The Canadiens’ development camp got under way on Sunday, but on-ice activities begin on Monday. Some players are bound to get more attention than others. Here are a few.
Posted at 7:18 p.m.
Logan Mailloux
He won’t be on the ice as he is still recovering from season-ending shoulder surgery. However, this will be the first time he will participate in an official Canadian event. As of this writing, it is unknown if he will speak to the media, he who has remained silent since July 24, 2021, the day after his selection by the Habs in the first round. His absence from on-ice activities is yet another reminder of how little mileage he has accumulated. Since March 2020, he has only played 31 games, including 19 in the Swedish third division, in a caliber that we guess is not optimal. A three-month suspension from the Ontario Junior League (OHL) for his sex crime in Sweden and shoulder surgery robbed him of valuable developmental time.
Kaiden Guhlé
First choice of CH a year before Mailloux, Guhle is eagerly awaited by many fans. That said, he will not put on the skates, he who is listed among the injured in the camp. The nature of his injury is unknown, but he participated in the Memorial Cup last month and no medical issues were mentioned. However, he did not speak to the media after the Oil Kings were eliminated. Guhle and Mailloux are the only two players announced as injured. Everything suggests that Justin Barron has recovered from his ankle injury suffered in April. Barron, acquired from the Avalanche against Artturi Lehkonen, had had time to play five games with the Habs before his misfortune.
Juraj Slafkovsky
It went quietly in the news, but the 2022 draft was taking place in Montreal and the Canadiens held the very first pick, which he used to claim Juraj Slafkovsky. In the weeks leading up to the draft, the giant winger repeatedly said he thought he was ready for the National League. It will be difficult to validate his words this week, since Barron is the only one of the 40 players on site to have already played in the big league. In addition, he will face several still puny defenders, who have not yet reached their physical maturity like him. That said, his mere presence in the CH uniform will turn heads.
Sean Farrel
Casually, this will be his first official visit to Montreal. The Habs’ last development camp was in 2019, so players drafted in 2020 (like Farrell) haven’t had the experience yet. For players on the American college circuits, it is also the only opportunity to hit the ice with their professional team, since simply participating in training camp would make them lose their eligibility for the NCAA. Farrell, a short forward, had quite the year, amassing 28 points in 24 games at Harvard, in addition to playing for the United States at the Beijing Games.
Arber Xhekaj
We were talking earlier about players who are not yet physically mature. That’s not the case with Xhekaj, the heaviest player in this camp at 221 lbs. The tough defenseman helped the Hamilton Bulldogs to the Memorial Cup. Never drafted, he landed a contract with the Canadiens at the end of training camp last fall. His progress has been intriguing ever since. A possible gift which Kent Hughes inherits from Marc Bergevin.
Pierrick Dube
Seven players are present at this camp by virtue of simple invitations, without having been drafted or holding a contract. Among them, Dubé will be to follow. The 5-foot-9, 171-pound forward turned 21 in January, which means his junior career is over. He concluded it with panache, scoring the game-winning goals in the last three series for the Cataractes, including the one in the final of the President Cup, in overtime to boot, to send his team to the Memorial Cup. A contract with the Rocket will be his goal.
The absents
Twenty-four of the twenty-eight players drafted by the Canadian for three years will be present. The four absentees are Jan Mysak (2e tour, 2020), Alexander Gordin (6e tour, 2020), Dimitri Kostenko (3e tour, 2021) and Daniil Sobolev (5e tower, 2021). Mysak has a scheduling conflict due to a Czech national team camp for the Junior World Championship. The other three players have in common to be Russian. The World Juniors is not a problem, since their country is excluded. The CH speaks of “logistical problems” to explain their absence.