The Canadiens rookies will face the Maple Leafs in two games at the Bell Centre on Saturday and Sunday, and Pascal Vincent has an idea of ​​what he wants to see.

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He hopes that the young people can show their qualities by playing freely, but within a framework that is explained to them.

“I want players who have confidence in their abilities. There are calculated risks and there are risks you can’t take. It becomes game intelligence.

“I want the guys to be themselves, but everyone has to play within the team structure. We spent two days making videos between training and preparing the foundation.

Stand out

The challenge for newcomers is often to stand out from the crowd once they are in the camp of the team’s veterans, and with that in mind, the two weekend meetings represent an interesting showcase.

“When you’re on the ice, especially in training camp, you have to be able to talk about yourself,” Vincent says. If no one is talking about you, it’s because you haven’t stood out. That’s the nature of the business at the level we’re at.

“It’s a funnel, the National League and the American League, you have to find a way to stand out with the tools you have, that’s why I like to work with the strengths of the players, for the weaknesses we will make a video.”

“What can you contribute to the team? There is no perfect player, but you have to stand out somehow. If you have no taste or smell, you will just be an ordinary player, even if you have a lot of talent.”

With the big

While several players who played their first season with the Laval Rocket last year were with the rookies, others like Joshua Roy and Jakub Dobes were on the other ice of the CN Training Complex to play a simulated game with players from the big club.

According to Pascal Vincent, no conclusions can be drawn from this situation.

“There is nothing to read in all this. I will give a very recent example. [Adam] Fantilli attended development camp and rookie camp in Columbus last year and the first thing you know is that he makes the team and is a starter. A little further away, Nik Ehlers of the Jets experienced the same thing.

“Unless your name is Nick Suzuki, the room you are sitting in [ne veut rien dire]. All positions are vacant.”

For Emil Heineman, who was among the rookies last year despite playing a full season in Laval, there is no reason to panic.

“I think it’s a great opportunity to play at the Bell Centre and it’s a great way to get a little head start into camp.”

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