Montreal Canadiens: Blake Biondi Snipes First NCAA Goal

Montreal Canadiens Blake Biondi scored his first NCAA goal.

Montreal Canadiens Blake Biondi was a bit of an unknown when he was drafted by the Habs.

The Hermantown, Minnesota native played high school hockey last season and though his numbers were astronomical, it is difficult to determine how good of a prospect a player is when he isn’t facing great competition every night.

Biondi did play a lower level of hockey than most NHL Draft prospects, but he certainly made the most of it. He scored over three points per game and was named Minnesota’s Mr. Hockey, which is handed out to the best high school hockey player in the state.

At 6’0 and 192 pounds, and having scored 76 points in 25 games for Hermantown High School, Biondi was on scout’s radar. He played at the Ivan Hlinka tournament for USA, scoring two points in four games and committed to the University of Minnesota-Duluth early in the season. The Scott Sandelin coached team won a national title in 2018 and 2019 so they are obviously a strong program.

Coming straight out of high school, Biondi cracked the lineup for the Bulldogs, playing 11 of the team’s 12 games so far. He has been held to a depth role, learning the ropes of the NCAA as he adjusts to the much faster pace of the college game.

The Habs 4th round pick from 2020 took a big step in his college career last night when he scored his first NCAA goal. He came down his off wing with the puck and showed great patience as a teammate headed to the net. Biondi kept the sole defenceman back and the goaltending guessing about what he was going to do until he fired a wrister past the netminder.

Playing on a team that is ranked 5th in the nation, it has been difficult for Biondi to find a lot of minutes. On his first goal, he showed the patience of a veteran, and beat a veteran goaltender. Scoring goals against the 4th ranked team in the country is a solid way to get on the good side of the head coach.

Biondi isn’t going to dominate on the scoreboard in year one like Cole Caufield did. However, like Jake Evans, he could work his way up the lineup throughout his college career and be ready to play a big role for the Laval Rocket when he graduates.

If he keeps scoring big goals against top teams in the country, he could find himself moving up the depth chart sooner than later.