Montreal Canadiens: Detroit Red Wings claim Jacob de La Rose off waivers
By Omar L
The Montreal Canadiens have lost Jacob de La Rose to the Detroit Red Wings after placing the centre on waivers Tuesday afternoon.
There’s always a risk when it comes to putting players on the waiver wire. Most of the time, there isn’t a general level of value to them as they’re just depth options that can be called up in times of injury. The Montreal Canadiens hoped the NHL would perceive Jacob de La Rose as being such when they chose to place him on waivers after he was healthy enough to return to game playing action.
Unfortunately, he didn’t make it through. There’s a great deal of irony in this situation as it was the Detroit Red Wings who ended up claiming de La Rose for themselves (via Chris Johnston). The Habs took charge over the Red Wings Monday night defeating them 7-3. I doubt that’s the sole reason they chose to take the young centre off Montreal’s hands, but the timing is humorous to say the least.
The Montreal Canadiens originally drafted de La Rose in the second round of the 2013 NHL Draft. He spent time playing in Sweden before joining the minor league system where he was part of the leadership group. Offence was never the main aspect of his game, but he is a big body who can create space and be defensively responsible for higher skilled wingers.
We saw this of de La Rose last season while playing with Alex Galchenyuk and Artturi Lehkonen as well as his usage for Team Sweden at the 2018 World Hockey Championships this past summer. That quality, as well as his age and contract, make him an attractive option to gamble on. And Detroit took that chance.
It’ll be an interesting opportunity for de La Rose with the Red Wings. They are in a full rebuild stage where few spots on the roster are set in stone. He could easily join up and make a mark on the team playing with some of Detroit’s speedy wingers. Additionally, de La Rose himself may have some bittersweet happiness to this as well.
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The Habs wanted to assign him to play with the Laval Rocket which is far from being a goal for him at this stage in his career. Even if he cleared, there are two centres in front of him for that fourth line position. It may be an inconvenience for him, but de La Rose may appreciate the change even though it involves leaving the only NHL organization he’s ever known.