What if the Montreal Canadiens had the first overall pick?
The Montreal Canadiens may have a hard time deciding who they take at 15, but given the ability of Jack Hughes and Kappo Kakko, the 1st may not be any easier.
With the number of quality of scouting minds in the hockey world, fans are relatively aware of who the first overall pick is meant to be for a given draft. Unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, the Montreal Canadiens haven’t been in a position to select first since 1980 when Doug Wickenheiser joined the organization. Sidney Crosby was set to go first in 2005 after years of build up as was Connor McDavid in 2015. However, sometimes it’s not as clear cut as who should be the first pick.
Think back to 2017 when heading into the season, Nolan Patrick was the guy. Injuries held him back but also the emergence of Nico Hischier pushed the hand of several, and when the New Jersey Devils walked up to the podium, his name was called.
Another example was in 2012 when everyone considered Nail Yakupov to be the player to take first. It’s well documented, but several scouts in the Edmonton Oilers organization wanted to take defenceman Ryan Murray first instead even though Yakupov had all the hype. Combine that with poor development and deployment, and you have a former first overall pick who isn’t even in the league anymore.
Now we look at this year. A year where Jack Hughes walked in as the consensus first overall pick but has had the gap between himself and Kaapo Kakko, the projected second overall pick, decreased.
The New Jersey may be giving off the impression that they’re unsure, or they could seriously be thinking of the pros between either player. Which begs the question, what if the Montreal Canadiens had the first overall pick?
It seems like an easy answer right off the bat. Hughes has always been projected to go first, and he has the skill and flair to become a franchise centre in the NHL.
What has had others cocking eyebrows is their respective production from this season as well as their playing style.
Hughes played in 50 games for the US U18 National Team scoring 34 goals and 78 assists for a total of 112 points. His assist total broke Clayton Keller‘s record back in 2016 while he finished one point behind Auston Matthews for highest stat line. Regardless of what team Matthews has played for, we’ve seen what he’s been able to do at the NHL level, and it’s incredible.
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Some consider what Kakko has done more impressive given Hughes was playing against other 18-year-olds while the Finnish native was playing against men in Liiga. Kakko put up 22 goals and 16 assists in 45 games playing for TPS. His goal total set a record for the most goals in a single season by a player under 18. He also added five points in five playoff games and is currently leading Team Finland in scoring with six goals.
Many are saying Kakko is more NHL ready given the way he plays and his size. Kakko stands at 6’2″ and 190 pounds making use of his body to protect the puck and be aggressive on the forecheck while having the hockey IQ and hands to make plays offensively.
What is seeing some knock Hughes down is his relative size (5’10” and 170 pounds) as well as his play at the Worlds. Kakko has been a key contributor, whereas Hughes has been left on the sidelines for the most part and has but only one assist.
But the Worlds shouldn’t be a defining difference. Hughes is on a team filled to the brim with NHL talent including Patrick Kane, Johnny Gaudreau and Dylan Larkin whereas Finland is made up of mostly European-league players.
Given the two players, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Montreal Canadiens take more of a liking to Kakko. He has a mature flair to his game as an 18-year-old and is a finisher first and foremost. An area the Habs desperately need improvement on is their power play and having a goal scorer opposed to another playmaker is key.
We’ve seen the impact of having finishers on a Kirk Muller run power play given how lethal Canada’s has been.
Another thing to consider is the transition. It’s difficult to play centre in the NHL, especially for Claude Julien who, despite being on the other side of the rivalry now, has Patrice Bergeron as a standard for how to play down the middle. Fortunately, Jesperi Kotkaniemi proved he was reliable enough in all three zones, but when Julien wasn’t liking what he was seeing, he threw him on the wing.
Kakko plays the easier position and imagining a partnership with Kotkaniemi could be fairly interesting.
Is that what it comes down to? Adjustment and execution in the NHL?
Regardless of all that, you have to take the best player available, and “small” or not, it’s Hughes. NHL teams have continuously been burned by not taking a player because of their size, and you have a player like Gaudreau taken in the fourth round and Alex Debrincat in the second.
Hughes is a player that makes you pay for giving him time and space with the puck and his vision could be an improvement for the Montreal Canadiens despite not being a clear-cut goal scorer himself.
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You can see arguments for both sides as who is the best to take if Marc Bergevin and the rest of the Habs staff were walking up to the podium first. Hughes may take longer to reach his potential, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Kakko end up with the better rookie season statistically. However, in the long run, Hughes will be the franchise.