Julien on Kotkaniemi: 'It's pretty hard not to see him on our roster'

MONTREAL - Following Wednesday night's contest, head coach Claude Julien wouldn't confirm that Jesperi Kotkaniemi had officially earned a roster spot with the Canadiens.

But, it certainly looks like things are trending in the right direction for the 18-year-old prospect, who was selected third overall at the NHL Draft in June.
"In Kotkaniemi's case, right now it's pretty hard not to see him on our roster. The way he's played, the way he's handled himself," said Julien, after watching Kotkaniemi's performance in a 5-3 preseason loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Bell Centre. "I'm the coach, and we have management, and we'll sit together and make that final decision obviously after Saturday's game [in Ottawa], but he's shown us a lot of good things and it's pretty hard not to see him with our group."

The Finnish centerman collected an assist in the defeat, beginning a three-way passing play that eventually resulted in a Brendan Gallagher goal during the second period.
At one point during his postgame press conference, Julien also mentioned that the puck was essentially "glued" to Kotkaniemi's stick over the course of his 13:52 of ice time.
In short, the Pori native definitely caught Julien's attention in his team-leading fifth preseason appearance.
"I don't think he has any specific weaknesses," praised the veteran bench boss. "I see a guy that with experience and with time will become a better and better player."

Well done, Tomas!
Like Kotkaniemi, Tomas Tatar has also impressed Julien since joining the Canadiens' fold earlier in the month.
The 27-year-old left-winger opened the scoring on Wednesday night with a highlight-reel power play goal that demonstrated his full range of skills. It was his second tally in four preseason games.
"I think he's excited to be here. He's a good competitor. He always had a good shot. He's a 20-plus goal scorer. He showed it again [against Toronto]. I thought that was a great goal. He was able to find that little space that was there between the goaltender and the post. He's a good sharpshooter," explained Julien. "Not only that, but he plays the game hard. He competes really well. That's what we're looking for this year, guys that want to do that on a game-to-game basis."

Gallagher, Tatar's linemate, likes what he sees from the Slovak sniper, who is looking to hit the 20-goal plateau for a fifth consecutive season.
"He works incredibly hard. You saw it at the blue line. He's going to win puck battles, create second opportunities and create second chances. He wants to win," shared Gallagher. "He's an easy guy to play with. Guys that work hard and want to compete, those are guys you want to be on the ice with. I think playing with him and Phil [Danault] right now, it's pretty easy for me to go out and do my job."
As for the line itself, Gallagher is pleased with the chemistry the trio has managed to build thus far.
"We're feeling comfortable as a line. We're starting to talk some things out, and it usually takes two or three games to feel comfortable. I think we're at a stage now where we're kind of understanding each other's games," noted Gallagher. "We're creating chances that way. Overall, I think we're happy with it, but there's still lots of room to improve."

Turning the tables on a tough season
Defenseman David Schlemko played just 37 games with the Canadiens during the 2017-18 campaign due to injury.
Watching from the sidelines was tough to swallow for the 31-year-old Edmonton native, who is battling to secure his spot on the Habs' blueline.
"I tried to turn the page. It was a long summer. I worked harder than I ever have this summer and tried to come back," said Schlemko, after logging 18:33 of ice time and lighting the lamp with the man advantage on Wednesday night. "I kind of have something to prove, prove that I'm a better player than I showed last year. That's all I'm trying to do here."

So far, so good, according to the veteran rearguard, who believes his training camp experience has been a positive one.
"I kind of just felt a step behind coming in so late [last season]. I think confidence is a big thing, too. It's hard to play your game when you don't have complete confidence in yourself. Right now, I'm confident in what I can do with the puck and away from the puck," explained Schlemko. "It's still training camp, so we'll see."