Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield play three holes of golf in Montreal for a good cause

With NHL training camps approaching, players are enjoying their last moments of vacation. For some, it’s a time to finalize their preparation, while for others, it’s a time to take advantage of the last few moments to play golf.

Alex Newhook, who is holding his first annual fund-raising tournament, is in the latter category today, as are several of his team-mates who showed up at his tournament.

Alex Newhook, Jayden Struble, Justin Barron & Josh Anderson at Newhook’s charity golf tournament in St. John’s, Newfoundland pic.twitter.com/tFyjqerk1j

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) August 6, 2024

That said, they’re not the only Habs players in golf mode today. So are Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, who were on the Royal Montreal side today.

The two guys played a friendly three-hole competition (the last three holes of the course) to raise funds for the Premier Départ foundation, which aims to make golf accessible to young people.

And, true to form, the two guys had some fun.

Habby Gilmore https://t.co/jC8ttRLMlG pic.twitter.com/Czi96MdM4z

– Montreal Canadiens (@CanadiensMTL) August 6, 2024

On the field, however, Suzuki traded in his hockey stick for his golf clubs… and he didn’t exactly look bad. While Caufield hit a ball into the water early on, the captain taught him a lesson on the pitch.

Obviously, the result doesn’t really matter… but the $250,000 raised does.

And after the (friendly) competition, the two guys took time out to chat with the media. Obviously, the subject of next season came up… and the captain was quite frank.

He makes no secret of it: the club is aiming for the playoffs as early as 2024-25.

With the young core improving, the Habs hope to be in the running and, who knows, qualify for the spring dance. I still think the coming season will be another tough one in Montreal, but that the club will turn the corner a year from now.

That said, if the club believes in it and the youngsters really take a big step forward, it’s not impossible that the Habs could be in the running. The club’s division is a tough one, but surprises like this have been seen before.

Now it’s up to them to show that they can be taken seriously.

Overtime

– Moritz Seider isn’t afraid to sacrifice his body.

Everyone with 200+ blocks and 200+ hits in a season in the last decade:

– Moritz Seider (this season)

There’s not many people who plays Seider’s style of game anymore. pic.twitter.com/masVXOnB7B

– Big Head Hockey (@BigHeadHcky) August 6, 2024