HF Habs: 2024 NHL Draft Thread

[waffledave]

Because he’s Israeli and every Israeli has mandatory military service. The same concern we had to evaluate with the Russian prospects no?

He's not Israeli, he's American.

 

[ReHabs]

He's not Israeli, he's American.

Wikipedia says he’s Israeli American. I don’t know how dual citizenship works wrt the Israeli military, so it’s worth asking. Not sure what’s wrong with asking about it, it’s a genuine question!

 

[WeThreeKings]

Uou say you don't want Michkov for all these reasons, sure. Now those reasons aren't issues on Demidov. You say you likely take Leonard if Reinbacher was a left shot just last year. Hutson debuts in two critical games for Detroit and looks great. All of the defenseman are developing VERY nicely. At the end of all that, you take a left shot defenseman (which would have excluded Reinbacher from your choice last year) to pass on the high skill forward who is close to 6'1" who has none of the Michkov questions. It's just indefensible, the fan base won't accept this at all.

You are betting on an average sized Buium with average athletic tools to be one of the smartest players in the entire NHL. That's a terrible bet to make when you have a clear need, and a clear fit, staring you in the face.

 

[Doublechin]

Is there a possibility Buium enlists in the Israeli military? Has he done his mandatory service? I’ve read they’re calling up more troops for a potential second front — how does that impact Buium?

I mean who knows

One would hope not

 

[skidcells]

Oh man that most recent Basu price in the athletic suggests it might be Buium before Demidov and Lindstrom and definitely Buium above anyone not named Demidov and Lindstrom. I think I will lose my mind if we go Buium before Demidov if both are there. To a lesser extend, I’d lose my mind if we go Buium ahead of Lindstrom if both still available.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Oh man that most recent Basu price in the athletic suggests it might be Buium before Demidov and Lindstrom and definitely Buium above anyone not named Demidov and Lindstrom. I think I will lose my mind if we go Buium before Demidov if both are there. To a lesser extend, I’d lose my mind if we go Buium ahead of Lindstrom if both still available.

I'd lose my mind if we went Buium AT ALL - over Demidov is just not a defensible position for this franchise.

They better call Zeev, his brother, his parents and tell them to delete all their social media because this is gonna be a bloodbath of extreme portions. Not Zeev's fault but a lot of high ranking members of this team are setting themselves to be fired and memorialized as eternal villains in Habs history.

 

[Pompeius Magnus]

I'd lose my mind if we went Buium AT ALL - over Demidov is just not a defensible position for this franchise.

They better call Zeev, his brother, his parents and tell them to delete all their social media because this is gonna be a bloodbath of extreme portions. Not Zeev's fault but a lot of high ranking members of this team are setting themselves to be fired and memorialized as eternal villains in Habs history.

His family is from Israel, I'd probably tell him to stay off social media anyway, TBH I can already imagine how ugly stuff could/would get.

 

[Jaynki]

Yeah of course, I wouldnt have put money on him if I didnt believe in his chances to be drafted 5th OV by the Habs. If both Demidov and Lindstrom are off the board, Helenius is the obvious pick to me, a 5'11 190 lbs top 6 center who can play wing as well, that versatility is highly valuable to a team like the Habs in the eventuality Dach keeps struggling with injuries. Outside of his versatility and top 6 talent, that kid's compete level (motor) and hockey IQ are off the chart, he plays a solid 200 ft. game, great positional, protects his puck, great on the cycle, pretty slippery and tough to handle along the wall, great in tight areas, great skater, very high paced player, great in transition, great patience with the puck, never panic under pressure, very high passing rate success... I dont understand how you cant love the player, he is a beauty both on and off the puck, great strength that allows him to initiates physical contacts and win ton of 1 on 1 battles at 17 yrs old against growth men. The kid plays totally fearless and never back down when you try to intimidate him, he is like a little vikings out there.

Personally I dont really care about the noise, Sennecke has some great tools, but sooo raw, he is a 3-4 yrs project and we dont really know how it will turn out to be, I dont think the Habs will go there at 5. I could see them being interested in Iginla though and I would be fine with that pick, but I would go with Helenius personally, I think he fills way too many boxes to not be considered very highly.

At this point, Im just counting the days till the draft, its going to be a crazy night with so much uncertainty after Celebrini. I will watch that draft cool, relaxed and will just enjoy it, I will range behind the guy they decide to pick, we have to trust these guys, they know what they are doing.

Really appreciate your hindsight.

Any D you prefer to Helenius if Lindstrom/Demidov are gone ?

 

[Michelangelo]

Buium is projected to be a top pairing defenseman

It would be an understandable pick, especially if they see other defensemen currently in the pipeline as top 4 potential

 

[Vachon23]

Was the draft yesterday and I miss something ?

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

Oh man taking Buium over Demidov after Reinbacher before Michkov last year would be comical

 

[ReHabs]

Buium is projected to be a top pairing defenseman

It would be an understandable pick, especially if they see other defensemen currently in the pipeline as top 4 potential

It’s not his upside that’s in question but his downside. His physical stature isn’t particularly sexy for a dman and if he comes short of being a top pairing dman he’s liable to really fall off. Small dmen are at a big disadvantage.

Oh man taking Buium over Demidov after Reinbacher before Michkov last year would be comical

Bobrov knows best

 

[WeThreeKings]

Buium is projected to be a top pairing defenseman

It would be an understandable pick, especially if they see other defensemen currently in the pipeline as top 4 potential

Doesn't defend better than Guhle, doesn't create offense better than Hutson. Average sized, average athletic tools. He's not gonna be on PK1 or PP1, and then he has to be a 95% percentile hockey IQ guy to be a 1D.

I can't think of a potential pick that makes less than sense than Buium.

Oh man taking Buium over Demidov after Reinbacher before Michkov last year would be comical

Not even comical, just indefensible and probably the biggest galaxy braining ever done by a franchise. I got the Reinbacher, eat your vegetables take the high floor, smooth skating RD with size.. I don't get taking the average Buium who is a left shot.

Leaving the critical 3 drafts for the franchise with Slafkovsky, Reinbacher and Buium is sentencing this team to another rebuild.

 

[PavelBrendl]

I'd lose my mind if we went Buium AT ALL - over Demidov is just not a defensible position for this franchise.

They better call Zeev, his brother, his parents and tell them to delete all their social media because this is gonna be a bloodbath of extreme portions. Not Zeev's fault but a lot of high ranking members of this team are setting themselves to be fired and memorialized as eternal villains in Habs history.

And you don’t think this is the case with Sennecke? The average Habs fan would welcome a Dman who had a historic season in the NCAA at 5 much more warmly than they would a player that only managed pedestrian numbers in the OHL cuz growth spurts and magic beans.

Ahead of Demidov and Lindstrom, is the only way it could be a media shitstorm.

 

[Jaynki]

Oh man that most recent Basu price in the athletic suggests it might be Buium before Demidov and Lindstrom and definitely Buium above anyone not named Demidov and Lindstrom. I think I will lose my mind if we go Buium before Demidov if both are there. To a lesser extend, I’d lose my mind if we go Buium ahead of Lindstrom if both still available.

It is kinda written black on white.

I will ask you a question :

Dress a top 10 defenseman in the NHL. Now, when selecting a player in the draft who should enter this elite category, what should its draft year looks like?

Buium checks every single boxes.

I think Demidov and Lindstrom have gamebreaking talent so i want them at 5 but no teams in the NHL is deep enough at defense to spit on Buium potential. Especially not us with our plethora of potential #2-3D but no clear true 1D.

Dont let our current needs fool the analysis, in the end, Buium may have greater upside than any player in this draft beside Celebrini.

 

[Lockin17]

SJ : Celebrini
CHI : Buium
Ducks : Levshunov
CLB : Lindtsrom
Habs : Demidov


That's the new top 5

 

[Michoulicious]

They're just gonna do it again. I'm out on this decision I can't get behind passing on a forward talent this team hasn't had in 30 plus years, two years in a row, this time for a marginal upgrade on Hutson and our deepest position.

Buium is not mariginal update on Hutson, he's a superior prospect by a fair margin.

He had more production in his draft year than anyone in history, and offered MVP caliber performance on a NCAA championship team AND on a U20 championship team. Hutson was very good, but was in his D+2.

Hutson could end up as the better player in the end, but it is hard to argue that what Buium did in his draft year is remarquable.

 

[Jaynki]

Doesn't defend better than Guhle, doesn't create offense better than Hutson. Average sized, average athletic tools. He's not gonna be on PK1 or PP1, and then he has to be a 95% percentile hockey IQ guy to be a 1D.

I can't think of a potential pick that makes less than sense than Buium.



Not even comical, just indefensible and probably the biggest galaxy braining ever done by a franchise. I got the Reinbacher, eat your vegetables take the high floor, smooth skating RD with size.. I don't get taking the average Buium who is a left shot.

Leaving the critical 3 drafts for the franchise with Slafkovsky, Reinbacher and Buium is sentencing this team to another rebuild.

Buium and Reinbacher has the potential to be an absolute elite top pairing in the NHL and Slafkovsky is the unicorn.

Add to this the excellent young players we already have and i think it would sentence us for a decade of success.

 

[habsjosh2k2]

I'm one of the biggest pessimists when it comes to the Habs and their decision making but I think there is some overreaction here to the Arpon Basu article. He mentions multiple times that this is just a hypothetical scenario and he could have easily used a different set of forwards and defenceman for the same analysis. He also has the disclaimer early on that he truly doesn't know where the Canadiens stand on either Demidov or Buium, or who they would take in this scenario.

The only takeaway I see from this article is that a defenceman is a real possibility despite our larger need for a forward, but all else being equal, they would still lean forward. If they do project Buium better than Demidov, then they could go that route but nowhere does he say they do in fact value him more, or even see them as equal.

And if this does matter to you, Buium is still a huge underdog on all betting sites to go 5.

 

[WeThreeKings]

And you don’t think this is the case with Sennecke? The average Habs fan would welcome a Dman who had a historic season in the NCAA at 5 much more warmly than they would a player that only managed pedestrian numbers in the OHL cuz growth spurts and magic beans.

I think the attempt to get a top line forward will be more welcome than adding a left shot defenseman to which we already have a log jam and you can't make a meaningful argument his defensive game or offensive game is better than the options in the system and on the team now.

It is kinda written black on white.

I will ask you a question :

Dress a top 10 defenseman in the NHL. Now, when selecting a player in the draft who should enter this elite category, what should its draft year looks like

Buium checks every single boxes.

I think Demidov and Lindstrom have gamebreaking talent so i want them at 5 but no teams in the NHL is deep enough at defense to spit on Buium potential. Especially not us with our plethora of potential #2-3D but no clear true 1D.

Buium lacks pretty much everything that a top D needs.

Elite skating? Nope.
Size? Nope.
Elite defensive game? Nope.
High end shot? Nope.

You have to be so convinced that he's one of the smartest players in the NHL if he's gonna be a 1D. That's a bet you will lose more than you win.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Buium is not mariginal update on Hutson, he's a superior prospect by a fair margin.

He had more production in his draft year than anyone in history, and offered MVP caliber performance on a NCAA championship team AND on a U20 championship team. Hutson was very good, but was in his D+2.

Hutson could end up as the better player in the end, but it is hard to argue that what Buium did in his draft year is remarquable.

Denver inflates numbers all of the time.. the tools are what matter and Hutson's offensive tools are better than Buium's.

 

[PavelBrendl]

I think the attempt to get a top line forward will be more welcome than adding a left shot defenseman to which we already have a log jam and you can't make a meaningful argument his defensive game or offensive game is better than the options in the system and on the team now.



Buium lacks pretty much everything that a top D needs.

Elite skating? Nope.
Size? Nope.
Elite defensive game? Nope.
High end shot? Nope.

You have to be so convinced that he's one of the smartest players in the NHL if he's gonna be a 1D. That's a bet you will lose more than you win.

You certainly could make an argument for Buium being the best Dman in the Habs’ system but like you say about Sennecke, “some people just don’t want to understand”.

Which is clearly the case for you, since you’ve been making lazy and reductive assessments about every top Dman in favour of pounding the table for the biggest project in the draft cuz F good, D bad.

 

[WinterLion]

Luckily this management team does not do things to please the fans... They will take the guy they think will help the team succeed.

Denver inflates numbers all of the time.. the tools are what matter and Hutson's offensive tools are better than Buium's.

If you know all of this then the scouting staff certainly does, so relax.

 

[salbutera]

 

[WeThreeKings]

You certainly could make an argument for Buium being the best Dman in the Habs’ system but like you say about Sennecke, “some people just don’t want to understand”.

Which is clearly the case for you, since you’ve been making lazy and reductive assessments about every top Dman in favour of pounding the table for the biggest project in the draft cuz F good, D bad.

You could make that argument but you can't argue that any of his tools are better than the equivalents in the system on his own SIDE. He's not a better defender than Guhle. He's unlikely to be a better point producer than Hutson.

He lacks the size and skating to handle taking the defensive match-ups he will have to take as a 1D on the team. To the point where you almost assuredly want Guhle or Reinbacher on the ice in defensive situations. In offensive situations you'd want Hutsons playmaking and Mailloux's shot before you would want Buium's.

And no, if they took Parekh, I'd at least understand it because he'd be a right shot defenseman with the skating and shooting ability to be productive. I don't have to bet on him being one of the smartest players in the entire world for him to make an impact because the tools are better.

Luckily this management team does not do things to please the fans... They will take the guy they think will help the team succeed.



If you know all of this then the scouting staff certainly does, so relax.

Some people see things differently. I could be right, I could be wrong. All that matters is what they think but they have to be right and I don't think they're gonna be with that bet.