The Montreal Canadiens have found their new general manager. The choice fell on the Quebec agent Kent Hughes, who succeeds Marc Bergevin.
After a search that spanned more than a month, Jeff Gorton, vice-president of hockey operations for the Canadiens, decided to trust Hughes, whom he knows well.
Originally from Beaconsfield, Kent Hughes becomes the 18th general manager of the Montreal team and he arrives with a well-filled roadmap in terms of hockey experiences.
Aged 51, he began his career in hockey as a player, before becoming an agent. He played one season with the Lac St-Louis Lions of the Midget AAA Hockey League and played at Middlebury College in Vermont from 1988 to 1992.
Hughes then moved into the world of player representation and came to prominence in the mainstream when his client Vincent Lecavalier was selected first overall in the 1998 draft.
A respected hockey man
Within the Quartexx Management agency, Hughes notably represented Quebecers Kristopher Letang, Patrice Bergeron and Anthony Beauvillier, as well as Darnell Nurse and Drake Batherson. At the time of joining the organization of the Canadiens, Hughes represented more than 20 players under contract in the NHL.
“We are very excited to have such a respected hockey man join our organization, Kent Hughes, who has built an excellent reputation as a player’s agent in the NHL for over 25 years now.” , President and CEO Geoff Molson said in the team’s statement.
“The process of hiring our new general manager allowed us to meet several highly qualified candidates. Kent is the one who stood out the most, and who we believe is the perfect person to fill the position of general manager. We believe that his extensive experience as an agent will be an important asset to our organization,” explained Gorton.
Hughes has resided in Boston for more than 20 years and it was there that he met Gorton, who held several different roles in the Bruins organization for 15 years. Gorton was assistant general manager for the Bruins when they selected Bergeron in the 2003 draft.
As general manager of the New York Rangers, Gorton selected one of Hughes’ two sons, Riley, at No. 216 in the 2018 draft. His other son, Jack, is a prospect in the upcoming NHL Draft, to be held to Montreal.
Riley and Jack play at Northeastern University along with Habs prospects Jordan Harris and Jayden Struble.
More details will follow.