When the Habs season came to an end last season, I was convinced that we had seen the last of Samuel Montembeault in a Montreal Canadiens uniform. I really like him, but he was the odd man out, with both Dobes and Fowler proving themselves to be more than adequate between the pipes.
Dobes took the starting job, but Fowler was fantastic as his backup, going 9-6-2, with a GAA of 2.43 and save pct of 0.908. I honestly thought we were going to run with this going forward.
Well, it's the start of the 2026 season and Montembeault is still a Montreal Canadien, and Jacob Folwer was sent down to the AHL. I was quite surprised as Fowler proved that he belongs in the NHL. In my mind, he should have been in the net for about 25-35 starts, backing up Dobes, and possibly being one of the best tandems in the NHL.
But no….and Fowler does not appear to be too happy about it and he’s 100% correct. You can get more details from this article, but this is the quote that stands out,
"I think I went through Camp like everybody, you want to make the team. Obviously I wasn't happy with the conversation we had, but I think part of being a pro is playing where your feet are and I'm really lucky to have the group that we have here and this staff."
"I feel like I did enough to make the team, but apparently that wasn't the case,"
I really can’t argue with this. Fowler should be the backup, and even challenging for the starting job. Now some media outlets are saying he’s emotional and angry, which he may very well be on the inside and rightfully so, but I don't think this above quote shows that at all. To me it is an incredibly objective take on the situation.
He’s right and we all know it.
Now, I’m not certain what the Habs plan is with Montembeault. I really hope the plan is they want to give him a few games to show other teams he still has it, and move him sooner rather than later.
The last thing Habs management wants to do is alienate one of their young, talented, long term plan players when they have done such a good job so far.