The intra-squad scrimmage on Sunday was a tight affair that saw Team Red best Team White by a score of 3-2. Team Red took their second straight win thanks to two goals by Regina native Tanner Eberle, including one on a penalty-shot.
While Eberle’s first goal opened the scoring in the first period, Team White responded quickly with a laser from Swedish blueliner Magnus Nygren.
The 23-year-old Nygren has been playing professional hockey in the Swedish Elite League for Färjestads BK where he has 24 goals and 65 points in 132 career games. Given his experience and skillset, it will be interesting to see if the Habs brass can convince him to come over to North America. However, with the log-jam on the back end, Nygren faces an uphill battle to crack the Canadiens.
Before the end of the first period, Team Red was up 3-1 for the second straight day. Their third goal came from Christian Thomas, son of former NHLer Steve Thomas. Acquired in a trade from the New York Rangers in exchange for prospect forward Danny Kristo, Thomas showed chemistry playing on a line with centre Ben Duffy. Both are expected to play for the Hamilton Bulldogs next season in the AHL where they should provide some much needed offence.
Charles Hudon scored Team White’s second goal to close the gap in the second period. While his team was unable to garner any further offense, Hudon showcased his skills and smooth skating throughout the game.
Hudon, an Alma, QC native, got a taste of AHL action last year lacing up in nine games for the Bulldogs where he scored a goal and added two assists. There are high expectations on the QMJHL scorer, but a nagging back injury may hamper or delay his development.
The scrimmage itself consisted of only two 20-minute periods, with a short break in between to accommodate a goaltender change on either side.
Zach Fucale started in goal for Team Red and stopped 13 of 14 shots in the first period before he was replaced by Peter Delmas in the second. Christopher Festarini, who got the start for Team White, allowed three goals on the seven shots he faced and was credited with the loss.
Michael Condon took over the net for Team White in the second period and was the only goalie to remain perfect. Condon’s performance made up for a disappointing game the day before where he allowed 3 goals in 30 minutes of play.
The game was followed by shoot-out that Team White won 2-1. Hudon and Steve Quailer scored shoot-out goals in the victory, while Ben Duffy had the lone marker for Team Red. The shoot-out in it’s entirety can be watched here:
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Furthermore, if you have any specific questions about players or the camp in general, feel free to write in or send a tweet my way. We’ll be working on a special HabsWorld Mailbag to wrap up our Rookie Camp coverage this week.
More Videos:
- Fournier Misses Penalty-Shot
- Christopher Festarini Turns Aside Shots During Odd-Man Rushes
- Odd-Man Rush Drills during On-Ice Training
- Random Clips from Sunday’s Scrimmage
For those curious, here’s how the teams were divided. Note that F Joonas Nattinen has not skated, but would otherwise have been Team White’s 12th forward.
TEAM RED:
Forwards: Matthew Boudens, Michael Bournival, Tim Bozon, Justin Courtnall, Ben Duffy, Tanner Eberle, Stefan Fournier, Jeremy Gregoire, Erik Nystrom, Martin Reway, Christian Thomas, Brady Vail.
Defense: Nathan Beaulieu, Matt Grassi, Maxime Gravel, Jonathan Narbonne, Greg Pateryn, Drew Schiestel.
Goalies: Peter Delmas, Zach Fucale.
TEAM WHITE:
Forwards: Sven Andrighetto, Kyle Beattie, Alex Belzile, Stefan Chaput, Connor Crisp, Marcus Hinds, Patrick Holland, Charles Hudon, Stephen MacAuley, Michael McCarron, Steve Quailer.
Defense: Darren Dietz, Morgan Ellis, Joel Gervais-Chouinard, Magnus Nygren, Dalton Thrower, Jarred Tinordi.
Goalies: Michael Condon, Christopher Festarini.