Lane Hutson and Jacob Fowler to face off in conference final today

Today is a rare Saturday when the Montreal Canadiens won’t be in action, instead playing tomorrow against the Seattle Kraken starting at 9pm.

It’s kind of weird not to write about a Habs practice this morning in preparation for a game tonight.

But even if the Tricolore doesn’t play today, there’s still plenty to keep an eye on.

In fact, just because the Habs aren’t in action doesn’t mean you’ll be bored today as a Montreal Canadiens fan – quite the contrary.

A number of the Habs’ top prospects will be in action today in various leagues.

First, this morning at 10:15, Adam Engstrom will be in action as Rögle BK takes on Färjestad BK in the second game of their SHL first-round series.

Rögle won the first game of this 4-of-7 series 6-2, with Engstrom picking up an assist.

Secondly, starting at 4 p.m. today, the Laval Rocket will once again face the Belleville Senators.

We’ll be keeping a close eye on David Reinbacher, who’ll be playing his second game with the Rocket, and surely with more responsibility given the injury to William Trudeau.

It’s a very important game for the Rocket, who currently sit two points behind the Senators and the final playoff spot.

Making the playoffs would be really excellent for the Rocket, who have several fine young players who will be aspiring to the NHL next season.

You can’t buy experience.

Third, in the OHL, Owen Beck will try to extend his streak of games with at least one point to 19, when the Saginaw Spirit take on the Windsor Spitfires at 7:05pm.

Beck continued his streak last night with two assists in a 4-2 win over the Sarnia Sting.

Note that Habs prospects Cédrick Guindon (4pm), Florian Xhekaj (7pm) and Filip Mesar (7pm) will also be in action today in the OHL.

And last but not least, Lane Hutson will face Jacob Fowler tonight at 7:30pm.

The Canadian’s two top prospects will face off in the conference final to determine the NCAA Hockey East Conference champion.

It’s a highly anticipated clash, given that Boston College (Fowler’s team) and Boston University (Hutson’s team) are respectively the two best teams in the NCAA.

Let’s see who has the upper hand tonight.

Note that the losing team in this match will not be eliminated, so no, Lane Hutson won’t be joining the Habs if he loses today.

The winning team will be conference champions and will advance directly to the main draw of the NCAA university playoffs, as will the other five conference champions.

The losing team, meanwhile, will have to be selected tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. during the selection show for the ten other teams also competing in the playoffs.

As the two highest-ranked teams in the U.S., it’s a guarantee that the losing team will be drafted into the main draw.

So today’s game is all about which team wins its conference.

There will be no elimination, however, with both teams still in contention to reach the Frozen Four.

In short, even if the Montreal Canadiens don’t play today, there are plenty of games to keep an eye on.

En Rafale

– Very interesting.

– A tight race at the top.

– To read.

Good news.

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