Five Players The Montreal Canadiens Should Consider Drafting Fifteenth Overall
Many players will be options for the Montreal Canadiens to draft in the first round in the 2019 draft but who will wear a Habs jersey in training camp?
The NHL teams that miss out on the playoffs are consolidated by a top fifteen draft pick (unless you’re the Ottawa Senators). While the Montreal Canadiens didn’t move up from the fifteenth slot in the lottery, a plethora of exciting prospects will be available when Marc Bergevin and Trevor Timmins step onto the stage in Vancouver on June 21.
In this article, I will present the five players I’d like to see wearing the Bleu-Blanc-Rouge after Montreal’s selection is announced, in order of my first to my fifth choice. Of course, I will keep my choices within the realm of possibility; so Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko will sadly not be making an appearance on this list.
Philip Broberg
First up is Swedish defenseman Philip Broberg. This kid has the complete package and fits Montreal’s needs seamlessly. The Habs lack size, Broberg stands 6’3″ tall. The Canadiens have a gaping hole at left defence, guess which shot Broberg is. So, this young man fulfills Montreal’s needs, but what does he bring to the table other than size?
Broberg is the best skater amongst defensemen by a fair margin. He glides across the ice, has an extremely powerful stride and is adept at spontaneously accelerating to top speed. He is also a solid passer of the puck, creating chances for his teammates from seemingly tame positions.
Of course, he has his deficiencies, or he wouldn’t potentially be available at #15. Broberg is not the smoothest puck handler, which sometimes causes him to slip up when he races down the boards with the puck on the break. Speaking of slip-ups, Broberg has a tendency to turn over the puck at inopportune moments.
However, I believe that these weaker points in his game can be ironed out. I say this because his performance at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup absolutely blew me away. Broberg ‘s skating was put his opponents to shame night-in-night-out and outshone top-ranked defenceman, Bowen Byram. And that was nearly a year ago, he has only gotten better since then. Quarterbacking the powerplay, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Buffalo’s Rasmus Ristolainen, the 2013 eighth overall pick who has put up four consecutive 40-point seasons.
I truly believe that with some finetuning Philip Broberg can slot into Montreal’s top 4 as early as 2020-21 and develop into a true top 2 left-shot defenseman.
Thomas Harley
If Broberg is taken before fifteenth overall (which would shatter my heart like that of a Tampa fan looking back on their 2018-19 playoff run), I would be consolidated by Trevor Timmins announcing: “The Montreal Canadiens are proud to select, from the Mississauga Steelheads, Thomas Harley.”
Yes, Harley is another defenseman (and the last one I will feature on this list, though I would not be disappointed with the selection of Cam York), but the Canadiens’ most pressing need in terms of prospects is left defenseman.
Thomas Harley is a 6’3″ left-side defenseman just like Philip Broberg but does not possess his mesmerizing skating ability. I am by no means stating that his skating is sub-par, on the contrary, his skating is one of his strengths as he is a quick and agile defenseman for his size. Harley reminds me a little bit of Thomas Chabot, putting up similar offensive statistics as the Senators defenseman did in his draft year.
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Harley has a very high ceiling and will come close to it if his defensive positioning can be improved and the number of turnovers of which he is at fault can be minimized.
I have been watching him at the Under 18’s, and his playmaking and vision have really impressed me. Harley is an excellent passer of the puck, and I would not at all be surprised to see him reach a 40 assist season at the NHL level. He is not the most polished of prospects, but he can possibly be a diamond in the rough. Regardless of who drafts him, he will be a fascinating player to keep track of over the next five years.
Cole Caufield
Alright, this one is by far the least probable of the five, but I like this prospect too much not to include him on this list. Cole Caufield is the third best player in this draft class without a shadow of a doubt (in my eyes at least). Sadly, teams will presumably pass on this huge talent because of his tiny frame. Standing at 5’7″ and weighing 163 pounds, he is smaller than many teams would feel comfortable drafting high in the first round, which is absolutely ridiculous!
His frame is identical to that of 41 goalscorer Alex DeBrincat, give or take 1 centimetre and 2 pounds. This league is moving away from the tall and strong 2011 Boston Bruins mould and toward a faster and more skillful game. This is why I believe that Cole Caufield can become a superstar in the NHL. All the signs point toward him being a generational goal scorer.
Caufield scored 72 goals for the USDP and finished on 100 points. His goal total came one away from tying that of former first overall pick, Auston Matthews, who is not exactly a bad player. Caufield’s 126 goals in his career for the USDP are the most in its history, 12 ahead of second-placed Phil Kessel. So, the kid (who looks even younger than KK did last year) can score. But what else can he do?
Caufield is an excellent skater, perhaps competing with Broberg, he accelerates very quickly and is incredibly agile. While he is small, he has an extremely strong lower body, which makes his explosiveness a very dangerous asset. His shot is obviously excellent, and he has very high offensive awareness.
While he is defensively sound and can be used on the penalty kill, his small stature makes him more effective defending at 5 on 5.
If the Montreal Canadiens get their hands on him, they will finally have an elite pure goalscorer (at least 40 goals), something the team has lacked since before I was born. The last occurrence of this was by Vincent Damphousse (now aged 51), back in 1994, the year in which Forrest Gump was released, and Nelson Mandela became president of South Africa.
I really, really like this right winger, and he will be an absolute steal for whoever picks him if he falls outside of the top 5. He is possibly the most difficult player to project in this draft. I would not be surprised if he goes third or if he goes tenth. Fifteenth might be a bit of a stretch, but much crazier things have happened, Tampa, I’m looking at you.
Alex Newhook
Alright, back to the general realm of reality. Third, on my shortlist for the fifteenth overall pick is Alex Newhook of the Victoria Grizzlies of the BCHL. The 5’11” centreman is an intriguing talent. He may very well be the best Canadian forward in this draft class, but the fact that he played in a lower tier league leaves some question marks in scouts’ eyes.
However, Newhook is undoubtedly a player brimming with potential. There is a recurring theme with the players on this list, they are exceptional skaters; which Newhook most definitely is. Newhook is among the quickest players in the draft and has the ability to make cuts to the front of the net in the amount of time lightning spends in the 2019 playoffs.
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The kid who hails from my hometown of St. John’s, Newfoundland, is extremely well rounded. He has good hands, good vision gets his nose dirty and plays a sound defensive game. Once he is NHL-ready, which may take two or three years, he will be effective on both the power play and the penalty kill.
It is more difficult for me to draw an NHL comparison for Newhook. The best I’ve gotten is a bit of a long shot, but he reminds me a bit of Jonathan Toews. I by no means expect Newhook to replicate the career that Toews has had, but stylistically, this is the closest I’ve found. They are both sound defensively, true leaders and productive offensively.
While the Canadiens are deep at the centre position (which feels weird to say) if the previous three players are off the board at fifteenth, the Habs should select the best player available, which would be Newhook.
Raphael Lavoie
Rounding out my five ideal candidates for Montreal’s first-round selection in 2019 is Montreal-native, Raphael Lavoie. I am not quite as high on him as many others are, as he could just be the next Joel Armia, but his playoff performance has convinced me that he would not be a bad selection for the Tricolore to make.
Lavoie is a big body, measuring 6’4″ and weighing 200 pounds. He will most likely play on the right wing in the NHL. As with the other players on this list, Lavoie has an excellent first step and the speed to outpace defencemen. He is a natural sniper with a booming shot. His soft hands are a dangerous asset when paired with his speed. He also takes full advantage of his size, often positioning himself in front of goaltenders as a screen, and his excellent hand-eye coordination gifts him many deflection goals. Lavoie is also adept at finding his teammates in space and creating dangerous chances.
While Lavoie’s defensive game was poor in past years, he worked very hard to improve it, and his efforts paid off. His big frame is effective for blocking shots, and he uses his strength to battle for the puck along the boards.
Again, I was unable to find a great comparison, but Lavoie’s style is similar to that of Anders Lee, who has been productive for the Islanders and is set to hit the free agent market this off-season.
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The Montreal Canadiens could use a big scoring forward, but while I would not be disappointed with Montreal picking the hometown kid, I would prefer the previous four players. I don’t think the Habs can really go wrong with any of the players projected to go around fifteenth, and needless to say, I am very excited for June 21, which is under six weeks away; time start counting down the days!