If you take a cursory glance at the NHL standings, it’s easy to overlook the Montreal Canadiens’ recent hot streak, despite the franchise’s pedigree and expansive media market. Don’t look now, but the Canadiens are 8-1-1 and are the NHL’s hottest team at the moment — we won’t take issue if you believe the Edmonton Oilers or Detroit Red Wings deserve this designation instead, form tends to fluctuate — and are pushing towards a wild-card spot, perhaps ahead of schedule.

Is their recent form sustainable? Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes has caught fire and has reenergized a team that appeared destined for another top-five pick around Christmas. Dobes has saved 2.48 goals above expected at 5-on-5 since January 1 and excellent goaltending can mask holes in a team’s roster composition — Maple Leafs fans know this all too well from opening night, where Canadiens netminder Sam Montembeault posted one of the best single-game performances of the season.

Montembeault has regressed throughout January, so Saturday’s game is largely dependent on whether the Canadiens elect to ride the hot hand in Dobes, a 23-year-old who starred for Ohio State, before spending the 2023-24 campaign with the AHL’s Laval Rocket. It’s too early to make declarative statements about Dobes, goaltenders tend to fluctuate, but historically, throwing a rookie goaltender who has caught fire, has worked out pretty well for the Canadiens. Montembeault reportedly will get the start, but it ought to be Dobes, who provides his team with the best chance to shut down a Toronto Maple Leafs team that is shooting their way out of trouble — at least Auston Matthews is!

Lane Hutson has come into his own as well and is ascending into a legitimate NHL star in front of us. Hutson’s improvisational ability is his calling card, and he may be a singular creator on the blue line. There was a notion that Hutson’s offensive skill created empty offence, which has been debunked throughout the year and he’s carrying the Canadiens’ blue line as a 20-year-old. Alexandre Carrier has also provided some much-needed support since being acquired in a December 18 trade as well, but Hutson has been the clear leader of the defence corps.

“I mean, you watch him play, he basically does anything he wants with the puck on his stick,” Canadiens defenceman Kaiden Guhle said of Hutson on November 9. “It’s fun to watch. He’s got a crazy amount of skill. For him to be doing this as a 20-year-old in the league is impressive. He can do basically anything he wants with the puck on his stick, so he’s got the skill, he’s got the tools for all of it.

“I think he’s one-of-one. He’s his own player. I don’t think there’s going to be anyone who comes up that will be the exact same player as him. I think he’s his own player. I do think coming up now, there’s a lot more skill for young players coming up now. Even from when I would come up, you see the number of coaches now that are trying to come up and have their own kind of brand and their own skills, and some players have a lot more skill now, but he’s his own player for sure.”

Hutson and Dobes are the catalysts, providing Cole Caufield with some real support this season — Caufield leads the NHL with 17 goals at 5-on-5, but the Canadiens’ next-best goal producer at even strength is Nick Suzuki, with eight tallies, in a tie for 83rd. The common refrain is that the Canadiens are two years away, while boasting several assets for the upcoming draft and sporting arguably the NHL’s best prospect pool. Ivan Demidov and Michael Hage are on schedule to make a huge impact at the NHL level, and the Canadiens could be a power in a few years, but Hutson and Dobes may help them arrive ahead of schedule. Is it merely a function of good luck?

Montreal posted a .995 PDO through January 1, and a .994 PDO overall, suggesting it has actually received some poor shooting luck overall — using one catch-all stat to determine its future prospectus admittedly isn’t the best way to dive into predictive data, but it does suggest that the club may be building something real, towards a new era of sustained success. Baby steps first, of course.

And here’s the thing: this is where the spotlight really begins. A marquee showdown on Hockey Night in Canada between the Maple Leafs, who lead the Atlantic Division after injuries, offensive regression, defensive regression and everything in between, and the Canadiens, who are catching fire, despite sub-par defending overall — Hutson is going to be a bonafide star, he’s been carrying sub-par partners all year, but defence will never be his calling card, at least not at this rate — is a prime opportunity to see if this recent run of form is real, or a goaltending-infused mirage.

Montreal is in a fascinating position at the moment, with an undoubtedly bright future. As for the present, entering the second half of the season, with the Canadiens in pursuit of a playoff spot, a few questions remain unanswered. Is Dobes’ outstanding run of form masking the Canadiens’ porous defence? Caufield is the real deal, but are the Canadiens getting enough offensive contributions from their depth players, despite receiving slightly bad shooting luck, which may suggest that even more actual goals are on their way? We’ll find out Saturday night as a litmus test for the Canadiens. Throw away the stat sheet now, and settle in for a genuinely rousing edition of Hockey Night in Canada!