The Canadian won. You do not dream. The Canadian won the lottery. I know, anyone can win the lottery. Especially since in the National Hockey League, the less good you are, the more likely you are to win the lottery. The Canadian therefore had plenty of chances. More than anyone. And he got the first pick in the next draft, which will take place on July 7, in Montreal.
Posted at 8:00 a.m.
In any other field of activity, the elite joins the elite. The most gifted law graduate does not join the worst team of lawyers. But hockey is a much more exciting game when the teams are of the same caliber, hence the equalization system.
Among all the young hopefuls, the worst team will be able to choose the best. That’s wonderful ! But still it is necessary to know which is the best. It’s scary. For to choose the first is not to choose all the others. And how to be certain that there is not, among all the others, a player who will shine more than his first?
There are years when it is obvious. In 1984, Mario Lemieux. In 2005, Sidney Crosby. In 2015, Connor McDavid. The general manager with the first choice, these summers, spent more time choosing the destination of his vacation than his lucky chosen one.
In 2022, it’s not that simple. Most pundits have Shane Wright, 18, born in Burlington, Ont., 6-foot, 190 pounds, captain of the Kingston Frontenacs, at the top of their list. Yes, Frontenacs, as in Louis de Buade de Frontenac, governor of New France from 1672 to 1682, who established Fort Frontenac in Kingston. On July 7, to the question, “what is your first choice? “, the Canadian should answer, through the mouth of his cannon: Shane Wright!
Except other experts claim the barrel is a wet squib. They prefer the American Logan Cooley or the Finn Juraj Slafkovsky or the Czech David Jiricek or the Slovak Simon Nemec or…
I know, that’s a lot of names you’ve never heard of. But don’t worry, just because you’ve never heard of them doesn’t mean you can’t have an opinion about them. Right now, every hockey fan knows who the Canadiens should draft, even if they’ve never seen one of those players play. As we know how to settle the pandemic, the war in Ukraine or the Roxham path. Because we know everything!
The last time the Habs had the privilege of picking first place was in 1980. They didn’t finish last. Far from there. He had just failed to win a fifth Stanley Cup in a row. Shame on the Glorious! He had the chance to prolong his dynasty, by choosing the rare pearl. The scouts had, at the top of their list, a tough guy from Regina, Doug Wickenheiser. They took it. However, a few kilometers from the Forum, triumphed at the Verdun arena, the prodigious Denis Savard. Future member of the Hall of Fame. Who would have transformed the end of Guy Lafleur’s career and lengthened the glorious years. Promoting local products sometimes pays off.
The DG had made the wrong choice. Easy to say afterwards. It is characteristic of all choices, to be judged in the court of time. Patrick Roy, one of the best goalkeepers of all time, was chosen at 51and draft rank. All the teams missed it several times, before Serge Savard claimed it. We owe him two Stanley Cups.
It is during the repechage that organizations are made and broken up. If the Canadian is in a tumble, it is because he has too often misjudged young talent.
They have long been an average team, drafting in the middle of the pack, and they could explain their average players that way. This year, he won’t have that excuse.
It’s a tail team, drafting in the lead. It’s all up to him. He is the first to enter the store. He can take whatever he wants. Spoiled for choice. He will have no excuse if his choice is embarrassing.
Not easy, not easy…
You will surely go to the market today to buy your flowers for the summer. Choose your planters. Good luck ! Of course, you can take the most beautiful ones from the shelves, but in a month they may be faded. While if you choose the one whose hatching seems the most promising, they may beautify your home all summer long.
I wish you to be a good DG of your garden.
And to be patient with the DG of the Canadian.
Sometimes the flower takes a few years to bloom.
Good choices, everyone!