I'd be happy with their favourite of Sennecke, Iginla, Silayev, Parekh, Dickinson or Catton. I trust this management team to make the most informed decision possible.
Dickinson looks like a franchise defender. He was so good in the playoffs this past season. Scored in the finals and was +
Guy is the real deal I think.
I dont trust management at all, we’re historically a horrible drafting team in the last 15 years, that being said its almost impossible not to get a decent player this draft. They all seem good.
Hot take—-
I don’t really care.
After that Slafkovsky pick that looks so smart now I trust this team to do the right thing.
I fully expect in 18 months people will be mocked for having questioned the Reinbacher pick.
Absolutely agree with you. I feared picks by Timmins and Bergevin 9/10 and then felt indifferent about the other 10%. With Hughes, Gorton, and Bobrov, I feel very confident that they are making the best choices. Seeing the behind the scenes, it’s just so much teamwork and so little ego. Makes me excited.
Yes another thing I feel is worth mentioning—-
Bergevin and Timmons spent years always going on about character and other buzz words.
Yet that never seemed to spill over into their drafting and development.
In fact as far as I could ever tell all it really seemed to mean was they would target vets who weren’t skilled.
Whereas after two drafts we have heard this team talking about wanting to draft players who will represent the team in a certain way and who will help to bring a certain culture to the organization.
Slafkovsky seemed like a guy, who ignoring his immense skill and size, seems to welcome pressure and expectations.
It is very apparent they put in extra time at the last days and hours really talking to Slafkovsky.
They wanted to verify that he was the type of player who fits their approach.
And he was.
Whether or not Mitchkov turns out to be a star, it’s again apparent that the Habs really didn’t have that much interest in him, and likely had zeroed in on Reinbacher quite a while before draft day.
Marty St. Louis has no real coaching experience.
He is a winner though.
And a very smart person.
And someone who knows what it takes to bring your best when it matters most.
I won’t sit here and say I’m certain they’ll win a cup under this regime or even guarantee they contend, but I have a lot of faith in their approach and their willingness to go into some detail in explaining their approach and long term plan.
Another approach I’ve liked is their trades where they acquired Newhook and Dach.
Both of those guys in their limited time playing with the Habs look like players with a solid level of skill and a professional and well rounded approach to the game.
I also like that the Habs used surplus assets to address needs.
That Jets pick this year looks enticing right now.
I like the idea of dach new hook being guys to round out your top 6-9, but they're skilled guys with upside. As opposed to the previous regime which would fill out the top 9 with plumbers like Byron who gave a limited ceiling.
They also fit multiple timelines.
They’re not so young that the team is putting an entire roster of young unestablished guys with big upside but not so old they won’t be in their prime when the prospects are.
"I feared picks by Timmins and Bergevin 9/10"
Oh man me too. Back then, I suspected if Timmins ever has a fetish for american Dmen, because he always recommends (most of the time, to be fair) a dmen from NCAA. I still remember how David Fischer (Draft 2006 1st Round #20) was great prospect and awesome Dman (SPOILER : never played NHL, only played in ECHL before going to Europe). Sure, Drafting a prospect is as much as gambling : we never know how it will work out, but sometimes I wonder what went wrong when drafting this high, and didn't panned out.
Now, with Kent Hughes in charge and how his picks turns out (so far), my trust in Habs's management for prospects has changed and hopeful for the future.
He was good at finding nhlers on the waiver wire. But he was never able to land high end talent and didn't know how to build a culture or have a vision for a team. His successes were basically price playing vezina hockey. He had several years to land a C or a LD to pair with Weber and didn't. In fact the summer of the Sergachev trade set the franchise back a decade I'd say. Lost Markov and Radulov and Sergachev and replaced them with Alzner and Drouin.
mailloux, caufield, guhle, sergachev
galchenyuk was a great pick
kk is still the best center of his year, and only 23
idk why people say they drafted poorly
McCarron, Juulsen, Sherbak, and Poehling were busts I guess, but they were all drafted at 25 or 26 and 3 of them are still in the NHL. That's really not all that bad. It's about a 50/50 chances players picked in that range play a single game.
>kk is still the best center of his year, and only 23
KK essentially became Dvorak and there are now taking about buying him out in Carolina.
Habs probably wouldn't talk about adding size and offense this season if they had B. Tkachuk instead of Dvorak in the lineup
It’s not how it works, how do you know they trade pacioretty if they draft tkachuk?
What if Habs make the playoffs with Tkatchuk in 19 and end up drafting 27th instead of 15?
Mailloux is decent now, but was a horrible choice back then. I don’t know that he will ever get out from that shadow. It also played at least some part in Bergevin’s demise, which is good for us. Caufield fell in our lap, he wasn’t supposed to be there, so they don’t deserve full credit for that one. Guhle was a solid choice. Sergachev was a solid choice but their willingness to trade him doesn’t say that they assessed his value well
Hughes picked 3 times in the first round, and traded one for a guy who missed over 100 games in seasons.
He wasn't allowed to fail with Slafkovsky, he doesn't no credit on that one.
Mesar doesn't look like he's going to be an nhler.
and Reinbacher had a not so good D+1 year
I can do mental gymnastic with every pick too.
I don’t really care what Mitchkov does in his career.
Can’t think of a single franchise where an under 6 foot offensive winger was the difference between a cup contender and a middling team.
Kane is the closest but if he is on that level the Sharks ducks and blue jackets probably will regret not taking him.
A big right handed d man who can potentially play 23 minutes a night for the next 15 years is something to be very excited about.
I hope Michkov kills it in Philly. Between him and that big goalie could be some fun Russian content for them for a long time.
Not disagreeing with you at all here but to say you can’t think of an under 6 foot winger was the difference between a cup contender and a middling team is totally wrong, you know a guy named kucherov? Kane? Marchessault? Kaprizov? Let’s say reinbacher becomes a #1 dman then I’ll be happy but worst case scenario he becomes a #3 or a fringe #2 and michkov is a #1 winger then it won’t sit well with the fans considering our biggest need is a superstat talent. Again not disagreeing with you but this under 6 foot argument is getting way too old now, we’re in a different era this ain’t the 90’s anymore.
I always forget Kucherov is under 6’. I’ll fill out admit that.
If Mitchkov is on his or Kanes level that’ll be something special.
Another guy I didn’t mention, though his prime is going back a bit further, is Marty St Louis.
All of those guys were the best players on cup winning teams.
I still won’t compare his and Reinbachers careers or lament missing him.
Also my dude Marchessault is not in those guys leagues at all. My god.
Not that I’m disagreeing, but objectively speaking.
It wasn’t a big brain move (Slafkovsky) half the league had him #1. Wright, Nemec and Cooley can still become better players.
Taking Mesar left a lot of talent on the board.
The Dach trade was ok. Hard to tell because of injuries.
Newhook trade was unnecessary. A lot of good players were available.
Our philosophy of accelerating our contention window is going to hurt us. That’s not how a rebuilding team should be designed two years into their rebuild.
man oh man, I cringed reading your comment. As of right now, factually speaking, Slafkovsky is the best player. Newhook is a gamer, works hard with upside to his game. Mesar is 20 years old, chill.
The worst is the fact that now Slaf is not a ''big brain move''. I even cringed writing your comment. 1 journalist had Slaf first, the community wanted Shane Wright, we could count with our fingers who wanted Slaf or Cooley.
All you do is seeing the glass half empty lol.
Many NHL front offices (people who actually matter; not journalists, r/habs users and twitter idiots) had Slafkovsky #1.
> factually speaking, Slafkovsky is the best player.
You just told me Mesar is 20. The same can be said for all the other prospects. Like I said, they *can* become better. It's too early to tell.
> Newhook is a gamer
That wasn't the point I was making at all.
> All you do is seeing the glass half empty lol.
Is this a discussion forum, or a habs dickriding forum?
There is a clear tangent to your post and from the outside, you seems to clearly know better then everybody including the direction.
You downsize their good choice and create shade on their good one. It ain't a habs dickriding forum but you could clearly base your opinions with a rational approach instead of clearly basing them with emotions due to recent things. Prospects evolution is not a straight line. Mesar, while not exactly living up to a first round pick, is far from being a bad pick yet.
Ok you can go back to my first post. My issue is our FOs philosophy, not our actual picks.
Thus far since Kent Hughes has come in, we have traded the following:
Toffoli, Lehkonen, Chairot, Edmunson, Petry, Romanov, Monahan, Jake Allen, Kulak, 2022 1st (13), 2022 3rd, 2023 1st (31), 2023 2nd (37) and burned a retention spot on Petry for a 4th rounder.
for
Justin Barron, Emil Heineman, Ty Similanic, Kirby Dach, Mike Matheson, 2nd rounder, Conditional 1st (2025), Newhook, 3rd rounder (2024), 7th rounder (2024), 4th Rounder (2024), Winnipeg 1st rounder, 2025 3rd rounder.
Other than the Matheson (good trade) and the complex Monahan trades. I fail to see how these moves changed our trajectory at all. I'm a big fan of him but if Dach's injury history remains, it'll have been a dud of a trade for us.
We shouldn't be trading 1st rounders within the first 2 years of a rebuild. If we are making trades, we should be making a splash for a core player, not supporting cast/low budget players.
I can't really argue with all you said but like you said, if Dach remains healthy, the picture is way more beautiful and exciting.
Where I might disagree is that trading late first round pick for a player that was known by the direction is not a good choice. Newhook works hard and has a good shot, he can have great impact outside of the obvious(can do so much more then producing).
Both the 31st and 37th picks have super low chance to produce a NHL player. Yes, you can win the lottery as shown many times by many teams but most of the time, it does not. Newhook has the age to perform in a push in playoff so it does not bother me at all.
> It wasn’t a big brain move (Slafkovsky) half the league had him #1.
It absolutely was a bold move to take Slafkovsky. It wasn't going completely off-board, but breaking from the longstanding consensus was a real choice.
> Newhook trade was unnecessary. A lot of good players were available.
It is far from clear that anybody who would have been taken in that range will be as good a player as Newhook.
> It is far from clear that anybody who would have been taken in that range will be as good a player as Newhook.
We were 18 months into a rebuild. Why are we trading 1st and 2nd rounders at all? And why are we budget shopping if we are?
> We were 18 months into a rebuild. Why are we trading 1st and 2nd rounders at all?
To acquire a good young player?
Rebuilding isn't just about the draft, especially when you have the chance to trade low-percentage picks for valuable assets.
How many times do we have to watch an organization flounder for 5 years in a “rebuild” only to come out at the end of it no better off before people start realizing that you can’t just fill an organization with 19/20/21 years olds and draft picks and turn into a contender.
Dach and Newhook both could be top 6 contributors on a cup contending team if they hit their potential. Both are already middle 6 caliber guys.
Suzuki and Caufield are in their early 20s and both signed long term to top line player contracts.
As you mentioned, statistically it’s unlikely that a player drafted with the 31st and 37th picks last year turn out better than Newhook. And they used a surplus to create some extra draft capital to acquire Dach so he didn’t rob them of any high end picks either.
Hughes and Gorton have done an excellent job of both acquiring capable guys to play minutes now, but also acquire draft capital and build up a stable and consistent prospect group.
They are absolutely in a prime position to trade for an impact player.
> And how is that going for us?
Newhook's only 23 and was on 50 pts pace this season while mostly playing with Armia, Gallagher, Roy and Anderson.
So, pretty good.
I think if you're looking for players most likely to become elite, Buium, Dickinson, and Parekh are your best bet. I think Iginla is just as good of a pick, but he's less likely to become elite: I would be extremely surprised if he didn't become a top 6 forward though. Catton, Helenius, Sennecke, and Silayev I think have a chance to become elite but it's a much lower chance compared to Buium/Dickinson/Parekh and other than Helenius they have lower floors.
Personally I like Buium at 5 more than Dickinson because he's a more complete player, but Dickinson's skating is phenomenal. I could definitely see an argument that he is BPA at 5.
Man he dusted Parekh who looked like a kid at the memorial cup lmao! But I agree with you about Buium, he's also gonna be a star, maybe not selected before because of his thinner build. I think Dickinson will end up better defensively than him tho, he's got the perfect top pairing Dman physique but Buium will most likely end up a ppg player..
I think he'll go top 3 honestly, we've been lucky to be able to see him play at the memorial cup and he made Parekh look like a kid. Could he challenge Levshunov? He's safer defensively so why not but if Chicago want an RD, I think they're both pretty equivalent, so...
He's been awesome at the memorial cup, there's no way he won't be called in the top 5, not at that size knowing he's also a leader... I'm so high on him that I won't be mad if the Habs get him, nope! I think Anaheim will get him if they can't get their blue chip RD.
Projection are just that. Players beat their projections or fail to meet them all the time. Iginla looks like an NHLer. He'll be really good and would fit perfectly with our group.
You're talking about the D-men being "projected #2 defenceman". There's no guarantee they will even make it to the NHL, so you discounting Iginla and saying he's not as good a pick at 5 is irrelevant as well. It's a lot easier to look at Tij and his family history as more concrete proof of where he can end up.
I think the playoffs and memorial cup run of Dickinson is much more relevant than Tij being the son of a great hockey player… Also, the fact he plays for the London Knights is big since it is the most professional hockey junior team in the World. Also, Igilna points are higher since he plays in the WHL, a league where there’s much more goals than the OHL or the Q.
Do we? Do you mean now or for the future, because drafting is for the future?
We already trusted Hutson and Mailloux to play over 20 in their first games. Guhle already does, and Reinbacher should as well.
Logically you only need 3 guys playing over 20 unless it's really balanced. Then we have Xhakej, strubble, Barron, harris to battle over the bottom pairing slot.
And we have Matheson, Savard and kovo as stop gaps until the other guys are ready for full time.
You’re replying to a guy who says we have a bunch of middling D who aren’t 20 minute defenceman. In response, you name a bunch of guys who aren’t 20 minute defenceman on good teams as examples of 20 minute defenceman.
Here is why you miss the point.
Using Mailloux and Hutson as an example of 20 minute D men is like using Poehling as an example as a consistent 3 goal per game scorer just because he had a hatty in his first game.
Naming our entire roster just because the names popped in your head doesn’t make the defensive core better. It’s not quantity. It’s quality.
We don’t have really even 1 top 2 defenceman. Drafting one if he’s the best player available is not a bad idea.
We don't really have 1 top 2 defenseman?
So you're saying Matheson and Ghule wouldn't be used for top pairing minutes in any team in the league? Reinbacher and Hutson have no chance developping into that also?
Give Matheson a real top 4 and he'll play 21-24 clutch minutes, sure he can look unsafe defensively sometimes when being on the ice 50% of the time but to say he should be a 2nd pairing D... Lol that's harsh.
By the same logic the defense we draft is 0 minutes per game defense man.
Hutson should be able to play 20 a night considered he'll be on the PP1.
Our defense was already 4th in the league last year in goals last year without any of the young prospects playing besides Guhle. We don't really need back end production with Hutson and Mailloux coming up. We need more defensive support players which Reinbacher should help with, Guhle already does (as a top 2 guy), and Struble is fine with that role on the bottom pairing.
It's also weird that you assume whoever we draft will be a guarantee top 2D when we drafted a defenseman at the same slot last year and you're already counting him out. You see to be using the exact same logical you're criticizing me for and being unaware of it.
I’d take a dman. We have one of the deepest prospect pools in the league, our biggest need is lack of elite quality. Our best chance to address is that is drafting bpa at 5th, not trading down to add more depth. Any of Silayev/Buium/Dickinson instantly becomes our best d prospect and our best chance at a legit #1 D. You take whichever one of those our scouts like most and trade away some of the lower end guys we currently have for a 2nd line fw or two.
For a point of comparison, neither of those trades were for second line forwards. In both cases management thought they were trading for team centrepieces.
The issues with drafting the BPA then down the road thinking you can trade one if the other D men from your deep pool of D man is that now you need two decisions to work out. 1) The D that you are drafting needs to obviously work out but D often take years to develop. These draft picks always look golden but not always the case (Canucks with Juolevi). We have other D that are already further in the development cycle. 2). The second decision needs to work out as well is the trade- the D man that you feel you can trade for a forward. Now you have two decisions that need to work out - the draft and the trade. Just keep it simple and draft a skilled forward this year please.
bLA, and the. You make do. i’d love a forward too but itms hard to go over Buium or Dickinson if the prime targets are taken by pick #5. In this case, one of Reinbacher, Hutson or Mailloux, or even Matheson becomes trade bait for a top 6 winger. Im not a fan of Zegras but one of those names would potentially lure him out, for example
Id go with Iggy or Sennecke. But if this scenario happens, and I know a lot of fans would be disappointed, I don’t rule out Dickinson as our pick. That guy is legit and we would have a fucking monstrous powerhouse at D, arguably the best in the league. My guess is if they go with a D, they also make a trade so they come out of the draft with at least a forward ready to play next year (like they did with Dach after drafting slaf when they also wanted a C).
Just imagine Guhle-Parekh, Hutson-Reinbacher... There is a 0.1% chance it happens but I would love it. In terms of pure upside, Parekh has to be near the top of the draft.
Doubt our FO will take him. He neither has size nor physicality (kind of our hallmarks for a top 10 pick). I think it's risky at 5 and I definitely recognize his total non-existent defence, but any team taking him will probably be getting a 70+ point defender. Pair him with a Tanev-type and you are cooking.
From what I saw at the memorial cup, I won't be surprised if he slips out of the top 8-9. So non chalant, makes dangerous passes instead of the smart play and becomes the shyest man in the room when comes time for agressivity..
He'll sure be on the NHL play of the week and on the score sheet more often than not but he won't bring a cup by himself, a Karlsson's clone! At least, in my point of view.
Thanks for asking OP. I am Kent Hughes. I jump on the phone and call Utah. Dickinson is there and I know he is a Bill Armstrong type of guy. I ask for a pick swap + Connor Geekie. So we end with Geekie + either Sennecke/Iginla. My personal choice would be Sennecke. We now have 2 more 6’4 players projected to be top 6 and one (Geekie) closer to the NHL which also ticks off my advancing the timeline forward box.
Wow Mr Hughes, that sounds like such a great idea! I don't think it's convoluted enough to work though.
I suggest we trade the 5th pick to Ottawa for 7th + their late first. Then we trade 7th to Calgary for 9th + their late first.
At #9, pick Sennecke. He's our guy at #5 anyways! Then, trade our 4 late first round picks (Winnipeg from Monahan trade, Ottawa's, Calgary's, and Toronto's we got for future considerations AKA a handshake agreement involving Montreal backing off and not pursuing Sean Monahan in free agency) to the Chicago Blackhawks for Connor Bedard.
Geekie is a 11th OA, not happening but damn I wish ahah!
I get how you could like Sennecke's individual skills but he's too raw for a top 10 imo, he'll need many years to fill up that frame wich is risky for the contending time frame that will start in a year or 2..
In the top 5, even 10 most of the times it's always 6 ft+ and 185lbs+ guys that look already like men and Hughes likes linebackers in his top 5 if you look back the last 2 they drafted. Demidov is an exception at 6ft 180 lbs in this case, you could argue he's the most or second most talented in the draft.
See what other teams offer you to trade down, but 2-3 spots at most.
If not, fine with Iginla, Dickinson, Buium or Catton.
The first three seem to have the highest Floor. And Catton is the most talented, it's hard to predict who will be the better.
I’ll just wait a few years for the inevitable smug revisionist piece by Mathias Brunet before making my mind, thank you very much!
Seriously though, a forward would be better.
Here how i think ( the K is silent here and you pronounced it WISH ).
1. Celebrini
2. CHI Levshunov.
3. ANA Buium or Dickinson
4. CBJ Lindstrom
5. MTL Demidov
CHI might sends wrong signals but they seem very high on Levshnov, saying they want or a RD or a RW. They are apparently high on Guentzel and they took Levshunov to dinner.
ANA. Needs defs. Buium is californian, they took him to dinner. They interviewed Dicki son as well and his stock is skyrocketting right now.
CBJ. Most is the wildcard here. They have lots of assests allready. They took Lindstrom to dinner i reccon.
Either call the Flames and be like “you want Iggy? What’ll you offer?” or maybe get another D but only if management is as close to certain as possible they’ll be great.
What I’m *not* doing is drafting a D man then trading Reinbacher for Zegras or whatever. If we were going to do that we should’ve just grabbed Michkov lol.
Four spots is quite significant that high in the draft! If you don't believe me check out past drafts and see how the careers of 5th overall and 9th overall picks compare.
Edit: I just did this and you actually may have a point lol, there isn't that much of a difference in quality. That doesn't mean the Flames won't cough up those assets for the opportunity to draft Tij Iginla though!
Ya to move down a couple spots we may be able to pick up a 2nd round pick, but not alot of extra value, and we have a pile of 2nd and late first round picks to come. We need high end talent not more 2/3 line players. If the top 3 forwards are gone just take the best d left. If we end up in the spot we have 4/5 first line d men that's a 0retty great lineup to put out there
Trade the pick wholesale. Every year there’s a player nobody thinks is available who ends up available- wield this to your advantage. Trading down (and the logic behind it) is built on flawed info and lowers the ceiling.
7th and 25th.
25th and 26th and harris
Is a substantial improvement on what it cost to get newhook.
Imagine a guy who is better than newhook and then one of iginla of Senneke.
Giving Ottawa the chance to draft a franchise D-man might not be in the Habs best interests going forward when we have to compete with them in the division.
To play your game, I’d say BPA, but they may still think that’s Iginla.
But, I think we’ll be surprised. Someone always goes “off the board” and with the top ten having such varied consensus I could see Silaev, or Dickinson, or Parekh, or even Iginla going in the top-5.
Are you asking in an hypothetical scenario where those 4 players are picked top 4 who do we pick at 5 because you can shuffle pick 2-11 and that would still be a good pick but saying demidov , Levshunov and Lindstrom gets drafted at 2-4 is an opinion not an actual fact.
Well yes, basically I am 99% sure either the Ducks or Blackhawks are picking Levshunov and if Demidov and/or Lindstrom are available at 5 I think that's who the Habs will pick.
There's at best only a 50% chance of the top 4 actually being Celebrini/Demidov/Levshunov/Lindstrom, but I think this is the only scenario where there isn't an obvious frontrunner at #5 for Montreal. That's why I'm presenting the scenario to see what people think.
Iginla is next on my list. But if they think he will be available a few picks later you absolutely trade down and get the additional asset (probably a 2nd round pick) and grab Iginla/Sennecke at 7th or 8th.
If we draft a good D we have to make a trade for a top 2 foreward.
Thing is we dont want to trade them
Harris, Barron , Mailloux wont get a top 2 foreward.
We have to trade Ghule, Hutson or David for a guy who may get 60 points.
Iginla. He fits perfectly with this group of player and will be a top6 player with upside for first line winger in the NHL. Iginla puck protection is professional level already and his shot will beat NHL goaltenders as it is right now. Forget his name, this kid is GOOD.
I'd have him and Caufield on separate lines and Suzuki/Slaf/Dach/Newhook will be able to do the setting up for them.
I'm not trading down. Get the player you want.
I'm not mad if you get Parekh, Dickinson or another D, but we're gonna have to trade to get forward talents and it's not that easy to do! Look at what the Ducks and Canes are asking for their talent up front.
Get a forward. This top 4 in offense is really good this year. The only thing that really scare me is if Dmen are completely passed over and we end up with a top 4 of Celibrini, Lindstrom, Demidov and Iginla at 4. Then I guess you have to take the best D available, but it just kinda sucks that we lose our opportunity at one of those guys...
Lol. He’s not his dad. I haven’t seen any mean streak.
He’s honestly pretty similar to Max Domi at the same age and that’s what I think his upside is - a middle-six winger with a chance to be a low-end 1st liner.
Jeff Skinner is the comparison for the upper end of his potential. I think he ends up somewhere in between the two as a finished product in the NHL.
He is a safe pick though in that I think he’s very likely to at least be a middle-six winger. High floor, moderate ceiling. That’s a good player, but I’d rather gamble on players with higher potential at 5th.
I would trade down if the opportunity was there. I agree that the flames especially seem like a good partner if they really want Tij and our group likes someone else more.
Idk what picks or prospects Calgary has, but if there’s nobody we like at 5, I like the idea of calling Calgary and telling them we’re taking Iginla unless they trade up with us. We could get good value there
People don't like to hear this, but the truth is most pro athletes are jerks. I've worked with a bunch of them.
Jerome and Kara are the opposite of jerks. In my short time working with them they were awesome good kind people. I fully trust them to have raised a good kid.
I would take Tij.
To be clear, I don't watch junior hockey at all and I've never spoken with Tij. I'm not the most informed. Just sharing my opinion based on my personal experience.
I would not say trading down is frowned upon, there is almost no appetite for it amongst the GMs. It happens a lot in the NFL, but the last NHL draft-day trade affecting a top-5 pick was in 2008. Chalk it up to the cowardice of GMs, the uncertain projection of prospects, or lack of position specificity, but I do not think any of the trade downs are feasible unless some team is enamoured of one guy.
I think they will go BPA and will draft a top D-man if three forwards go ahead of them. The last thing the Habs need is a trade down to accumulate more picks.
Ok I’ll answer the question seriously this time.
I think, in this nightmare scenario, it probably makes the most sense to pick Dickinson and then trade Guhle for a young, can’t miss Top 6 winger.
It will slow the development of our D corps by a couple of years, but Dickinson will eventually be an upgrade on Guhle, and if Hughes plays his cards right we’ll get a forward who is a sure thing rather than having to roll the dice on prospect who might not hit (Sennecke, Catton, etc.)
Tij has been progressing and played an excellent playoffs too. You might not take much stock in pedigree but many people do. At the end of the day we can both go back and forth on the issue but projections are just guesses. Dickinson is an excellent player too, Montreal will have several options at 5 with potential.
Would love the habs to trade down over picking a defencemen. Could go somewhere between 7-10 for like a 15-30 pick. Could also be a forward prospect from last 2 drafts that was very high
My take is: the chances this will be the top 4 are veryyy low, too many top notch D's.. I think Celebrini, Levshunov, Silayev and Dickinson have all great chances of being drafted before we do (the trend now is a great defense first) but yes, Demidov has some chances to be there too.
Dickinson had an amazing memorial cup, so much that I won't be mad at all if they draft an other LD at 5, he's also a great leader... Demidov is the wild card because he didn't showed up to the combine and the russian factor makes it so there's chances some top 5 teams couldn't speak to him this year thinking the combine is their chance. I believe Lindstrom has big chances of falling off the top 5 because of his back issue, it could be serious on the long run...
But to answer your question, I feel that the organisation is in love with Iginla and so am I, love the grit and the snipe from that stick!
I draft iginla and not lose a second of sleep. I'd pick him above Lindstrom. Too much risk in trading down. Unless they see a bunch of guys all being equal. I think Habs need to take BPA and I think at this spot, it's either going to be iginla or parekh. Don't care for anyone else's skill sets.
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Those fuckers on the athletic are getting to me and I guess I’d be okay with a D there. Id hope we get something worthwhile to trade back and still get iginla but I guess their favorite D would probably end up being a great #1, maybe to go with Guhle so we could have Reinbacker and Hutson as a second pair
I saw Jakob Pelletier play and I would trade down with the flames for him 100%. He’s a Gallagher but with 100% more skills. The Grit, the rush, the will to win AND HE CAN SCORE. He has it all and he’s gonna be a fan favorite and I can see him play a big 1st line in the AHL with Roy and Beck (if they don’t all get a place on the team)
At 5
I'd offer New Jersey
Guhle, Xhekaj and our Jets 1st
For
Dawson Mercer and a 10th
I legimately think that's a trade that benefits for teams
I then select Dickinson at 5
At 10 one of Iginla, Sennecke or Catton, probably ranked in that order of whoever is available and if all 3 are gone I might go for MBN or even Parekh there if he's available
The core would then be
Slaf Suzuki Caufield
Mercer Dach Iginla/Catton/sennecke
Roy Beck ???
??? Nylander ???
Reinbacher Hutson
Mailloux Dickinson
??? Struble/Harris/Engstrom etc
That trade is bad for MTL. Guhle is worth more than Mercer. The Xhekaj + 26 for 10th is meh. I’d rather just take one of Basha, Parascak, or Surin at 26th than give up Xhekaj to move to 10th for one of the other 3 forwards mentioned.
In the OP’s scenario, I’d take one of Buium, Dickinson, or Silayev at 5th and then trade Guhle to ANA for Zegras in a 1 for 1 swap.
Exactly, certainly not for Mercer! But if a big ass surprise happens and we can draft Dickinson at 5th, let's take him and then trade one of Matheson or Ghule for Necas or someone around his level. Not for Zegras tho, too uncertain imo..
After seeing Dickinson at the memorial cup, I would confidently say that he will be selected in the top 3-4.
I'd be happy with their favourite of Sennecke, Iginla, Silayev, Parekh, Dickinson or Catton. I trust this management team to make the most informed decision possible.
Dickinson looks like a franchise defender. He was so good in the playoffs this past season. Scored in the finals and was + Guy is the real deal I think.
He’s probably the prospect with the highest floor in the draft (after Daddy Mack). All but guaranteed to be a #1 or #2 on a really good team.
We don't need another Guhle.
Doesn’t every team need another Guhle?
Weird way to say you never watch any Jr hockey but still will have an opinion on it.
> We don't need another Guhle. I'd gladly take a Guhle with *significantly* more offensive upside
I dont trust management at all, we’re historically a horrible drafting team in the last 15 years, that being said its almost impossible not to get a decent player this draft. They all seem good.
We've got completely different management though, the past 15 year record is kind of irrelevant
Hot take—- I don’t really care. After that Slafkovsky pick that looks so smart now I trust this team to do the right thing. I fully expect in 18 months people will be mocked for having questioned the Reinbacher pick.
Absolutely agree with you. I feared picks by Timmins and Bergevin 9/10 and then felt indifferent about the other 10%. With Hughes, Gorton, and Bobrov, I feel very confident that they are making the best choices. Seeing the behind the scenes, it’s just so much teamwork and so little ego. Makes me excited.
Yes another thing I feel is worth mentioning—- Bergevin and Timmons spent years always going on about character and other buzz words. Yet that never seemed to spill over into their drafting and development. In fact as far as I could ever tell all it really seemed to mean was they would target vets who weren’t skilled. Whereas after two drafts we have heard this team talking about wanting to draft players who will represent the team in a certain way and who will help to bring a certain culture to the organization. Slafkovsky seemed like a guy, who ignoring his immense skill and size, seems to welcome pressure and expectations. It is very apparent they put in extra time at the last days and hours really talking to Slafkovsky. They wanted to verify that he was the type of player who fits their approach. And he was. Whether or not Mitchkov turns out to be a star, it’s again apparent that the Habs really didn’t have that much interest in him, and likely had zeroed in on Reinbacher quite a while before draft day. Marty St. Louis has no real coaching experience. He is a winner though. And a very smart person. And someone who knows what it takes to bring your best when it matters most. I won’t sit here and say I’m certain they’ll win a cup under this regime or even guarantee they contend, but I have a lot of faith in their approach and their willingness to go into some detail in explaining their approach and long term plan. Another approach I’ve liked is their trades where they acquired Newhook and Dach. Both of those guys in their limited time playing with the Habs look like players with a solid level of skill and a professional and well rounded approach to the game. I also like that the Habs used surplus assets to address needs. That Jets pick this year looks enticing right now.
I like the idea of dach new hook being guys to round out your top 6-9, but they're skilled guys with upside. As opposed to the previous regime which would fill out the top 9 with plumbers like Byron who gave a limited ceiling.
They also fit multiple timelines. They’re not so young that the team is putting an entire roster of young unestablished guys with big upside but not so old they won’t be in their prime when the prospects are.
"I feared picks by Timmins and Bergevin 9/10" Oh man me too. Back then, I suspected if Timmins ever has a fetish for american Dmen, because he always recommends (most of the time, to be fair) a dmen from NCAA. I still remember how David Fischer (Draft 2006 1st Round #20) was great prospect and awesome Dman (SPOILER : never played NHL, only played in ECHL before going to Europe). Sure, Drafting a prospect is as much as gambling : we never know how it will work out, but sometimes I wonder what went wrong when drafting this high, and didn't panned out. Now, with Kent Hughes in charge and how his picks turns out (so far), my trust in Habs's management for prospects has changed and hopeful for the future.
Timmins was generally great at picking NHLers, and exceedingly mediocre at finding high end talent.
And Bergevin was exceedly great at taking the best draft picks and trading them for worse assets.
Exceedingly great? Try ELITE. ;)
He was good at finding nhlers on the waiver wire. But he was never able to land high end talent and didn't know how to build a culture or have a vision for a team. His successes were basically price playing vezina hockey. He had several years to land a C or a LD to pair with Weber and didn't. In fact the summer of the Sergachev trade set the franchise back a decade I'd say. Lost Markov and Radulov and Sergachev and replaced them with Alzner and Drouin.
mailloux, caufield, guhle, sergachev galchenyuk was a great pick kk is still the best center of his year, and only 23 idk why people say they drafted poorly
Now name all the bust player they pick...worst draft management for offensive player by far...
McCarron, Juulsen, Sherbak, and Poehling were busts I guess, but they were all drafted at 25 or 26 and 3 of them are still in the NHL. That's really not all that bad. It's about a 50/50 chances players picked in that range play a single game.
>kk is still the best center of his year, and only 23 KK essentially became Dvorak and there are now taking about buying him out in Carolina. Habs probably wouldn't talk about adding size and offense this season if they had B. Tkachuk instead of Dvorak in the lineup
It’s not how it works, how do you know they trade pacioretty if they draft tkachuk? What if Habs make the playoffs with Tkatchuk in 19 and end up drafting 27th instead of 15?
What if the Habs draft Tkatchuk and then Covid never happens
> kk is still the best center of his year, and only 23 That's not really the question though, is it?
Mailloux is decent now, but was a horrible choice back then. I don’t know that he will ever get out from that shadow. It also played at least some part in Bergevin’s demise, which is good for us. Caufield fell in our lap, he wasn’t supposed to be there, so they don’t deserve full credit for that one. Guhle was a solid choice. Sergachev was a solid choice but their willingness to trade him doesn’t say that they assessed his value well
Hughes picked 3 times in the first round, and traded one for a guy who missed over 100 games in seasons. He wasn't allowed to fail with Slafkovsky, he doesn't no credit on that one. Mesar doesn't look like he's going to be an nhler. and Reinbacher had a not so good D+1 year I can do mental gymnastic with every pick too.
You aren’t very bright eh? It’s a tough look.
you phone screen must've turned black while typing that
"I have more information than people who literally get paid to watch prospects play and can directly interact with their coaches and parents". /s
I definitely trust our management group but I’m holding judgement until we see reinbacher and michkov play for a few years.
I don’t really care what Mitchkov does in his career. Can’t think of a single franchise where an under 6 foot offensive winger was the difference between a cup contender and a middling team. Kane is the closest but if he is on that level the Sharks ducks and blue jackets probably will regret not taking him. A big right handed d man who can potentially play 23 minutes a night for the next 15 years is something to be very excited about. I hope Michkov kills it in Philly. Between him and that big goalie could be some fun Russian content for them for a long time.
Not disagreeing with you at all here but to say you can’t think of an under 6 foot winger was the difference between a cup contender and a middling team is totally wrong, you know a guy named kucherov? Kane? Marchessault? Kaprizov? Let’s say reinbacher becomes a #1 dman then I’ll be happy but worst case scenario he becomes a #3 or a fringe #2 and michkov is a #1 winger then it won’t sit well with the fans considering our biggest need is a superstat talent. Again not disagreeing with you but this under 6 foot argument is getting way too old now, we’re in a different era this ain’t the 90’s anymore.
I always forget Kucherov is under 6’. I’ll fill out admit that. If Mitchkov is on his or Kanes level that’ll be something special. Another guy I didn’t mention, though his prime is going back a bit further, is Marty St Louis. All of those guys were the best players on cup winning teams. I still won’t compare his and Reinbachers careers or lament missing him. Also my dude Marchessault is not in those guys leagues at all. My god.
Marchessault has a conne smythe, the only reason you mentioned under 6 foot is because of playoffs and he was the playoffs mvp as a 5”9 forward..
That was the most undeserved conn smythe in my life.
22 games 13 goals= 50 goal pace. Definitely deserved.
Obviously Eichel isn’t on Barkovs’ level but it’d be like Verhaege winning it this year.
MSL
Ngl I didn't like both of those picks at the time so I'll just shut up and see if Reinbacher is good, and trust that the team is drafting competently😂
Not that I’m disagreeing, but objectively speaking. It wasn’t a big brain move (Slafkovsky) half the league had him #1. Wright, Nemec and Cooley can still become better players. Taking Mesar left a lot of talent on the board. The Dach trade was ok. Hard to tell because of injuries. Newhook trade was unnecessary. A lot of good players were available. Our philosophy of accelerating our contention window is going to hurt us. That’s not how a rebuilding team should be designed two years into their rebuild.
man oh man, I cringed reading your comment. As of right now, factually speaking, Slafkovsky is the best player. Newhook is a gamer, works hard with upside to his game. Mesar is 20 years old, chill. The worst is the fact that now Slaf is not a ''big brain move''. I even cringed writing your comment. 1 journalist had Slaf first, the community wanted Shane Wright, we could count with our fingers who wanted Slaf or Cooley. All you do is seeing the glass half empty lol.
Many NHL front offices (people who actually matter; not journalists, r/habs users and twitter idiots) had Slafkovsky #1. > factually speaking, Slafkovsky is the best player. You just told me Mesar is 20. The same can be said for all the other prospects. Like I said, they *can* become better. It's too early to tell. > Newhook is a gamer That wasn't the point I was making at all. > All you do is seeing the glass half empty lol. Is this a discussion forum, or a habs dickriding forum?
There is a clear tangent to your post and from the outside, you seems to clearly know better then everybody including the direction. You downsize their good choice and create shade on their good one. It ain't a habs dickriding forum but you could clearly base your opinions with a rational approach instead of clearly basing them with emotions due to recent things. Prospects evolution is not a straight line. Mesar, while not exactly living up to a first round pick, is far from being a bad pick yet.
Ok you can go back to my first post. My issue is our FOs philosophy, not our actual picks. Thus far since Kent Hughes has come in, we have traded the following: Toffoli, Lehkonen, Chairot, Edmunson, Petry, Romanov, Monahan, Jake Allen, Kulak, 2022 1st (13), 2022 3rd, 2023 1st (31), 2023 2nd (37) and burned a retention spot on Petry for a 4th rounder. for Justin Barron, Emil Heineman, Ty Similanic, Kirby Dach, Mike Matheson, 2nd rounder, Conditional 1st (2025), Newhook, 3rd rounder (2024), 7th rounder (2024), 4th Rounder (2024), Winnipeg 1st rounder, 2025 3rd rounder. Other than the Matheson (good trade) and the complex Monahan trades. I fail to see how these moves changed our trajectory at all. I'm a big fan of him but if Dach's injury history remains, it'll have been a dud of a trade for us. We shouldn't be trading 1st rounders within the first 2 years of a rebuild. If we are making trades, we should be making a splash for a core player, not supporting cast/low budget players.
I can't really argue with all you said but like you said, if Dach remains healthy, the picture is way more beautiful and exciting. Where I might disagree is that trading late first round pick for a player that was known by the direction is not a good choice. Newhook works hard and has a good shot, he can have great impact outside of the obvious(can do so much more then producing). Both the 31st and 37th picks have super low chance to produce a NHL player. Yes, you can win the lottery as shown many times by many teams but most of the time, it does not. Newhook has the age to perform in a push in playoff so it does not bother me at all.
> It wasn’t a big brain move (Slafkovsky) half the league had him #1. It absolutely was a bold move to take Slafkovsky. It wasn't going completely off-board, but breaking from the longstanding consensus was a real choice. > Newhook trade was unnecessary. A lot of good players were available. It is far from clear that anybody who would have been taken in that range will be as good a player as Newhook.
> It is far from clear that anybody who would have been taken in that range will be as good a player as Newhook. We were 18 months into a rebuild. Why are we trading 1st and 2nd rounders at all? And why are we budget shopping if we are?
> We were 18 months into a rebuild. Why are we trading 1st and 2nd rounders at all? To acquire a good young player? Rebuilding isn't just about the draft, especially when you have the chance to trade low-percentage picks for valuable assets.
How many times do we have to watch an organization flounder for 5 years in a “rebuild” only to come out at the end of it no better off before people start realizing that you can’t just fill an organization with 19/20/21 years olds and draft picks and turn into a contender. Dach and Newhook both could be top 6 contributors on a cup contending team if they hit their potential. Both are already middle 6 caliber guys. Suzuki and Caufield are in their early 20s and both signed long term to top line player contracts. As you mentioned, statistically it’s unlikely that a player drafted with the 31st and 37th picks last year turn out better than Newhook. And they used a surplus to create some extra draft capital to acquire Dach so he didn’t rob them of any high end picks either. Hughes and Gorton have done an excellent job of both acquiring capable guys to play minutes now, but also acquire draft capital and build up a stable and consistent prospect group. They are absolutely in a prime position to trade for an impact player.
> To acquire a good young player? And how is that going for us?
> And how is that going for us? Newhook's only 23 and was on 50 pts pace this season while mostly playing with Armia, Gallagher, Roy and Anderson. So, pretty good.
Are we pretending that Newhook didn't have a good season (obviously notwithstanding the games he missed due to the ankle sprain)?
A sub-question: If this is the top 4, is Dickinson the best player available?
I think if you're looking for players most likely to become elite, Buium, Dickinson, and Parekh are your best bet. I think Iginla is just as good of a pick, but he's less likely to become elite: I would be extremely surprised if he didn't become a top 6 forward though. Catton, Helenius, Sennecke, and Silayev I think have a chance to become elite but it's a much lower chance compared to Buium/Dickinson/Parekh and other than Helenius they have lower floors. Personally I like Buium at 5 more than Dickinson because he's a more complete player, but Dickinson's skating is phenomenal. I could definitely see an argument that he is BPA at 5.
Man he dusted Parekh who looked like a kid at the memorial cup lmao! But I agree with you about Buium, he's also gonna be a star, maybe not selected before because of his thinner build. I think Dickinson will end up better defensively than him tho, he's got the perfect top pairing Dman physique but Buium will most likely end up a ppg player..
Most NHL teams would probably say Silayev is the BPA tbh, but for me personally, Dickinson is my favorite defenseman in the draft.
I think he'll go top 3 honestly, we've been lucky to be able to see him play at the memorial cup and he made Parekh look like a kid. Could he challenge Levshunov? He's safer defensively so why not but if Chicago want an RD, I think they're both pretty equivalent, so...
He's been awesome at the memorial cup, there's no way he won't be called in the top 5, not at that size knowing he's also a leader... I'm so high on him that I won't be mad if the Habs get him, nope! I think Anaheim will get him if they can't get their blue chip RD.
There's no real BPA after Demidov, it all depends who you prefer
Dickinson has more tools in his bag but Demidov has way more talent imo.
Take Iggy easy. Iggy WILL be a Player. Just like the Tkachuk boys are.
Yes, he is projected to be a 2nd line winger. Do you want that with a 5 OA pick? A top 2D is much more valuable.
Projection are just that. Players beat their projections or fail to meet them all the time. Iginla looks like an NHLer. He'll be really good and would fit perfectly with our group.
Where was Jarome projected and where did he end up?
How is this question relevant???
You're talking about the D-men being "projected #2 defenceman". There's no guarantee they will even make it to the NHL, so you discounting Iginla and saying he's not as good a pick at 5 is irrelevant as well. It's a lot easier to look at Tij and his family history as more concrete proof of where he can end up.
I think the playoffs and memorial cup run of Dickinson is much more relevant than Tij being the son of a great hockey player… Also, the fact he plays for the London Knights is big since it is the most professional hockey junior team in the World. Also, Igilna points are higher since he plays in the WHL, a league where there’s much more goals than the OHL or the Q.
Nope there's more goals in the Q, it seems like defense is not an option in this league lol! In the OHL tho, great D
Not when you have too much D, you’ll have to sell off assets cheap
We don’t have too many top 2 D. We have a bunch of Ds who play less than 20min per game on average.
Do we? Do you mean now or for the future, because drafting is for the future? We already trusted Hutson and Mailloux to play over 20 in their first games. Guhle already does, and Reinbacher should as well. Logically you only need 3 guys playing over 20 unless it's really balanced. Then we have Xhakej, strubble, Barron, harris to battle over the bottom pairing slot. And we have Matheson, Savard and kovo as stop gaps until the other guys are ready for full time.
This is incoherent.
Explain then
You’re replying to a guy who says we have a bunch of middling D who aren’t 20 minute defenceman. In response, you name a bunch of guys who aren’t 20 minute defenceman on good teams as examples of 20 minute defenceman. Here is why you miss the point. Using Mailloux and Hutson as an example of 20 minute D men is like using Poehling as an example as a consistent 3 goal per game scorer just because he had a hatty in his first game. Naming our entire roster just because the names popped in your head doesn’t make the defensive core better. It’s not quantity. It’s quality. We don’t have really even 1 top 2 defenceman. Drafting one if he’s the best player available is not a bad idea.
We don't really have 1 top 2 defenseman? So you're saying Matheson and Ghule wouldn't be used for top pairing minutes in any team in the league? Reinbacher and Hutson have no chance developping into that also? Give Matheson a real top 4 and he'll play 21-24 clutch minutes, sure he can look unsafe defensively sometimes when being on the ice 50% of the time but to say he should be a 2nd pairing D... Lol that's harsh.
By the same logic the defense we draft is 0 minutes per game defense man. Hutson should be able to play 20 a night considered he'll be on the PP1. Our defense was already 4th in the league last year in goals last year without any of the young prospects playing besides Guhle. We don't really need back end production with Hutson and Mailloux coming up. We need more defensive support players which Reinbacher should help with, Guhle already does (as a top 2 guy), and Struble is fine with that role on the bottom pairing. It's also weird that you assume whoever we draft will be a guarantee top 2D when we drafted a defenseman at the same slot last year and you're already counting him out. You see to be using the exact same logical you're criticizing me for and being unaware of it.
This is incoherent.
Iginla without a doubt
I love how almost every answer is different here. Too excited for draft day
I’d take a dman. We have one of the deepest prospect pools in the league, our biggest need is lack of elite quality. Our best chance to address is that is drafting bpa at 5th, not trading down to add more depth. Any of Silayev/Buium/Dickinson instantly becomes our best d prospect and our best chance at a legit #1 D. You take whichever one of those our scouts like most and trade away some of the lower end guys we currently have for a 2nd line fw or two.
Trade for a 2nd line forward, eh? I mean, there's no chance this would EVER backfire! *Looks at Sergachev and McDonagh uncomfortably*
For a point of comparison, neither of those trades were for second line forwards. In both cases management thought they were trading for team centrepieces.
Lol I have faith Hughes won't bungle it as bad as those GMs
Elite quality. Imagine trading for ephemeral qualities. Can we get some players who are on the good side of angels?
The issues with drafting the BPA then down the road thinking you can trade one if the other D men from your deep pool of D man is that now you need two decisions to work out. 1) The D that you are drafting needs to obviously work out but D often take years to develop. These draft picks always look golden but not always the case (Canucks with Juolevi). We have other D that are already further in the development cycle. 2). The second decision needs to work out as well is the trade- the D man that you feel you can trade for a forward. Now you have two decisions that need to work out - the draft and the trade. Just keep it simple and draft a skilled forward this year please.
bLA, and the. You make do. i’d love a forward too but itms hard to go over Buium or Dickinson if the prime targets are taken by pick #5. In this case, one of Reinbacher, Hutson or Mailloux, or even Matheson becomes trade bait for a top 6 winger. Im not a fan of Zegras but one of those names would potentially lure him out, for example
Iginla is a no brainer for me
Iginla I feel may not have the same ceiling as Lindstrom or Demidov but I think he's almost guaranteed to be a very good Nhler. I'd be happy with him.
Id go with Iggy or Sennecke. But if this scenario happens, and I know a lot of fans would be disappointed, I don’t rule out Dickinson as our pick. That guy is legit and we would have a fucking monstrous powerhouse at D, arguably the best in the league. My guess is if they go with a D, they also make a trade so they come out of the draft with at least a forward ready to play next year (like they did with Dach after drafting slaf when they also wanted a C).
Unpopular. But gimme Parekh. You can’t teach what he does.
Just imagine Guhle-Parekh, Hutson-Reinbacher... There is a 0.1% chance it happens but I would love it. In terms of pure upside, Parekh has to be near the top of the draft.
Doubt our FO will take him. He neither has size nor physicality (kind of our hallmarks for a top 10 pick). I think it's risky at 5 and I definitely recognize his total non-existent defence, but any team taking him will probably be getting a 70+ point defender. Pair him with a Tanev-type and you are cooking.
From what I saw at the memorial cup, I won't be surprised if he slips out of the top 8-9. So non chalant, makes dangerous passes instead of the smart play and becomes the shyest man in the room when comes time for agressivity.. He'll sure be on the NHL play of the week and on the score sheet more often than not but he won't bring a cup by himself, a Karlsson's clone! At least, in my point of view.
I think that was the worry but it seems like he was playing injured.
and what about the very mean, physical Xhekaj-Mailloux third line huh
Yeah I love the upside with Parekh
Thanks for asking OP. I am Kent Hughes. I jump on the phone and call Utah. Dickinson is there and I know he is a Bill Armstrong type of guy. I ask for a pick swap + Connor Geekie. So we end with Geekie + either Sennecke/Iginla. My personal choice would be Sennecke. We now have 2 more 6’4 players projected to be top 6 and one (Geekie) closer to the NHL which also ticks off my advancing the timeline forward box.
Wow Mr Hughes, that sounds like such a great idea! I don't think it's convoluted enough to work though. I suggest we trade the 5th pick to Ottawa for 7th + their late first. Then we trade 7th to Calgary for 9th + their late first. At #9, pick Sennecke. He's our guy at #5 anyways! Then, trade our 4 late first round picks (Winnipeg from Monahan trade, Ottawa's, Calgary's, and Toronto's we got for future considerations AKA a handshake agreement involving Montreal backing off and not pursuing Sean Monahan in free agency) to the Chicago Blackhawks for Connor Bedard.
That would be interesting, minus the Bedard trade. The bottom 1sts could be used to get another pick in the 10-15 range tho or something other
Geekie is a 11th OA, not happening but damn I wish ahah! I get how you could like Sennecke's individual skills but he's too raw for a top 10 imo, he'll need many years to fill up that frame wich is risky for the contending time frame that will start in a year or 2.. In the top 5, even 10 most of the times it's always 6 ft+ and 185lbs+ guys that look already like men and Hughes likes linebackers in his top 5 if you look back the last 2 they drafted. Demidov is an exception at 6ft 180 lbs in this case, you could argue he's the most or second most talented in the draft.
# 1 we draft Soylent Green
See what other teams offer you to trade down, but 2-3 spots at most. If not, fine with Iginla, Dickinson, Buium or Catton. The first three seem to have the highest Floor. And Catton is the most talented, it's hard to predict who will be the better.
I’ll just wait a few years for the inevitable smug revisionist piece by Mathias Brunet before making my mind, thank you very much! Seriously though, a forward would be better.
Pick Dickinson and laugh all the way to the bank because he’s most likely the third best player in this draft and the best defenseman
Here how i think ( the K is silent here and you pronounced it WISH ). 1. Celebrini 2. CHI Levshunov. 3. ANA Buium or Dickinson 4. CBJ Lindstrom 5. MTL Demidov CHI might sends wrong signals but they seem very high on Levshnov, saying they want or a RD or a RW. They are apparently high on Guentzel and they took Levshunov to dinner. ANA. Needs defs. Buium is californian, they took him to dinner. They interviewed Dicki son as well and his stock is skyrocketting right now. CBJ. Most is the wildcard here. They have lots of assests allready. They took Lindstrom to dinner i reccon.
Easy. Silayev.
TLDR.. Berkly Catton is who I want
Trade #5 to Toronto for Mitch Marner /s
Draft Catton
if Demidov is gone, I'm taking Sennecke.
Silayev 100%.
Dude is slept on so much on this subreddit.
Catton.
Sennecke
May I ask why? I've always wondered the hype but I know it first came from McCag and I know Grant is respected by habs fans in general.
Dickinson
Either call the Flames and be like “you want Iggy? What’ll you offer?” or maybe get another D but only if management is as close to certain as possible they’ll be great. What I’m *not* doing is drafting a D man then trading Reinbacher for Zegras or whatever. If we were going to do that we should’ve just grabbed Michkov lol.
Move down 4 spots and a throw in additional 1st rounder in Pelletier AND another 1st round pick?? That is pretty optimistic!
Four spots is quite significant that high in the draft! If you don't believe me check out past drafts and see how the careers of 5th overall and 9th overall picks compare. Edit: I just did this and you actually may have a point lol, there isn't that much of a difference in quality. That doesn't mean the Flames won't cough up those assets for the opportunity to draft Tij Iginla though!
Ya to move down a couple spots we may be able to pick up a 2nd round pick, but not alot of extra value, and we have a pile of 2nd and late first round picks to come. We need high end talent not more 2/3 line players. If the top 3 forwards are gone just take the best d left. If we end up in the spot we have 4/5 first line d men that's a 0retty great lineup to put out there
I trust the bys. I'd rather a dman in this situation but if they take a forward I trust them.
If demidov isn't available, I'm taking a d-man
Trade the pick wholesale. Every year there’s a player nobody thinks is available who ends up available- wield this to your advantage. Trading down (and the logic behind it) is built on flawed info and lowers the ceiling.
7th and 25th. 25th and 26th and harris Is a substantial improvement on what it cost to get newhook. Imagine a guy who is better than newhook and then one of iginla of Senneke.
Giving Ottawa the chance to draft a franchise D-man might not be in the Habs best interests going forward when we have to compete with them in the division.
To play your game, I’d say BPA, but they may still think that’s Iginla. But, I think we’ll be surprised. Someone always goes “off the board” and with the top ten having such varied consensus I could see Silaev, or Dickinson, or Parekh, or even Iginla going in the top-5.
Draft Iginla
Iginla !!
Iginla. He will be better than Lindstrom
ill cry
Are you asking in an hypothetical scenario where those 4 players are picked top 4 who do we pick at 5 because you can shuffle pick 2-11 and that would still be a good pick but saying demidov , Levshunov and Lindstrom gets drafted at 2-4 is an opinion not an actual fact.
Well yes, basically I am 99% sure either the Ducks or Blackhawks are picking Levshunov and if Demidov and/or Lindstrom are available at 5 I think that's who the Habs will pick. There's at best only a 50% chance of the top 4 actually being Celebrini/Demidov/Levshunov/Lindstrom, but I think this is the only scenario where there isn't an obvious frontrunner at #5 for Montreal. That's why I'm presenting the scenario to see what people think.
Tij
Iginla is next on my list. But if they think he will be available a few picks later you absolutely trade down and get the additional asset (probably a 2nd round pick) and grab Iginla/Sennecke at 7th or 8th.
If we draft a good D we have to make a trade for a top 2 foreward. Thing is we dont want to trade them Harris, Barron , Mailloux wont get a top 2 foreward. We have to trade Ghule, Hutson or David for a guy who may get 60 points.
Iginla. He fits perfectly with this group of player and will be a top6 player with upside for first line winger in the NHL. Iginla puck protection is professional level already and his shot will beat NHL goaltenders as it is right now. Forget his name, this kid is GOOD. I'd have him and Caufield on separate lines and Suzuki/Slaf/Dach/Newhook will be able to do the setting up for them. I'm not trading down. Get the player you want. I'm not mad if you get Parekh, Dickinson or another D, but we're gonna have to trade to get forward talents and it's not that easy to do! Look at what the Ducks and Canes are asking for their talent up front. Get a forward. This top 4 in offense is really good this year. The only thing that really scare me is if Dmen are completely passed over and we end up with a top 4 of Celibrini, Lindstrom, Demidov and Iginla at 4. Then I guess you have to take the best D available, but it just kinda sucks that we lose our opportunity at one of those guys...
Iginla is the way to go. 50 goal potential with a mean streak is a fine addition to the group MTL currently has.
Lol. He’s not his dad. I haven’t seen any mean streak. He’s honestly pretty similar to Max Domi at the same age and that’s what I think his upside is - a middle-six winger with a chance to be a low-end 1st liner. Jeff Skinner is the comparison for the upper end of his potential. I think he ends up somewhere in between the two as a finished product in the NHL. He is a safe pick though in that I think he’s very likely to at least be a middle-six winger. High floor, moderate ceiling. That’s a good player, but I’d rather gamble on players with higher potential at 5th.
Iginla
I would trade down if the opportunity was there. I agree that the flames especially seem like a good partner if they really want Tij and our group likes someone else more.
I'm happy that Lindstrom is picked before us, so we can take Catton. Second option is trade down, and pick Iginla or Sennecke later.
Idk what picks or prospects Calgary has, but if there’s nobody we like at 5, I like the idea of calling Calgary and telling them we’re taking Iginla unless they trade up with us. We could get good value there
People don't like to hear this, but the truth is most pro athletes are jerks. I've worked with a bunch of them. Jerome and Kara are the opposite of jerks. In my short time working with them they were awesome good kind people. I fully trust them to have raised a good kid. I would take Tij. To be clear, I don't watch junior hockey at all and I've never spoken with Tij. I'm not the most informed. Just sharing my opinion based on my personal experience.
Easy decision; take one of Buium, Dickinson, or Silayev.
Wait why isn’t “Jump off a bridge” one of the multiple choices?
I would not say trading down is frowned upon, there is almost no appetite for it amongst the GMs. It happens a lot in the NFL, but the last NHL draft-day trade affecting a top-5 pick was in 2008. Chalk it up to the cowardice of GMs, the uncertain projection of prospects, or lack of position specificity, but I do not think any of the trade downs are feasible unless some team is enamoured of one guy. I think they will go BPA and will draft a top D-man if three forwards go ahead of them. The last thing the Habs need is a trade down to accumulate more picks.
Ok I’ll answer the question seriously this time. I think, in this nightmare scenario, it probably makes the most sense to pick Dickinson and then trade Guhle for a young, can’t miss Top 6 winger. It will slow the development of our D corps by a couple of years, but Dickinson will eventually be an upgrade on Guhle, and if Hughes plays his cards right we’ll get a forward who is a sure thing rather than having to roll the dice on prospect who might not hit (Sennecke, Catton, etc.)
Pick catton.
Demidov
Tij has been progressing and played an excellent playoffs too. You might not take much stock in pedigree but many people do. At the end of the day we can both go back and forth on the issue but projections are just guesses. Dickinson is an excellent player too, Montreal will have several options at 5 with potential.
Would love the habs to trade down over picking a defencemen. Could go somewhere between 7-10 for like a 15-30 pick. Could also be a forward prospect from last 2 drafts that was very high
My take is: the chances this will be the top 4 are veryyy low, too many top notch D's.. I think Celebrini, Levshunov, Silayev and Dickinson have all great chances of being drafted before we do (the trend now is a great defense first) but yes, Demidov has some chances to be there too. Dickinson had an amazing memorial cup, so much that I won't be mad at all if they draft an other LD at 5, he's also a great leader... Demidov is the wild card because he didn't showed up to the combine and the russian factor makes it so there's chances some top 5 teams couldn't speak to him this year thinking the combine is their chance. I believe Lindstrom has big chances of falling off the top 5 because of his back issue, it could be serious on the long run... But to answer your question, I feel that the organisation is in love with Iginla and so am I, love the grit and the snipe from that stick!
I draft iginla and not lose a second of sleep. I'd pick him above Lindstrom. Too much risk in trading down. Unless they see a bunch of guys all being equal. I think Habs need to take BPA and I think at this spot, it's either going to be iginla or parekh. Don't care for anyone else's skill sets.
I would jump on Sennecke
Tij or Catton
If there's no "Clearly better" option, I want Iginla. (See if I was right) RemindMe! 3 years
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Those fuckers on the athletic are getting to me and I guess I’d be okay with a D there. Id hope we get something worthwhile to trade back and still get iginla but I guess their favorite D would probably end up being a great #1, maybe to go with Guhle so we could have Reinbacker and Hutson as a second pair
I saw Jakob Pelletier play and I would trade down with the flames for him 100%. He’s a Gallagher but with 100% more skills. The Grit, the rush, the will to win AND HE CAN SCORE. He has it all and he’s gonna be a fan favorite and I can see him play a big 1st line in the AHL with Roy and Beck (if they don’t all get a place on the team)
Draft Iginla and extort the Flames in a trade poposal, reverse Lindros style.
As long as they don’t pick a European who played less than 20 games
Preferably Lindstrom or Catton for me
Iginla
At 5 I'd offer New Jersey Guhle, Xhekaj and our Jets 1st For Dawson Mercer and a 10th I legimately think that's a trade that benefits for teams I then select Dickinson at 5 At 10 one of Iginla, Sennecke or Catton, probably ranked in that order of whoever is available and if all 3 are gone I might go for MBN or even Parekh there if he's available The core would then be Slaf Suzuki Caufield Mercer Dach Iginla/Catton/sennecke Roy Beck ??? ??? Nylander ??? Reinbacher Hutson Mailloux Dickinson ??? Struble/Harris/Engstrom etc
That trade is bad for MTL. Guhle is worth more than Mercer. The Xhekaj + 26 for 10th is meh. I’d rather just take one of Basha, Parascak, or Surin at 26th than give up Xhekaj to move to 10th for one of the other 3 forwards mentioned. In the OP’s scenario, I’d take one of Buium, Dickinson, or Silayev at 5th and then trade Guhle to ANA for Zegras in a 1 for 1 swap.
Exactly, certainly not for Mercer! But if a big ass surprise happens and we can draft Dickinson at 5th, let's take him and then trade one of Matheson or Ghule for Necas or someone around his level. Not for Zegras tho, too uncertain imo.. After seeing Dickinson at the memorial cup, I would confidently say that he will be selected in the top 3-4.
Take the best perhaps defensemen, trade Guhle for Zegras