With the injury to Rafael Harvey-Pinard, the Quebec-born forward could see himself getting sufficient NHL playing time come season start, and if he impresses, could entice the Canadiens front office to let him stay in Montreal.
In a recent article with RDS, newly acquired forward by the Montreal Canadiens Alex Barré-Boulet spoke on his experience with the Tampa Bay Lightning organization. He shared that it was intimidating being inside the locker room.
“It’s tough when you arrive in a locker room, especially like Tampa, with a lot of superstars,” he told RDS in French. “It’s not the easiest to be the most confident. You see all these guys and you wonder how you’re going to keep up with them.”
The attacker out of Montmagny, Que, has played 68 games in the NHL, accumulated through sporadic stints of promotion from the AHL. Fifteen games in 2020-21, 16 in 2021-22 with both the Lightning and Seattle Kraken, and his most-ever last campaign with 36. He has tallied 12 goals and 18 points in his tenure.
His AHL stats are far more impressive and flex a scoring knack that is closer to his senior QMJHL season, wherein he scored 116 points in 65 regular season contests. In 294 games with the Syracuse Crunch, Barré-Boulet has racked up a 113-189-302 stat line. Yes, the AHL and NHL aren’t equal when it comes to talent level, but it does make one question why he hasn’t been given more of a chance in the upper echelon.
The injury to Habs forward Rafael Harvey-Pinard this Summer, mean he will spend the start of the season on the injured reserved list. In other words, there is an open spot in the forward depth chart for someone to fill.
Barré-Boulet was noted as being the 14th attacker on Martin St. Louis’ lineup, and he will fight with other notable forwards, like Michael Pezzetta, to fill the hole RHP has left behind. If his elite skating ability culminates well with his third/fourth line linemates, and he finds his scoring touch with Montreal, could he make a case for a more permanent NHL residency?
The contract he signed with Montreal this offseason is worth $775,000 for one year. One of the main factors contributing to his signing was the distance he had to travel between Syracuse and Tampa Bay, an approximate 2,000-kilometre voyage. Compare that to Montreal and Laval and you have an 18-kilometre distance. This gives Barré-Boulet more time to spend with his young family of two kids. It also is less draining a commute if he receives a callup and is expected to play the same day.
He is young enough at 27 to fit into the Habs plan of developing young talent before becoming contenders, but a one-year contract doesn’t guarantee he will stay with the club next season. A positive, however, is that he could turn heads if he performs well enough in 2024-25 and could be granted a more serious role on another team in need of a consistent bottom-six forward. Time will tell, of course, but he is among many Canadiens players to keep your eyes on this season. If you live near Montreal and fancy meeting the new forward, he will be on hand to sign autographs on September 11 at Collect Edition in Candiac.
