According to Michael Hage's coach with the Michigan Wolverines, Montreal Canadiens prospect Michael Hage is likely to play in the NCAA semi-final on Thursday night.
While the Montreal Canadiens have booked their place in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, one of their prospects has been playing postseason hockey for a while, and this week, his team, the Michigan Wolverines, will play in the Frozen Four semi-final. Michael Hage hasn’t had an easy start to the Frozen Four tournament, missing the first game against Bentley because of a lower-body injury and returning in the next game as the 13th forward against the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs.
In an interview with Marco D’Amico, Hage’s coach, Brandon Naurato said that the centerman is “probable to play against Denver”. On April 9, the Wolverines are set to take on the Denver Pioneers, a team that has two other Canadiens’ prospects in Sam Harris and Quentin Miller. According to his coach, Hage is a warrior whose competitive nature won’t allow him to miss that game.
If the Wolverines win on April 9, they’ll take on the winner of the other semi-final, which features the North Dakota Fighting Hawks and Cole Caufield’s alma mater, the Wisconsin Badgers, on April 11.
While Naurato told D’Amico that he would love to see Hage back at Michigan next season, he added that he would understand if he decided to turn pro. While Hage won’t make a decision until his team’s tournament is over, it’s clear that the Canadiens would like to see him take the next step.
If he were to decide to make the jump, he could either sign his ELC and start with the Canadiens right away, which would likely mean playing the last game of the season on April 14 against the Philadelphia Flyers. Or, he could join the Laval Rocket on an amateur tryout agreement and have his ELC start next season, which was the route the Canadiens chose for Jacob Fowler last season.
With Kirby Dach and Alex Texier both being injured now and Phillip Danault rumored to be playing with an ailment, Hage’s arrival could be a godsend for the Canadiens, but it would be understandable if they decided to take the Laval route, not to skip steps in his development.
For now, all eyes will be on the Thursday night semi-final with Habs fans anxiously waiting to see when the Hage watch will start and which decision the youngster will make.
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