With roughly a year until the next Winter Olympics in Italy, the Four Nations tournament served as a testing ground, but some players, including Canadiens goalie Sam Montembeault, didn’t get the chance to showcase their abilities. So, what are Montembeault’s chances of making the team next winter? This is my take, assuming no injuries.
For now, I’ll exclude Logan Thompson unless a Canadian coach starts advocating for him, but so far, that hasn’t happened.
Jordan Binnington is a certainty, and Adin Hill seems like a strong contender as well. The next goalie worth considering is Joel Hofer. Just for discussion’s sake, I think the Blues might trade Binnington, given they’ll need to offer Hofer a long-term deal after his RFA year ends next season.
Hofer has had a solid regular season, even though the Blues are not a playoff team. They’re stuck in the middle and might be looking to rebuild. Hofer, 25, appears to be their future goalie. He has a .903 save percentage with a 2.88 goals-against average and one shutout. Stuart Skinner has a 2.81 goals-against average but only an .898 save percentage. Right now, I’d place Hofer ahead of both Skinner and Montembeault.
When it comes to the Olympics, teams often bring two veteran goalies and one younger option. The Calgary Flames’ Dustin Wolf is the top young Canadian goalie. At almost 24, he’s firmly in the Calder Trophy race. The Flames are a surprise team this year, and Wolf has been a significant factor in their success. If he maintains a similar performance next year, he could surpass the other goalies. Hockey Canada might want him on the team as their future goalie, with Wolf only being 28 in four years. Canada will need to get younger in goal to maintain Olympic success, and Wolf could be the key to that.