Eric Gelinas and Tom Parisi have been watching Laval Rocket games from the press box which may hint at their future in the Montreal Canadiens organization.
The Montreal Canadiens and Laval Rocket have had somewhat of a similar attitude in these remaining games of the season. The players, of course, want to win every night, but the mentality of management has been to give the youth on the team an opportunity. Laval has shown more of this with the number players under 25 they’ve added to the roster.
It’s not just that they’re signing these individuals, be it mostly as tryouts, but they’re allowing them to play and have impacts on the ice. Johnny Austin and Trever Owens are clear standouts who have been very steady in their promotions to professional hockey. In fact, if you look at Laval’s starting lineup from their game against the Rochester Americans, the entire blueline was filled with you.
The only veteran on the backend that night was Matt Taormina, but the top pair had youngsters Adam Plant and Rinat Valiev running the show. Including the ones already mentioned, there were 11 rookies on the ice for the Rocket. Although they ended up losing, there were a lot of things to take away from it to make fans look forward to the future program.
The two who this hurts are Èric Gèlinas and Tom Parisi who were healthy scratches. You’d think it was a one-off for the two and that the Laval Rocket are running a rotation on defence similar to the Montreal Canadiens, but Gelinas and Parisi had to watch from the press box again in Friday’s game against the Springfield Thunderbirds.
This may not be a coincidence. Perhaps the Laval Rocket and the Montreal Canadiens are dropping hints of who they want to move on with. If so, it looks like the two aren’t making the cut. There was a time where Gèlinas may be on his way to a future contract with the Habs.
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His offensive production is a plus with 13 goals and 13 assists, but the 26-year-old’s play away from the puck has been a problem. However, he’s improved in that area, as well as his skating.
Parisi is in his second season in the AHL after signing out of Providence College. Growth and progression have been the two words to attach to him as he’s become a solid option on the Rocket’s defence. His confidence along the blueline has been evident all season as he’s been able to walk some opposing forwards and generate chances for his teammates.
Sylvain Lefebvre mentioned that the scratches are nothing to look into and that it’s merely a way to get the younger players in games (a quick reminder that Parisi is only 24).
Sylvain Lefebvre retranche Éric Gelinas et Tom Parisi ce soir. “Ce n’est rien contre leur jeu. On est dans une situation où on doit faire jouer les jeunes. C’est la réalité de la Ligue américaine.”
— Anthony Marcotte (@anthonymarcotte) April 4, 2018
Gèlinas is only on an AHL contract and that may be all the Montreal Canadiens can offer while Parisi has an NHL contract and is a restricted free agent over the summer. If the organization feels they have other players on the team now or coming who can surpass both, then it does make sense to cut ties now.
Next: The Plan for Alex Galchenyuk
How the player personnel is handled going into next season will be interesting to track. However, if the Laval Rocket wants to improve, who they have on the team isn’t the only thing that needs to be improved.