- Jacob Fowler is the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for October
- The Canadiens goalie went 7-1-0 with a 1.84 GAA, a .932 save percentage and two shutouts
- Read below for the records he matched and the rookies he beat out
Jacob Fowler is the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for October.
The league announced the award Sunday. The Canadiens goalie went 7-1-0 with a 1.84 goals-against average, a .932 save percentage and two shutouts in eight starts. Here’s the announcement:
Fowler edged out Bruins center James Hagens (11 points in 14 games), Maple Leafs winger Gavin McKenna (11 points in 14 games), Sharks winger Ivar Stenberg (nine points in 15 games) and Rangers goalie Dylan Garand (4-5-1, 2.69 GAA).
Seven wins also matches the NHL record for a rookie goalie in a single October. Michal Neuvirth did it with the Capitals in 2010, Ed Belfour with the Blackhawks in 1990 and Jacques Plante with the Canadiens in 1954. Each of them needed 11 games. Fowler needed eight.
He is the third Canadiens rookie since 1985-86 to win seven games in a calendar month, after Jakub Dobes in March 2026 and Carey Price in March 2008. Price was also the last Montreal goalie to win this award, so Fowler ends a drought that goes back to March 2008.
Check out his numbers during the seven-game win streak:
The last rookie on any team with a longer streak was Jeremy Swayman, who won eight straight for the Bruins in February and March 2022.
Two of those wins were shutouts. Fowler stopped all 30 shots against Detroit on Oct. 10, then made 46 saves in a 2-0 win in St. Louis on Oct. 27. That 46 is the most by a Canadiens rookie in a shutout since shots on goal were first tracked in 1955-56. Our recap of the Blues game has his postgame comments, and here’s the graphic we posted that night:
The month also included a trip outdoors. On Oct. 25 Fowler stopped 33 of 34 shots in a 2-1 win over Winnipeg at the Heritage Classic, which made him the youngest goalie to start and win an outdoor NHL game at 21 years, 335 days. We covered that one in our Heritage Classic breakdown.
He added win No. 7 on Saturday with 25 saves in a 5-4 win over Pittsburgh.
Fowler is the third straight Montreal rookie to take this honor, following Ivan Demidov in December 2025 and Lane Hutson, who won it in March and December of the 2024-25 season. He went 69th overall in the 2023 draft, and now he owns the first goalie Rookie of the Month nod for the Canadiens in 18 years.
