Goaltender Rotation: The Canadiens Got a Slap on the Wrist from the NHL

Marc-Olivier Cook
Goaltender Rotation: The Canadiens Got a Slap on the Wrist from the NHL
Credit: NHL.com

Last weekend, the Canadiens played two games in as many days.

On Saturday, they played in Nashville against the Predators. And on Sunday, the team faced the Hurricanes in Carolina.

That said, we wondered why the Habs didn't send Jakub Dobes to Carolina on Saturday to give him a rest ahead of the game against the Canes. And we have the answer to that question.

We figured the Habs didn't do it because they really didn't trust Samuel Montembeault. By sending Doby to Carolina, Monty would have been the backup goalie behind Fowler on Saturday in Nashville…

Except that's not what happened. Basically, the Canadiens decided to keep everyone on the roster because they've been called out on this issue earlier this season. They had sent Samuel Montembeault to Washington for a game on Tuesday, even though the team was playing at home at the Bell Centre on Monday.

Alain Crête talked about it on BPM Sports.

It seems the league isn't too keen on that, and that's why Dobes went to Nashville with the team because the Canadiens got a slap on the wrist from the league. – Alain Crête

Note that the Marqueur website also wrote about the subject: 

It's, how should I put it… pretty unusual.

Because in reality, the Canadiens wouldn't have broken a league rule by choosing this approach earlier in the season. They had the roster to do it… just as they did in recent days.

Oh well.

If the National Hockey League considers this a questionable choice, it needs to establish rules at that level to prevent it from happening. Again, it's weird to say because it's not a huge deal… But maybe in the NHL's eyes, it's as if it gave a team a certain advantage.

I think it's a bit silly, but whatever.

That's just how it is… and there's not much we can do to change the situation. And anyway, the Canadiens still managed to win on Sunday night against the Hurricanes. That's what matters, right? 


In a nutshell

– Note.

– Note:

– Nice.

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