Montreal Canadiens Recall Jacob Fowler

The Montreal Canadiens announced they have recalled goaltender Jacob Fowler from the team’s AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket.

Fowler’s recall is, at first glance, a response to the apparent injury suffered by goaltender Samuel Montembeault at Montreal’s practice earlier today. Per RDS’ Patrick Friolet, what appeared to be a leg injury prompted Montembeault to leave the ice. The Canadiens did not issue an official update on the goalie’s status, and head coach Martin St. Louis said that Montembeault was still being evaluated when the coach was made available to the media.

The Canadiens are set to host the Nashville Predators at the Bell Centre tomorrow, and Montembeault now has to be considered, at the very least, questionable for that game. As a result, it has become necessary for the club to recall a goaltender in order to be sure they will be able to dress two for tomorrow’s game.

Fowler is Montreal’s undisputed organizational No. 3 goalie, and one of the top goalie prospects in hockey. The 21-year-old began last season as the No. 1 goalie for the Rocket, posting a 19-7-1 record and .916 save percentage in 27 games. After Montembeault endured substantial on-ice struggles and ceded his position as the Canadiens’ No. 1 goalie to rookie Jakub Dobes, Fowler was recalled from Laval and ended the year as the clear-cut backup to Dobes. In 17 NHL games, Fowler went 9-6-2 with a .908 save percentage.

Entering the season, it was an open question as to whether Montreal would elect to continue with Fowler in an NHL tandem alongside Dobes, or give another try to Montembeault. Waiver considerations have made it significantly more difficult for the Canadiens to roster three goalies compared to last season. So, Montreal made the decision to retain Montembeault in the NHL as Dobes’ backup, and let Fowler continue to develop by soaking up as many starts as possible in Laval.

Now, with Montembeault sidelined, Fowler has been thrust back into a tandem with Dobes. It’s unclear at this time how long Fowler will remain on the NHL roster, as the extent of Montembeault’s injury has not yet been revealed.

But Fowler’s impressive performance in Laval’s opening weekend of the season – he made 52 saves on 55 shots for a .945 save percentage across two games against the Syracuse Crunch – has likely given Montreal confidence that he can step into the NHL and excel when called upon. It is notable that Fowler has earned call-up opportunities in place of his Laval teammate Kaapo Kahkonen, a 30-year-old veteran who has 140 games of NHL experience and who takes home a $1MM salary.

While it’s a very small sample of games and still very early in the season, Dobes has played well below the standard he set during the Canadiens’ dramatic run to the Eastern Conference Final in last year’s playoffs. Dobes was impressive in Montreal’s season-opening win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, but struggled in the team’s next two games, both high-scoring losses. If Montembeault misses anything more than a day or two, it would not be a surprise to see Montreal throw a start Fowler’s way.