Habs Daily: Fowler’s Net, Islanders Interest In Gorton, Matheson

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

Montreal Canadiens News

Jacob Fowler helped the Laval Rocket secure a 3–1 series win over the Cleveland Monsters, which means they will now face the Rochester Americans in the North Division Final. It’s difficult to predict how Pascal Vincent will react to Fowler’s dominance, but all signs point to him being the team’s designated starter, as evidenced by his unbeaten record (3-0) that is paired with a very nice .953 save percentage.

If Fowler takes over, it won’t be because Cayden Primeau faltered. Unfortunately, his promotion to the NHL opened the door for Fowler, and the former Boston College Eagles netminder quickly slammed it shut once he made his way to the Rocket crease.  [Phenom Lane Hutson Among NHL Calder Trophy Finalists]

For what it’s worth, the only goal Cleveland scored in their 4-1 loss to Laval was clearly offside, and that hurts when you consider it cost Fowler another playoff shutout. On the flip side, we didn’t have to spend 25 minutes watching grainy reviews, and that’s a win in my books.

Wasn’t all that close either pic.twitter.com/0U1NvRAVUU

— RandomHabsFan (@RdmHabsFan) May 7, 2025

The New York Islanders are reportedly interested in Jeff Gorton, the current vice president of the Montreal Canadiens. They’re also considering former Habs general manager Marc Bergevin for the job opening. The good news for Habs fans is that Gorton is intent on finishing the job in Montreal before moving on. [Islanders Interested In Current & Former Canadiens Management]

Defenceman Mike Matheson will be joining Canada for the World Championship, which is currently taking place in Denmark and Sweden. Matheson will represent Canada alongside Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, and Marc-Andre Fleury, among others. [Hockey Canada]

ICYMI: As you may have heard by now, Lane Hutson put together a historic rookie season, and while the Montreal Canadiens clearly needed to add someone of his talent-level to the lineup, his upcoming contract is going to be a big one. With a little help from our friends at Cap Wages, we projected Hutson’s upcoming contract extension. [Comparable NHL Contracts For Hutson Mega Extension]

National Hockey Now Network

Maybe Steve Yzerman used up all of his puck luck when he was a Hall of Fame player, because he has no hockey luck as a general manager. [Detroit Red Wings]

Florida Panthers centre Sam Bennett will not face any discipline from the NHL Department of Player Safety for his second period hit on Toronto goalie Anthony Stolarz. [Florida Panthers]

There never used to be an end-of-season press conferences from the Avalanche’s front office. But that changed in 2024 when general manager Chris MacFarland and Gabe Landeskog met with media to discuss the captains rehab. [Colorado Avalanche]