Marc Dumont
The Montreal Canadiens made their latest round of cuts following Saturday’s game versus the Toronto Maple Leafs. Several players were cut from the training camp roster, leaving 34 NHL hopefuls in the mix.
Many of the players will be heading to Laval to take part in the Rocket’s training camp, which opens on September 30, at Place Bell, and will feature a preseason game versus the rival Belleville Senators on October 3.
Players Set To Report To The Laval Rocket
Vincent Arseneau, Josh Jacobs, Jacob Fowler, Laurent Dauphin, Charles Martin, Benjamin Gaudreau, Jared Davidson, Tobie Bisson-Paquette, Hunter Jones, Will Dineen, Darick Louis-Jean, Kevin Mandolese, Joe Dunlap, Ryan O’Rourke, Mark Estapa, Wyatte Wylie, Egor Goriunov, Riley Kidney, Filip Mesar, Israel Mianscum, Joshua Roy, Xavier Simoneau, Tyler Thorpe, and Luke Tuch.
Forward Vinzenz Rohrer was also cut from camp, but he will report to the reigning National League (Switzerland) Champions, the ZSC Lions.
It’s interesting to note that the Canadiens opted to keep a few key prospects, including Oliver Kapanen, Owen Beck, Sean Farrell, and Florian Xhekaj, however, they did not hesitate to re-assign Roy to the Rocket.
Next Step
The Rocket are coming off their best regular-season in franchise history, finishing with an impressive 48-19-3-2 record. Not only were they the best team in the North Division, they also captured the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy, given to the team with the most points in the AHL.
Consequently, Laval earned a bye in the first round of the playoffs, followed by a rather easy series win against the Cleveland Monsters, and a hard-fought victory against the Rochester Americans. Unfortunately, the team ran out of steam in the Eastern Conference Final, evidenced by the lopsided 4–0 series win by the Charlotte Checkers (Florida Panthers).
As for the Canadiens, they have two games remaining in their preseason schedule, with the Ottawa Senators serving as their opponent for both. The Senators will host the Habs on September 30, though the game will take place in Quebec City. The Canadiens will return the favour in their final preseason game on October 4.
