Rafaël Harvey-Pinard said he’s done playing softball.
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The Canadiens winger is ready to resume his NHL career, but for the time being, that road has taken him back to the Laval Rocket.
The Canadiens announced Tuesday morning the 5-foot-9, 181-pound Harvey-Pinard was being assigned to their AHL affiliate on a long-term injury conditioning loan. The 25-year-old has recovered from surgery he had in July after fracturing his leg playing softball. Harvey-Pinard was playing centre-field when another player collided with him.
Harvey-Pinard is expected to be in the Rocket’s lineup Wednesday night, when the team hosts Rochester at Place Bell. During Tuesday morning’s practice, he was on a line with Laurent Dauphin and Xavier Simoneau. However, should forward Alex Barré-Boulet, who is recovering from an injury and didn’t practise, be unavailable against the Americans, Harvey-Pinard would probably move up to Laval’s top line, with Brandon Gignac and Joshua Roy.
“That was really bad luck. Hopefully it doesn’t happen again,” Harvey-Pinard told The Gazette after practice. “For sure it’s tough, getting an injury like that during the summer. Especially last year, I was injured a lot. Obviously I wasn’t happy about it, but once you know you’re going to be out for four months you have to go one day at a time and think positively.
“That’s what I did and now I’m ready to go. I’m really excited to be back. I’m not surprised by this decision. It has been six or seven months without playing. It’s going to be good for my timing, getting back into game shape, too. That’s what (Canadiens’ management) told me and I understand.”
There should be a certain comfort level for Harvey-Pinard with the Rocket, although he’ll be dealing with a new head coach after Pascal Vincent replaced Jean-François Houle, now coaching Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y.
Harvey-Pinard has 145 career AHL games on his resumé, having scored 46 goals and 61 assists. He most recently was with the Rocket during the 2022-23 season. In 40 games, he produced 16 goals and 31 points, earning the seventh-round (201st overall) draft choice in 2019 a promotion to the Canadiens that season.
The Jonquière native became popular with the media thanks to his infectious attitude and booming voice. He also became a fan favourite after scoring 14 goals and 20 points in 34 games with Montreal. That included three goals during an 8-2 win against Columbus in March 2023.
But Harvey-Pinard was limited to 45 games last season following separate lower-body injuries. His production dipped significantly, with two goals and 10 points. He doesn’t know how long his stint with the Rocket will last, but said he’s ready to play. Harvey-Pinard has been skating, whether alone or with his Montreal teammates, for several weeks.
“I’m just going one game at a time,” he said. “Try to get back to my old habits, playing good everywhere on the ice. I had a different role last year, a little bit less offensively. I was playing more on the penalty-kill, stuff like that. Obviously I wasn’t opportunistic. I had chances. I don’t think I played bad, but I needed to create more. For sure the injuries didn’t help, having to stop twice during the season for a long amount of time.
“I’m ready to go. I just want to get back to my identity, (show) what I can do on the ice. Get my timing back. My passing. My shooting. That’s tough to do during a practice. You need to do it during a game. I don’t have to score five goals and get five assists. I just want to play good at both ends of the ice and play my game.”
With a 12-2 record, the Rocket is first in the North Division and on a three-game winning streak. While Laval has thrived without Harvey-Pinard, another player with NHL experience should only make the club more formidable.
“He loves to play hockey,” Vincent said. “You can tell he’s a good person, even if I don’t know him. I spoke to him at camp in Montreal, briefly, and this morning. He’s just excited to play. When he’s good to go they’re going to call him back up.
“I just want to see him working hard and getting reps. I probably won’t use him on the power play, although he could in this league. But that’s not what (the Canadiens) want from him in the NHL, so we’re going to give him some reps on the penalty-kill and five-on-five.”
With three games over the next four days, it shouldn’t take Harvey-Pinard long to regain his legs. Laval entertains Belleville Friday night, before playing at the Senators rink on Saturday.