Marc Bergevin dropped some knowledge Thursday night ahead of the 2019 NHL Draft talking about Charles Hudon, Michael McCarron, and Karl Alzner.
The NHL Draft is an amazing place, isn’t it? Sure, it’s exciting to see new names added to an organization’s reserved list, but all the rumours and movement (or lack of movement) make it a hot era in the NHL’s year. Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin may not have dropped any serious bombs; however, he did shed some light on some of the team’s previous and future decisions.
Three players had a number of questions marks surrounding them after this past season: Charles Hudon, Michael McCarron, and Karl Alzner.
Hudon saw his usage on the team take a cliff dive as he played in 39 fewer games and saw his average ice time drop from 14:02 to 11:40. The 24-year-old brought energy to the roster when he played, but Claude Julien leaned more with Kenny Agostino and Jordan Weal. Perhaps Hudon would’ve gotten more an opportunity if he could kill penalties, but it’s hard to see a scenario where there’s room for him to be on the Montreal Canadiens next season.
The buzz around the 2012 fifth-round pick peaked when it was revealed that he rejected a qualifying offer from the Habs. Hudon wasn’t a fan of the deal being a two-way instead of a one-way as an NHL salary wouldn’t be guaranteed if he found himself in the NHL next year. But as I looked at in a previous post, because of the number of games Hudon has played last season and over the course of his career, he doesn’t have to receive a two-way deal).