The Canadiens made a surprising U-turn on their plans for goalie Samuel Montembeault this weekend, keeping him in Montreal instead of having him join the team in Pittsburgh.
Head coach Martin St. Louis had initially said Montembeault would rejoin the team for Sunday’s game against the Penguins after his stint with the Laval Rocket.
But plans changed quickly. Instead of traveling to Pittsburgh, Montembeault stayed back in Montreal to work with goaltending coach Marco Marciano.
The team’s official explanation? They wanted to avoid “unnecessary travel” before the holiday break.
But there’s more to the story.
The real reason might have everything to do with how incredibly well the Canadiens’ other goalies have been playing. Jakub Dobes and Jacob Fowler have been practically unbeatable, allowing just one goal in their last two games.
“The Montreal staff decided to bring Montembeault back to Montreal on the Rocket bus on Saturday night,” hockey analyst Maxime Truman explained. “They’d already planned to give Sunday’s start to Dobes and Tuesday’s game to Fowler. After Fowler’s shutout and Dobes’ two stellar one-goal games, having Montembeault there just wasn’t necessary.”
It’s creating quite the interesting situation in the Canadiens’ crease.
While St. Louis has confirmed the 29-year-old Montembeault will travel with the team after the holiday break, his role is now a big question mark.
The young duo of Dobes and Fowler have definitely earned their shots at more playing time. They’re making it really tough for the coaching staff to take them out of the net.
St. Louis now faces some pretty tough decisions in the weeks ahead – especially if his young netminders keep standing on their heads.
