We learnt yesterday morning that Rafaël Harvey-Pinard needed surgery. The striker will be sidelined for the next four months after undergoing leg surgery.
As long as he doesn’t suffer any setbacks, we could see him return around the end of November.
The question now is, who will “replace” RHP. We’re confident that this boosts Joshua Roy and Alex Barré-Boulet’s prospects of joining the team, but they’ll still have to establish themselves at camp.
Yesterday, colleague Charles-Alexis Brisebois identified Oliver Kapanen, Owen Beck, and Emil Heineman as players who now had a slot to fill. However, unless they have a large camp, we’re talking about players that would ideally play in the AHL this season.
Signing a veteran as an insurance policy is a reasonable option. Marc-Olivier Beaudoin suggested that James van Riemsdyk come to town.
You’d think the 35-year-old veteran wouldn’t sign such a lucrative contract, but he was fairly productive for the Bruins last season, scoring 11 goals and 38 points.
Given his age and the fact that the Habs have numerous forwards who merit the sixth slot, I don’t see him playing a top-6 role. However, he could play in a support unit. In the worst-case situation, assistance with the top two threes.
At the very least, it wouldn’t hurt to invite him to training camp to compete for a position with Pezzetta, Barré-Boulet, and others. Still, he’d have to be willing to take such an offer (at 35, the American may not want to relocate his family), but it wouldn’t hurt the Habs.
Given that the Habs’ forward prospects aren’t necessarily ready to graduate yet (compared to those on the blue line, for example), JVR might be quite useful early in the season. And if he performs well in the first few weeks of the season, he will become a tradeable asset for the club, especially if they want to graduate a player who is off to a strong start in Laval.
It’s something to keep an eye on, but if the Habs need a veteran to help out their forwards, van Riemsdyk is a good, low-cost option. I wonder if Kent Hughes is considering that choice right now.
