NHL Prospect Roundup: Habs fans, it’s almost David Reinbacher time

Credit: Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff

Get ready, Montreal Canadiens. David Reinbacher is coming.

It’s been a wonky season for the young defender over in Switzerland, with his club team, EHC Kloten, changing coaches multiple times during the season and finishing dead last in the country’s top league, the National League.

Long story short, Kloten avoided the need to participate in a playout round with teams out of the second-tier Swiss League. And today, he was officially assigned to the AHL’s Laval Rocket in preparation for his debut in the near future.

Laval is sixth in the North Division, and three points behind both Toronto and Belleville; they can use all the help they can get. Reinbacher missed time with a knee injury earlier in the season and hasn’t played in general in about three weeks, so it’ll take time before he gets up to speed – and he might not see much action at all.

The actual date of when he’ll make his debut is still unclear. But don’t expect it to be too long.

However, the ultimate goal is to get him used to Quebec and prepare for his first year in North America next season. Since getting drafted fifth overall in 2023, there’s been significant attention surrounding the big defender with a high ceiling, and getting drafted by Montreal brings its own set of pressures. It might take him a year or two of further development to really settle in before taking a legitimate crack at Montreal’s roster, but he was the best defenseman from the 2023 draft class for a reason.

So, it’s exciting. And for Habs fans, hopefully Reinbacher’s journey to his new home ends up being a highlight of another topsy-turvy season for the club.

NCAA

– It hasn’t always been easy for Matthew Wood, with some scouts disappointed about his lack of skating improvement. But with eight goals and 10 points over the past five games, the Nashville Predators prospect has been on an absolute tear with the University of Connecticut. The 6-foot-4 winger finished with 34 points in 35 games last year – so some eyebrows were raised when he had just 12 points in his first 17 games before heading to Canada’s world junior camp. But right now? He’s unstoppable with the puck.

– Surprise! Ryan Leonard is terrorizing college goalies. He has five goals in his past five games and is up to 26 goals and 49 points in 35 contests as a rookie with Boston College. Leonard can do a bit of everything, but at the heart of it, he’s a finisher on one of the top lines in the country. He’s also a menace, physically. He’s not going to need much time in college before heading to the Washington Capitals – he just looks like a pro player out there.

WHL

– The move to the Edmonton Oil Kings earlier this season was good for Gracyn Sawchyn. The Florida Panthers prospect has 11 points in seven games in March, with his lone game without a goal coming in an 8-2 blowout loss to Swift Current. He was drafted 63rd overall in 2023, and many scouts I talked to prior to the draft considered him to be one of the highest risers in the second half of the NHL Draft. He’s not going to finish the year with mind-blowing numbers by any means, but I love his potential to be a smart, middle-six forward who brings boundless energy to every shift.

– It’s been an interesting season for Tyson Jugnauth, who, after putting up two assists in 13 games as a sophomore with the University of Wisconsin, elected to finish off the season with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks. He’s up to 36 points in 37 games, which included an excellent three-assist night on Friday against Tri-City. From watching him, he’s great at getting scoring chances started from his own zone and puts some heavy volume on net, too. Not bad for a fourth-round pick by the Seattle Kraken back in 2022.

OHL

– Easton Cowan has found himself on one of the most incredible points runs we’ve seen in quite some time in major junior. With yet another point on Sunday, Cowan set a London Knights record with a point in his 34th consecutive game and his third straight two-assist effort. He’s up to 32 goals and 92 points in 52 games, and at his rate, 100 points isn’t out of the question. Cowan has 13 games with at least three points in a game, which is incredible in contrast to his 16 games with just one. Could Cowan find himself playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs this fall?

AHL

– I wasn’t sure how well Ethan Cardwell would look once he turned pro after a great final year with the Barrie Colts, but he’s been a man on a mission as a 21-year-old rookie. He’s up to 17 goals and 33 points in 57 games and should crack the 20-goal, 40-point mark with the San Jose Barracuda. Cardwell had a six-game pointless streak that really dampened things, but his four-point effort over two games this past weekend in a pair of losses to Rockford had to be a good boost for his confidence. An aggressive forward with the potential to be a decent depth scorer, Cardwell was an excellent pickup in the fourth round in 2021 by the San Jose Sharks.

– Last year was a difficult one for Fabian Lysell, who didn’t deliver on his status of being the top forward prospect in the Boston Bruins‘ pipeline. It was made even worse by his zero-point run with Sweden at the World Juniors, either. But with 49 points in 55 games with Providence this season, including six points over his past four games, he’s back in the good books again. Lysell is an excellent skater who can easily dance by players, but he can get caught trying to do too much, too. Still, the upside is there, and at 21, it’s been good to see the progression this year.

KHL

– At 23, Dmitri Rashevsky is on the older side of things. But the Winnipeg Jets prospect had started off the KHL playoffs in style with five points in his first two games with Dynamo Moscow. They knocked out Minsk in six games, with the series shifting to a more defensively dominated final few games. But after putting up a career-best 24 goals and 43 points in his third full KHL campaign, it’s good to see him remaining so valuable to his team’s playoff run. He has another year left on his KHL contract, but if he comes over after that, he’ll be 25 and ready to contribute in a middle-six capacity – if he decides to sign with the Jets, that is.

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NHL Prospect Roundup: Habs fans, it’s almost David Reinbacher time

NCAA

WHL

OHL

AHL

KHL

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