Two lineup changes for the Canadiens as Martin St-Louis turns to Jacob Fowler

Martin St-Louis is handing the crease to Jacob Fowler tonight against the Predators, and Adam Engstrom draws in on the Canadiens blue line.

Engstrom replaces Jayden Struble. Two lineup calls on the same Thursday morning tell you the coaching staff isn't sitting still after two straight losses.

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And the numbers explain the urgency. Montreal has allowed 14 goals through three games, the kind of total that gets goalies and defensemen dragged into the same conversation.

Jakub Dobes has carried the load so far, appearing in all three games with a .856 save percentage. Nobody rides a number like that for long in this market.

Samuel Montembeault is listed day-to-day with an undisclosed issue. So the net goes to a goalie who doesn't have a game on his Montreal ledger yet this season.

Think of it as getting the keys to a car with the check-engine light already on. Fowler's job is to keep it on the road long enough for someone to pop the hood.

Jayden Struble out as Canadiens shake up a leaky blue line

So why Struble? He had played all three games, posting no points and an even rating.

If this is a performance call, it's aimed at the wrong defenseman.

Michael Matheson sits at minus-3. Noah Dobson, carrying a $9,500,000 cap hit, is minus-2 with a single assist, and those are the harder conversations nobody seems ready to have.

Engstrom's assignment looks simple on paper. Make the clean first pass, get pucks out of the zone, and stop leaving Fowler alone against second chances in the crease.

The offense hasn't been the issue. Nick Suzuki has six points in three games, and Zachary Bolduc already has three goals, one of them on the power play.

Lane Hutson has chipped in four assists from the back end. Montreal is scoring four goals a night, which should win you most hockey games.

Home ice hasn't helped yet. The Canadiens lost 6-4 to the Hurricanes on Tuesday in their only game at home so far.

Before that came a 6-5 loss in Pittsburgh that went past regulation. Scoring five and walking away with one point stings.

Nashville arrives with its own goaltending wrinkle. Justus Annunen is day-to-day and expected out until at least Oct. 13, which puts more weight on Juuse Saros and his .907 save percentage.

Andrew Brunette's group is also 1-1-1, but scoring just 2.3 goals per game. This is the first meeting between the two clubs this season.

Steven Stamkos is the guy to watch. He has three goals, two of them on the power play, and he'll test Montreal's penalty kill in front of Fowler.

The Predators come in off a 5-4 loss in Toronto on Tuesday that also went beyond regulation. Both teams are hungry, and both are leaking.

Ivan Demidov remains on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, expected out until at least Oct. 31. That's three more weeks without a forward who had two points in two games.

Detroit visits Saturday. If Fowler gives St-Louis a reason tonight, does Dobes get the net back that fast?

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And if Struble is watching again, the message gets a lot louder.

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