The Montreal Canadiens might be out of the playoffs, but fans of the organization could still have something to watch for the rest of this spring. The Laval Rocket defeated the Cleveland Monsters 3-1 in the best-3-out-of-5 series, and advanced to the North Division Final. It won't be an easy matchup, as the Rochester Americans swept their series to advance.
The lasting message from the last series is the arrival of Jacob Fowler. Fowler allowed two goals on 45 shots in the first two games, but then Pascal Vincent inserted Cayden Primeau into the net for Game 3 after he returned from Montreal. He allowed three goals on 25 shots in the loss, which led to the Rocket going back to Fowler for Game 4. Fowler stopped 18 of 19 to grab his team the series victory.
Vincent's trust in Fowler is a small sample of why the Rocket have been so successful this season. He is putting the trust in his young players to get the job done, which is one of the main reasons he was brought into the organization. Vincent's time with the Columbus Blue Jackets didn't go as smoothly as he would've liked, but he feels right at home developing young talent in Laval.
That doesn't mean Vincent will never get another opportunity in the NHL. The league doesn't normally kick you out after one opportunity, and the Blue Jackets didn't really give Vincent a fair shot. He will get another opportunity, and it could come as early as next season, but it looks like he isn't trying to look too far ahead.
"“If an (NHL) team wants my services, they’re going to have to be patient. Usually when you really want someone, you can wait one week, two weeks, three weeks or even a month…Just to be interviewed for a head coaching job in the (NHL) is an immense privilege…But for now, my focus is on the boys (in Laval).”"Pascal Vincent
The Rocket hopes that Vincent won't take any head coaching jobs for at least another month. The only problem for Vincent is whether all the jobs will have passed him by.