Mattias Norlinder had a strange start with the Canadiens...
It was the return of hockey tonight, as the Montreal Canadiens rookies took on the young Ottawa Senators.
It was the Ontario team that came out on top in a 4-3 win over the young Canadiens' wolves. In the loss, many players performed well, including defenseman William Trudeau and defenseman Kaiden Guhle.
The Quebec defenseman scored the first goal on an assist from Xavier Simoneau. In the case of Guhle, the former first round pick in 2020, he lived up to expectations, doing very well in all aspects of the game. Those who see him as a Shea Weber are not wrong.
Another one we were looking forward to seeing in action was Swedish defenseman Mattias Norlinder. The 21-year-old looked a bit nervous, costing him a goal among other things. Norlinder dropped the puck on the power play, which opened the door for the Senators.
The defenseman redeemed himself, however, as he scored with a good wrist shot late in the second period. The Kramfors native also picked up an assist on Jan Mysak's goal.
We witnessed the immense potential of the young defenseman, especially on the offensive end. Norlinder tried to get into the opposition's zone on several occasions and ended up with turnovers. However, there is no need to worry about him as he just played his first game in North America.
Getting back to Guhle, the youngster has clearly shown that he is in a class of his own. Will he be able to earn a spot on the big club this year?
It will be interesting to see if some of the Canadiens' young players will come and warm up the veterans at the real training camp. The rookies will try again on Monday, once again against Ottawa.
