Posted at 7:00 a.m.
Mathias Brunet
Since you have to be daring… the Canadian will draft power winger Juraj Slafkovsky in the first row Thursday night and will also obtain a promising center by acquiring another choice in the top 12, either Noah Östlund, Cutter Gauthier, Marco Kasper or Jonathan Lekkerimäki (who can also play in the center), depending on everyone’s availability. This second choice will be obtained in return for the final choices of the first (26e) or beginning of second (33e) round, or against Josh Anderson and one of the two choices mentioned above.
Slafkovsky could start the season in Montreal, to the left of Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, while we will be more patient with the center. Östlund and Lekkerimäki can stay an additional season in Sweden, Gauthier will play at Boston College in the NCAA, while Kasper can stay in Sweden or join the Laval Rocket because of his European player status. In the meantime, Christian Dvorak will fill the void at second center despite trade rumours.
Richard Labbe
Nothing will happen. In fact, yes, it will eventually happen something; the Canadian will choose the first hope of all, a choice that we will be happy to criticize from here to Bye Bye 2026 ; then other clubs will choose other players, and so on, as it usually happens in the repechage. But there will be no bang, no negotiations and no major transactions as the internet has been promising us since Easter, simply because expectations are too high to be met.
On the other hand, it can be expected that some prospects or scouts will not be able to go to the Bell Center because they will be caught in the baggage line at the airport. That’s gonna be funny.
Guillaume Lefrancois
If we tell you Tim Stützle and Jake Sanderson, does that turn you on? Now let’s try two other names: Jay Bouwmeester and Petr Taticek. Less exciting? We’re throwing those names at you because they’re the last cases of teams having two picks in the top 10. In 2020, the Ottawa Senators claimed Stützle at 3e rank and Sanderson at 5e rank, and both have been progressing well ever since. In 2002, the Florida Panthers hit the mark with Bouwmeester at 3e rank, a little less with Taticek at 9e rank. Our prediction: the Canadiens will become the third team in 20 years to speak twice in the top 10.
To do this, Kent Hughes will obviously need his other first-round pick (26e), and he will have to draw among his best prospects in defense. Alexander Romanov, Kaiden Guhle, Justin Barron, Jordan Harris and Logan Mailloux are all under 23, and not all of them will become defenders of the top 4. So Hughes has the leeway to risk one and try to improve up front.
Simon Olivier Lorange
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Josh Anderson
At least one Canadiens veteran will be traded, and I bet a paper $2 bill on Josh Anderson. During his press briefing following Shea Weber’s departure for Vegas in mid-June, Kent Hughes threw Anderson’s name into the conversation when answering a question about… Evgenii Dadonov. The general manager indicated that he did not necessarily intend to trade him and recalled “how much we love Josh”, but did not close the door to any possibility.
Anyone with a more or less long memory will remember hearing these almost exact words to describe Artturi Lehkonen on the eve of the trade deadline in March. We know the rest. The Habs have a lot of heavy contracts in their payroll, and they won’t be able to liquidate them all at once. But with so many draft picks in hand, Hughes won’t hesitate if an interesting offer arises on the Bell Center floor.
Alexander Pratt
When will scouts put aside their negative bias against small forwards? Now. The successes of Johnny Gaudreau, Alex DeBrincat, Jonathan Marchessault and Cole Caufield, combined with the explosion of advanced stats, will convince them to take the plunge. Two players will benefit: Matthew Savoie and Jordan Dumais.
Savoie, author of 90 points in the Western League, could climb among the first five or six players drafted. Dumais is coming off a 109-point season with the Halifax Mooseheads. The Quebecer will be drafted earlier than his NHL Central Scouting ranking suggests (73e in North America). A good risk for the Canadian, at the end of the second round.