Habs Prospects

Canadiens Prospect Rankings – Heir Apparent Jacob Fowler

Published

1 month ago

August 15, 2025

We’re ready to discuss the very best young players in the Montreal Canadiens prospect pool, with impressive goaltender Jacob Fowler nabbing the No.3 spot in our annual rankings.

As a reminder, to qualify for our list, Habs prospects must under 24 years old and have fewer than 75 NHL games under their belt. The rankings are based on the votes from almost 10,000 Canadiens fans.

If you would like to check out the prospect profiles that have already been published, scroll to the bottom of the article.

3. Jacob Fowler, 20, Goaltender, Catches Left, Laval Rocket (AHL), 6’2″, 211 lb. Picked 69th overall in 2023.

There’s no doubt Fowler enjoyed a very successful, albeit brief tenure in the NCAA. Fowler served as Boston College’s netminder for two seasons, establishing a 57-13-3 record in the process. Of course, the Eagles were a powerhouse team featuring a bevy of highly talented prospects, which means we have to dig a little deeper to get a better idea of Fowler’s impact.

On top of maintaining a 1.9 goals against average, Fowler sported a .932 save percentage, while also pitching 10 shutouts in 74 starts. He was named to the Hockey East First All-Star Team in his freshman season, and followed it up by winning the Mike Richter Award at the conclusion of his final season in the NCAA, awarded to the player judged to be the most outstanding goaltender in college hockey.

His impressive list of accolades was powered by his stoic approach to the job, something that’s quite evident after just a few minutes of watching him play. Fowler’s positioning and tracking is top-notch, leading to very few highlight reel saves while playing for Boston College, which is exactly what you want to hear about a goaltender with starter potential.

In other words, he wastes very little energy, though he does have the ability to make quick lateral transitions when the situation calls for a desperation save.

Even though Fowler was eligible to return to the NCAA for a third season, the Montreal Canadiens convinced him to sign an entry-level contract for the 2025-26 season, as well as an amateur tryout with the Laval Rocket, putting an end to his amateur status, and consequently, his NCAA eligibility.

Jacob Fowler’s Time In The AHL

Fowler joined the Rocket in time to feature in a handful of regular season games, though he wasn’t originally expected to start many playoff games, as Cayden Primeau had established himself as one of the best goaltenders in the AHL, including a 21-2-3 record and a .927 save percentage.

An injury to Samuel Montembeault in the NHL playoffs opened the door for Fowler, as Primeau was called-upon to serve as Jakub Dobes’ backup in the series versus the Washington Capitals.

At first, it seemed like Fowler’s NCAA dominance would easily transfer to the AHL, even though he was clearly facing a much higher quality of competition in a professional hockey setting. He saved 23 of the 25 shots sent his way in the first playoff game, and followed it up with a 20-save shutout in Game 2 versus the Cleveland Monsters.

Laval then turned to Primeau in Game 3, leading to a 3-1 loss, as well as calls from fans to officially name Fowler as the Rocket’s playoff starter. The main sticking point was that head coach Pascal Vincent wanted to show well-deserved loyalty to Primeau, as he played a significant role in the team’s franchise-best regular-season record of 48-19-0-5, whereas Fowler was only dipping his toes in the icy waters of professional hockey.

However, once Fowler closed out the series in Game 4, the evidence pointing to his superior form was difficult to ignore. In three playoff games, Fowler saved 61 of the 64 shots sent his way, and was yet to taste defeat in a professional setting.

Despite the mounting pressure, Vincent decided he was going to alternate his starters, a decision that seemed logical at the time, but lost a lot of its shine in retrospect. By the time the playoffs wrapped up, Fowler no longer had his aura of invincibility, though he did manage to maintain a .902 save percentage, notably better than Primeau’s .878.

You always want to see prospects thrive, but the hype had reached a point where many were ready to thrust Fowler into the NHL as early as 2025-26.

In that vein, by revealing that he’s actually a human, and not a puck-saving robot sent from the future, Fowler reset the unrealistic expectations to a certain extent, which is never a bad thing in a hockey-crazed market like Montreal.

What’s Next For Montreal Canadiens Prospect Jacob Fowler?

I don’t want to give anyone the impression that I do not have confidence in Fowler. I’ve been writing about Canadiens prospects for longer than I can remember, and few, if any goaltenders have matched his pedigree. There are no guarantees in professional sports, but I truly believe Fowler has legitimate NHL starter potential, making him the current heir apparent in the goaltending category.

However, I also remember the development path provided to Primeau, the goalie who was essentially ousted from the organization once Fowler was ready for AHL starts.

ON TOPIC: Canadiens Goalie Primeau A Perfect Example Of Poor Development

Just like Fowler, Primeau only spent two seasons in the NCAA.

Just like Fowler, Primeau maintained a .932 save percentage during his time in the NCAA.

Just like Fowler, Primeau won the Mike Richter Award before signing an early entry-level contract with the Canadiens. At the time, he was the youngest NCAA goaltender to sign a contract with an NHL team.

Are we starting to see a pattern yet?

This doesn’t mean Fowler is bound to follow in Primeau’s shoes now that he’s playing professional hockey, but it’s very difficult to ignore the similarities between the two.

With that in mind, the best path forward for Fowler involves as many AHL starts as possible, a healthy dose of consistency, and three cups of patience, especially when we consider the Canadiens already have a very good starter in place with Samuel Montembeault. There’s also Jakub Dobes in the mix, another goaltender who spent just two seasons in the NCAA before the Canadiens convinced him to sign a contract.

The crock pot method is in order.

Let it flow, let the hype go, slow and low, that is the tempo.

Okay, that second part is actually a Beastie Boys lyric, but you catch my drift.

There’s absolutely no rush to push Fowler into the NHL at this point in the rebuild.

Previously Published 2025 Montreal Canadiens Prospect Articles:

Canadiens Prospect Rankings: Introduction, 2024 Retrospective

Canadiens Prospect Rankings: The Departed And Traded

Canadiens Prospect Rankings: The Honourable Mentions

Canadiens Prospect Rankings No.20 – Filip Mesar

Canadiens Prospect Rankings No.19 – Luke Tuch

Canadiens Prospect Rankings No.18 – Aatos Koivu

Canadiens Prospect Rankings No.17 – Sean Farrell