A few years after having drafted the controversial Logan Mailloux at the amateur auction, the owner of the Montreal Canadiens, Geoff Molson, is convinced that the organization has been able to draw the positive from the situation.
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The Ontario defender, who will turn 20 in a fortnight, is now at the gates of professional hockey. He had a very good season in the junior ranks, his second, and could eventually join the Laval Rocket.
Asked Thursday by the daily Montreal GazetteMolson recalled how far Mailloux had come since 2021. Recall that the young man had himself asked not to participate in the National League (NHL) draft, since he had broadcast, without consent, the intimate photos of a woman.
“He is a good guy who made a big mistake and we will continue to help him and see how it all turns out,” said the businessman, who says he always takes this file seriously.
Photo archives QMI Agency, Joël Lemay
Learning
He also returned to the days following the draft, when the Canadian was targeted from all sides by critics.
“I expected there to be a backlash, but I think I naively underestimated the backlash,” Molson told the Montreal daily. I’ve said publicly that I’ve been very upset and that’s something I’ve learned a lot from.”
This acknowledgment of immediate failure may have opened the franchise’s eyes to other issues and inequities surrounding the team.
“I truly believe that we have done a lot of good for society, but also for this organization, whether it is teaching respect within the organization or committing to having more diversity, which makes us take better group decisions, especially thanks to the representation of women in hockey operations,” Molson assured the Gazette.
Mailloux signed his three-year NHL entry-level contract last October.