The month of October wasn’t particularly good for the Habs. However, it was a good one for quite a few of Montreal’s prospects who either started their season with a bang or continued their run from September.
Laval
1st Star: Alex Barre-Boulet – Granted, he’s not really a prospect but for those not familiar with these columns, we’ll cover Laval’s top performers, prospects or not. Barre-Boulet didn’t start the year with the Rocket but was sent down after the first week of the NHL season and quickly showed why Montreal signed him in the first place. He’s someone who is a high-level offensive threat in the minors and he was exactly that until he got hurt.
Stats: 5 GP, 2 goals, 6 assists, 8 points, +3 rating, 2 PIMS, 8 shots
2nd Star: Joshua Roy – It took him a couple of games to get on track, continuing his sluggish performance in training camp. But Roy turned it around quickly, becoming the go-to weapon on the top line, often lining up alongside Barre-Boulet to give them a top trio more dangerous than Laval has typically had. Getting his scoring touch and confidence back will go a long way toward getting him back up with the Habs, something that feels like a matter of when, not if.
Stats: 7 GP, 4 goals, 2 assists, 6 points, even rating, 0 PIMS, 29 shots
3rd Star: Jakub Dobes – Last season, Dobes got off to a rocky start and that’s probably putting it lightly. While he turned it around in the second half, the goaltending struggles played a big role in Laval missing the playoffs in 2023-24. This year, he got off to a very strong start, winning all four of his outings along the way before missing a couple of games due to injury. With Cayden Primeau struggling with the Canadiens, there’s an opportunity for Dobes (or Connor Hughes, for that matter) to play his way into a recall at some point.
Stats: 4 GP, 4-0-0 record, 2.25 GAA, .910 SV%
Honourable Mention: Jared Davidson – Frankly, the whole prospect third line (also comprised of Owen Beck and Filip Mesar) could have landed here. Beck had an all-around game while Mesar’s playmaking stood out. But Davidson was more of the finisher and the energetic piece that rounded out that trio. From a straight skill perspective, he’s not the type of player that’s going to flash but he’s an intriguing prospect nonetheless. But like Mesar, he’s now out for a while.
Stats: 7 GP, 3 goals, 2 assists, 5 points, +6 rating, 8 PIMS, 20 shots
Other Prospects
1st Star: Ivan Demidov (SKA, KHL) – It was a tale of two months for Montreal’s top prospect. At the beginning of the month, playing time was extremely difficult to come by, resulting in a five-game pointless streak. But after that, he went back to playing more of a regular role, albeit often on the third line. The result was Demidov returning to be a consistent producer offensively, coming close to a point-per-game mark despite playing less than ten minutes in half of his appearances.
Stats: 12 GP, 2 goals, 9 assists, 11 points, +10 rating, 0 PIMS
2nd Star: Sam Harris (Denver, NCAA) – Harris is someone who didn’t get a lot of attention last year but he wound up being an NCAA champion last season in his freshman year and quietly got off to a strong start this season. He has shown a scoring touch early in his college career which is certainly intriguing although he still has some work to do to get pro-ready. He isn’t close to turning pro but it looks like he’s taken a nice step forward early on. But like some others on this list already, he’s now hurt.
Stats: 6 GP, 6 goals, 2 assists, 8 points, +2 rating, 2 PIMS
3rd Star: Michael Hage (Michigan, NCAA) – The other first rounder from this most recent draft class, I was curious to see how Hage would be utilized to start the season. Would they give him big minutes or ease him in? Turns out it was the former as he has played exclusively in the top six early on and has been a big play-driver. (And he, too, has been banged up already.) There has been some talk about him being a one-and-done player. I wouldn’t lean that way yet but the idea isn’t as implausible as it may have seemed a couple of months ago.
Stats: 6 GP, 4 goals, 3 assists, 7 points, +1 rating, 4 PIMS
Honourable Mention: Tyler Thorpe (Vancouver, WHL) – We don’t often see a lot of CHL players being projects but that applies to Thorpe who only broke out partway through last season. He has picked up where he left off a year ago and has been a strong threat offensively. Notably, he’s not getting into any penalty trouble either, notable for someone who can play a power game. This is a good start for one of Montreal’s very few CHL prospects (they only have three this year, one of which is, you guessed it, injured as Quentin Miller is out long-term).
Stats: 10 GP, 5 goals, 4 assists, 9 points, +4 rating, 4 PIMS, 40 shots