On Friday, Hockey Canada unveiled the names of the 92 players invited to its National Teams Orientation Camp, set for August 26 to 28 in Calgary. Nick Suzuki, Noah Dobson, and Samuel Montembeault will represent the Montreal Canadiens. In total, 42 National Hockey League (NHL) players received an invitation.
Presentations, team-building opportunities, team meetings and media opportunities are on the menu during the three days, for the invited players from men’s, women’s, and para hockey teams.
“We are excited to unveil the 92 athletes who will kick off the road to Italy, and to bring our men’s, women’s and para hockey teams together for three days as the first step towards our goal of winning triple gold in February,” said Scott Salmond, Hockey Canada’s senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations via press release.
Is Montembeault a Lock?
Hockey Canada invited surprisingly few goaltenders to the orientation camp. As a result, barring any significant injuries, Canada will ice the tandem of Jordan Binnington, Adin Hill, and Montembeault. During February’s Four Nations Face-off, Binnington started every game in Canada’s run to win the competition. Hill acted as a backup, while Montembeault was the third-string goaltender. Last season, the Canadiens netminder led all Canadian-born goalies in starts and ranked second in wins.
General manager Doug Armstrong remains loyal to the trio that previously represented Canada. Montembeault was Armstrong’s pick to start for Canada’s gold-winning squad at the 2023 IIHF World Championships.
Logan Thompson and Darcy Kuemper are notable candidates who were not invited to the orientation camp.
Did Suzuki Do Enough?
Nick Suzuki voiced his disappointment after Hockey Canada excluded him from the Four Nations Face-off roster. He responded in an impressive fashion, collecting 37 points in the 26 games following the competition. Only Robert Thomas, Nikita Kucherov, and David Pastrnak had more points during that stretch.
Suzuki, recently married, played a key role in the Canadiens’ playoff push. Martin St. Louis gave Suzuki double shifts on the power play. He also increased his penalty kill minutes.
The competition up front for a roster spot is fierce. With 26 forwards in camp, Suzuki needs a strong start to boost his stock and move up the depth chart.
Dobson is a Longshot
From the three Canadiens invitees, Noah Dobson is the least likely to head to Italy in February. Eight of the 13 invited defensemen shoot right, including Cale Makar, Evan Bouchard, Drew Doughty, and Aaron Ekblad. Those are big names for the Habs’ recently-acquired defenseman to compete against for a roster spot.
Dobson recently represented Canada at the Worlds in Sweden and Denmark, where in eight games, he scored one goal and four points.
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