The Christmas break is over for the Montreal Canadiens, who boarded a plane to Tampa Bay this morning at 9:30 AM. Even though they’ve yet to announce it, the Habs have also officially recalled Samuel Montembeault from his conditioning stint with the Laval Rocket. Not that the 14 days he could have spent there had passed, but he had agreed to play two games, and since that had been done, and the Sainte-Flanelle is going to practice today in Florida, there was no point in extending his stay any longer.
In two games in the AHL, Montembeault suffered as many defeats, allowing five goals for a 2.53 goals-against average and a .904 save percentage. It’s worth noting that he was backstopping a weakened Rocket side that was without many of its regulars. Some of Pascal Vincent’s best players were in Montreal or in the stands, serving suspensions after the events that followed a Michael Pezzetta hit on Marc Del Gaizo in a game against the Toronto Marlies.
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The Canadiens didn’t recall Montembeault straight after the two games since they weren’t holding any practice with a packed schedule on the road. Instead, the goaltender remained in Montreal, where he practiced with Rocket goaltending coach Marco Marciano.
During Montembeault’s stay in the AHL, the Canadiens had a 3-1-1 record, playing Jacob Fowler for three games and Jakub Dobes for two. Over that stretch, the Habs outscored their opponents 18-11, and both goaltenders played well.
It will be interesting to see how the Tricolore moves forward with its goaltenders; neither of the youngsters deserves to be sent back down, and Montembeault has yet to prove his stint in the AHL and the extra work put in with Marciano helped. With four games on the schedule this week, it’s quite possible that each masked man gets a game before the Canadiens make a decision.
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Fowler was in the net the last time the Canadiens played, backstopping them to a 6-2 win over the Boston Bruins. Martin St-Louis will speak to the media later this afternoon, and he may decide to show his hand, just to put an end to speculation. The Habs are set to practice at 2:30 PM.
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