Habs Wrap: Fabbro Waivers, Fowler, Trade Discussion, Demidov

MONTREAL — There’s always Montreal Canadiens content to absorb, but there are only so many hours in a day. On Sundays, we recap the most exciting and relevant NHL news stories that you may have missed throughout the week so that you can stay in the Canadiens loop.

Monday

Montreal Canadiens prospect Joshua Roy is on pace for more than 50 goals with the Laval Rocket, though that shouldn’t be surprising, as he’s already proven he can make a positive impact in the NHL. If we’re being honest, he clearly deserves to be in the NHL, but the Habs must give him an opportunity to shine if they decide to promote him. [Canadiens Prospect Joshua Roy Making A Case For A Promotion]

Arber Xhekaj returned to the lineup on Saturday, as the Canadiens faced Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Montreal lost, but unlike previous games there was not a significant gap in scoring chances, and for the most part, the Candies offered an honest effort. [Canadiens Instant Recap: Crosby Loves Playing Against The Habs]

ICYMI: Martin St-Louis sent a message on Friday by putting his team through their paces at practice. A bag skate is a good reminder that there must be some accountability at play during the rebuild, and that also applies to the head coach. [Martin St-Louis Sends Message To Struggling Canadiens]

ICYMI: The Laval Rocket are off to a great start to the season. The many rookies in the lineup are performing well in important roles, while the veterans who want to return to the NHL are focused on a team-first approach. It’s still very early, but new head coach Pascal Vincent seems to have found a healthy balance between motivation and structure. [Pascal Vincent Off To Great Start With Canadiens AHL Affiliate]

Tuesday

Top prospect Ivan Demidov was used sparingly during SKA Saint-Petersburg’s 2-1 loss to Kunlun Red Star. The talented forward was given a little over eight minutes of ice time, and was nailed to the bench during the third period. The lowered ice time did not correlate with any mistakes from the 18-year-old prospect, who has scored six goals and 13 assists in 24 games this season, good for third overall among all his teammates.

Martin St-Louis decided to mix things up at practice on Monday morning. Kirby Dach was back on the top line, while centre Jake Evans received a promotion to the second line, alongside Alex Newhook and Juraj Slafkovsky. [Canadiens Practice Notes: Jake Evans Receives Promotion]

St-Louis also brought in former NHLer Marc Bureau to help the struggling Canadiens improve their overall faceoff efficiency.

Former NHLer Marc Bureau working with Canadiens centreman on faceoffs before practice this morning in Brossard. Bureau won 51.4% of his faceoffs with #Habs in 1997-98 and 56.3% with Flyers in 1999-2000. Habs rank 25th in NHL on faceoffs this season at 47.6%. #HabsIO pic.twitter.com/qyUJWE7H7M

— Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) November 4, 2024

Even though it was clearly a hit to the head that went unpenalized, Slafkovsky was in relatively good spirits when discussing the incident.

Juraj Slafkovsky today on the hit he took Saturday vs the Penguins:

“I have my opinion but I probably can’t say cause it’s bad.” pic.twitter.com/iTth02j69X

— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) November 4, 2024

Wednesday

Top prospect Ivan Demidov has done quite well this season, despite limited usage by his KHL team, SKA Saint-Petersburg. He’s leading the league in points per 60, and currently stands at six goals and 13 assists in 24 games, most of which featured Demidov on the third or fourth line.

Ivan Demidov is the highest ranked young forward in a recent article by the KHL.

“Demidov continues to dominate nearly every shift…”

👇👇👇 pic.twitter.com/6lW8xXCu8D

— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) November 5, 2024

Martin St-Louis opted to run the new lines he had put in place on Monday at practice, which meant Kirby Dach played on the top line versus the Calgary Flames, while Jake Evans served as the team’s second-line centre. Both Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble played, while Justin Barron watched from the press box. [Canadiens Preview & Lines: Evans Promotion, Xhekaj And Struble]

Brendan Gallagher almost led the Canadiens to a win, but his second goal of the game was disallowed due to Josh Anderson being offside. Matthew Coronato, Sean Farrell’s former teammate at Harvard, scored a goal in the dying minutes of the game, as well as the first shift of overtime to secure the win for the Flames. [Canadiens Instant Recap: Brendan Gallagher Resurgence]

Here’s a throwback to the time when the Montreal Canadiens honoured Wayne Gretzky for setting the goal record in the NHL. They brought out the Rocket to mark the occasion and present Gretzky with a gift.

Montreal has an amazing history & they celebrate it so damn well. They also celebrate the history of the game. In 1982 when Gretzky set the goal record, he was in Montreal a week later & the Habs brought out the Rocket to present him with a gift. Class. pic.twitter.com/NBEaPh5ud6

— The Hockey Samurai 侍 (@hockey_samurai) November 5, 2024

Thursday

The Habs decided to make a few changes on Wednesday, starting by loaning forward Oliver Kapanen to Timra IK (SHL). His father is the general manager, which essentially guarantees an uptick in both quantity and quality of ice time compared to how he was used in the NHL. Kapanen, like many skilled forwards before him, struggled mightily while serving on the fourth line with the Canadiens. [Canadiens Practice Notes: Jake Evans Receives Promotion]

You’ll note the Canadiens proceeded to call-up Lucas Condotta rather than Joshua Roy, who happens to be on pace to score more than 50 goals this season with the Laval Rocket. All things considered, if the Habs can’t find a spot for Roy in the top six, he’s best off playing in Laval, where he can continue to develop. Condotta is much better suited for the sporadic use that comes with a fourth-line role.

bonne fête Lucas 🥳

birthday shots, hockey edition (hbd Lucas 🎉)#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/uEFs0yDdd2

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) November 6, 2024

Top prospect Ivan Demidov is officially the highest rated player in the KHL. If you’re wondering what they base their ratings on, we’re in the same boat, but it’s never a bad sign when one of the youngest players in a top professional league ranks above all his counterparts. Demidov and SKA Saint Petersburg will face Sochi today at 11:30 pm ET.

Ivan Demidov still has a legitimate chance to lead the KHL in points as a rookie.

He currently has 19 points, the league leader has 22 points. https://t.co/WGwilh0HgD

— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) November 6, 2024

The Habs will celebrate Shea Weber’s induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 16, at the Bell Centre.  [Former Canadiens Captain Heading To Hockey Hall Of Fame]

St-Louis also brought in former NHLer Marc Bureau to help the struggling Canadiens improve their overall faceoff efficiency.

Former NHLer Marc Bureau working with Canadiens centreman on faceoffs before practice this morning in Brossard. Bureau won 51.4% of his faceoffs with #Habs in 1997-98 and 56.3% with Flyers in 1999-2000. Habs rank 25th in NHL on faceoffs this season at 47.6%. #HabsIO pic.twitter.com/qyUJWE7H7M

— Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) November 4, 2024

Friday

Even though he missed part of the season due to a call-up with the Canadiens, prospect Logan Mailloux has managed to produce three goals and six assists in four games for the Laval Rocket (AHL). Meanwhile, Tyler Thorpe has found his rhythm in the WHL. [Canadiens Prospect Report: Thorpe Shines, Mailloux On Fire]

Lucas Condotta took Oliver Kapanen’s spot on the fourth line, while Samuel Montembeault was given the start against the New Jersey Devils. [Canadiens Preview And Lines: Montembeault Starts, Condotta]

The Devils dominated the Canadiens in the first period, but thanks to strong outings from Brendan Gallagher and Alex Newhook, Martin St-Louis’ team can be satisfied with their effort on Thursday night. [Canadiens Instant Recap: Strong Effort Led By Alex Newhook]

The Victoire de Montréal unveiled their jerseys, and though it was a little ridiculous the team played without a name or a logo for a year, it must be said the final product is quite nice. I particularly love the colour scheme, which seems to be inspired by the old Montreal Maroons threads.

À l’étranger

Away pic.twitter.com/0cqKNtRz5j

— Victoire de Montréal (@PWHL_Montreal) November 7, 2024

Some very interesting news emerged from the NCAA that will have a direct impact on a large swath of NHL hopefuls. CHL players will now be eligible to play in the NCAA, and though there’s some concern about Canadian junior teams retaining talent, giving players more options is almost always the best path forward.

The NCAA Division-I Council has voted to allow Canadian Hockey League players to be eligible for Division-I college hockey beginning next season.

— Brad Elliott Schlossman (@SchlossmanGF) November 7, 2024

Saturday

Even though the Canadiens are now dead last in the Eastern Conference standings, head coach Martin St-Louis does not seem to be overly worried about the team, but he is concerned about the confidence level displayed by some of his players.

“People ask me if I’m worried. Honestly, the way we’ve been playing, I’m not worried. It’s gonna turn around. I’m only a little bit worried about the confidence of certain players but it’s okay, we’ll work on that. But collectively, I’m not worried.”

– Habs coach Marty tonight pic.twitter.com/yvT39cMasr

— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) November 8, 2024

The Montreal Canadiens are still very much a work in progress, and one trade isn’t going to fix the issues on this club. With their main offseason acquisition in Patrik Laine out until at least December, and no major upgrade anywhere else in the lineup, expecting this club to be a playoff bubble team may have been a little too optimistic. Trades could be part of the solution, but they’re not the only way forward. [Why The Montreal Canadiens’ Woes Are Not A One-Trade Fix]

While there’s no doubt goaltender Samuel Montembeault is off to a difficult start to the season, his sub .900 save percentage doesn’t tell the whole story. The Canadiens are allowing a flood of high-danger scoring chances every night.

“An .890 goalie” doesn’t actually mean anything because shots aren’t created equal and teams don’t allow equal quality shots. And no team allows higher-quality shots more than the Canadiens do. https://t.co/gL0ozzrFnh pic.twitter.com/JJUUXOTQ79

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) November 8, 2024

Speaking of goalies, prospect Jacob Fowler is sporting a ridiculous .941 save percentage through seven games this season for Boston College, including a 3-2 win versus Maine on Friday night. Fowler stopped 30 of the 32 shots sent his way.

Fowler comes up with a huge stop!

Watch on NESN and ESPN+ (https://t.co/1NGj4APAT7) pic.twitter.com/ONTKMKerDu

— BC Men’s Hockey (@BC_MHockey) November 9, 2024

There was some interesting news on the waiver wire Saturday afternoon. The Nashville Predators placed defenceman Dante Fabbro, the 17th overall pick in 2016, on waivers, after he went scoreless in his first six games of the season. The 26-year-old is a right-handed blueliner, and his underlying numbers are relatively healthy, which could end up garnering interest throughout the league, including from the Habs. [Montreal Canadiens Waiver Wire Priority List]

Dante Fabbro has been placed on waivers. A two-way puck-moving defenceman, not very physical or mobile. Shoots the puck, likes to take one-timers. Active in the defensive zone, good stick, retrieves loose pucks. Has seen his minutes decline in the past few seasons. pic.twitter.com/d12RZ5tzJy

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) November 9, 2024