Canadiens Options For Emil Heineman This Year & Beyond

Montreal Canadiens prospect Emil Heineman will likely be coming over to North America in short order, as his season in the SHL just came to an end on Tuesday.

Emil Heineman, who originally joined the Canadiens organization in the trade with the Calgary Flames involving Tyler Toffoli, is now free to pursue his career in Montreal or Laval moving forward.

Leksand lost their play-in series against Rögle on Tuesday afternoon, thanks in large part to the strong performances of Canadiens prospects Adam Engstrom and Tony Sund.

With Leksand’s elimination, Heineman’s SHL season is over and he can now be reassigned to Laval or Montreal by general manager Kent Hughes; as they did last season before an upper-body injury nixed his Laval Rocket debut.

This time around, there will be no technicality.

In North America To Stay

As per the IIHF agreement with the NHL, a player would be subject to return to their European club due to the following conditions:

• The player is under contract with their European club and finished the most recent season with said club.
• The player is under 24 years old as of the moment of the contract’s signing.
• The player is unable to earn a roster spot with his NHL club out of camp.
• Unless the player was selected in the 1st round of an NHL Draft.

Due to Heineman signing his Entry-Level Contract (ELC) at the age of 21, and also being under contract with Leksand for an additional three seasons after his signing with the Canadiens, he had to be returned to Sweden this fall after Montreal’s training camp.

It’s also worth mentioning that he was a 2nd-round pick, inhibiting him from spending the year in North America.

However, according to the transfer agreement, this limitation is only in place for the first year of the player’s NHL ELC. With Heineman having spent this past year in Sweden and filled the obligations of the NHL-IIHF transfer agreement, the Canadiens now have full control over where he plays moving forward.

Canadiens or Rocket?

The Canadiens can send Heineman to the Laval Rocket for the end of the season without issue.

The AHL’s playoff eligibility rule, which requires NHL teams to “paper” NHL prospects to the AHL during the NHL Trade Deadline, does not apply to European imports or junior-based prospects.

Thus Heineman would be able to join the Rocket for their ongoing playoff push and would give them a much-needed boost of size and speed.

It’s expected that Heineman is likely to wind up in Laval in the coming week or so, but the Canadiens could decide to reroute him; just for a little detour.

Given all the injuries in Montreal, the Canadiens’ brass may want to see what he can do in the NHL for a spell; before ultimately sending him down to the Laval Rocket to finish out the year.

However, as of this moment, whether Laval or Montreal; Heineman’s development will continue in North America moving forward.