Set your reminders. Montreal sports this week builds to one of the biggest Saturdays of the year: the Alouettes host the Eastern Final on the slopes of Mount Royal at 3 p.m., and four hours later the Canadiens are in Toronto for a Saturday night against the Leafs. Before that, the Habs play two at the Bell Centre and the Laval Rocket return home for three. Here’s the full Nov. 2 to 8 rundown. Note that we wrote this ahead of the weekend, so standings and stats are as of Oct. 28 and don’t include Halloween weekend results.
Montreal sports this week: the Eastern Final
After a 14-4 season and first place in the East, the Als earned a bye through the semi-finals. Saturday’s Eastern Semi-Final at BMO Field, with Winnipeg visiting Toronto, decided who comes to Montreal; for the full breakdown of both possible opponents, see Argos or Bombers?
- When: Saturday, Nov. 7 at 3 p.m. ET
- Where: Percival Molson Memorial Stadium
- Tickets: sold out since Oct. 19, according to 3DownNation
- On TV: TSN and RDS
- At stake: a trip to the 113th Grey Cup
Montreal was perfect at home in the regular season, as we covered in our look at the 9-0 run at Molson, and quarterback Davis Alexander and receiver Tyson Philpot are both finalists for the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player award. The last time Montreal hosted the East Final, in 2024, it lost 30-28 to Toronto in front of 23,035 fans.
Win, and the Als head west for the Grey Cup on Sunday, Nov. 15 at McMahon Stadium in Calgary (6 p.m. ET). The Western Final goes the same day as the East, at 6:30 p.m. ET in Edmonton, per the CFL.
Canadiens: two at home, then Toronto
As of Oct. 28, the Habs were 7-3-2 with 16 points, second in the Atlantic, with rookie goalie Jacob Fowler at 6-1-0 and a .942 save percentage. Captain Nick Suzuki is still working back from an upper-body injury; the team’s Oct. 22 timeline of two to four weeks puts a possible return somewhere between this week and mid-November.
Tuesday, Nov. 3: vs. Winnipeg Jets, 7 p.m. (TSN2, RDS)
The rematch of the Heritage Classic, which Montreal won 2-1 outdoors in Winnipeg (catch up in our weekend recap). The Jets were 4-5-3 as of Oct. 28. Kyle Connor leads them with nine goals, and Cole Perfetti has six. This is the second and final meeting of the season.
Thursday, Nov. 5: vs. Utah Mammoth, 7 p.m. (TSN2, RDS)
Utah arrives as one of the better teams in the West, 8-5-0 and second in the Central as of Oct. 28. Defenceman Mikhail Sergachev and captain Clayton Keller share the team lead with 15 points each, and Nick Schmaltz has seven goals.
Saturday, Nov. 7: at Toronto Maple Leafs, 7 p.m. (Sportsnet, TVA Sports)
A classic Saturday night in Toronto. The Leafs were 7-6-2 as of Oct. 28, tied with Montreal at 16 points but with three more games played. Auston Matthews had 10 goals and 23 points, and William Nylander had 19 points. If you’re watching both games Saturday, our list of bars to watch the Canadiens doubles as a football guide.
Looking further ahead, the Bell Centre schedule has the Minnesota Wild on Nov. 10 and the Colorado Avalanche on Nov. 14.
Laval Rocket: three at Place Bell
The Canadiens’ AHL affiliate is back home for a busy week, per the Rocket’s schedule:
- Wednesday, Nov. 4: vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms, 7 p.m.
- Friday, Nov. 6: vs. Cleveland Monsters, 7 p.m.
- Saturday, Nov. 7: vs. Cleveland Monsters, 3 p.m.
Mark your calendar for Nov. 22 too, when the Rocket play the Calgary Wranglers at the Bell Centre at 3 p.m.
Coming soon: the Victoire
Hockey fans who can’t wait for the women’s game: the defending Walter Cup champion Montréal Victoire open their PWHL season on Saturday, Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. against Hamilton at Place Bell.
Your week at a glance
- Tue.: Jets at Canadiens, 7 p.m.
- Wed.: Phantoms at Rocket, 7 p.m.
- Thu.: Mammoth at Canadiens, 7 p.m.
- Fri.: Monsters at Rocket, 7 p.m.
- Sat.: Monsters at Rocket, 3 p.m.; Eastern Final at Molson, 3 p.m.; Canadiens at Maple Leafs, 7 p.m.
For previews and recaps all week, follow our sports section. Allez Montréal!
More on MTL365
- This Week in Montreal (Nov. 2–8): CINEMANIA, La Grande Dégustation, a Habs Home Stand and the Eastern Final
- The Best Dumplings in Montreal: 9 Spots for Steamed, Fried and Soup Dumplings
- Clocks Fell Back Overnight. Was It Quebec’s Last Time Change?
- More Montreal sports on MTL365
Photo: mark.watmough / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
Sources: CFL.ca, 3DownNation, Grey Cup Festival, NHL.com, evenko, Laval Rocket, NHL standings data (Oct. 28)
