After his short stint with the Rocket, the Montreal Canadiens prospect now has a clear idea of how he must prepare for next season.
After completing his season in Switzerland, David Reinbacher made the trek to Canada and joined the Laval Rocket on March 18th. Four days later, he made his North American debut and scored an important goal against the Belleville Senators.
The Canadiens first pick in the most recent draft ended the year recording five points in 11 games with Laval. He sat out the final game due to a minor injury.
“It was really nice,” Reinbacher described his AHL tenure during the end of season media availability. “Good experience. I got 11 games. I got the feeling of the league now and how I should prepare for next year. That's probably really good for me to go back home and prepare in the summer to come back and have a great season here.”
In his time with the Canadiens AHL affiliate, Reinbacher spent a lot of time watching video with assistant coach Kelly Buchberger. He quickly earned the confidence of the coaching staff and received time on the penalty kill unit.
“I like his gap control a lot. I think his stick is really good. He needs to get stronger. I think he could provide even more offence and I think he was maybe cautiously playing a little bit back, which is normal,” evaluated Jean-Francois Houle.
Ideally, Reinbacher’s arrival to the province of Quebec would have occurred in the first half of March, but his team overseas waited over a week to find out if they needed to play a relegation series. Fortunately for the Canadiens, it wasn’t needed, allowing their prospect to join Laval.
“The experience that a young player can get of those seven or 10 games, look what it did for Struble last year. Struble was with us for six, seven games, had confidence and came back this year, had a good camp. He started with us and played in the NHL. So you can't underestimate one, two, ten, seven games that a rookie could get. You cannot. It's valuable and it prepares him for the following year. There's no question in my mind,” said Houle stressing the importance of the experience.
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Preparing for the NHL
The time in Laval was the most competitive period in Reinbacher’s season, as Kloten finished at the bottom of the Swiss League’s standings, while the Rocket fought for a playoff spot until game 71 of their 72-game schedule.
“I would say for me every game is competitive. You play in every game for something no matter where you standing. I took every game as a competition, as a new challenge, as a new game to show my game and to be at my best performance,” answered Reinbacher when asked about the difference in both environments. He recorded 11 points and a minus-15 rating in 35 games with Kloten.
“It was different here. It's a different league, the playing style is different. It's harder. It's smaller ice. Everything's a little bit faster. The guys want to show they’re ready for the [NHL]. So that's different hockey, but it was a really nice experience getting to a team who’s trying to make a playoff push.”
He saluted Gabriel Bourque, Tobie Paquette-Bisson, Mitchell Stephens and Lias Andersson for helping him adjust to his new environment. The taste of the AHL will help the 19-year old prepare during the summer for a full season of North American hockey.
“I said it since the start. [Reinbacher] is a really easy guy to play with. He’s really smart, talks a lot. He’s pretty physical and can skate really well. So to be honest, I think he's set up to be a pro and I think we'll see a lot of him in Montreal,” said his defensive partner Paquette-Bisson.
The adjustments for Reinbacher were not limited to the rink. He was living in a new country, in a hockey-focused market, which is different than what he’s experienced in the past.
“It's crazy here. Montreal is a crazy hockey city and the fans are the best here. They cheer for every player and they keep us on our heels,” he said, describing the fan experience.
It’s not a surprise that Reinbacher got recognized by fans when he was in public. It’s not something that he’s used to facing.
“You don’t get recognized [in Austria]. You can go out and just be you, be yourself and have fun with your friends and do whatever you want. It's a little bit different here. That’s the other side of being a pro here and you always got to show you your best side.”
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