In Hainsight: Canadiens Gearing Up For New Season

As we approach the new season, the Canadiens’ NHL roster already seems to be at capacity, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be a rookie camp. On Friday, the organization announced the name of the 27 hopefuls who’ll hit the ice at the CN Sports Complex in Brossard this week. The list includes 15 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders. Only three of the 27 players are attending the camp on a tryout basis: forward Isaac Dufort, defenseman Stanislav Demin, and goaltender Jan Spunar.

Tomorrow, the organization will hold its traditional golf tournament, and on Wednesday, the rookie camp will kick off with the physical tests. Then, on Thursday, the Canadiens’ hopefuls will head to Buffalo where they’ll compete in the prospects challenge alongside the Bruins, the Devils, the Senators, and the Penguins. Each team will play three games and the Canadiens will face the Sabres Friday at 7:00 p.m., the Bruins Saturday at 3:30 p.m. and the Senators Monday at 1:30 p.m.

Of the 27 prospects who will be donning the Bleu, Blanc, and Rouge for this tournament, I’ll be keeping a close eye on last year’s camp’s two standouts: Owen Beck and Emil Heineman. Beck played so well last time around that he forced the organization to sign him to an entry-level contract even though they had just drafted him. The 19-year-old is hoping to crack the Habs’ line-up, but that will be tricky. Since he’s only 19 and a product of the CHL, he’s not yet eligible to play in the AHL so it will be Montreal or Peterborough for him.

As for Heineman, who was acquired in the Tyler Toffoli trade, he shone brightly during camp but was derailed by a thumb injury, which made him miss six weeks. He spent most of the season in his native Sweden, where he played 35 games with Leksands. He returned to North America towards the end of the season and played 11 games with the Laval Rocket, picking up nine points in the process.

Up front, Joshua Roy and Sean Farrell should both be starting their first full season as professional hockey players with the Rocket, just like Ty Smilanic who has elected to turn pro rather than return to the University of Wisconsin for another season in the NCAA. The forward was acquired in the Ben Chiarot trade at the 2022 trade deadline.

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On the blue line, 5^th overall pick David Reinbacher will be taking his first strides as a member of the Montreal Canadiens, and considering he played in a men’s league last year, he should be able to make a good impression in a prospect’s tournament. However, he’ll have to get used to the North American style of play and the smaller rink size; he may find that the action is much faster, and the reaction time has to be much quicker. At development camp, he was used alongside Lane Hutson and showed great chemistry with the diminutive defensemen, but unfortunately, Hutson cannot attend as he’ll be playing in the NCAA this upcoming season.

Logan Mailloux, injured during this camp last season, will also be seeing his first games as a Montreal Canadien. The controversial first-round pick at the 2021 NHL draft has now been cleared to play by commissioner Gary Bettman, and will be hoping that his performance on the ice will be enough to convince fans that picking him was the right choice.

Before these guys get going though, the team’s coaches and players will be meeting the media tomorrow and we might get an announcement as to who will wear the “A” left vacant by Joel Edmundson’s trade. Some would like to see it stitched to Cole Caufield‘s jersey, but personally, I’d give it to Mike Matheson, who will be the big brother to the young members of the Habs’ blue line for years to come. We should soon find out…