Canadiens Receiving Impressive Production From Rocket Call-Ups

The Montreal Canadiens have suffered their fair share of misfortunes this season.

Those misfortunes have mostly involved the team’s health or lack thereof, but every situation creates opportunity.

And when it comes to the players who were called up from the Laval Rocket, not only have they seized their opportunities, but they’ve also exceeded all expectations from a production standpoint.

Caveat

Before we get into the numbers, it’s only fair to point out that the sample size is a factor.

Jesse Ylonen (16), Rafael Harvey-Pinard (13), Alex Belzile (11), and Anthony Richard (7) have played a limited number of games compared to the rest of the forwards in the lineup.

But the limited sample size is balanced by their usage, which has generally involved situations that are not conducive to scoring.

Producing from the fourth line is just about as difficult as it gets, especially when you’re playing for a team set up to compete for a good draft pick.

We’re likely to see a normalization in the numbers by the end of the season, but as it stands, Belzile and Harvey-Pinard are leading the team by a significant margin, with both Richard and Ylonen among the team’s most productive players.

Going Forward

The surprising scoring rates are more than just a great late-season storyline.

They speak to an impressive level of preparation from players who spent the majority of the season playing for Rocket head coach Jean-Francois Houle.

And it’s not just a matter of forwards capturing lightning in a bottle.

Justin Barron struggled to stand out at development camp, quickly losing ground in the race to earn a job in the NHL, but he came back from his time in Laval a changed player, showing significant improvements in both his decision-making and his confidence.

Not only has Houle laid the groundwork for his players to enjoy healthy auditions in the NHL, but he’s also managed to keep the Canadiens’ AHL affiliate in the playoff race while dealing with significant injury issues of his own.

1er but pour Parker-Jones 😊
7 marqueurs différents 🚨
0.951 pour Prime 🛑

1st goal for Parker-Jones 😊
7 different goal scorers 🚨
0.951 for Prime 🛑#GoRocket pic.twitter.com/QS1hfGz0Dz

— Rocket de Laval (@RocketLaval) February 20, 2023

AHL coaches are used to being thrust into tumultuous situations that are out of their control, but when you consider the Laval is the main reinforcement conduit for an NHL team that is projected to set another record in man-games lost, Houle’s ability to balance wins and development merits a fair amount of praise.

The true test will occur once the influx of prospects chosen in the 2022 and 2023 Draft arrives in Laval, but in the meantime, the players under Houle’s tutelage have provided much-needed reliability in what can only be described as a chaotic season for the Canadiens organization.

All statistics are 5v5 unless otherwise noted, via NaturalStatTrick.