NCAA Prospect Steve Quailer Signs with Montreal

Today the Montreal Canadiens have announced the latest in their free agent prospect signing. The Arvada Colorado native was drafted in 2008 in the 3rd round and 86th overall by the Canadiens.

http://canadiens.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=634723

Quailer is a big (6′ 4″, 195 lbs)and offensively gifted winger winger that has had a college career marred by major injuries. He missed the entire 2009-10 season with a major knee injury and was much diminished the following year as he recover. This year he bounced back to be a near point per game scorer (8 goals and 25 points in 26 games) and had the best per game (0.96) scoring rate on his team.

Quailer joins a strong cohort of amateur prospects in the Canadiens organization joining the pro-ranks next season. He will be among diminutive scorer Brendan Gallagher, gritty two-way forward Michael Bournival, playmaking forward Peter Holland as new forwards likely playing in Hamilton next year. They will be also accompanied by a trio of stud CHL defenders in massive Jarred Tinordi, reliable Morgan Ellis and offensively-gifted Nathen Beaulieu as well as fellow NCAA graduate Greg Pateryn. With this large and talented a cohort joining the professional ranks at least half of the Bulldogs’ skating lineup will be turned replaced in 2012-3, which should be a welcome change from the weak lineup they were forced to employ in 2011-2.