Patrik Laine nearly injures his own goalie at training camp with a monster shot

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Daniel Lucente
September 20, 2024 (3:12 PM)

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Training camp is where players prove to their coaches they belong on the team. In Patrik Laine's case, he nearly injured his goalie with a monster shot to the head.

New Montreal Canadiens forward Patrik Laine is already causing a stir and with good reason. During one on-ice training session, the Finnish star unleashed the full brute force of his legendary shot, sending the helmet of goalie Hunter Jones flying. You read it right. Laine's strong release broke the goalie's protective gear, giving everyone a pretty good reminder of why his shot is feared throughout the league.

Footage of this moment quickly made the rounds and left fans and analysts abuzz. It goes without saying that Patrik Laine's shot is among the most lethal in the NHL, but to see it wreak havoc to this degree, even in a training session, has elevated his reputation to new heights. The last thing anyone wants is to injure their own teammates when the games don't even matter! Laine better take a step back!

This was an example of what Patrik Laine is truly capable of, and why Canadiens General Manager Kent Hughes was so eager to have him on board. If he can take shots like this during the season, he should be able to score a lot of goals, and break a lot of masks.

The team has continued to work their way through the training camp, and it's slowly but surely becoming apparent that Patrik Laine might just prove to be that game-changing addition for the Montreal Canadiens. His performance today no doubt caught the eye of both fans and media alike, including the following from TVA Sports journalist Anthony Martineau, who mentioned how the presence of Laine is starting to make itself felt.

"The Laine-Newhook-Dach line is more comfortable than yesterday. Longer offensive zone sequences. The three guys are finding each other better. Dach, in particular, seems in great shape. He moves well. Laine is agile and very hard to stop once he gets going, but sometimes tries to do too much and loses the puck avoiding some simple plays. Newhook is the least visible of the three."

- Anthony Martineau, TVA Sports

In fact, Kirby Dach, Patrik Laine's new linemate, also confirmed during the recent press conference that things are starting to click for their line. While they didn't quite hit their stride on the first day, today's practice showed promising signs of improvement. Dach did say the chemistry is building between him, Laine, and Alex Newhook, and it is only a matter of time before the trio actually starts firing on all cylinders.

To that, head coach Martin St-Louis had some more to add to what this new trio could be. He said they aren't quite on the same page as the first line of Juraj Slafkovsky, Nick Suzuki, and Cole Caufield, but the combination of Patrik Laine, Kirby Dach, and Alex Newhook does have its moments of brilliance. The line chemistry will come with time, patience, and development, according to St-Louis.

There is no denying the talent within this newly formed line, and if Patrik Laine's world-class shot is leading the charge, the Canadiens could be an offensive force in the making.

As Martin St-Louis wisely noted, great things take time, but the potential is unmistakable. So, Montreal fans indeed have a lot to be excited about as this new group continues to gel and find their rhythm. Watch this trio closely; they may be one of the keys to the success of the Canadiens this season.