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First Day of the Habs' Development Camp |
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I've got to say I'm most grateful that the practice facility is on the south shore in Brossard and not in Montreal itself, allowed me to avoid pretty much any trace of trafic and I got there bright and early at 8:30 AM. While the first on-ice training session was only scheduled at 11:00, I think it's great to get there before the players arrive so you can get a chance to talk to them and get an idea of who they are and what kind of athletes the Habs have on their hands.
Unfortunately, even if I got there quite early, all prospects got off the bus and straight into the building not stopping to talk to the fans or sign any autographs. At about 10:30, we made our way inside and watched the action on the ice. The first groups to practice were the goalies on one rink and the forwards on the other. There are 6 goaltenders at the camp; Dichow and Primeau are the two draftees, LaCouvee was signed as a free agent in the AHL, and Mollot-Hill, Purpura and Shank are all try outs. As you can imagine, it's much more interesting to watch the forwards practice than the goaltenders taking shots from the coaches while working on their positioning so I decided to stick with the forwards group.
Straight from the get go, it was quite clear that Poehling was head and shoulder above everyone else (bot literally and figuratively). Of course, he's older than most attendees and it shows, he's had time to add muscle to his frame and he knows how to use it. The Habs' first pick in the latest draft, Cole Caufield was also quite impressive to watch. While he is quite small indeed, he has a lot of speed, knows how to use it and can unleash a lethal shot without warning. Suzuki's smooth skating was also on display and both Caufield and he showed some great puck handling skills in the deeking drills.
Once the forward exited the ice, it was the defensemen's turn to ply their trade in front the Habs' brass and fans. I must say, it's impressive that for a development camp, with prospects that are far prom being sure to make the NHL at this point and in a year where the Habs didn't make the playoffs, the practice facility is full to the brim and there's no seating room left anywhere. The stand outs from the blue line corps were for me, Josh Brook and Jayden Struble both more on them later.
After the on-ice sessions, we went back outside to try and meet the prospects once more and this time, we were lucky. We got to meet Ryan Poehling who was rather nice and posed for all the pictures people asked for and signed everything that was put in front of him. He looked somewhat surprised that such a crowd had gathered to catch a glimpse of the prospects however but he quickly shook it off and handled himself like a pro.
Next, the Rocket's goaltender Connor LaCouvee came out and he took to the crowd like a fish to water. Not a hint of shyness and ready and willing to sign everything, take pictures and even chat with the kids that were in attendance. Then, we got a nice surprise, Alexandre Romanov, who cannot take part in the camp as he's still under contract with his KHL team for next season, came out of the building and was happy to sign autographs but communication was not easy, there's a bit of a language barrier there but that shall be overcome in good time.
Just before the scrimmage, we also got to meet Caufield, Suzuki and Struble to name a few. Suzuki was quite comfortable, you could tell that it wasn't his first time in Montreal but Caufield and Struble both looked taken aback.
Finally, 5 o'clock came and it was time for the scrimmage session. Primeau, Poehling and Caufield were the headliners of team red while Brook, Suzuki and Ylonen were on team white alongside Jayden Struble. We were treated to some 4 on 4 action to start with and I was pleased to see that Poehling and Caufield were paired together while Suzuki and Jake Evans were a good duo on team white.
As you can imagine, it's not easy for players who haven't played together yet to hit it off right off the bat and the first match had us bear witness to quite a few turnovers. Evans and Suzuki tried quite a few ambitious plays which almost always ended the same way...with the red team getting the puck back. Cayden Primeau looked more than ready to shine and made a nice stop on Hayden Verbeek who was awarded a penalty shot and then stopped him on a chance in close. While neither Poehling or Caufield scored in the first game, they did manage to apply sustained pressure in the offensive zone which allowed Otto Leskinen to score a goal. Nicolas Guay, at camp on a try out, then made it 2-0 team red a score which would stand until the end of this first game. Team red dominated not only score wise but possession wise and truly deserved that win.
The second match was much different and team white looked much better. We saw flashes of brilliance from Suzuki but also from Josh Brook. I thought it was rather impressive to see him hang on to the puck until he was good and ready to made the play he was looking for. The opposing player kind of looked like fruit flies trying to bother him to no avail and he was rewarded for his hard work with a goal. Ryan Pitlick also scored for team white and the 131st overall pick from the latest draft has got plenty of both speed and determination, if he's dispossessed he doesn't give up and comes straight back at you. In the end, team white won the second game 4-2.
Thoughts about some players:
Caufield: He's speedy and always trying to hide behind the opponent's defence to get breakaway chances. He did get a couple of breakaways but was stopped both times. The crowd has taken to him right away and you could hear the excitement build up every time he touched the puck. The fans clearly want him to succeed. I would had that he knows how to find space and get into the right position offensively but he will not be the one to go get the puck out of the corners. The crowd was over the moon when he scored in the mini shootout which was held at the end of the second game.
Suzuki: His hockey IQ is impressive, he reads the game well and knows where he should be as well as where his teammates are. Will no doubt be a great playmaker but might need a bit of seasoning in Laval. To be honest, that wouldn't hurt the farm team either as it would be nice for the Rocket to make the playoffs and win for a change.
Poehling: Older than everyone and it was obvious as it gave him more than a little advantage. Orchestrated quite a few nice plays but especially a backhand pass that ended up straight on his teammate's stick 3/4 of the way across the offensive zone...it was a beauty! His shot his also a force to be reckoned with and he got himself a couple off "bing!" straight off the post.
Struble: There's a lot of offensive potential there, he's always joining the rush and can dangle with the best of them and could become a great puck moving defenseman. Of course, it's early to say but so far, he looks like a very good pick at 66th overall.
Side note: Mike Reilly got himself a 2 year contract worth 3 M...to be honest, I did not expect to see him back and I'm really not sure that this is good news. The fact that it took a while to get done makes me think that Bergevin tried to improve his blue line on the left side via trade but just couldn't get it done and decided to fall back on plan B. Reilly didn't see much action last year and there was a reason for that. At least this contract is worth a full million less than his last one.
Tomorrow, the development camp continues in Brossard while Philip Danault will host his annual golf tournament in Victoriaville where Drouin, Deslauriers, Vlasic and Barberio will also be in attendance.
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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