Confirmed with Link: Canadiens Will Pick 5th (Hughes Presser in OP) NO POLITICS

[BenchBrawl]

The rebuilt is on, living a second off season of it. You want to ADD to it, not substract to it.

Michkov won’t come before three seasons. You trade tit-cul (and why not Suzuki un coup parti) and your team will suck balls bigger than mine for three more seasons before the Saviour arrives. That is not a rebuilt. That is stupidity. And no one except drooling HFBoareds fanboys would want that in Mtl.

We have a core, ADD to it. We have other kids to trade. Not 22 (who, btw, is the most popular kid with fans since a while, selling jerseys like it’s f***ing porn) or your YOUNG captain for maybes in three years.

The rebuilt is on! Let’s build on it! You guys don’t want a rebuild; you are yearning for The Messiah. Well, let me wake you up a bit: he ain’t comin’. This is hockey, not some ficticious fairy tale. Live the moment! Y’all wanted a rebuild, we have one now!

I see you're taking the rational, pragmatic approach. Good for you.

I am having none of it though.

YES, I want a fairy tale, so the new generation of children can dream and be inspired by hockey, instead of hockey being turned into an excel spreadsheet of wins and losses columns.

Besides, by and large, the glory of the Montreal Canadiens was build on fairy tales-like figures like Maurice Richard and Guy Lafleur.

 

[rahad]

On top of next year being loaded with dmen. This is the year to pick an elite forward.

Now that Florida pick is a late first round. We also need to pick a #1 goalie (with Florida or habs early second round pick).

2023: elite forward and goalie
2024: #1 D.

 

[BenchBrawl]

.

 

[BenchBrawl]

My Montreal GM philosophy: Find a fairy tale and then surround it.

Bob Gainey understood this, as proven by his walks in town with Kovalev. He understood the importance of a Dieu du stade, having lived the Lafleur era from up close.

The further we go, the more I realize Gainey was by far the greatest GM we've had since Pollock.

 

[JianYang]

Why the Dach trade was a curveball in my opinion:
1. Dach was not linked to the Habs
2. Dach did not fit the profile of what we thought the Habs were pursuing (total rebuild - chasing draft picks and prospects)
3. Romanov was considered part of the "keepers" of the otherwise total rebuild

It indicated that the Habs didn't want to do a 'Chicago-style' total rebuild and or endure an extended selling/burn it down period where they don't trade away futures (draft picks and prospects).

It's worked out rather well so far but it was a curveball from the expected rebuild blueprint -- will HuGo do the same again with Dubois? It's an interesting question because it might have implications on their 5OA choice. Suzuki, Dubois, and Dach can play C -- will the Habs therefore go for Reinbacher over Smith?

Yeah dach was not linked to the Habs, but it's not uncommon that someone gets traded somewhere with little speculation about it.

As for points 2 and 3, I don't think we could assume the profile that hughes was going for since he was new and still remains new to the job.

I didn't consider romanov safe in this case because while he was a fan favourite, he wasn't a top pair trajectory, and he wasn't a Hughes pick.... He was shipped out for a guy with similar age, so the youth movement remains.

I wouldn't even consider what Chicago did to be a rebuild.... It was a complete burn down. They got rid of everybody and everything, young, old, promising, established..... Everything had to go.

Had Hughes started trading guys like suzuki or caufield, we'd be asking him to get his head examined.

 

[waffledave]

I see you're taking the rational, pragmatic approach. Good for you.

I am having none of it though.

YES, I want a fairy tale, so the new generation of children can dream and be inspired by hockey, instead of hockey being turned into an excel spreadsheet of wins and losses columns.

Besides, by and large, the glory of the Montreal Canadiens was build on fairy tales-like figures like Maurice Richard and Guy Lafleur.

Let's relax with these comparisons. Just last year we had all kinds of people comparing Slaf to Jagr. Instead he looks more like Josh Anderson mixed with Kotkaniemi.

 

[sandviper]

He can improve it. We'll see.

In any case, he is a surefire NHLer.

The 2022 draft was a crapshoot, everyone knew it. Can't expect us to get out with the best player, in terms of probability. What's important is that Slaf brings unique element to the team construction. No one in their right mind was sure he would be a franchise player. Maybe he will turn into one, but that would be luck.

Cooley had a ton of question marks too, and hasn't proved shit yet.

I know you’re clearly high on Michkov and for the most part, I agree with you. However, I do disagree with some of the comments of the other players. Not sure how you can be so certain of Michkov, while being rather dismissive of Smith and Cooley. Smith is having a monster D season and Cooley just had an excellent D+1 year.

The common denominator between the three of them is NONE have proven anything in the NHL.

FWIW, I don’t think Slaf has proven he’s an NHLer yet. I like him and rooting for him, but he has a lot to fix. I think he will get there.

As for Michkov, I prefer him over Smith but if it ends up Smith falls to us, I would still be freaking ecstatic.

 

[BLONG7]

The Hawks won the lottery..................this has nothing to do with building a Cup winning team....wait and see............
They will be horrible for years.

The Oilers currently have TWO of the best players in the world easily, and can't figure it out or get it done........

 

[Colezuki]

The Hawks won the lottery..................this has nothing to do with building a Cup winning team....wait and see............
They will be horrible for years.

The Oilers currently have TWO of the best players in the world easily, and can't figure it out or get it done........

Careful now, people will accuse you of not understanding tanking with thoughts like that. but neglect they won a lottery and had worse odds then two teams who tried to win this year

 

[HabbyGuy]

How much urgency do you think Hughes and Gorton feel toward this pick?

Do you figure they think they can afford to keep “re“building for another two years?

I’m having a hard time picturing which sort of approach they’ll have. The Dach acquisition was a curveball.

I don't think for this draft it matters so much, as whoever they draft this year will fit in their timeline, just as Dach does.

But yeah, moving forward after this draft, it will be interesting to see what they do. I'm of the opinion they should just continue doing what they're doing.

We've been screaming for proper team construction forever. Most times that can only be afforded by going full rebuild. (Depending on the pieces you get to start with) We need to stay the course and see this through.

It will be a shame to rush this and mess it up just after it's begun.

That said, getting or trading for younger players that are further ahead in their development ala Dach, who also fit in our timeline could also work while expediting the whole process. Many believe PLD would be the type of acquisition to that end.

I just know, I'm excited for the first time in a long time to see how this unfolds. This offseason is going to be very telling in a sense of our direction.

 

[Sterling Archer]

Last year's draft there were no "swing for the fences" picks. This year, Michkov would definetely fall into that category. If you're going to swing, Michkov would be as good and safe a bet as you're going to get at #5.

Swing batta batta batta batta!!

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

Let's relax with these comparisons. Just last year we had all kinds of people comparing Slaf to Jagr. Instead he looks more like Josh Anderson mixed with Kotkaniemi.

A Josh Anderson mixed with Kotkaniemi would be an elite player. Anderson's strengths are Kotkaniemi's weaknesses, and Kotkaniemi's strengths are Anderson's weaknesses.

Anderson's strengths are skating and shot, and his weaknesses are vision, playmaking, and IQ.
Kotkaniemi's strength are his vision, playmaking, and IQ, and his weaknesses are his skating and his shot.

 

[Doublechin]

I like Smith way more than Slafkovsky. Thats how good this draft is imo.

I also like Leonard and Benson more than Slaf

 

[waffledave]

A Josh Anderson mixed with Kotkaniemi would be an elite player. Anderson's strengths are Kotkaniemi's weaknesses, and Kotkaniemi's strengths are Anderson's weaknesses.

Anderson's strengths are skating and shot, and his weaknesses are vision, playmaking, and IQ.
Kotkaniemi's strength are his vision, playmaking, and IQ, and his weaknesses are his skating and his shot.

Slaf has a mix of both their weaknesses.

 

[BLONG7]

Slaf has a mix of both their weaknesses.

Don't be too hard on an 18 year old, who had much to learn when he got here, about on and off ice life in Montreal.
I think if we gave HuGo and MSL a mulligan, they would have had the kid play in the AHL.

Glad to hear the skills coach has been working with the kid...............we really need to turn him into a large beast in the upcoming season or two.....the potential in him, is huge, literally.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Don't be too hard on an 18 year old, who had much to learn when he got here, about on and off ice life in Montreal.
I think if we gave HuGo and MSL a mulligan, they would have had the kid play in the AHL.

Glad to hear the skills coach has been working with the kid...............we really need to turn him into a large beast in the upcoming season or two.....the potential in him, is huge, literally.

Nah should of picked Shane Wright.. big moves getting healthy scratched in the AHL.

 

[waffledave]

Don't be too hard on an 18 year old, who had much to learn when he got here, about on and off ice life in Montreal.
I think if we gave HuGo and MSL a mulligan, they would have had the kid play in the AHL.

Glad to hear the skills coach has been working with the kid...............we really need to turn him into a large beast in the upcoming season or two.....the potential in him, is huge, literally.

I don't think he will always be bad. But the hype was stupid and the comparisons to Jagr beyond ridiculous. People here talking about 90+ points potential. He will never hit that. His best seasons will be in the 60 point range with most years 40-50 points. Useful player in other ways, hopefully.

 

[Adam Michaels]

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Slaf has a mix of both their weaknesses.

Somebody missed the Slaf hypetrain

 

[Habnot]

I agree he's electrifying, but unclear how much that will translate. He's an enigma.

To go from Michkov, an absolute surefire franchise offensive superstar, to a lottery ticket, is quite the drop, probabilistically speaking.

What an overreach. If he was as you describe, he would challenge Bedard as #1. He is far from surefire franchise....

 

[Runner77]

Posted this elsewhere but should have been here, instead:

Scott Wheeler conducted a simple shits and giggles exercise based on which teams who are selecting in the top 10 this year, drafted and which teams completely avoided/ failed to draft Russians in last year’s draft.

There were 4 teams holding top 10 picks this year that did not draft Russians last year: Hawks, Habs, Sharks and Flyers.

That leaves 6 teams who have shown a willingness to draft Russians last year. The list includes the Ducks (who will in all likelihood draft Fantilli) and Columbus who have committed to drafting a center. If we remove the Ducks and Columbus, that would leave the following 4 teams as candidates open to drafting a Russian, who hold top 10 picks this year:

1. Chicago
2. Anaheim
3. Columbus
4. Sharks
5. Canadiens
6. Coyotes
7. Flyers
8. Capitals
9. Red Wings
10. Blues

Adding fuel to the equation would be the number of Russians in each of those 4 organizations. A potential suitor could certainly come from this lot, should Michkov fall to the Habs and should they consider moving the pick.

4 équipes des 7 premières au repêchage ont boudé les joueurs Russes en 2022

Voyez les détails!

www.habsolumentfan.com

Why is there only a half strike mark on the Sharks? @WeThreeKings will explain.

 

[sampollock]

“If the CH intends to draft a forward and does not want Michkov, I would trade the #5 choice of the Canadian to move back to approximately the #10 choice and I would select Zach Benson. He is so clutch in important games, he will become a star player in the NHL. -Philippe Boucher

 

[ZUKI]

I don't think he will always be bad. But the hype was stupid and the comparisons to Jagr beyond ridiculous. People here talking about 90+ points potential. He will never hit that. His best seasons will be in the 60 point range with most years 40-50 points. Useful player in other ways, hopefully.

funny , knowing that Jagr himself made the comparison when he saw him play. Comparaison isn’t only future production, but more about the way to play or the style.
But who’s that Jagr to talk about hockey player?

 

[sheed36]

Posted this elsewhere but should have been here, instead:

Scott Wheeler conducted a simple shits and giggles exercise based on which teams who are selecting in the top 10 this year, drafted and which teams completely avoided/ failed to draft Russians in last year’s draft.

There were 4 teams holding top 10 picks this year that did not draft Russians last year: Hawks, Habs, Sharks and Flyers.

That leaves 6 teams who have shown a willingness to draft Russians last year. The list includes the Ducks (who will in all likelihood draft Fantilli) and Columbus who have committed to drafting a center. If we remove the Ducks and Columbus, that would leave the following 4 teams as candidates open to drafting a Russian, who hold top 10 picks this year:

1. Chicago
2. Anaheim
3. Columbus
4. Sharks
5. Canadiens
6. Coyotes
7. Flyers
8. Capitals
9. Red Wings
10. Blues

Adding fuel to the equation would be the number of Russians in each of those 4 organizations. A potential suitor could certainly come from this lot, should Michkov fall to the Habs and should they consider moving the pick.

4 équipes des 7 premières au repêchage ont boudé les joueurs Russes en 2022

Voyez les détails!

www.habsolumentfan.com

Why is there only a half strike mark on the Sharks? @WeThreeKings will explain.

Even though the Habs didn't draft any Russian prospects last year they still traded for 2 in Dadonov and Gurianov so it's not like they're 100% avoiding Russian born players. Although Dadonow didn't last long and Gurianov is probably gone as well but they still traded for both.

Unfortunately I still think the Habs will pass on Michkov if he's there at 5 though and I hope the media and fans rip the entire Habs organization a new one for passing on him and Michkov comes to the NHL in a couple of years and turns into an elite offensive NHL superstar.

 

[ZUKI]

“If the CH intends to draft a forward and does not want Michkov, I would trade the #5 choice of the Canadian to move back to approximately the #10 choice and I would select Zach Benson. He is so clutch in important games, he will become a star player in the NHL. -Philippe Boucher

and that’s why he won’t be available at the 10 th selection