Habs prospect gets an assist from big brother
Blueliner says he's `very fortunate' to learn about NHL from sibling
Having an older brother who has already played in the NHL certainly helps for a young prospect showing up at his first rookie camp with the Canadiens.
The Canadiens selected defenceman Kaiden Guhle in the first round (16th overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft, five years after the Buffalo Sabres picked his brother Brendan, also a defenceman, in the second round of the draft.
Brendan, who was later traded to the Anaheim Ducks, has played 59 games in the NHL. He spent last season with the AHL'S San Diego Gulls.
“I was very fortunate,” the 19-year-old Guhle said after practice Friday at the Canadiens' rookie camp in Brossard when asked about his brother, who is five years older. “He's obviously a big part of my hockey career and my life. I'm very lucky to have him. Going to these camps, he gives me advice that there's probably some people that don't get and I'm lucky to have that, to see how hard he works and kind of hear stories of what the NHL is like and what pro hockey is like. He's been huge for me in life and in my hockey career, so I'm very fortunate for him.”
Last season was a difficult one for Guhle. He played seven games with Team Canada at the world junior championship and three games for the AHL'S Laval Rocket before being returned to his junior team at the end of February, when the WHL season was about to start after being shut down because of COVID-19. In his second game with the Prince Albert Raiders, Guhle suffered a hand injury that ended his season.
“Kind of getting back to normal here, which is nice and hopefully get in our full season in (Prince Albert),” said Guhle, who was named captain of the Raiders last season. “It will be nice to get back to a full season and going back on the road, on the bus with the guys. Those little things are things that you miss a lot. So I'm excited to kind of get back to normal and play a full season again.”
While Guhle didn't play much last season, he was able to watch a lot of Canadiens games on TV as they advanced to the Stanley Cup final.
“They could all defend very well and they were mean, they were strong,” Guhle said about the Canadiens' defencemen. “Just looking at the (roster) sheet here in the locker-room, they're all over 220 pounds. That's just something that you notice, just how hard they play and how much they can play in all situations.”
Guhle is listed as six-foot-three and 203 pounds on the rookie camp roster.
“That's something that I try to put into my game is being physical in all areas of the ice,” he said. “In front of the net, it's my job to get those guys out of there and try not to let them whack in a rebound or tip in a puck. So being physical is part of it.”
It will be nice to get back to a full season and going back on the road, on the bus with the guys. Those little things are things that you miss a lot.