The wait is over, and we finally have a resolution to the goaltending carousel. The Montreal Canadiens have just announced that Jacob Fowler and Owen Beck were being sent down to the Laval Rocket in the AHL.

There has been a lot of speculation over the last few weeks as to which goaltender would be sent back down to the Rocket, but in the end, the Habs’ brass went with the logical solution. Not that Fowler hasn’t been great in the 10 games he has backstopped the Canadiens in, he’s got a 4-4-2 record with a 2.62 goals-against average and a .902 save percentage, but he’s the least experienced goaltender.

Furthermore, the Canadiens have big plans for the youngster, and logic dictates that playing more games will benefit his development. That’s what he’ll get in Laval: a lot of action and not so much of riding the pine behind another goalie. The Florida native can be proud of what he has accomplished in his first stint in the NHL. He gave the electroshock the Canadiens’ goaltending duo needed. A bit of internal competition has never hurt anyone, and he was part of the reason why Samuel Montembeault finally found his form back.

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As for Owen Beck, he’s been the 13th forward since Josh Anderson came back, and the writing was on the wall, especially with the acquisition of Phillip Danault, which really helped the Canadiens’ depth at center.

In 15 games, the 21-year-old center has scored the first goal of his career, and even though that was his only point, he has still done well in a fourth-line role and has a plus-four rating. There’s a limit to what a player can do when he’s only seeing an average of 9:11 of action every night.

The fact that Beck was sent down might indicate that Kirby Dach is finally ready to return. The Canadiens are set to practice at 1:00 PM. We’ll know then if he has joined the team in Ottawa ahead of its duel with the Ottawa Senators tomorrow night.

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