The Montreal Canadiens will face a former OHL exceptional player tonight
The Tampa Bay Lightning, like many other teams including the CH, is decimated by COVID-19. The Omicron variant is causing endless damage.
Goalie Maxime Lagace will get the start against the Tricolore, due to the absence of Brian Elliott and Andrei Vasilevskiy. Behind the bench, Derek Lalonde and Jean-Philippe Côté will take charge of the team with the absences of Jon Cooper and Rob Zettler, both with COVID-19.
However, among the most interesting stories for tonight's game is that of Sean Day, a former holder of the OHL's exceptional player status. He had received the honor in 2013.
The 23-year-old defenseman will finally make his NHL debut tonight. The former third-round pick of the New York Rangers has gone through a lot to get there, but here he is. He has played no less than 291 games in the OHL, 110 in the AHL, and 55 in the ECHL since being given exceptional player status.
In his two seasons with the Syracuse Crunch, the Lightning's AHL affiliate, he has 28 points, including 5 goals, in 48 games. He has been very impressive with them.
It's been a long and arduous road, but he's ready to justify his former label.
