Montreal Canadiens Make Unique Choices Late In NHL Draft
201: Left Wing, Rafael Harvey-Pinard
The Montreal Canadiens made an exception when they took overager Arsen Khisamutdinov (I did it again). They followed that unusual happenstance up by doing literally the exact same thing with literally their very next pick.
Rafael Harvey-Pinard was first eligible for the draft in 2017. He had just 23 points in 50 games that season and was passed over in the draft. Last season, he had an impressive 76 points in 67 games but was once again undrafted in 2018.
This season, the 20 year old winger scored 40 goals and 85 points in 66 games. he followed that up with 27 points in 20 playoff games and then six points in five Memorial Cup games. Harvey-Pinard’s performance helped the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies finish first in the QMJHL regular season standings, win the President’s Cup as the QMJHL Playoff champions and then win the Memorial Cup Trophy.
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He obviously has a lot of skill, but there were two things holding him back from possibly being drafted this season. First, he was already passed over twice and teams are loathe to use picks on an ancient 20 year old. Second, he is just 5’9″ tall and we all know that short guys goals aren’t as important as tall guy goals. Or that is a myth that so many NHL general managers would make you believe.
Harvey-Pinard was not on any mock drafts, but I’m starting to think that Marc Bergevin and Trevor Timmins don’t even read those. What he is, is a highly skilled winger who could find success if given the chance. Much like Yanni Gourde, he could just be a bit of a late bloomer who needs the proper situation to succeed.
When 200 people have already been taken, you can afford to take a bit of a risk. Why not gamble on speed and skill?