Having played heroes in overtime for the Laval Rocket on Friday night, Quebec forward Rafaël Harvey-Pinard said he scored “the most important goal of my career”.

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Aged 23, Harvey-Pinard is a great story for the organization of the Montreal Canadiens.

Beyond this goal that allowed the Rocket to tie the American League Eastern Conference final 2-2 against the Springfield Thunderbirds, Harvey-Pinard remains an interesting prospect for the Habs.

Harvey-Pinard was 20 years old in the 2019 draft when the Canadiens selected him in the seventh round, 201st overall. However, in this vintage, he is one of only two players to have tasted the National Hockey League among the seventh-round picks, the other being Finnish forward Valtteri Puustinen, of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Rocket's leading scorer

If Puustinen's experience in the NHL comes down to a single meeting, Harvey-Pinard was entitled to a first three-game stay with CH, between December 28 and January 1. The Quebecer, who also scored against the Tampa Bay Lightning in his first game, also had a fourth game, on April 21.

With the Rocket, Harvey-Pinard also had 56 points, including 21 goals, in 69 games during the recent regular season. He was thus the best scorer of his team, ahead of Jean-Sébastien Dea and his 52 points.

Since the start of the playoffs, Harvey-Pinard has added eight points in 12 games. His third goal of the playoffs also came to set the table for the fifth game of the series, scheduled for Saturday night in Laval, between the Rocket and the Thunderbirds.

- Before being drafted by the Canadiens, Harvey-Pinard played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. He then played the 2019-2020 season in the uniform of the Saguenéens de Chicoutimi.