Following Dominique Ducharme’s golf competition, Joël Bouchard gained attention. He was present because, as you know, he and Ducharme are close friends.
They have collaborated with the Montreal Juniors, Hockey Canada, and the Montreal Canadiens organization.
As luck would have it, the former Rocket coach was asked to speak about his previous team after the Laval club just hired two players he knows well behind the bench: Daniel Jacob and Pascal Vincent.
Jacob, who served as Bouchard’s assistant in Blainville, Laval, San Diego, and Syracuse, has left the Crunch to be closer to his family. Bouchard is the first to admit that the Habs and Lightning did the right thing by assisting him in landing a position as an assistant in Laval.
Of course, Vincent’s hire as a rocket pilot was the buzz of the town.
Bouchard is well acquainted with him, having served as one of Vincent’s assistants while he was the Junior coach. And he’s the first to admit that Vincent and Jacob, who know each other a little, will get along.
And if they do, it will be disastrous. Bouchard acknowledged this, as reported by RDS.
With Martin Lapperière providing consistency on the bench, the Rocket’s coaching staff should be able to nurture Canadiens prospects through the Laval Rocket.
And that’s not including the rest of the helpers and development team.
I’m excited to witness the club’s combination of veterans and young players. After all, we saw last year that young people can be good, but it still takes veterans to urge the boys to be on time and lead the way.
Now is the time for development in Laval, and we’ll see how the folks in charge handle it all. But, if Bouchard is any indication, everything should go well.
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David Reinbacher: Will the Canadiens treat him like Logan Mailloux in Laval?
Lane Hutson, Logan Mailloux, and David Reinbacher are the three defenseman with the highest odds of making the Habs roster among prospects with less NHL experience.
Let’s say among men who have played two or less games in the NHL.
There’s a lot of conjecture about who will be chosen, but it appears like Hutson has the best chance of joining the club. Meanwhile, Reinbacher should start from the bottom, while Mailloux will compete for a place in the sun.
Can this be changed? Yes. However, that is what people are saying.
Obviously, it is vital to note that the October picture will differ from those of January and April. After all, at the start of the season, the weather is shining, everyone has had the best summer of their lives, no one has played poorly in months, and everyone – or nearly everyone – is healthy.
So, as the season goes, maybe some young players will push a recall. And, of course, if Reinbacher starts playing under Pascal Vincent in Laval and does well, we’ll be wondering if he’ll be recalled.
However, Stu Cowan, who discussed his case in a recent paper, believes that Flanelle management would like to see him play a full season at the end of the orange line in 2024/2025.
It’s worth noting that this is what occurred to Logan Mailloux in 2023-2024. He may have made his NHL debut, but he also appeared in 72 Rocket games.
After barely playing in the OHL due to COVID-19, his situation, and injuries, seeing Mailloux play felt good.
Reinbacher is a year younger than Mailloux was last year, and seeing him adjust to the AHL calendar (number of games overall, number of games per week, and so on) and North American style of play would be beneficial.
Obviously, this is a possible strategy on paper in the middle of summer. It may change in the future, but it’s encouraging to see the Habs considering giving Reinbacher time to develop down under.
This will be a significant mandate for Pascal Vincent.
Let us also remark that the Habs now have the means to do so. I am not suggesting that Kaiden Guhle, Arber Xhekaj, Jordan Harris, and others deserved to go to Laval in 2022-2023… However, witnessing the holes to be patched upstairs eventually pushed management’s hand.
Overtime: Expect a rocky journey.
