The Canadian | Rafael Harvey-Pinard looking for confidence

By his own admission, Rafaël Harvey-Pinard is “more or less” superstitious, so maybe he doesn’t really believe in the idea of ​​second-year mischief.

But he recognizes that this season is not so easy either.

“Clearly, it’s more difficult, both physically and mentally,” he admitted Monday noon at the Bell Center. But it’s something that can happen when you have to overcome challenges, like injuries. I have to find a way to get back to what I’m capable of doing. I need to get back into shape. »

This form is undoubtedly the one he displayed last season. We remember, the Saguenay striker arrived here in January 2023 without making too much noise, after playing four games with the Canadian during the previous season.

But he started making a lot of noise pretty quickly, especially when sending pucks into the back of the net; in the space of nine matches, from January 21 to February 16, 2023, he scored 7 goals. He concluded 2022-2023, his first real season in the NHL, with 14 goals and 6 assists for a total of 20 points in 34 games.

It’s something similar that he is now trying to find again, having obtained 1 goal and 7 assists in 36 games this season.

“I don’t have the same role as last season,” he wants to clarify. Last season I played a lot on the power play, I got shifts with Nick [Suzuki] on the first trio, and also, I arrived from Laval with confidence. Things were going well for me with the Rocket and, arriving with the Canadian, I was confident with the puck. This is what I need to find the most between now and the end of the season. »

Obviously, the injuries didn’t help. Harvey-Pinard had to be absent twice this season, the first time after the November 14 game, an involuntary break of almost two months, then the second time after the February 10 game at the Bell Center against the Stars. from Dallas. In total, the young striker had to miss 37 matches for health reasons.

These absences did not help his cause, and his playing time decreased, he who these days must skate with the fourth line. Thus, matches of around 15 minutes of play, a habit for him at the start of the season, have since become matches of around 11 minutes of play. During Saturday evening’s game at the Bell Centre, he had to be content with 10 min 55 s on the ice.

The nine games remaining on the Canadian’s schedule may no longer mean much, but in the eyes of Harvey-Pinard, they will be significant.

“I have to take advantage of these matches to regain the level of confidence I had,” he added. I don’t take anything lightly and I know that I have to show progress game after game. I have to use these matches to become the player I can be again. »

Guhle returns

Suspended for one game for darting an opponent (forward Travis Konecny, of the Philadelphia Flyers) from the bench, Kaiden Guhle will be back with the Canadian this Tuesday evening, when the Panthers visit Florida. Guhle swears that he will never be caught doing such base things again. “I was only trying to protect a teammate, it happened in the heat of the moment,” he explained Monday at the Bell Centre. It wasn’t the smartest thing to do, I’ll learn my lesson and I can’t wait to get back into training. I wasn’t trying to hurt him, just to keep him away from Juraj Slafkovsky. »

Dvorak back soon

We didn’t expect to see Christian Dvorak again this season, but, surprise, everything indicates that we will see him again. The Canadian announced in January that the forward would have to undergo surgery due to a torn pectoral major, and that his season was over. But at the Bell Center on Monday, the day of the traditional end-of-year team photo, Dvorak was there, and he then took part in training with the rest of the group. His status is now being assessed on a day-to-day basis. “There is a good chance that we will see him by the end of the year,” said head coach Martin St-Louis about him.