HF Habs: 2024 NHL Draft Thread

[WeThreeKings]

The only thing that's iffy on sennecke is his skating and that might be due to the growth spurt. I just hope it's that and not a lack of skating skill like KK

His skating isn't an issue - mechanically it's good, it's just the big growth spurt and the lack of power right now. Most scouts and draft coverage have not flagged it as an issue.

That is one hell of a convincing argument in favour of Buium tho.

I don't think he is overhyped tho, he indeed played in a strong program but he was also the leader of this program as a 17YO.

His resume is incredible and i believe he has a case for BPA against any forward in this draft not named Celebrini.

Also, his toolkit is not impressive, from a physical standpoint (skating, hands, shooting for example) i agree. But his hockey IQ is elite, top of the class and that is the most important trait for me.

He is not the best offensive dman of the class, nor the most physical or biggest but he excels at a very high level in every single one of those categories.

I can totally envision Buium being a true 1D with norris nomination. (Ceiling). He does not have the rock-solid big top pair archetype of a Lev, Dickinson or Silayev, but imo, he simply has an higher ceiling than those.

The guy has killed the NCAA at 17, that is big, he is probably coming at the end of next season and although we have many LDs, he would be top of the list.

He is my personal favourite at 5. In fact, he is 2nd on my worthless list. One possible scenario is that he becames a 1D and with Reinbacher will gives us one of the best pairing in the league. We will be in a spot to deal from a position of strenght and the forward we may acquire trading one of our young Ds may be better than the forward we would draft instead.

I also think Buium displays the human qualities we saw in Slaf and Reinbacher. Starpower, charisma, humble confidence, ability to handle the MTL market, etc.

Finally, some forward have great profile indeed, and we are in dire need for offensive punch, but i don't know, i am simply higher on the top defenseman in this class. There is many valid question marks on the forward beside Celebrini and although they are great prospects and we could absolutely benefit from them, i don't think there are players with superstar upside like Buium has, in my humble opinion.

It's not a convincing argument - if Hutson fails it won't be because he's 2 inches shorter. le_sean hits the nail on the head with the post below - you are making a huge bet that his hockey IQ remains so much higher than everyone else in the NHL, it's not a convincing bet to make when the rest of the tool kit isn't loud. If Hutson fails it will be because he can't out-think his opponent and his agility forward skating style doesn't translate against NHL defenders. Buium has those same elements to his game.

I'm not willing to bet Buium's offensive tool-kit and smarts are leagues better than Hutsons? In fact, I believe its the opposite.

I just can't get behind using the 5th overall pick on - the one position we need the least. On a guy without any physical elite trait, a guy that we have our own in house version of already, and a guy that needs everything to break his way to be an impact defenseman. This isn't Lindstrom where if the IQ and playmaking don't advance, the size, skill and athletic profile with the shot will still be a player on your 2nd line that helps when the playoffs come. I'd bet on Parekh's elite shot and handles before I bet on Buium's subdued offensive skills.

I like Buium but he's closer to 10 for me and he doesn't ever enter the conversation for me because it's a waste of our last top 5 pick considering our strength there and what else would be available.

Then at that point I’d rather take a chance at the toolsy Dickinson. Because if not, you’re just banking on Buium having the best hockey sense in the NHL in order to carve out a career. I don’t think that’s a smart risk to take at 5.

Especially when your LD is so deep you don't need to take it.

Everyone is assuming Ducks are set on taking a D but even they are probably strongly considering Demidov.

If I were to put money down right now, both Demidov and Lindstrom will be gone and Habs go Sennecke.

I don't think they're considering Demidov. Not Verbeek's style and they are already heavy on left shot forwards, they'd be looking for right shots both at forward and on defense.

If they were to pick Buium #5 I'm confident they'd have something else up their sleeve to get forward help.

A Buium-Reinbacher pairing sounds pretty damn good to me.

I remember reading we shouldn't even think about drafting Quinn Hughes because we already had Victor Mete.

It's not Victor Mete - it's Guhle, it's Hutson, It's Xhekaj, it's Engstrom, it's Struble, it's Harris and it's Matheson. We already have to make hard decisions on this. Adding another name to the mix isn't going to help and trading defense for forward help is not as easy as it sounds in theory. I think we see one every 4 years and in half of those we aren't eligible to make that trade because the player wouldn't waive a NTC, the team wouldn't trade within conference/division or the player wouldn't sign in Canada.

Buium plays a roving style, but a lot of time on faceoffs/rush plays he's coming up the right side. I'm thinking Montreal thinks he may be a left handed RD, which makes it easier to see where he could slot within the line-up.

As posters pointed out, his play style is very reminiscent of Lane Hutson. If management is still not sure about Hutson, then maybe the best course of action is to draft Buium as a "hedge," especially if none of any remaining forwards are projected to have more than say, a 2nd line impact. If both Hutson and Buium hit, then you can trade one, and defensemen of that nature are rare and in high demand. If Buium hits and Hutson's size limits him too much, you'll be thankful you had the back-up given how rare these types of players are. If Hutson hits and Buium busts, then you'll be disappointed you wasted a top-5 pick, but I have a hard time picturing Buium not playing in the NHL. Of course there's a chance that neither hit, and that's a worse case scenario.

Still, if you're thinking a cup contender has certain archetypes to fill, and a #1 PP D quarterback is one of them, it's understandable why you might go this route especially if the forwards aren't interesting.

With all that being said, I am hopeful that one of Demidov or Lindstrom falls to Montreal, but in a situation where the top 4 is Celebrini/Lev/Demidov/Lindstrom I'd be very comfortable going for Buium over the rest.

Most coaches want their defenseman on their natural side. Picking a LD to play him on the right side is a waste of that pick when you could just pick Parekh and get better qualities with the same questions but not force someone to have to play their off side in the NHL.

Not everyone is even comfortable Buium runs a PP1 in the NHL.

Good afternoon we on the Zeev train today? Aight

Dosen't know what a cheat meal is
No ultra tight pants
Sneakers properly laced

Lovely

View attachment 884434

https://x.com/i/web/status/1803025114117628002

Well he's out - he's too ugly for us.

 

[Doublechin]

Hutson wasn’t a first-round pick, so I see some have an ‘easy come, easy go’ outlook on him.

I don’t think Habs’ brass shares that view.

Has board enthusiasm for a player ever evaporated at a faster rate? And for no apparent reason?

The kid has even grown and added weight but - he must be moved!!!

Weird shite.

I don't think the narrative is "he must be moved"

The convo is if Habs draft Buium, one between him and Hutson becomes redundant but that's assuming both play the LD

If Buium works on the right on the PP than he and Hutson give you an elite back end on the power play. If he ends up on the left then quickly one gets way less PP minutes and might be be played to his potential.

Either way, early convo, odds are Buium stays a year or two in college and if drafted that's when I consider making a move, there's no urgency.

By then you'll see which LD gives you the best return and you move him

 

[Ozmodiar]

He doesn't put up those points on our team.

So you would value Verhaeghe the same as Caufield and Hutson when they are in their prime. Would you trade either of Caufield or Hutson for Verhaeghe? I wouldn't! Good top 6 or high end middle 6 type. People can laugh at this all they want.

Trocheck and Panarin would be significant assets yes. I don't need to look up their points either

Did you forget the question you originally asked? “Top of the lineup players”

Now it’s not enough if we wouldn’t trade caufield for them? Goalpost shift, but let’s go with it ….

Dallas has Stankoven (171) Wyatt Johnston.

Carolina has Aho, guentzel, Jarvis, Necas - under 190. Quality assets in top of lineup.

Jets - Connor, Ehlers and perfetti - under 190. Quality assets in top of lineup.

Vancouver - Pettersson, Garland … Lekkerimaki on the way.

… these 4 teams along with FLA and NYR were the top 6 teams last season.

Very easy to find 2 sub-190, top-of-the-lineup, players on a competitive team.

 

[BeliveauFan4ever]

Lane Hutson had great edges, lookin’ smooth when drafted two years ago.

If he had grown 4.5 inches after draft day, would he look smooth as ever, or need time to adjust?

 

[Gaylord Q Tinkledink]

Probably mentioned, but Ryan Kennedy was on the sick podcast and was told by scout(s) that Sennecke could end up a centre in the NHL.

Says he's 5'11 and Demidov is taller than him.

 

[Habs Halifax]

Did you forget the question you originally asked? “Top of the lineup players”

Now it’s not enough if we wouldn’t trade caufield for them? Goalpost shift, but let’s go with it ….

Dallas has Stankoven (171) Wyatt Johnston.

Carolina has Aho, guentzel, Jarvis, Necas - under 190. Quality assets in top of lineup.

Jets - Connor, Ehlers and perfetti - under 190. Quality assets in top of lineup.

Vancouver - Pettersson, Garland … Lekkerimaki on the way.

… these 4 teams along with FLA and NYR were the top 6 teams last season.

Very easy to find 2 sub-190, top-of-the-lineup, players on a competitive team.

I use the words significant assets. You changed it in your head to "top of the line-up players".
Sorry, I don't consider Verhaeghe a significant asset. I consider him a top 6 or very strong top 9. You can look up his points on a great team all you want. Sometimes there are players that play up in the line-up. Verhaeghe is a 2nd tier talent so no, I don't consider him a significant asset.

Significant Assets:
#1C or #2C
Top 4D
Top line wingers (without a question types)

With Caufield and Hutson and our dreams of being a contender, I feel our fan base thinks of Caufield as a top line winger and Hutson as a top 4D.

Or, you can shift it a bit and say neither of Caufield or Hutson are significant assets? An argument can be made that Caufield is a 2nd line winger and Hutson will be a PP QB but bottom pairing at 5/5. Now watch out for the nit pickers who comprehend this as exactly what I think they are. Wait for it.

 

[BeliveauFan4ever]

I don't think the narrative is "he must be moved"

The convo is if Habs draft Buium, one between him and Hutson becomes redundant but that's assuming both play the LD

If Buium works on the right on the PP than he and Hutson give you an elite back end on the power play. If he ends up on the left then quickly one gets way less PP minutes and might be be played to his potential.

Either way, early convo, odds are Buium stays a year or two in college and if drafted that's when I consider making a move, there's no urgency.

By then you'll see which LD gives you the best return and you move him

My point is, he’s the same player they drafted two years ago, only with a little more weight and height.

He’s a talent.

I doubt they move him. I sure wouldn’t in pursuit of Buium at pick 5 or other.

 

[Bourdon101]

I can’t imagine walking after having grown that much in a year, let alone doing crossovers.

I'm not a high level athlete, but I was around 5'11 at 16-17 and ended up 6'4. So I went through a similar late spurt as Sennecke.

It's anecdotal, but it took me years to be able to move well. I'm talking about around 23-24 year old. The level I am at athletically today is light-years ahead of back then (I am not extremely fit or athletic now, I just sucked that much). I did not train like a pro at all and so the parallel is kind of moot, but still the idea that he could "level up" makes total sense to me as a late grower. When I was 19, I felt like I was physically in the body of a 17 year old.

Now the flipside of this argument is that there is no guarantee Sennecke will ever "get" playing big, though he may be big. Another anecdotal take : I come from the same city and I am around the same age as Mantha and coaches/parents who were around him growing up told me that he was always one of the smaller kids, and it shows. He ended up a giant but he does not play like it. They are different very players, of course, but it goes to show that a kid that grows late can end up playing like he never grew up.

Sennecke is an "if" player. If he can take another step athletically and also learn to use his body, with the skills he has already, I think he ends up the best winger in the draft.

That's a dice I'd be willing to throw, and I would think, given the nature of his moves so far, Kent Huges does too.

 

[le_sean]

I don't think the narrative is "he must be moved"

The convo is if Habs draft Buium, one between him and Hutson becomes redundant but that's assuming both play the LD

If Buium works on the right on the PP than he and Hutson give you an elite back end on the power play. If he ends up on the left then quickly one gets way less PP minutes and might be be played to his potential.

Either way, early convo, odds are Buium stays a year or two in college and if drafted that's when I consider making a move, there's no urgency.

By then you'll see which LD gives you the best return and you move him

No team plays with two defencemen on the PP anymore. And in this instance it makes even less sense because neither is a one-timer or even a general shooting threat. As talented as they are, it would be a horrible fit.

 

[InAG-P]

Everyone is assuming Ducks are set on taking a D but even they are probably strongly considering Demidov.

If I were to put money down right now, both Demidov and Lindstrom will be gone and Habs go Sennecke.

as time passes the more i realize this is exactly what will happen. Which i'm fine with. Oddly enough, i'm 100% ok with whoever we end up with in this draft ... even D.

 

[WeThreeKings]

No team plays with two defencemen on the PP anymore. And in this instance it makes even less sense because neither is a one-timer or even a general shooting threat. As talented as they are, it would be a horrible fit.

Yeah it doesn't make any sense at all.

Here's the other part of it.

If Hutson hits -> he will hit while Buium is still developing in college. He will get PP1 duties and will generally be running the offense from the back-end for Montreal. This makes trading Hutson not an option, so you've essentially created a situation where in a year or two you are trading a 5th overall pick. The chances of getting a 5th overall quality player in a trade for Buium is unlikely - you'd be looking for another team in the same situation with a different surplus and I don't see that unless the Ducks draft Lindstrom but it's easier to fit a 4th big forward into your top 6 than a PP specialist into your top 4 D when you already ahve one.

If Hutson doesn't hit -> his trade value is gone, so flipping him for a forward isn't going to happen. Buium is a good insurance policy and you've mitigated that, but now you still have a hole at forward and no surplus to even investigate a trade.

 

[Doublechin]

It all comes back to is Buium is their BPA

If he is, they grab him and adapt and yes there are ways to work around it. It's not like you can't have both of them in the lineup a year or two

 

[WeThreeKings]

It all comes back to is Buium is their BPA

If he is, they grab him and adapt and yes there are ways to work around it. It's not like you can't have both of them in the lineup a year or two

You can't have both of them and maximize their talents as players.

 

[Team_Spirit]

Hutson-Buium is the ultimate 1-2 ankle breaker combo. Teams are not ready they will have no rest.

Carey Price are you kidding me they already have Jose Theodore!

https://x.com/i/web/status/1761576424413020231

 

[Whitesnake]

I honestly don't know why McCagg has a bad reputation when other "insiders" are also throwing out bone head click bait statements as well. Why does McCagg get attacked more for it? Not sure but I find a lot of fans are gullible to the bandwagon popular movements.

Not going to go through all of it...but it's the Mr. Know-it-All personnality. The guy always has reasons for his bad takes. Or try to pretend like it never happened. It's a question of personnality. It's never about having opinions prior to a draft as nobody would know if a pick is good or not.

That's also why some dislike Snake Boisvert as well. Personnally, I,m fine with Boisvert as he owns the bad decisions he makes.

And frankly, where McCagg is at his worst....it's when he tries to justify the decisions...sometimes....he has point of views that 5 year olds wouldn't have. He should rather shouts names and says what he learns from the inside. When he goes out of this...he's at his worst.

 

[Whitesnake]

Yeah it doesn't make any sense at all.

Here's the other part of it.

If Hutson hits -> he will hit while Buium is still developing in college. He will get PP1 duties and will generally be running the offense from the back-end for Montreal. This makes trading Hutson not an option, so you've essentially created a situation where in a year or two you are trading a 5th overall pick. The chances of getting a 5th overall quality player in a trade for Buium is unlikely - you'd be looking for another team in the same situation with a different surplus and I don't see that unless the Ducks draft Lindstrom but it's easier to fit a 4th big forward into your top 6 than a PP specialist into your top 4 D when you already ahve one.

If Hutson doesn't hit -> his trade value is gone, so flipping him for a forward isn't going to happen. Buium is a good insurance policy and you've mitigated that, but now you still have a hole at forward and no surplus to even investigate a trade.

But if he doesn't hit....I'm not sure I understand why having a hole at forward matters as you'd have a hole on D anyway.....The idea is to draft the best. And deal.

Was Drysdale hitting with Anaheim? If he wasn't...how were they able to get Gauthier for him? And was Mintyukov a bad pick after the Zellwegger pick?

Elsewhere, people talk about depth? Here we talk about having too many good ones?

Also, if Hutson hits....he'll hit this year. Buium with his game will probably be in Montreal in 2025. We won't even know how much Hutson hits as we will be waiting for his 2nd full year. Also. to which extent Buium can't play left?

Personnally, I will have Dickinson ahead of Buium. But not that far ahead. And I TOTALLY understand the love for Buium though if true.

 

[Ozmodiar]

I use the words significant assets. You changed it in your head to "top of the line-up players".
Sorry, I don't consider Verhaeghe a significant asset. I consider him a top 6 or very strong top 9. You can look up his points on a great team all you want. Sometimes there are players that play up in the line-up. Verhaeghe is a 2nd tier talent so no, I don't consider him a significant asset.

Significant Assets:
#1C or #2C
Top 4D
Top line wingers (without a question types)

With Caufield and Hutson and our dreams of being a contender, I feel our fan base thinks of Caufield as a top line winger and Hutson as a top 4D.

Or, you can shift it a bit and say neither of Caufield or Hutson are significant assets? An argument can be made that Caufield is a 2nd line winger and Hutson will be a PP QB but bottom pairing at 5/5. Now watch out for the nit pickers who comprehend this as exactly what I think they are. Wait for it.

3 of the 4 examples I listed in the comment you just replied to have 2 players who are all:
- under 190
- All significant assets
- top of the lineup players
- picked in the first round higher than Caufield

If they don’t qualify, neither do Hutson and Caufield. Very easy to find examples of this, even at the top of the standings.

 

[Habs Halifax]

3 of the 4 examples I listed in the comment you just replied to have 2 players who are all:
- under 190
- All significant assets
- top of the lineup players
- picked in the first round higher than Caufield

If they don’t qualify, neither do Hutson and Caufield. Very easy to find examples of this, even at the top of the standings.

Conversation is over. I explained my significant assets already with good context and you laughed at it and now you want to continue the conversation? That's not the type of conversations I want to have. Sorry. Significant assets to me are top 2C, Top 4D and top line wingers (undisputedly). You changed it to "top of the line-up" to support your angle.

 

[Whitesnake]

having said all of that, that scouting group seems to love something....the growth possibility. In a player's game...or in his body. That's what they had in mind with Reinbacher. That's especially what they had in mind with Slafkovsky. It makes total sense that they have that in mind with Sennecke. I mean, the guy is the PERFECT demonstration of what growth can be. In size and in game. While for Iginla, who I repeat I love and will have ahead of Sennecke, what you see, is what you'Ll get. Which is awesome. But he's more predictable.

Seems that our group loves the casino.

 

[WeThreeKings]

But if he doesn't hit....I'm not sure I understand why having a hole at forward matters as you'd have a hole on D anyway.....The idea is to draft the best. And deal.

Was Drysdale hitting with Anaheim? If he wasn't...how were they able to get Gauthier for him? And was Mintyukov a bad pick after the Zellwegger pick?

Elsewhere, people talk about depth? Here we talk about having too many good ones?

Also, if Hutson hits....he'll hit this year. Buium with his game will probably be in Montreal in 2025. We won't even know how much Hutson hits as we will be waiting for his 2nd full year. Also. to which extent Buium can't play left?

Personnally, I will have Dickinson ahead of Buium. But not that far ahead. And I TOTALLY understand the love for Buium though if true.

If he doesn't hit the chances are Buium doesn't hit either, they have the same weaknesses minus Hutson being a couple inches smaller. That's the whole issue - I wouldn't do Dickinson either because you're running up against a similar prospect to Guhle and in both cases, Hutson and Guhle have shown more certainty to being a contributing and impactful member of a NHL team. There's top 5 busts every year, Dickinson or Buium could be those top 5 busts, and if we are busting a top 5 pick for another iteration of what we already have in house - that failure is compounded.

Drysdale wasn't hitting with Anaheim - I have no idea what Philly was doing but the issue there is that we could never be in on the Gauthier trade. He held the cards as far as I'm not signing with Philly and I'm not gonna sign with you, or you, or you, so that was the best option they had available to them of teams he would sign with. We were not one of those teams. Hoping for a situation like that to present itself again is like waiting to get hit by lightning.

I understand some people love Buium and I love Dickinson too. I can't get behind them as options for Montreal at 5 - it doesn't address a need. It doesn't materially make the team better compared to options we already have in house and there are other very good prospects that will be available to us that doesn't involve such gymnastics to make it make sense.

 

[Saundies]

Since Buium is the flavor of the day, I'm fine taking him if we also trade a D for some forward help.

Him, Dickinson and Parekh are the 3 D I'm comfortable taking (not in that order.. probably SD, ZB, ZP in order) . Anyone else, I'm not going to like it.

 

[BeliveauFan4ever]

I still love Dickinson and what he would bring to the Habs but I’m shifting toward ‘definitely want a forward’ at 5, and if Habs keep 26, or bump it up, I want another forward.

Dual injection of offense.

The emptiness of the Forward Cupboard is one helluva squeaky wheel. No slight intended, but while Beck seems to be charting a proper course, and I guess Roy as well, the other forwards, from my perspective, may not qualify for Top 12. Kapanen? Looking ‘on track’, should include him.

Habs need a play-driving/play driver. They need a sniper. They need a couple of strong-skating, bigger bodied, dastardly-competitive wingers that can contrib ‘some’ offense, too; a couple of drive’em crazy workaholics.

Love Dach, but the injuries are worrisome.

Lots of shopping to do up front. Seven picks in the Top 3 rounds next year is nice, but looking at the cupboard, it is not a luxury. Not there, not yet.

 

[austin316]

having said all of that, that scouting group seems to love something....the growth possibility. In a player's game...or in his body. That's what they had in mind with Reinbacher. That's especially what they had in mind with Slafkovsky. It makes total sense that they have that in mind with Sennecke. I mean, the guy is the PERFECT demonstration of what growth can be. In size and in game. While for Iginla, who I repeat I love and will have ahead of Sennecke, what you see, is what you'Ll get. Which is awesome. But he's more predictable.

Seems that our group loves the casino.

I agree. The more time I’ve had to digest this I think Sennecke is our guy.

 

[Saundies]

I still love Dickinson and what he would bring to the Habs but I’m shifting toward ‘definitely want a forward’ at 5, and if Habs keep 26, or bump it up, I want another forward.

Dual injection of offense.

The emptiness of the Forward Cupboard is one helluva squeaky wheel. No slight intended, but while Beck seems to be charting a proper course, and I guess Roy as well, the other forwards, from my perspective, may not qualify for Top 12.

Habs need a play-driving/play driver. They need a sniper. They need a couple of strong-skating, bigger bodied, dastardly-competitive wingers that can contrib ‘some’ offense, too; a couple of drive’em crazy workaholics.

Lots of shopping to do up front. Seven picks in the Top 3 rounds next year is nice, but looking at the cupboard, it is not a luxury. Not there, not yet.

Right?

I understand not drafting for need and getting BPA, I really do. But yeeeeeesh is our forward cupboard bare right now.

Right now I do trust Kent and company to do SOMETHING about it. Whether it's drafting someone or trading for someone, I expect them to make a move to shore it up. If not, well..

 

[NotProkofievian]

Okay we gotta draft Buium now, for the memes.