The Montreal Canadiens received some bad news yesterday, as Brendan Gallagher had to have surgery to repair the injuries he suffered against the New York Islanders. Gallagher broke two fingers while blocking a blast from the point by Isles defender Johnny Boychuk.
With injuries starting to pile up and Alex Semin proving not to be a fit among the Habs top six, the Canadiens have been forced to go to the farm team to find help. Sven Andrighetto was called up and made his season debut Sunday night when the Habs defeated the Isles 4-2.
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Andrighetto played well in his first taste of NHL action this season. His speed and tenacious fore-check made life difficult for the Islanders defensemen all night, and his line with
and
dominated the play and created several scoring chances in each period.
With Andrighetto looking like he will continue to play on Galchenyuk’s line, the Habs are now left searching for a replacement for Gallagher on the top line with Max Pacioretty and Tomas Plekanec.
The first player to get a chance to fill in for Gallagher has come a long, long way to be on an NHL roster, and is a very intriguing player. George “Bud” Holloway has been playing for the Ice Caps in St. John’s this season, and was called up by the Habs on Sunday.
What is so interesting about Holloway is that he is 27 years old and yet to make his NHL debut, but has proven to be a point producer all over the world. As a Junior hockey player, he was a high scoring winger for the Seattle Thunderbirds, an American based organization that play in the Western Hockey League.
Holloway finished second in the WHL in goals with 43 (one ahead of Jordan Eberle) in his last season with the Thunderbirds, while averaging over a point-per-game in his last two seasons combined in the league.
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Holloway turned pro in time for the 2008-09 season and split it between the AHL’s Manchester Monarchs and ECHL’s Ontario Reign. Though he didn’t put up huge numbers with the Monarchs that first season, he scored 22 points in 23 games with the Reign and piled up 14 points in seven playoff games.
The Wapella, Saskatchewan native steadily improved over the next two seasons with the Monarchs, scoring 28 goals and 61 points in the 2010-11 season and totaling 25 points in 23 postseason games in two playoff runs with the AHL franchise.
Holloway had been drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in the third round of the 2006 draft, and after not receiving a promotion to the big club during three successful years with the top affiliate, he took his talents to Sweden.
Holloway played three seasons with Skelleftea in the Swedish Elite League where he reached new offensive heights. In 2011-12 he led his team in points with 49 in 55 games, finishing fifth in the league in goals and points.
He was even better in 2012-13, when he would lead the entire league in scoring with 71 points in 55 games, carrying his team to regular season and playoff titles.
After a third season with Skelleftea, Holloway moved on to Switzerland to play with Bern in the Swiss League. Holloway continued to pile up numbers in Switzerland, scoring 37 points in 42 games.
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Following his four years of tremendous success overseas, Holloway was an unrestricted free agent in the eyes of the NHL, and signed a on-year, two-way contract with a cap hit of $575,000 if he is in the NHL and $175,000 while he is in the AHL.
It was thought Holloway would provide a veteran scoring presence for the St. John’s Ice Caps. However, after starting the year with 20 points in 18 games and with the injury bug biting the Habs hard, Holloway is suddenly an intriguing option for Canadiens.
Not only should Holloway make his NHL debut this week, it makes sense to give him a chance to show off his offensive skills on the first line with Pacioretty and Plekanec. This would allow the Habs to leave Eller, Galchenyuk and Andrighetto together, and not break up the sizzling hot third line of Tomas Fleischmann, David Desharnais and Dale Weise.
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It makes a lot more sense to me to have an offensively talented player like Holloway on a scoring line instead of a grinder like Byron or Flynn. Though he is a skilled player, Semin has already proven to not be a fit and with injuries piling up, Holloway should be the first player to get a chance to fill in for Gallagher on the top line.