On Wednesday, the Habs had one last chance to clinch a playoff spot as they hosted Carolina. They struggled to bury some of their top scoring opportunities but it didn’t matter as Montreal doubled up the Hurricanes 4-2.
Laval’s two-week road trip came to an end last week with a pair of games against division rivals. They took care of business in both of them, securing themselves the North Division title in the process.
The NCAA’s transfer portal has been quite busy in recent weeks with 260 college players entering it. One of those is Habs prospect Jack Smith who has now transferred to Minnesota State (Mankato) for next season.
It wasn’t Montreal’s best week by any stretch but they did manage to creep a little closer to securing the final Wild Card spot in the East. They still have some work to do to clinch but they’re in control of their destiny while getting an intriguing late-season addition up front.
It was a decent on the road for Laval. They picked up a respectable five points in four games but saw their lead on first overall shrink while they also dealt with some more injury issues.
While there was plenty of excitement off the ice on Tuesday in Montreal, there was still a game to be played as the Habs hosted Detroit. They survived a disastrous first period and scored four unanswered after that to secure the 4-1 win.
The ever-changing Ivan Demidov saga took another turn on Tuesday, this one a very positive one. He was released from SKA St. Petersburg and soon after, the Habs announced that they signed Demidov to a three-year, entry-level contract.
The Habs have signed their first player from their 2024 draft class, just not the first-round pick many were hoping it’d be. The team announced on Tuesday that they’ve inked winger Tyler Thorpe to a three-year, entry-level contract.
With a week where they faced three opponents behind them in the standings, the Habs had a chance to grab a firmer hold of the last playoff spot in the East. They did exactly that, winning all four games to give themselves some much-needed wiggle room for the second Wild Card position.
The Habs began a crucial back-to-back set of games on Saturday as they hosted Philadelphia. They needed a big third period with three goals being just enough to secure the 3-2 win.