The Montreal Canadiens made an all-in move in the offseason after their first playoff appearance in five years. They picked up Noah Dobson for two first-round picks and forward Emil Heineman based on being a perennial playoff contender. Canadiens goalie Samuel Montembeault was a reason for that projection, but he has been so bad this year that he has been sent to the AHL.

“The Canadiens have assigned goaltender Samuel Montembeault to the Laval Rocket on a conditioning assignment,” the team announced.

Montembeault played 62 regular-season games for the Canadiens last season, posting a .901 save percentage and 2.82 goals-against average. He finished eighth in Vezina Trophy voting and started three of Montreal's playoff games. The duo of Montembeault and Jakub Dobes was supposed to be the future in Quebec. But now, Montembeault is headed to Laval to figure some things out.

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Such is goaltending in the NHL. A year ago, the Pittsburgh Penguins could not get rid of Tristan Jarry on waivers. On Friday, they traded him for two players and a pick. The Canadiens cannot panic because a 29-year-old goalie saw his save percentage drop by 44 points. Laval can be a ground for Montembeault to find his footing again.

The Canadiens now turn to Dobes and rookie Jacob Fowler to get them through the holiday stretch. Fowler has played two games, winning won and losing another in overtime. It will mostly be Dobes, who is also technically a rookie, to keep the ship afloat. He has a .892 save percentage and a 3.03 goals-against average, both lower marks than last year.

Through all of that, the Canadiens are sitting third in the Atlantic Division, with only a game in hand separating them from the Boston Bruins. The new duo will kick it off on Tuesday against the Philadelphia Flyers, when Fowler will make his Bell Centre debut.