After releasing his Top 100 drafted prospects, The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler has not released his top 20 drafted goaltender prospects list. The last time Wheeler released his bi-annual list in February, the Montreal Canadiens had two netminders on it: Jacob Fowler, who was ranked at number two, and Jakub Dobes, who stood at number 13.
Five months later, Fowler remains in second place, while Dobes has dropped to number 19. It was never in doubt that Fowler would be able to at least hang on to the second place, since his sophomore season at Boston College in the NCAA was even better than his rookie season, which is no small feat. His goals-against average dropped from 2.14 to 1.63, and his save percentage improved from .926 to .940. He also posted seven shutouts, compared to three as a rookie.
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A third-round pick in 2023, Fowler is the most exciting goaltending prospect the Canadiens have had since Carey Price, even though the face of the franchise was the fifth overall pick at the 2005 draft. There’s another Montreal goaltender who did just fine after being drafted in the third round. You may remember him; Patrick Roy was drafted 51st overall at the 1984 draft.
As things stand, many are hoping Fowler will be the Canadiens' goaltender when their window of opportunity opens, and from what we’ve seen so far, there’s a real possibility that it comes to be.
As for Dobes, Wheeler now believes he’ll have a promising career as a second or third goaltender or, in a base case scenario, a 1-B netminder. He had a convincing rise from the NSHL to the AHL and was elevated to the NHL last season following Cayden Primeau’s collapse.
While he had a fantastic start in the big leagues with five consecutive wins, he came back down to earth and struggled a bit, losing seven of his next 11 games. Nevertheless, he ended the season with a 7-4-3 record, a 2.74 GAA, and a .909 SV%. When Samuel Montembeault went down with an injury in the playoffs, he was able to claim one win for the Canadiens and performed well, especially considering the circumstances.
While Fowler will hold the top job in the AHL with the Laval Rocket, Dobes may have to compete for the backup role in the AHL, as newly signed Kaapo Kakko has been clear about his intentions to return to the NHL.
Photo credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images
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