This article was written November 28,2023 when Corey Perry was placed on waivers.
First of all many thanks to my editor Judy Pitcher for her always excellent editing of my articles. A tip of my hat to you, Judy.
The Chicago Blackhawks have placed forward Corey Perry on waivers for purposes of terminating his contract. Perry, allegedly violated the NHL Code of Conduct, as well as the Blackhawks’ own code and involving a police investigation. I don’t picture HABS GM Kent Hughes claiming Perry,even if Perry clears waivers and Hughes could give him the NHL League minimum salary.
I do understand and support the Blackhawks decision to terminate Perry’s contract, if he violated the NHL’s Code of Conduct. This would be a bad influence on other players and damage team cohesiveness, especially their young upcoming Superstar Connor Bedard.
Being a veteran player, Perry has been in the NHL since the 2005-06 season,does not give you leeway to violate the NHL’s Code of Conduct.
Perry has a record of 421 goals 471 assists for 892 points in 1273 NHL games, he is a +46 and has 1392 penalty minutes.
I did like his play while he was with the HABS. Even after signing with Tampa Bay he kept in touch with Cole Caufield, encouraging him and acting as a mentor.
As much as I liked Perry for his past leadership, I would not want him on the HABS, at this point, and risk him influencing the younger players on ways to violate the NHL’s Code of Conduct.
What we now know, according to a press conference this morning by Blackhawks’ GM Kyle Davidson, is that the incident did NOT involve any team mates or their families. It involved an employee and violated the NHL’s Safe Workplace rules.
If the HABS did sign Perry, who would they have to send down to Laval to make room in the line-up for him? I’d rather keep Ylonen up and let him continue to develop. Also, if Perry were to be injured long-term, there is no salary cap relief due to his age. That, apparently, was one of the reasons HABS former GM Marc Bergevin didn’t extend him at the end of the 2020-21 season. Perry was wanting a 2 year deal and Bergevin was thinking of not wasting salary cap space incase Perry got injured. The Tampa Bay Lightning did decide to take the risk and gave him a 2 year contract, fortunately for them he didn’t suffer any long-term injuries.
Cole Caufield reaches an NHL milestone on Friday November 24, 2023
Written by Fred Arshoff
Edited by Judy Pitcher
First of all many thanks to my editor Judy Pitcher for her excellent editing of this article and all previous articles. A tip of my hat to you, Judy.
I decided to write this article as I’ve always wanted to write about Cole Caufield and his reaching an NHL milestone, made me do it, now. For those who may not know, on Friday November 24, 2023 Caufield hit an NHL milestone getting his 100th point with the assist on the goal by Johnathan Kovacevic. Caufield would also get his 10st point on the goal he would score later in the game.
Besides Caufield two other HABS would have milestones in their NHL careers. I will mention those, as well Cayden Primeau got an assist on Caufield’s goal, giving him his 1st NHL point. Let’s be honest Primeau is a goalie, not expected to get points but to make saves. . Not to be outdone young defensemanJayden Struble would also pick up his 1st NHL point with an assist on the goal by Kovacevic.
Cole Caufield was born on June 2, 2001 in Mosinee, Wisconsin, USA. Caufield is 5’8″(173cm) and weighs 176lbs(80kg) and that is considered small for an NHL player. Caufield was drafted by the HABS GM Marc Bergevin in the 1st round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft at 15th overall. Caufield is a right shot but plays left wing.
Video below Cole Caulfeild at NHL combine
Video below of Caufeild being drafted by HABS
Before being drafted Caufield played for the US National U-18 Team. In the 2019-20 season he played in the NCAA for the University of Wisconsin, where he won the Hobey Baker Award. The Hobey Baker Award is given annually to the Top National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s ice hockey player.
Video below Cole Caufeild wins Hobey Baker Award
In the 2020-21 season Caufield played 31 games for the University of Wisconsin, 2 games for Team USA at the WJC, 2 games for the AHL Laval Rocket and 10 games for the HABS. I would like to thank the HABS former GM for drafting Caufield, maybe one of the better HABS draft picks in a long time.
I do admit that under former HABS head coach Dominique Ducharme, Caufield didn’t look all that impressive. Since Martin St Louis took over as head coach there has been a ten-fold improvement in Caufield’s play.Caufield always admired St Louis and it really shows in his play.
It took Caufield roughly 2 1/2 seasons in the NHL to reach the 100point plateau. I feel strongly that it took so long due to Ducharme being his first NHL coach In 2022-23 his season was limited to just 45 games due to injury and shoulder surgery.
In 143 NHL games Caufield has 59 goals 42 assists for 101 points, he is a -33 and has 20 penalty minutes.
On this day in hockey history , Martin St. Louis gets the 1,000th point of his career when he scores a second period goal in the NYR 3-0 win against the Flyers.
At 39 years and 163 days ,St. Louis is the 3rd oldest player at the time to reach 1000 points, behind Ray Whitney ( 39 years, 328 days ) and Nicklas Lidstrom ( 39 years , 170 days) .
St. Louis is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018.
First of all many thanks to my editor Judy Pitcher for her excellent editing of this article and all my other articles. A tip of my hat to you Judy.
For the second time in the 2023-24 season a trio of HABS players reached career milestones. The 1st time was November 2, 2023 when Tanner Pearson played his 600th NHL game, Jake Allen played his 400th NHL game and Brendan Gallagher got his 800th NHL point.
On November 23, 2023 another trio of HABS players also reached career milestones. Sean Monahan played his 700th NHL game, Johnathan Kovacevic played his 100th NHL game and rookie defenseman Jayden Struble played his 1st ever NHL game. I’m sure it’s a night all three players won’t soon forget reaching these milestones.
I’ll say a bit about each player in the order of their milestones.
SEAN MONAHAN
Sean Monahan was born on October 12, 1994 in Brampton, Ontario, Canada. He is 6’2″(188cm) and weighs 202lbs(92kg). He shoots left but can play all three forward positions. Monahan was drafted by the Calgary Flames in the 1st round of the 2013 Entry Draft as the 6th overall pick. Monahan played his junior hockey with the Ottawa 67s of the OHL(Ontario Hockey League). In the 2011-12 season he played in the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup. In 2012-13 he was an OHL All-Star, as well as playing for Canada’s U-20 team.
Monahan made the jump straight form the Ottawa 67s to the Calgary Flames in the 2013-14 season. Monahan played with the Flames until the end of the 2021-22 season, when he was traded to the HABS on August 18, 2022, along with a 1st round pick, in return for future considerations. For my thoughts on this trade, please read my article at:https://montrealsportsblog.wordpress.com/2022/08/19/montreal-canadiens-acquire-sean-monahan-from-calgary-flames/
I admit last season when Monahan got injured, I was beginning to wonder if Kent Hughes traded to get an injury prone player. So far this season he has remained healthy, he is extremely versatile and gives Martin St Louis many options when he plays him. Monahan has in his 700 games scored 224 goals, 268 assists for 492 points and is a +56. He also has 177 penalty minutes. I look forward to seeing Monahan reach his next milestone of 500 points, shortly.
Video below of Monham’s contract extension prse conformance
JOHNATHAN KOVACEVIC
Johnathan Kovacevic was born on July 12, 1997 in Grimsby, Ontario, Canada, He is 6’5″(196cm) and weighs 223lbs(101kg). He is a right shot and plays right defense. Kovacevic was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in the 3rd round of the 2017 Entry Draft at number 74 overall. Kovacevic played in the NCAA for Merrimack College before being drafted. In 2018-19 he played for the Manitoba Moose, the Winnipeg Jets AHL affiliate. In the 2021-22 season he played just 4 games for the Jets.
On October 8, 2022 HABS GM Kent Hughes claimed Kovacevic off waivers, as the HABS were short defensemen due to injury. At the time, I was very happy Hughes acquired a big defenseman without giving up any assets. Now, a little more than a year later, I’m beginning to feel Kovacevic was another great waiver claim like Paul Byron was. Kovacevic is by no means a flashy defenseman but goes about his work, using his physical size to clear the front of the net and protect the HABS goalies. Kovacevic has 5 goals, 12 assists in his 100 games and is a +7, he also has 51 penalty minutes.
Video below of JOHNATHAN KOVACEVIC draft and development
JAYDEN STRUBLE
Jayden Struble was born on August 9, 2001 in Cumberland, Rhode Island, USA. He is 6’0″(183cm) and weighs 205lbs(93kg). Struble is a left-side defenseman who shoots left. Struble was drafted by the HABS in the 2nd round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft at number 46 overall. Before being drafted he played in the NCAA for Northeastern University. In the 2022-23 season after he graduated from Northeastern, he played 9 games with the Laval Rocket. He had an assist, was a +3 and had 4 penalty minutes. This season he has 1 goal, 5 assists for 6 points in 12 games, is a +4 with 29 penalty minutes. In his first NHL game he had no stats. I was impressed with the way Martin St Louis and defense coach Stephan Robidas managed Struble’s ice-time, not putting him in bad situations and not giving him more than he can chew, as he is still developing
Video below of JAYDEN STRUBLE first PRO game
Congratulations once again to Monahan, Kovacevic and Struble on achieving your NHL milestones.
To start off the HABS number one left-side pairing defenseman is assistant captain Mike Matheson.
On the second pairing left-side we have Kaiden Guhle,
we also have Johnathan Kovacevic who can only play on the left-side.who can only play on the left-side What makes this interesting is there are two other defensemen who can play either side, depending on what Martin St Louis wants to do and the injury situation, these are Arber Xhekaj and Jordan Harris.(both have gotten injuried since article was written) Personally, I prefer to have Arber Xhekaj play on the right, as it is the weaker side and I like Xhekaj’s play.
On the Laval Rocket here are their top left-side defensive prospects
First, we have Jayden Struble who I believe will be an excellent first pairing defenseman. This is his second season playing professional hockey, he is a year or two away from playing in the NHL. Before joining the Laval Rocket he played for Northeastern University of the NCAA. The 2019-20 season was the only time playing in the NCAA where he was a minus. That was during his first season and he was just a -2. This season with the Rocket he has 1 goal 3 assists for 4 points in 11 games and is a +2.
The next prospect I’m excited for is William Trudeau, although he won’t be a first pairing defenseman in the NHL, he could be a good second or third pairing defenseman. He isn’t a point getter on defense but he is better as a defensive player, as he has 5 assists in 10 games. The thing about Trudeau is he likes to throw the hard hits and he finishes them. I feel he should be ready to join the HABS next season,
Next, we have Mattias Norlinder , who I feel could be a serviceable third pairing defenseman, as he still hasn’t fully adjusted to the North American game. He missed a year with the Laval Rocket, when he chose to use his OPT-OUT clause and return to Sweden where he played for Frolunda HC of the SHL. Norlinder is originally from Kramfors, Sweden and may have been home-sick for his family and friends. At that time he was just 21 years old and that may have factored into his decision. He also missed numerous games last season due to injury.
Why Nick Suzuki was named Captain of the HABS and not Brendan Gallagher
Written by Fred Arshoff
Edited by Judy Pitcher
Photo Merge Marlene Wall
First of all I’d like to thank my editor Judy Pitcher for her excellent editing of this article, as well as all the others she has edited for me. A tip of my hat to you, Judy. I also like to thank Marlene Wall very much for the photo merge to make the cover photo of this article and all the other photo merges she has done for me. A tip of my hat to you Marlene,
I decided to write this article, as Gerard Cooke on Twitter questioned the naming of Suzuki and Captain and not Gallagher. As I always do, I’d like to answer in the form of an article, so everyone knows my thoughts.
I have to agree with the appointment of Suzuki as Captain, but not to take away from Gallagher who has the heart of a lion and plays bigger than he is. Both were deserving, but as we all know, there can be only one Captain. Unless we go back to the Marc Bergevin Era when he named both Max Paccioretty and PK Subban as Co-captains and we all saw how that worked out. They would both eventually be traded.
To start, let’s go back to the glory days when the HABS were winning Stanley Cups.All the Captains served for many years, such as Maurice “Rocket” Richard, Jean Beliveau, Henri Richard and Yvan Cournoyer. Having continuity helps give the team stability and cohesion.
It’s not like the HABS have forgotten Gallagher who still wears an ‘A’ and continues to be a leader both on the ice and in the dressing room. If Gallagher were younger, I’d say name him Captain. The wear, tear, long list of injuries and time missed, he has endured giving it all for the HABS, means he can’t always be there. Having a younger player like Suzuki means he’ll be with the team for many years to come and that makes the most sense to me.
In my opinion, it’s always best to have a player who can serve as Captain for many years.
First of all many thanks to my editor Judy Pitcher for her excellent editing of this article and all the other articles. A tip of my hat to you, Judy.
On Tuesday November 21,2023 the Montreal Canadiens updated the medical status of several players. Raphael Harvey-Pinard who was originally listed as lower-body injury out day-to-day is now confirmed as lower-body out 6-8 weeks. They also announced that Jordan Harris originally listed as upper-body out day-to-day is now considered upper-body out indefinitely and has left the team to undergo further testing and evaluation.Arber Xhekajdid not travel with the team and is still listed as upper-body day-to-day.
The HABS announced later in the day that defenseman Mattias Norlinder has been recalled from the Laval Rocket.
So far this season with the Rocket, Norlinder has 1 goal 1 assist for 2 points and is a -15 in 14 games. Since Norlinder started playing for the Rocket in the 2021-22 season he has been a minus player. When he was still playing in Europe he was always a plus player, perhaps he is having trouble adjusting to the North American game.
The HABS didn’t have much choice but to call up Norlinder, as he is, I believe the oldest and most experienced defenseman playing in Laval, though his numbers don’t reflect that.
This is beginning to sound like a repeat of the last 2 years where the HABS lost over 600 man-games/season due to injury. Don’t forget that before these two injuries, that Kirby Dach suffered a season ending in the second game, then David Savard suffered a broken hand and is out 6-8 weeks. I admit injuries happen but to experience so many man-games lost year after year is a bit strange. Is it that the equipment doesn’t offer as much protection as it once did? Or are players bigger and stronger than they used to be and the equipment needs to be improved to reflect that?
The NHL heads outdoors for the first time in its 86 year history. Before a record crowd of 57,167 fans at Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium, the Montreal Canadiens edge the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 in the Heritage Classic.
Before the real game began ,the fans were treated to an alumni game between some of the all-time greats from each franchise. The Oilers team boasted some of the great names from their 1980’s dynasty including Gretzky, Glenn Anderson, Paul Coffey, Grant Fuhr, Jari Kurri and even Mark Messier who was still an active player for the New York Rangers at the time and was given permission to participate from New York’s GM Glen Sather and the coach of the Oilers alumni team .
The Canadiens roster was highlighted by Hall of Famer Guy Lafleur, Guy Carbonneau, Guy Lapointe, Kirk Muller ,Steve Shutt and Bobby Smith.
The Oilers alumni won 2-0 much to the approval of the large hometown crowd .
The Laval Rocket thus far this season are leading the AHL in two Statistics, one that is good and another that is not. I will go into detail about them, as well as how some players are developing and what they need to improve on.
The Laval Rocket lead the AHL in goals scored and that is very good. As an example of their goal scoring ability, in the game against Belleville this past week they were down 4-0 in the 1st period but managed to come back to win the game 6-4. This shows me that while Marie-Philip Poulin was able to work with the players, she has taught them how to score. However, due to her playing for Montreal in the upcoming PWHL season, she will have a lot less time to work with the forwards. I don’t know when the PWHL team has practices or when Laval has practices scheduled. She also has to have time for her own personal life. It is written in her contract that she can step away from her work with the HABS player development department to work on promoting the women’s hockey game.
The Laval Rocket are also in goals against, not a good statistic to have, part of that maybe due to having a rookie goalie in Jakub Dobes. A young defense core doesn’t help, either. Although Logan Mailloux is projected to be a top pairing defenseman for the HABS in the future, his defensive game needs a lot of improvement, currently after 15 games he is a -10.
Several forwards have to learn how to play without the puck but, that is what the AHL is for, to develop your young players.
The Rocket are also near top of the AHL in penalty minutes. It’s good when teammates stand up for each other but, too many and not taking an opposition player with you, means you’re always playing shorthanded. Therefore, your top offensive players are getting reduced ice-time. Not having all the stats, I’m sure that having so many penalties has lead to the giving up the most goals. I don’t know how many of those penalties have come in the offensive zone and those can be momentum killers. The coaches have to work with the players to be more disciplined.
I’ve been impressed with Sean Farrell, who is in his first full season of professional hockey. Yes, he did play 6 games with the HABS in the 2022-23 season,after his NCAA career with Harvard University came to an end. Farrell will have to work on his stamina after playing in the NCAA. In the NCAA they only play 2 games per week with no games of practices during the Christmas or Easter break and no games during exam periods. The only time he was a minus player was during those 6 games he played with the HABS last season but, it is a big jump from the NCAA to the NHL. In the 15 games Farrell has played with Laval this season he has 4 goals 8 assists for 12 points and is a 0 in the +- stat.
Jakub Dobes is also playing his first full season of professional hockey. Dobes previously played in the NCAA for Ohio State University, so is in the same situation as Farrell, with number of games played. What I have noticed is Dobes lets in a lot of soft goals, but is able to stop hard shots that look like sure goals. I feel that Marco Marciano, the Laval goalie coach, has more work to do with him. In the game I mentioned at the top of this article, Dobes was pulled after the 1st period after giving up those 4 goals. I believe at least 2 of those goals could have been saved. In his 9 games so far this season he has a GAA 4.50 and SV% 0.862.
Logan Mailloux has played 15 games with the Rocket this season and has 4 goals 5 assists for 9 points, 17 minutes in penalties and is a -10. To correct his defensive play, I feel both Rob Ramage and Francois Boullon from player development and who were both NHL defensemen, will need to work with Mailloux on his own to teach him how to improve the defensive aspects of his game.It’s one thing to be an offensive-minded defenseman, but you still have to do your job. You are the last line of defense before the goalie
Another thing I like since Kent Hughesbecame GM is that Laval has not signed any players to PTO’s(professional try outs)due to not having enough players. Hughes has been signing more players to Laval Rocket contracts to ensure there are always enough players. Also, under Laval contracts these players become HABS assets, so they can watch and develop players and see which ones are worth promoting. Under Bergevin they signed both Dale Weiss and Devante Smith-Pelly to PTO’s just to name a couple of players we know.
When players are moved from the Trois Rivieres Lions or the Laval Rocket, I’m sure Nick Carriere has a say in who gets moved up or down. Carriere is the Director of Minor League Affiliates and is also a professional Scout for the HABS. He travels between cities to scout players and send reports to Hughes, to ensure the right player moves are made for the best possible development of those players.
SOME MILESTONES FOR TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS GOALIES ON THIS DATE November 21st, 1942
Written and edited by Marlene Wall
Videos uploaded by Fred Arshoff
The Toronto Maple Leafs blew out the Montreal Canadiens 8-0 on this night with 8 different players scoring . Hall of Fame goaltender Turk Brodabecame the first goaltender to record 150 wins as a member of the Maple Leafs. Only https://www.youtube.com/embed/ChAo6eFhdUo?si=CDLPRxEH9Aj7SumC Johnny Bower and Felix Potvin have won at least 150 games with the team since.
November 21st, 1953
Harry Lumley recorded his 43rd career shutout in the Maple Leafs 1-0 win over the New York Rangers. He retired in 1960 with 71 total shutouts, 34 of them coming with Toronto.
November 21st, 1964
Terry Sawchukbecomes the first goalie in NHL history to have at least one shutout in 16 straight seasons when he outduels Glenn Hall in a 1-0 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks at Madison Square Garden. Sawchuk breaks the record of 15 set by Harry Lumley. Sawchuk extends the record to 19 seasons before going without a shutout with the Detroit Red Wings in ’68-’69.
Montreal Sports 