Canadiens: Goaltending Help From The Waiver Wire?

While the Montreal Canadiens beat the Buffalo Sabres yesterday, it was harder than it should have been. Twice, when the Habs scored to take the lead, the host was allowed to tie the score within seconds; Cayden Primeau was just unable to protect the lead.

Entering yesterday's game, the Canadiens had a 4.07 average goals against per game. After allowing another five lamplighters, they are still dead last in the NHL with a 4.13 GA/G. They are the only team allowing more than four goals per game.

Right now, the decision to trade Jake Allen last season and bet on Primeau and Samuel Montembeault looks ill-advised, especially since the veteran netminder is doing well in New Jersey with a 3-2-1 record, a 2.35 goals-against average, and a .914 save percentage.

In comparison, Primeau has a 1-2-1 record with a 4.67 GAA and a .845, and Montembeault is 4-7-1 with a 3.42 GAA and a .890 SP. No one would argue that these numbers are fine; everybody expected the duo to improve.

Yesterday, the Colorado Avalanche waived Kaapo Kahkonen, a 28-year-old goaltender who has played 140 NHL games since making his debut in 2019-20. The Minnesota Wild drafted him in the fourth round and traded him to the San Jose Sharks during the 2021-22 season before they sent him to the New Jersey Devils last season.

On July 1st, he signed a one-year deal with the Winnipeg Jets, but the Avalanche claimed him on waivers on Oct. 11. In Colorado, he only played one game, which he lost 5-2 against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was in net for four of the Lightning's goals.

Over the course of his career, he has a 3.34 GAA and a .898 SP. While those are by no means fantastic numbers, they are better than Primeau's. The Canadiens' backup has played in 51 NHL games and has a 3.63 GAA and a .887 SP.

Could Kent Hughes be tempted to claim Kahkonen today? While he can't be seen as a long-term solution, he could allow the Canadiens to send Primeau down to the AHL and try to build his confidence back up.

Of course, the Canadiens could opt to send Primeau down and recall one of Jakub Dobes or Connor Hughes, but do they want to? It's been quite some time since the Laval Rocket has been such a force to be reckoned with, and allowing them to dominate will serve the organization well in the long term.

We'll know by 2:00 PM if someone decides to take a chance on Kahkonen...

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