Canadiens prospect Kaiden Guhle is surprised he’s still in camp

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Canadiens defensive prospect Kaiden Guhle admits to being surprised he’s still in the mix for a job in the NHL.

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Guhle is the only junior-aged player left in the Canadiens training camp and coach Dominique Ducharme said he is weighing the pros and cons of keeping the 19-year-old when opening day rosters are revealed at 5. Monday pm.

On the one hand, Ducharme pointed to the experience of Nick Suzuki, who benefited from an extra year in junior.

“A young boy like this, the experiences you can gain by going to the Junior World Cup, or spending a season, being a leader and playing a lot of minutes, or going deep into the playoffs, things like that, those times don’t“ Don’t come back, ”Ducharme said. “You can never go back to 18 or 19. Those things you get at that age, you can’t earn anywhere else.”

On the other hand, Guhle has played well in the preseason, displaying poise that is unexpected for a young player, particularly one who was limited to five games last season due to COVID restrictions and a hand injury. His chances of staying are even more complicated because there are currently eight healthy defenders in camp (the injured Joel Edmundson is a few weeks away) and Ducharme admitted there is no point keeping Guhle if there is no room for him in the top six. .

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“To keep a young boy, he needs to be involved and play,” Ducharme said. “That does not mean playing 82 games. Sometimes a child needs to step back. But to aid progression, you need that time on the ice. “

Guhle, who was a first-round draft pick (16th overall) in 2020, said he wants to stay in Montreal but knows it’s not his decision.

“I’m trying to work hard in practice every day and I’m just trying to get better every day,” Guhle said. “That is all you can really do. I’m just trying to do one practice at a time and do my best. “

Guhle was in fourth pair alongside Finn Sami Niku at practice in Brossard on Saturday. Niku, who was added to the camp roster after the Winnipeg Jets released him, hopes coaches will notice his hard work in practice because he played less than one period in preseason. He suffered a concussion when Josh Norris from Ottawa pushed him onto the boards.

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While Ducharme quickly established himself in his advance lines, tHe Canadiens experimented on defense, playing with youngsters alongside veterans. On Saturday there was a more conventional look with Brett Kulak joining Jeff Petry, while Ben Chiarot played with David Savard and Alexander Romanov was with Chris Wideman.

With just two more practices left before the season opener in Toronto on Wednesday, Ducharme said he would seek more intensity on defense throughout his lineup. Goalkeepers Jake Allen and Samuel Montembeault gave up 17 goals in their final eight periods, but Ducharme said the entire team had to share the blame.

There were some injury updates on Saturday.

Ducharme said that Cédric Paquette (groin) will resume practice on Monday. He will likely start the season on injured reserve, which means Ryan Poehling will be the thirteenth striker to start. He was the only extra forward in Saturday’s practice after Jesse Ylonen was sent to Laval.

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Mike Hoffman is expected to skate with the team the following week as he continues to recover from a lower body injury. That means he will miss at least the first three games of the regular season.

Edmundson (injury undisclosed) is a week behind Hoffman and there is no schedule for defender Mattias Norlinder, who will likely return to Frolunda in the Swedish League when healthy. He suffered what was described as an undisclosed minor injury in the preseason opener against Toronto, but underwent an MRI a few days later.

The Canadiens have a day off on Sunday and will practice at Brossard on Monday and Tuesday before flying to Toronto.

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