Habs Daily: Hutson Contract Watch, Fowler Heads To NCAA Final

Here are the Montreal Canadiens news, highlights, and stories you may have missed on Thursday.

Montreal Canadiens News

• The NCAA Frozen Four semifinals took place on Thursday. Both Jacob Fowler and Lane Hutson were expected to play important roles for their respective powerhouse teams.  [NCAA Frozen Four: Canadiens Prospects Set To Play Key Roles]

• It was a good news/bad news situation for Hutson, as his Boston University Terriers lost 2-1 to fellow prospect Sam Harris and the Denver Pioneers. On the bright side, it means Hutson is now available to sign an entry-level contract with the Canadiens.  [Top Canadiens Prospect Lane Hutson Can Now Sign Contract]

• Hutson was asked about the contract following the heartbreaking loss, but given he had just lost one of the most important games of his career he was not in a hurry to discuss the situation.

Lane Hutson took ownership of this goal on turnover. “Honesty just a bad play.” Celebrini said Hutson shouldn’t be blamed at all. Shift never should have come to that. As for leaving BU for #Habs, Hutson hasn’t made decision. “Not sure yet. I guess we’ll see” https://t.co/NeRNuFhUjO

— Joe Smith (@JoeSmithNHL) April 12, 2024

• Prospect Luke Tuch scored the lone goal for Boston University, a great shorthanded effort. He’s also free to sign a contract with the Canadiens, though it remains to be seen whether he’ll sign with the Laval Rocket or the Habs. There’s no doubt his physical brand of hockey would be a great fit with the Rocket.

#GoHabsGo prospect Luke Tuch with a huge hit. He's having a great game. pic.twitter.com/fG46acARiI

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) April 11, 2024

• While the Terriers failed to advance to the National Championship, the Boston College Eagles cruised to a 4-0 win over Michigan. The one-sided win was due in large part to Canadiens prospect Jacob Fowler’s stoic performance. Michigan outshot Boston College 32-22, but they weren’t able to beat Fowler, who is well on his way to establishing a reputation as a big-game player. Fowler was the Clark Cup MVP last season in the USHL.

Jacob Fowler with a nice poke check. He's been perfect on all 28 Michigan shots so far tonight. #FrozenFour pic.twitter.com/S6mLc548rE

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) April 12, 2024

• There was also hockey being played in some league called the NHL, as the Habs took on the surging New York Islanders. Cole Caufield managed to score his 25th goal of the season, but the Islanders pushed their winning streak to six games with a 3-2 overtime win. [Canadiens Improve Draft Lottery Odds In Loss To Islanders]

National Hockey Now Network

• There is increasing momentum for it to happen, and the NHL is close to relocating the Arizona Coyotes to Salt Lake City. The activity has escalated quickly over the last few days [Salt Lake City]

• It’s been a few days since the New York Islanders defeated the New York Rangers in a 4-2 victory that gave them a massive boost in the playoff race. But since the final horn sounded on Tuesday, all that anyone has been able to talk about are Adam Pelech’s collision with Mika Zibanejad and Noah Dobson’s crosscheck on Vincent Trocheck. [New York Islanders]

• Three Nashville Predators players got a shoutout from their peers in the latest NHLPA poll, which surveyed 639 players on 15 hockey-related topics. [Nashville Predators]