The Canadiens Goalie No One Saw Coming
Sometimes, a player shows up at exactly the right moment in a season. For the Montreal Canadiens right now, that player might be Jacob Fowler. His start against the Ottawa Senators almost came out of nowhere. Fowler had been playing with the AHL Laval Rocket and was recalled earlier in the day. By the evening he was in Ottawa, in the crease, facing a Senators team that had been collecting points for a week.
No easing into things. Just straight into the game.
Fowler had an amazing performance against the Senators.
And what followed was a pretty impressive performance. Fowler stopped 32 of 34 shots and helped Montreal hang on for a 3–2 win, the Canadiens’ third straight victory. The Senators pushed hard in that game, especially late. In the third period alone, they fired 13 shots at the Montreal net and spent long stretches in the Canadiens’ end. That’s the moment when a young goalie either settles in or things get messy.
But Fowler was settled in. A couple of his saves in the final minutes were the kind that keep a team calm. The Canadiens were blocking shots, clearing rebounds, and trying to manage the clock, but there were still a few moments where the puck found dangerous spots. Each time, Fowler was there.
After the game, Fowler's teammates gave him credit for the victory.
After the game, Alex Newhook said some of those late saves were a big reason Montreal won. It’s hard to argue with that.
The interesting thing here is the timing. Montreal is playing its best hockey of the season. The Canadiens are now 8-1-3 in their last 12 games, and the young core is driving a lot of the excitement. Ivan Demidov keeps producing. Juraj Slafkovsky continues to develop into the player the Canadiens hoped he’d become.
But teams on a run often need something else as well. A night when the goalie quietly carries the load. That’s what this looked like.
Fowler said after the game that his first experience earlier in the season felt overwhelming. This time, he said, it felt more like rejoining a group he already knew. The difference showed in how calm he looked when the game tightened up.
One game isn't going to change everything for the Canadiens. Still, Fowler was impressive.
No one is suggesting that one strong start changes everything. Hockey seasons don’t work that way.
Still, when a team is playing well and a young goalie steps in and delivers a performance like that, people notice.
And if Jacob Fowler keeps playing like he did in Ottawa, the Canadiens may have discovered something valuable at exactly the right time of the year.