Pascal Vincent wanted to see the Canadiens’ hopefuls reveal their “flavor” during the Face-to-Face of Hopefuls, this weekend at the Bell Centre.
The Laval Rocket head coach, who oversees the Montreal club’s rookie camp, discovered what makes most of the team’s future members unique despite the fact that they lost both games.
Easton Cowan broke the tie late in the third period and the Toronto Maple Leafs won 5-4 on Sunday. The Toronto hopefuls won 4-3 in a shootout on Saturday.
“When I got here, one of the first things I heard was how good individuals the players who were drafted, signed or coming to the club were,” Vincent said. “I’ve seen that in the four days since we’ve been together. I’m getting to know them, but I see the quality of the individuals, the young guys.”
Emil Heineman, Jared Davidson, Tyler Thorpe and Logan Mailloux scored for the Canadiens. Matteo Drobac stopped 25 shots.
Roni Hirvonen, with a pair, Sam McCue and Marshall Finnie were the other scorers for the Maple Leafs. Artur Akhtyamov allowed two goals on 21 shots before giving way to Vyacheslav Peksa midway through the second period. Peksa stopped 16 shots.
Success in the shadows
Thorpe finished the weekend with two goals. The Habs’ fifth-round pick in the last draft completed a giant trio with Luke Tuch and Florian Xhekaj.
“I think I have a lot to offer,” said Thorpe, who plays for the Vancouver Giants of the WHL. “Obviously I have some things to improve on, but I think I stood out this weekend.”
In a supporting role on the fourth line, guest player Charles Savoie collected three assists during the two games against the Leafs.
“I played within my capabilities. I’m a player who creates plays and that’s what I did,” said Savoie, who will continue his career at Concordia University unless he receives a contract with a professional team.
On defense, Lane Hutson was once again the Canadiens’ spark plug. He collected an assist in each of the two games.
After an uneven first match, David Reinbacher was much more solid on Sunday.
“In the past, I’ve seen young people who come from Europe take until the holidays to get used to the North American rink and style,” Vincent said. “For him, I found that from yesterday to today, there was already an improvement. I think it will go relatively quickly.”
The Canadiens’ rookie camp will continue until Tuesday, with the main camp starting the following day.
On Monday, the Canadiens players and management will participate in their traditional golf tournament at the Laval-sur-le-Lac club.
Another good duel
The Maple Leafs opened the scoring just 1:26 into the game. Hirvonen tipped in a Cade Webber pass in the opening frame.
Hutson made his first appearance a few moments later. He made a nice zone entry before giving the puck back to Sean Farrell. Akhtyamov made the save.
The Habs threatened on the power play. Akhtyamov made another nice save on Davidson, then Riley Kidney missed the target a little later.
Hutson continued to get the crowd on their feet, making some nice plays in the offensive zone. However, he was unable to set up a real scoring opportunity.
The Maple Leafs got a power play late in the first period. Drobac shut the door with five saves.
Hirvonen, however, returned to the charge after 43 seconds of play in the second period. He scored on a rebound.
The Canadiens got going by scoring on a power play at 4:31. Heineman scored on a rebound after Logan Mailloux’s one-timer on a cross-ice pass from Farrell.
The Habs tied the game 44 seconds later. Davidson beat Akhtyamov off a pass from Savoie during a two-on-one situation created by a nice rush from Reinbacher.
The Maple Leafs regained the lead just 65 seconds later. Topi Niemela missed the target, but McCue put it in after a favourable rebound off the boards.
Peksa marked his arrival in goal for the Leafs with a spectacular save against Farrell midway through the second period.
The Canadiens tied it again 3:09 into the third period. Xhekaj connected with Thorpe, who was darting between defenders, and the British Columbian scored with a backhand shot.
The Habs’ prospects continued to threaten the opposing net. However, it was the Leafs’ who scored with 9:04 left on the clock. Finnie scored on a rebound after a shot by Matthew Barbolini.
Mailloux put everyone back in the game with 5:12 left, scoring with a precise shot after a favorable bounce of the boards.
However, the Maple Leafs regained the lead for good with 1:33 left on the power play. Cowan’s shot slipped through Drobac’s equipment and just crossed the goal line.
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