Montreal Canadiens training camp is into its second week and the original list of 70 continues to be trimmed.
We saw a handful of players already sent back to Junior, including Joshua Roy, Xavier Simoneau, Daniil Sobolev and Joe Vrbetic.
Today, a couple of players hit waivers for the first time this season as a pair of veteran defenders are on their way off the training camp roster.
Xavier Ouellet and Louis Belpedio were placed on waivers earlier today for the purpose of assigning them to the Laval Rocket of the American Hockey League. There hasn’t been much of an announcement about the Rocket camp, but with these veterans on waivers today, we could see the minor league team’s camp begin as early as tomorrow.
Ouellet has been the captain of the Rocket for the past three seasons so there is no surprise that the 28 year old is expected to be sent down for the beginning of Rocket training camp. He has played a huge role for the AHL club those seasons eating up minutes and adding a fair bit of offence from the blue line. Last season was not his best offensively as he scored just four points in 19 games, but he put up 52 points in 86 games in the two seasons prior.
Belpedio joined the Canadiens organization as a free agent this summer and it was always expected he would play a top four role for the Rocket as well. The 25 year old right shot defenceman was a third round pick of the Minnesota Wild in 2014. He scored 51 points in 164 AHL games over parts of four seasons with the Iowa Wild.
We should see a dozen or more players joining Ouellet and Belpedio in Rocket training camp when it officially opens in the coming days. There are 13 skaters and two goaltenders skating with “Group C” at Habs camp and they will all likely be sent to the Laval Rocket camp as soon as it begins.