The Montreal Canadiens look to punch their ticket to the second round with a win over the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight in Game 6, but will continue to be without defenceman Noah Dobson, who continues to recover from a thumb injury.
Per TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun, Dobson was 50-50 on playing tonight and was not on the ice for warmups ahead of Game 6.
Charles D'Astous is back in the lineup for Tampa.
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) May 1, 2026
Noah Dobson is not on the ice for Montreal. He's getting closer, was told it was 50-50 for tonight but not surprised the Canadiens would want to be as cautious as possible before giving him the clearance to come back.
He was on the ice for Friday’s morning skate with the rest of the team, skating and handling the puck.
Dobson has also missed the first five games of the playoffs as well as the final two games of the regular season after suffering a thumb injury on Apr. 11 against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The 25-year-old was injured after blocking a shot that hit his hand and caused him to leave the game and not return.
The team announced on Apr. 12 that Dobson would be re-evaluated in two weeks after the injury.
In his first season with the Canadiens after being acquired in June from the New York Islanders, Dobson scored 12 goals with 47 points in 80 games while averaging 22:29 of ice time.
The Canadiens lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 over the Lightning.
