the flip side of the coin, coaches want to win games.
And statistically speaking, McKenna could stand to improve his defensive game.
Another way of saying it, would be that he’s a defensive liability, especially in crunch time.
The defensive awareness will improve as he gains experience, but it’s easy to see why Leafs head coach Jim Hiller has used McKenna sparingly when a game is on the line. Two giveaways by the 18-year-old led to Canadiens goals, including a morale-destroying breakaway goal by Chris Kreider late in the second period.
Chris Kreider scores on the breakaway to make it 3-0 #GoHabsGo
The second time a McKenna giveaway leads to a Canadiens goal tonight. https://t.co/L64FeiER7h
— Montreal Hockey Now (@MTLhockeynow) November 8, 2026
TJ Luxmore Is A Terrible Referee
Those who have followed my coverage for the last decade know that I hate blaming referees for every single play, as is often the case on social media.
For the most part, they make the right decisions. And it’s a difficult job that I respect.
However, there are a few referees who not only struggle to call the game correctly, they go out of their way to change the momentum of games, which is quite shameful given their mandate.
One of those terrible referees is TJ Luxmore, who has had several run-ins with the Canadiens in recent years.
Let’s be clear. Luxmore is the worst referee in the NHL, full stop.
On Saturday night, he decided to penalize Arber Xhekaj with a ghost-call in the third period. He also ignored several punches thrown at Kirby Dach’s head by Teddy Blueger in the very same scrum, showing the type of disgusting bias that would get most employees fired from their jobs.
The Leafs would go on to score on the undeserved powerplay. They then cut the Canadiens lead to 3-2 a few moments later.
Luxmore is incompetent.
He actively ruins the product.
And what’s worse, he loves playing the starring role.
The NHL, the fans, and everyone involved in hockey would be much better off without him.
Building A Cushion
The good news for the Canadiens is that they managed to clear their head, despite the awful call that almost derailed the game.
Zachary Bolduc provided important insurance with his sixth goal of the season, a powerplay marker that featured excellent accuracy.
A perfect shot by Zachary Bolduc makes it 4-2. #GoHabsGo https://t.co/zbH5rdRrUM
— Montreal Hockey Now (@MTLhockeynow) November 8, 2026
The Montreal Canadiens are back in action on Tuesday, facing the Minnesota Wild at the Bell Centre. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 pm ET.
All Montreal Canadiens statistics are 5v5 unless otherwise noted, via Natural Stat Trick.
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https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/canadiens-highlights-habs-win-despite-024258408.html
