The Canadian’s infirmary begins to empty slowly and slowly.
Rafaël Harvey-Pinard will play his first match of the season this evening with the Rocket… And Patrik Laine was in training with the rest of the group this morning.
The Finn wore a non-contact jersey, but still: his return is approaching.
I expect Rafaël Harvey-Pinard to spend the week in Laval before being recalled by the CH.
The Rocket plays tonight, and there are also two games scheduled this weekend. HP will have time to get back into shape.
That said, when Harvey-Pinard returns to Montreal, the Canadian will not be forced to send a guy to Laval to make a place for him in the lineup.
HP will occupy 23rd place in the official roster of 23 players.
But the Canadian could also decide to send the Rocket captain to Laval to prepare for Laine’s return. If Condotta is still up there when the Finn returns, he will most likely be sent back to Laval to allow Laine to return to the 23-man roster.
On the other hand, when Laine returns, there is a guy in the lineup who will have to suffer. Could it be a veteran like Anderson, Dvorak or Armia?
That would surprise me…
Otherwise, the other logical choice is Emil Heineman.
Martin St-Louis will have an important decision to make because Emil Heineman deserves the chance to play.
He performs like an NHL guy and he has qualities that can be useful to the Canadian. He is good at forechecking, he has an excellent shot and he is not afraid to distribute hits to disturb the opponent.
On the other hand… It’s also boring for a guy like Pezzetta because he deserves the chance to show off too. We know that he will respond when he gets his opportunity, he works hard all the time and we know that the effort is there when he is in the lineup.
You need guys with a heart like Pezz’s… But you also have to make a difficult decision because Laine has to play.
So I can’t wait to see what Martin St-Louis will do with all this. Things have time to change because the Canadian is not immune to injury (even if we don’t want that to happen), but the CH head coach risks facing a tough dilemma.
A big dilemma, even.
In burst
– It’s normal.
– Happy holiday!
– To be continued.
– Will they succeed?
