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Canadiens AHL Affiliate Surging Toward Playoff Qualification

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1 year ago

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Montreal Canadiens laval rocket

The Montreal Canadiens may not qualify for the playoffs this season, but following a surprising stretch of games, their AHL affiliate presently finds itself in a playoff position.

Following a difficult start to the year, the Laval Rocket have found their rhythm in recent games, despite playing with a bare-bones roster due to the bevy of injuries currently plaguing the organization.

Laval is currently fourth in the North Division. If the trend continues, they’ll comfortably qualify for the playoffs thanks to a recent change in rules that allows more teams into the playoffs.

Via the AHL:

The playoff field will include the top six finishers in the eight-team Atlantic Division, the top five finishers each in the seven-team North and Central Divisions, and the top seven teams in the 10-team Pacific Division. First Round match-ups will be best-of-three series; the two highest seeds in the Atlantic, the three highest seeds in each of the North and Central, and the first-place team in the Pacific will receive byes into the best-of-five Division Semifinals, with the First Round winners re-seeded in each division. The Division Finals will also be a best-of-five series, followed by best-of-seven Conference Finals and a best-of-seven Calder Cup Finals series.

It’s a rather convoluted system, but simply put, it allows more AHL affiliates to compete for the Calder Cup. A total of 23 teams will qualify, with five rounds of elimination hockey to be played before announcing a new league champion.

The recent surge is particularly impressive given the team is playing without their captain, Alex Belzile, not to mention two of their best forwards, Rafael Harvey-Pinard and Jesse Ylonen.

And while you can point to Cayden Primeau‘s recent play as a reason for the recent uptick in results given he’s saved 68 of the last 71 shots he faced, some credit must be given to the head coach, Jean-Francois Houle.

Formulating a game plan in the AHL is difficult at the best of times.

Add in a bevy of call-ups by the Canadiens, which has robbed the team of its most talented players, and you have a recipe for disaster.

And yet, Houle has navigated the situation with aplomb, finding a new hero on any given night, and guiding his team to an unexpected resurgence in the standings.

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