Jacob Fowler posts historic shutout as Canadiens goalie competition heats up
The rookie goaltender stopped all 30 shots in regulation and overtime, plus six in a shootout, for a franchise first.
MONTREAL — Jacob Fowler became the first goalie in Montreal Canadiens history to not allow a goal in regulation, overtime or the shootout in a single game during a win over the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.
The 21-year-old rookie made 30 saves through regulation and overtime, then stopped all six Red Wings shooters in the shootout. "He proved to us we made a good decision," said head coach Martin St. Louis. "I found he played an excellent game, gave us a chance. And in the shootout, it’s not easy. It was long before we scored and gave him an opportunity to close it out, and he did his job."
Fowler's performance came after St. Louis put the puck back in his glove following a 5-2 loss to the Nashville Predators on Thursday, a move the coach said was a vote of confidence for Fowler and a message to 25-year-old Jakub Dobes.
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Dobes was strong in a season-opening win in Toronto but was beaten 11 times in back-to-back losses to Pittsburgh and Carolina. With back-to-back games against Buffalo and Washington this week, Dobes will get an immediate chance to respond.
The competition in net will take on another dimension when Samuel Montembeault returns from injury in about a week-and-a-half.
St. Louis has been pushing buttons with his entire team after a tougher-than-expected start. He said the compete level has to be the bare minimum for everybody. "I feel like we’re at our best when the compete level is high," St. Louis said.
The Canadiens responded by controlling over 60 per cent of shot attempts, high-danger chances and expected goals at five-on-five in both the loss to Nashville and the win over Detroit.
Competition is also heating up on defence. General manager Kent Hughes traded defenceman Jayden Struble on Friday after he lost his spot to Adam Engstrom. With Kaiden Guhle returning to health, Struble had become the eighth-best option on the blue line.
Engstrom and Arber Xhekaj are now in a fight to be the sixth defenceman, and whichever one is playing better will play. They will both have to play well enough to stave off David Reinbacher, who is playing big minutes with the AHL's Laval Rocket.
Up front, Kirby Dach played just 7:42 against Nashville on the fourth line and likely would not have played against Detroit had Florian Xhekaj been healthy. Oliver Kapanen's eventual return from a lower-body injury will intensify the competition among forwards.
Ivan Demidov is also expected to return from injury within the next three weeks, which will push St. Louis and Hughes into more difficult lineup decisions.
St. Louis and Hughes showed over the past week they are prepared for those decisions and will not hesitate to push whatever buttons they must to keep the Canadiens on their toes.
With files from Sportsnet