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Top-10 Prospects : Canadiens (1-5) |
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I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m for the most part a fan of the way the Habs have been drafting. They aren’t afraid of going for some really high risk high reward picks and have accumulated a ton of draft picks in general. I’ve had to remove Galchenyuk and Gallagher from the prospect pool as I feel they’ve established themselves as NHL players and are no longer rookies despite not reaching the 50 game limit I set out for this series originally. The past two drafts have been extremely strong by the Habs and they picked a lot of fallers with high, high upside.
They have had a history with the United States development system and really seem to go there when they are uncertain. Outside of Galchenyuk and Beaulieu the first selection in the draft is usually from the USHL/USHS/NCAA/USDP under Timmins. Since 2005 when Carey Price was selected it has been Fischer (USHS), McDonagh and Max Pax (USHS and USHL), Danny Kristo (USDP), Louis LeBlanc (USHL), Jarred Tinordi (USHL) and Michael McCarron (USHL) selected.
This one was really hard to rank.
1. Nathan Beaulieu, 17th Overall, 2011, 20 years old, 6’1 194lbs, Hamilton Bulldogs of the AHL
Beaulieu had an interesting season for the Bulldogs; he started out terribly, but as the season wore on got better and better. It’s unsurprising that an offensive defender like himself had a rough start, but the whole team was fairly garbage. He likes to hit even if it puts him out of position and he has excellent skating and puck moving ability. He can run a PP and has a nice mix of a great shot and good passing. He has some decision making issues and can make some boneheaded moves and pinches at times, but overall the risk is worth the reward with him. If he can improve his defensive game he could become a real star with the natural tools he possesses. Beaulieu and his father were charged with assault in late April so it will be interesting to see how that plays out and if it affects his development.
Potential : 2-4 Offensive Defenseman
2. Jarred Tinordi, 22nd Overall, 2010, 21 years old, 6’6 210lbs, Hamilton Bulldogs of the AHL
Tinordi is a sure fire NHL player at this point; the question is, as what? His defensive game is strong and he is a strong and physical player, yet while his skating has taken big strides (ha…ha?!) he’s still fairly slow and he provides almost zero offense. The hope is that he can become a premier shutdown defender that can physically intimidate opponents and help out an offensive partner by being his nanny. He has a lot of work to do and needs to improve, but he has improved a lot and quickly since his really horrid OHL rookie year. He looked good in the few games he played for the Habs, but will most likely start the year again in the AHL.
Potential : 4-6 Shutdown Defenseman
3. Jacob de la Rose, 34th Overall, 2013, 18 years old, 6’2 190lbs, Leksand in the Allsvenskan
De la Rose fell a bit in the draft after not getting much ice-time on his professional club and also because his offensive game didn’t evolve as much as most hoped. Defensively he’s superb, he plays it smart and plays hard. He’s a leader and a tough player that defends his teammates and throws hits as much as he can. He’s an intense player and he never quits, during the U18’s he was one of the better forwards playing in all situations and even played a shutdown role in the U20’s. His offensive upside is slightly worrying and it’s hard to tell what he will develop into, yet the concensus is that this is a guy who has an NHL future. He’ll play in the Elitserien as Leksand were promoted, he will not move to Windsor in the OHL currently even though they hold his rights after drafting him 11th overall in the CHL Import Draft. He did have the most points by a junior in the Allsvenskan so there is some hope on that upside.
Potential : 2nd/3rd Line Gritty Scorer
4. Sebastian Collberg, 33rd Overall, 2012, 19 years old, 5’11, 187lbs, Frölunda in the Elitserien
Brilliant on the international scene, Collberg has been a bit like the Jordan Eberle of Sweden in the U20’s/U18’s. A guy who sort of comes out of nowhere and just produces like a clutch monster when he can for his country. Now the issues are that he was getting almost no playing time for his Elitserien squad, which prompted him to be loaned to the Allsvenskan where he did very well. Ice-time is hard to come by for juniors in Sweden, but he was getting 5 minutes a night. It’s mainly because defensively he’s non-existent, he’s all scoring and all offense with amazing skating and a wicked wrist shot. He needs to bulk up and show that his game can translate to the North American game. Next season it isn’t clear whether he will play in the AHL or remain in the Elitserien, most seem to feel he will be in Frölunda next season though. Expect to see him in the U20’s and to dominate yet again.
Potential : Top-6 Scorer
5. Zachary Fucale, 36th Overall, 2013, 18 years old, 6’1 181lbs, Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL
The top ranked goalie in the 2013 draft fell out of the first round like I thought he might, goalies are tricky as hell and I think we’re seeing the smarter trend of not selecting them extremely early. Goalies are hard to describe and I like to leave that to guys like the Goalie Guild as pretty much you roll the dice and hope things work out. He won the QMJHL Defensive Rookie of the Year…whatever that means…at 17 and this past season backstopped the Mooseheads to a dominating Memorial Cup Championship, a QMJHL Title and the Ivan Hlinka Gold Medal. Could be a steal for the Habs where he was picked and is one of the better goalie prospects out there currently. Next season he will play yet again for the Mooseheads.
Potential : Starting Goalie
Thanks for reading.
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