Jean-François Houle received praise from Martin St-Louis last week, and for good reason.
Three of his players have been amazing since their recall to Montreal. Rafaël Harvey-Pinard has nine points, including seven goals, in twelve games; Alex Belzile, promoted Thursday to center of the second line in the absence of Kirby Dach, has six points in ten games; Justin Barron, 21, has been a transformed defender since his return; in a more modest role, Jesse Ylönen has four assists in fifteen games.
Here are his observations on some of his proteges:
Rafael Harvey-Pinard, winger
“He had a bit of a slower start, but the scoring opportunities were there. We were convinced that it was going to unlock and we told him. I believe in him. He can be good defensively and offensively in the NHL. He takes good angles, a good stick, his reading of the game is superior to that of many players and he finds a way to reach the net. He knows that we collect points close to the goal. I was the same kind of player. He doesn’t have the greatest individual skills, but he will work very hard to achieve his goals. He is hard to face. And he does it all with a big smile and he’s easy to direct. We’d take 100 like him. »
Justin Barron, defender
“We wanted him to improve the defensive aspect of his game, that is to say, to better counter the opponent, to go from the corner of the ice to in front of the net more quickly, to win his battles one on one. We placed him on the power play and he gained confidence. He has a good first pass, a good skate, I’m very happy to see how he’s playing with the Canadiens right now. We did several sessions, us and also those who work in development: Kelly Buchberger, who works with our defenders, and Adam Nicholas, in development. Gotta give Justin a lot of credit too. »
William Trudeau, Advocate
(14 points in his last 20 games, already a pillar in defense at only 20 years old)
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
William Trudeau
“His progress has been meteoric. He will have the chance to play in the NHL, I am sure. We weren’t even sure of keeping him at the start of the season. We wondered if he wouldn’t be better off in the junior ranks. There were injuries, it opened a door for him and he gained confidence. It gives us so much pleasure as coaches to give so much ice to a young person when he seizes his chance like that and plays without complex. He’s still young, he still needs time, but he’s on the right track. »
Joel Teasdale, winger
(26 points in 36 games, but 16 goals in his… last 21 games!)
“We sometimes forget that he is only 23 years old. He is difficult to counter and excellent close to the net. He is very important for us in front of goal on the power play. They say he needs to improve his skating to reach the NHL, but it’s weird, he still gets there anyway. We said the same thing about Harvey-Pinard last year.
“Sometimes you have to give these guys a chance to see if they can play the same way at the next level. He hasn’t had it easy this year. We even left him in the stands at the start of the year, but he persevered, he never complained and he took his chance at the right time. »
Cayden Primeau, goaltender
“He needs to play and get back to being last year’s playoff goaltender. He demonstrated it at the end of the week. We want him to take the pole and be confident. He is still very young, goalkeepers are developing late in our days. He has a bright future ahead of him. »
The Laval Rocket are 20-20-9 this season, ranking fifth in the North Division, despite a roster decimated by injuries and recalls. The team reached the semi-finals in the playoffs last year.