While this year is largely just a fluke, I think French hockey is on the upswing. They have definitely improved since coming back to the Elite Division in 2008, and if you look at their
roster this year, its got players from the Finnish, German, Swiss and Swedish leagues, as well as Roussel and Da Costa. While they may not be having many players get drafted into the NHL, they do see some young guys go to the QMJHL as mentioned, and if they are able to sign with teams in the top European leagues they can't be that bad.
A lot of this stems from the fact that French hockey is indeed trying to improve itself. It was only in 2006 that the French Ice Hockey Federation was finally spun off from the French Ice Sports Federation and allowed total independence. I don't think its coincidence that the resurgence of French hockey began around then, too. And considering that they actively sought (and won) the bid for the 2017 World Championship to be held in Paris (and Cologne), they are making efforts to make hockey bigger in France.