Steve Quailer scored a power play goal with 3:47 remaining in the third period to break a 0-0 tie and give the Hamilton Bulldogs a 1-0 win over the Lake Erie Monsters.
The Hamilton Bulldogs bounced back from a 5-1 Friday night shellacking in Abbotsford to record a 3-0 shutout win against the Heat Saturday. Cedrick Desjardins stopped 24 shots for his first shutout of the season.
Players on entry level or two way contracts are eligible to be returned to an NHL’s minor league affiliate during the NHL lockout. Louis Leblanc has two seasons remaining in his entry level contract while both Blake Geoffrion and Michael Blunden have two-way agreements. All three played a signiificant number of games with the parent Canadiens last season.
You can argue that the Canadiens will bring eleven defensemen into training camp capable of landing an NHL job. The core group remains but Frederic St. Denis, who was signed to a two-way contract on Thursday, joins a group of five or six with a chance to join the team to start the season.
It is often said the Canadiens farm system has dried up, that the majority of the team’s future talent is only now emerging from junior hockey and still years away. If so, how was it that through their injury plagued season the Habs were able to bring eight players into their lineup who held rookie status?
While the Canadiens need to address depth issues in their goaltending, the future of the Canadiens defense is promising. Andrei Markov and Josh Gorges are the anchors of a defense that broke in two rookies last year – Alexei Emelin and Raphael Diaz last season. P.K. Subban and Yannick Weber were in their second seasons, Behind that, a very deep farm system.
Defenceman Yannick Weber suffered an upper body injury early in the second period of Friday night’s 5-1 win over the Ottawa Senators. Frederic St. Denis has been called up from the Hamilton Bulldogs and will be available for Saturday night’s game against the Flyers in Philadelphia.
The Canadiens have called up defenseman Frederic St. Denis from their Hamilton Bulldogs farm team. St. Denis was originally signed by the Canadiens as a free agent out of the University of Trois Rivieres. Like David Desharnais, his professional route started with the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL. He finally signed a Canadiens contract in July 2010.
Brock Trotter and Frederic St. Denis each scored two goals as the Hamilton Bulldogs opened their season with a 5-2 victory over the Rochester Americans Saturday night
The Canadiens lost their second exhibition game in a row, dropping a 3-1 decision to the Buffalo Sabres at the Bell Centre Wednesday night. The star of the night was 18 year old defenseman Nathan Beaulieu, who led all players in ice time and assisted on the Canadiens lone goal.
