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Canadiens: Veilleux, Wickenheiser, and the Long Wait For No. 1

By Scott Cowan

MONTREAL, QC - FEBRUARY 27: Goaltender Carey Price #31 of the Montreal Canadiens tends goal near Jesper Fast #17 of the New York Rangers during the first period at the Bell Centre on February 27, 2020 in Montreal, Canada. The New York Rangers defeated the Montreal Canadiens 5-2. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC - FEBRUARY 27: Goaltender Carey Price #31 of the Montreal Canadiens tends goal near Jesper Fast #17 of the New York Rangers during the first period at the Bell Centre on February 27, 2020 in Montreal, Canada. The New York Rangers defeated the Montreal Canadiens 5-2. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /
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Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers
MONTREAL, QC – FEBRUARY 27: Montreal Canadiens New York Rangers (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

Now, in fairness, the NHL draft functioned completely different back then and had nowhere near the attention it receives now. Star players for most teams were typically found in local leagues and subsequently signed to entry-level contracts of sorts. This is how the Canadiens built their original six dynasties, and it was simply the standard of its day.

Because of this, even though Veilleux was the first overall pick that season, it didn’t mean what it means today, and he never wound up playing professional hockey, period, only getting into two partial seasons with some amateur teams, before moving onto some local senior hockey in Verdun.

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In contrast, though, while the Canadiens were expected to be one of the teams in this first overall lottery, their surprise series win against the Pittsburgh Penguins has changed that. Now, they’re set for a first-round tilt against the Philadelphia Flyers, which kicks off on Wednesday.

It’s been 40 years since the Habs last picked first overall, and similarly to New York, wound up with a dud, selecting center Doug Wickenheiser. A prolific scorer in the WHL with the Regina Pats, Wickenheiser put up 89 goals in his final junior season, yet was never able to replicate that success in the NHL. High expectations and pressure from Montreal fans and media led to the Saskatchewan native never putting up more than 55 points in a season.

After a trade to the St. Louis Blues and subsequent stops in Vancouver, New York, and Washington, Wickenheiser finished his career in Germany and the IHL, before a rare form of cancer claimed his life in 1999, at the age of 37.

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