Goaltender Fowler distraught with costly miscue in Montreal debut

Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jacob Fowler (32) makes a save on Philadelphia Flyers' Travis Konecny (11) during second period NHL hockey action in Montreal on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov

MONTREAL — It is often said that hockey is a game of mistakes.

Montreal Canadiens rookie goaltender Jacob Fowler readily admits he made a pretty costly one on the Philadelphia Flyers’ third goal of Tuesday night’s game, scored with under a minute to play in the second period.

Fowler misplayed the puck behind his own net, allowing Flyers forward Matvei Michkov to recover the loose puck. The Russian would find linemate Bobby Brink in the slot for the goal, ensuring the Flyers entered the second intermission with a 3-1 lead.

“You just learn from it,” said Fowler. “I haven’t given up many of those in my career. Hopefully, that’s the last one. Learn from it, get back on the ice tomorrow (Wednesday) and move forward.”

“It’s all a learning curve,” added Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis. “It’s like anything. That play is dead. What’s in front of you is not yet born. You have to stay in the moment. That’s what he does.”

Fowler’s second-period blunder in the Canadiens 4-1 loss to the Flyers at Bell Centre overshadowed what was otherwise a solid debut home outing for the 21-year-old.

“It’s great,” said Fowler. “I got to play here in the pre-season. I’ve played here before. I know the atmosphere. You want to win. You want to take the positives every night, but not as many as I’d like tonight. I’ve got to learn from it and get back to work.”

Since being called up from the Canadiens’ AHL affiliate — the Laval Rocket — on Dec. 9, Fowler has started all but one of Montreal’s four games in what can best be described as a whirlwind week for the goalie.

“I prepare the same way,” said Fowler. “You’ve got to be ready at any moment. Obviously, it came fast, but everybody here has been great. They’ve made it easy on me to just be comfortable. Ultimately, I just got to go out there and execute.”

The Melbourne, Fla., native shined in his NHL debut on Thursday, stopping 36 shots in his team’s 4-2 win against the Penguins in Pittsburgh.

The third-round draft pick, 69th overall, in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft followed that up with 24 saves in Montreal’s 5-4 overtime defeat to the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.

Through his first three NHL starts, Fowler boasts a 3.32 goals-against average and .885 save percentage.

“He’s handled himself really well to start off with, but the spotlight is big, especially for goalies,” said Canadiens defenceman Lane Hutson. “He’s embracing it and just continues to do what he does.”

Fowler can expect to see even more action in the coming days with the Canadiens announcing before the game that fellow goaltender Samuel Montembeault had been assigned to the Rocket for a conditioning assignment.

The 29-year-old last appeared in a game on Dec. 9, entering in relief of Jakub Dobes against the Tampa Bay Lightning, giving up three goals on 13 shots. Montembeault has not started for Montreal since a 5-2 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Dec. 2.

St. Louis said post-game the plan is for Montembeault to start each of the next two games for the Rocket Thursday and Saturday in Cleveland against the Monsters, farm team of the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Becancour, Que., native is expected to re-join the big club on Sunday in Pittsburgh ahead of Montreal’s matchup with the Penguins.

“I think it was a perfect scenario for him to go get a couple games and start building it back,” said St. Louis. “It’s unfortunate, but to me, the answers are everywhere. I don’t see it as a problem.”

“It’s obviously been tough for him mentally,” said Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki. “That’s probably the biggest thing. He’s still got all the traits and the ability. He’s just got to find that confidence again and, hopefully, this helps for him to come back and get back to where he was.”

Matheson on the shelf

The Canadiens played without defenceman Mike Matheson for the first time this season. The 31-year-old, who leads all Montreal skaters with an average ice time of 24 minutes 54 seconds, is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. No further update was provided as to Matheson’s status following the game.

“He plays the hardest minutes on the team and plays the full two minutes on the PK (penalty kill),” said Suzuki. “I thought our PK did a pretty good job tonight, though. It’s a tough guy to replace, for sure. Hopefully, we’ll get him back soon.”

“He does so many little things right,” Hutson added. “He makes it so much easier for everyone on the ice and everyone on the bench, too. He’s always talking, kind of explaining things and is always willing to teach. He’s a big part of our team.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2025.

Jordan Stoopler, The Canadian Press