Montreal Canadiens: Mock Draft for the first round of the 2020 NHL Draft

With the 2020 NHL Draft around the corner, we created our own mock draft of the first round, including making the Montreal Canadiens’ selection at 16.

Six of us A Winning Habit writers chipped in on the mock draft: Emmanuel, Ken MacMillan, Sebastian High, Omar White, Teddy Elliot and Scott Cowan.

Alexis Lafreniere is the clear-cut #1 prospect eligible to be drafted in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, there will be no hesitation on draft day among the New York Rangers’ management and scouting staff, Lafreniere is already a de-facto Ranger. So what is it that makes Lafreniere so good? Well, his 35 goals and 112 points in just 52 games this past season are already impressive stats on their own, but when you factor in that he has already played 3 full QMJHL seasons in Rimouski, accumulating 297 points in 173 games (1.72 points/game) and is not even 19 yet, you have yourself a player with exceptional offensive pedigree. Lafreniere has phenomenal hockey IQ, a great shot, exceptional playmaking and is as deceptive with the puck as they come. He will be a star in this league. The Rangers draft in Lafreniere a future elite first-line winger; a power play with both Lafreniere and Artemi Panarin is already giving me nightmares.

While Alexis Lafreniere is the top prospect of this year’s draft, Quinton Byfield may just have the highest ceiling. The 6’4″, 214 lbs centreman is a true power forward who possesses a powerful shot, high-end playmaking, defensive acumen and is lethal in transition. While his skating has been criticized, for his size, he is a decent enough skater to make a huge impact in the league. He scored 32 goals and 82 points in 45 OHL games last season with the Sudbury Wolves; his offensive potential is very high. It may sound like a broken record at this point, but it must be noted that Byfield is among the youngest players in this year’s draft, and is just over 10 months younger than Lafreniere, so Byfield may just break out and have the Rangers regretting passing on him, though we doubt New York will have any reason to be disappointed with Lafreniere. The LA Kings draft the successor to Anze Kopitar in Byfield, passing on the flashy Tim Stutzle in the process.

Marco Rossi may seem like a reach at 3 to some, but not to me. Rossi is a true #1 centre in the making. HeHe has everything one could possibly wish for an elite centreman to have except for size, he stands at 5’9″, and weighs 185 lbs. Rossi is a gifted playmaker, first and foremost, his great hockey IQ allows him to find passing lanes that most don’t see and he executes his passes with quick precision. Rossi has a great motor, plays at a very high pace and is a tenacious, Gallagher-esque player. He is great defensively, so he is deployed in all situations. He can shut down high-scoring opponents all while putting up a huge amount of points himself. There just really isn’t anything not to like in this player. While he is old for the draft class, his CHL-leading totals remain extremely impressive: 39 goals and 120 points in 56 games. With Byfield off the board, the Senators seek to draft their future #1 centre who could slot right into a top-9, if not a top-6, role this upcoming season; and the Senators’ scouting staff is sure to have gotten a great look at Rossi given that he played his Junior hockey with the Ottawa 67s.

“Detroit completes their future top pair,” Omar said as he selected Drysdale and that they do. Drysdale and Seider may both be right-shot defencemen, but their playstyles would compliment each other perfectly; and even if they don’t play on the same pair, their right side is set for the next two decades; quite the luxury. Drysdale is a mobile, playmaking defenceman who has adopted the “the best defence is a good offence” approach and has thrived with it. He has phenomenal 4-way mobility and he can effectively quarterback a powerplay. Still, Drysdale is solid defensively; while he may not be a physical player, he closes gaps intelligently with his stick. If his work rate on the defensive side of the puck can improve, he will be a force to be reckoned with. Having put up 47 points in 49 OHL games with the Erie Otters, Drysdale showed his potential on the offensive side of the ice to be very high.

Tim Stutzle drops to #5 in our mock draft, and Teddy happily picks the German for the Ottawa Senators, who make out like bandits, drafting a future #1 centre and a future #1 left-winger within a ten-minute span. Stutzle is by far the flashiest player eligible to be drafted this year, and will regularly make the highlight reel. He is an exceptionally skilled winger with silky-smooth hands and terrific speed. Elite Prospects identifies him as the best transition forward in the draft, and it is easy to see why, given his elite stickhandling and speed. While he has a good shot, it is his playmaking that will garner him the vast majority of points in the NHL, he has terrific vision and hockey sense. While he can be overzealous with his puck handling, this can be refined with time. While playing against men in Germany for the Mannheim Eagles, Stutzle scored 7 goals and 34 points in 41 games. His offensive ceiling very, very high, and he will be so much fun to watch.

This was a really nice pick for Scott. Cole Perfetti is such an easy player to fall in love with. He is a goalscorer. He is an elite playmaker. He arguably has the highest hockey IQ of any draft-eligible player. And his problem-solving and deceptive abilities allow him to make something out of nothing. The sole drawback to his game is his mediocre skating, but that is something he can improve with practice, and we saw this past season how good a mediocre skater with an elite mind can be, with Nick Suzuki’s rookie performance in Montreal. Anaheim already got an absolute steal within the top-10 last season, drafting Trevor Zegras at 9. In Perfetti, they now form a new duo that will hope to reach the lofty heights that Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf have in the past 15 years; and honestly, I think they could be just as dominant, albeit in a very different way. Since Zegras is a playmaker, first and foremost, Perfetti’s goalscoring ability will be allowed to shine in California. Perfetti played this past season with the Saginaw Spirit in the OHL and produced 37 goals and 111 points in 61 games.