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

At seventh overall, Emmanuel passes on the elite Swedish playmaker in order to draft the elite Swedish goalscorer. The New Jersey Devils were 25th in the league in goals scored last season, so the addition of a pure sniper should be a welcome sight for their management and fans alike. Holtz has, in my mind, the best shot in the draft. He can fire the puck without warning and without breaking his stride, which makes him a potent attacker off the rush. Holtz is a hard-worker who does not sacrifice defensive play for his offensive output; he is actually quite an enthusiastic back checker. However, in the offensive zone, passing is rarely an option for Holtz, he is a triggerman and he is not at all afraid to use his elite shot. His vision isn’t great, so don’t count on Holtz to get all that many primary assists, but that is not what the Devils need, they already have former 1st overall picks Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier to create scoring chances, now they draft the guy who is going to put the puck in the net for years to come. Holtz scored 9 goals and 16 points in 35 SHL games against men this past season and has 1 goal in 3 SHL games so far this season.

The Swedish playmaker is off the board one pick after his compatriot was selected. In Raymond, Ken gives the Buffalo Sabres their future #1 left-winger, which is sure to make Jack Eichel less unhappy with the situation in Buffalo. Raymond is a very complete winger; he has great hands and vision, great hockey IQ and is very good in transition. Raymond is not the player to be a passenger on his line, he drives the play and can manipulate its flow when the puck is on his stick. He has great acceleration and is quite good defensively as well. While he needs to bulk up in order to play in the NHL, there is very little not to like about him and Buffalo should be thrilled to select him at eighth overall. Raymond accumulated 4 goals and 10 points in 33 SHL games last season while playing primarily on the fourth line; this year, he has played higher up the lineup so far and has a goal and an assist in 4 games against adult competition.

At #7, I draft the player who, in my eyes, is the clear-cut best that is still available: Jake Sanderson. The Minnesota Wild allowed the 10th most goals in the league last year, so picking a potential top-pairing defenceman doesn’t hurt, especially with Ryan Suter getting up there in age. While the public may not yet be convinced by Sanderson, his ceiling is not that of a decent second-pairing defenceman as many perceive it to be; this kid is going to be great. The 6’1″, 185 lbs left-defenceman can do it all at a very high level. He is a great skater, he is the draft class’ best defenceman in transition, he is great in the defensive zone, he is physical, he is smart and he can produce quite a bit of offence. Think a more physical Jeff Petry who is better in the defensive zone and will take far less time to reach his peak. Sanderson is also a real leader and a great locker-room presence, so the Wild could possibly shore up their defence for years to come with this selection. Sanderson produced 29 points in 47 games with the USNTDP last season and it should be noted that it was a very weak team as a whole, and those numbers would have been far, far higher had he played with last year’s USNTDP batch.

With Bryan Little’s career in question, the Jets need a second-line centre to play big (and ideally defensive) minutes behind Mark Scheifele. While Anton Lundell may not ascend to that role just this season, he could do so for 2021-22. While Lundell may be labelled as a “safe” pick, which he is, he should not be misinterpreted as a low-ceiling player. As I outlined in an article during the summer, Lundell likely has a higher offensive potential than most give him credit for. His shot is quite powerful and could develop into a real weapon in a few years’ time. Even if Lundell’s offence never really breaks out, he will be a truly serviceable second-line centre in the mould of Philip Danault; he will get many Selke votes and he will shut down top-offensive lines. If he does break out offensively, though (and his stats in the Finnish Liiga indicate that he could: 10 goals, 28 points in 44 games against men), he could become a Ryan O’Reilly-type player, which would be a phenomenal outcome for a 10th overall pick.

Teddy picks the goalie. I for one was expecting him to go two picks later to the Hurricanes, but the Predators shore up their situation in net for the next two decades with this selection. Askarov is the most highly-touted goaltending prospect since Andrei Vasilevsky and is fairly pro-ready. Given that the Predators were going to have a goaltending dilemma next offseason, this should facilitate their decision: keep Rinne, trade/don’t re-sign Saros. Rinne will hold the fort until he retires as a Predator, and then Askarov will take the goaltending assignment in Tennessee. Askarov is a calm and composed goaltender who has great agility and quickness, not unlike Carey Price. Don’t be surprised if Askarov is selected at the #5 slot by the Ottawa Senators, he’s good enough to be the highest-drafted goaltender since Price.

I love this pick for the Panthers. Scott drafts physical shutdown defenceman Kaiden Guhle for the Panthers, and if I were a gambling man, I would put decent money on this being the player Florida actually ends up picking at 12. The 6’3″, 183 lbs Guhle hits like a truck and is great defensively. He is a powerful and smooth skater and his feet are constantly in motion, which plays into his proactive defensive style. He is a great transition defenceman and has very strong habits in the defensive zone. Guhle is a defensive transitional defenceman rather than one who produces offensively; he lacks a threatening shot and is not going to quarterback a powerplay at the pro level, but his physical and defensive toolkits could make him a dominant top-4 shutdown defenceman.

Emmanuel picks Seth Jarvis for the Hurricanes with the pick they received from the Toronto Maple Leafs as compensation for taking on and buying out, the Patrick Marleau contract, quite the reward! Jarvis is a dynamic offensive winger who can do everything at a fairly high level. He possesses good puck skills, good speed, good puck protection abilities, a good shot, good skating and good vision. He could very well develop into a perfect second-line winger who can easily fill in on the top line. This is a perfect fit for Carolina as they already have their #1 RW slot occupied by Andrei (Mr. Lacrosse-Goal) Svechnikov. Jarvis likes being the focal point of an attack and has “a gravitational pull on defencemen” according to the Elite Prospects Draft Guide. Between January 1st and the end of the shortened season, no CHL player scored more points than Jarvis. In the season as a whole, he produced 42 goals and 98 points in 58 games for the Portland Winterhawks in the WHL.

Ken goes with the 52-goalscorer at 14, and how frightening that is; Jack Quinn on his own is a scarily-good goalscorer, put him next to McDavid and/or Draisaitl and you have yourself a goalscoring machine; heck, even Patrick Maroon scored 27 goals in his full season in Edmonton. While Quinn can be criticized for being one of the oldest players of the draft class and for playing on the best team in the CHL (though not on the same line as Marco Rossi, mind you), his goalscoring instincts and abilities should not be overlooked. Quinn can shoot and he can score from just about anywhere. He doesn’t have one type of release that he depends on to score, he can bury it with a slapshot, a wrist-shot, from a stationary position and in motion; this versatility is perhaps his most dangerous attribute. While Quinn is not much of a playmaker, he does more than just shoot and score. Quinn is quite a useful defensive piece and can play on the penalty kill. In 62 games with the Ottawa 67s in the OHL, Quinn scored 52 goals and totalled 89 points.

While I am quite a big believer in the “draft the best player available” approach, an exception has to be made for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Their forward corps is among the most potent and dynamic in the league, but their defence is among the least consistent and, well, worst. While the best players still available here, in my eyes, are Mavrik Bourque, Dawson Mercer and Rodion Amirov, they do nothing to fix the Maple Leafs’ glaring weakness: right defence. Therefore, I have them selecting Helge Grans, who, in all honesty, is not much of a step down from the three forwards previously mentioned. Grans is a big (6’3″, 192 lbs) defenceman who excels in transition, is an effortless skater and, most importantly, is very solid defensively. While I could have selected Braden Schneider in this slot, Grans has a higher ceiling. In selecting Grans, I sacrificed Schneider’s physicality for the raw tools that Grans possesses, which are rather similar to Philip Broberg’s (but again, Grans can actually defend, and defend well at that). Grans will likely be a high-end #3 defenceman, but on the Leafs, would likely become the future #2 next to Morgan Rielly.

Omar got to make the selection that likely has garnered the majority of clicks on this article, and he has the Canadiens taking a home-run swing on Hendrix Lapierre. The 6’0″, 181 lbs centreman has just about the highest upside among all remaining prospects, but his chances of fulfilling this lofty potential aren’t necessarily high. Lapierre was a projected top-10 pick one year ago but has since had serious issues with concussions and has failed to score many goals since. Last season, he only played 19 QMJHL games and scored just two goals to go along with 15 assists for 17 total points. While this season has gotten off to a blistering start with 3 goals and 5 points in 2 games, it is important to acknowledge that Lapierre will never be known for his goalscoring. He is, however, an elite playmaker with elite puck handling. One area of his game that is very promising is that he always attacks the centre of the ice and he rarely gets pushed to the periphery. He is, however, just an average skater and his hockey IQ is not elite, so picking him at 16 is gambling that he is able to add some power to his shot and to construct a more effective game built upon his stickhandling and his playmaking. If he can do this, all the while staying healthy, the Habs will have a steal with this pick, as he could become a top-line playmaker. It is easy to imagine a future in which Lapierre, Suzuki and Caufield form a deadly top line for the Canadiens. It’s just that a lot would have to go right for Lapierre to reach his ceiling, though it could easily be argued that the Canadiens have a good enough prospect pool to take a big swing with their first-round pick. No matter my reservations with the risk of this pick, it is Hendrix Lapierre at 16 to the Canadiens.

The Chicago Blackhawks could use both secondary scoring and a strong defensive presence, but Teddy Elliot opts to pick physical defenceman, Braden Schneider, which I think is just who the Blackhawks need in their prospect pool. It is no secret that the Blackhawks are ageing, especially on the blueline. Duncan Keith is no longer the defenceman he once was and Brent Seabrook, well, he has the worst contract in the entire NHL; he is barely good enough to play in the NHL at this point in his career and is earning just shy of $7 million for the next four seasons. In a flat-cap era, the Hawks need a dependable, cost-controlled right defenceman, and Schneider is just that. He could jump straight into an NHL role if need be, and along with Adam Boqvist would solidify Chicago’s right side of defence for a long time. Schneider is dependable in his own zone and a very good hitter. He is cautious defensively and does not overcommit on plays. While he takes a backseat in the offensive zone, offence is not what Chicago would draft him for.

From a shutdown defensive beast to the polar opposite, a defenceman with phenomenal offensive abilities and who plays worse defensively than a fair few wingers available in this draft. Jeremie Poirier is a boom or bust selection, and Scott has the New Jersey Devils taking that risk. Having already drafted a sure-fire NHLer in Alexander Holtz, the Devils take a swing at Poirier, whose stickhandling ability and playmaking are both among the five best in the class as a whole, forwards included. The offensive toolkit is there without a shadow of a doubt; he produced 20 goals and 53 points in 64 QMJHL games with a rather weak team (St. John). Poirier is also great in transition, is exceptionally creative and can execute plays that nobody else has even seen as being an option. Oh, and he has a great shot and is an excellent goalscorer, as can be seen by the 20 goals he scored. Now, let’s look at the not-so-good part of his game. He is a clumsy backward skater, he isn’t a very good skater overall, he puts in zero effort defensively and he doesn’t have good defensive instincts to fall back on when he is lazy, which is very often the case. While the Devils’ development may just coax a not terrible defender from Poirier’s skillset, I see the most upside in converting him to a left-winger. It just seems to make sense given his skillset, and if that switch were to be made, Poirier may just become a high-end top-6 winger. If he stays on defence, he will likely max out as a #4 defenceman who runs the powerplay and puts up a lot of points while playing very sheltered minutes at 5 on 5.

Emmanuel decides to draft the best shooter still on the boards for the Calgary Flames, opting to pass on his personal favourite Dawson Mercer in the process. In Perreault, the Flames get a pure -goalscorer who could feature in their top-6 in his prime as a sniper. Perreault’s shot is a legitimate weapon and he is actually quite a good 2-way player, so even if he doesn’t reach his offensive ceiling, he could play a 2-way goalscoring role on the third line. His skating is flawed but should be able to be refined to not stand out in any way in the NHL. Perreault scored 39 goals and 70 points in 57 OHL games with the Sarnia Sting this past season.

With their third and final pick of the first round, Ken has the New Jersey Devils selecting centreman Connor Zary. After taking a real home-run swing two picks earlier, the Devils go with a fairly safe pick at 20. Connor Zary had great production last season with the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL, posting 38 goals and 86 points in 57 games. Offensively, it is his shot that is the most threatening; it has really good power and accuracy and Zary has a very deceptive release, which regularly caught WHL goaltenders off-guard. While he did get quite a few assists, New Jersey shouldn’t expect him to become a high-end playmaker in the NHL, but rather a second-line goalscorer who will likely end up on the wing due to his not-so-great skating. On top of scoring goals, though, Zary works very hard on the defensive side of things and is quite good on the penalty-kill.

At 21, we have a player that is a top-15 talent in my eyes. Mavrik Bourque is a centreman with a whole lot of skill, a great shot and borderline elite hockey IQ. He protects the puck well and is patient with the puck, especially in the offensive zone, he is extremely deceptive with the puck and has great vision. The 5’11”, 185 lbs forward can also play on the right-wing and plays in all situations, having been integral to both Shawinigan’s power-play and penalty-kill last season. In 49 games, he put up 29 goals and 71 points. Bourque will probably just be a very good 2nd liner, but I do see top-line upside in him. He actually reminds me a whole lot of Nick Suzuki. The Blue Jackets get a steal at 21, and they truly had three exceptional options in this slot, with Rodion Amirov and Dawson Mercer having been very tempting options as well. With Liam Foudy already cracking the Columbus lineup and Pierre-Luc Dubois cementing himself as a top-line centreman, Bourque could set them up with great depth down the middle for years to come.

Having already won the draft on the day of the Draft Lottery, Omar has the Rangers taking a home-run swing at 22. William Wallinder is a 6’4″, 192 lbs defenceman from Sweden who may just be the best skating defenceman of the draft. Wallinder accumulated 24 points in 37 J20 SuperElit games with MODO; and 2 assists in 18 games with the men’s team in the Allsvenskan. Selecting Wallinder would signify the Rangers trusting their developmental staff to improve Wallinder’s defensive play, which at this point in time is straight-up bad. He puts very little effort into his defensive-zone play, is constantly out of position and has poor defensive instincts and habits. The inconsistency in Wallinder’s game is worrisome, some nights he absolutely dominates, and on others, he looks like he shouldn’t even be selected in this draft. Still, the raw tools are phenomenal, and if the Rangers can bring some consistency to his game and can improve his defensive-zone play, he may very well turn into a #3 defenceman who dominates in transition.

The Philadelphia Flyers have a good, young defensive corps, so Teddy has them picking a player who could bring them both offence and good defensive play in Sam Colangelo. He played last season on a dynamite line for the Chicago Steel of the USHL with Brendan Brisson (more on him later) and Sean Farrell, racking up 28 goals and 58 points in 44 games. Colangelo is a 6’3″, 205 lbs power forward who sports a good shot and great playmaking ability. He drives the play on his line rather than being a passenger, and plays a smart and gritty style. He is also very capable defensively, playing a big role on a stacked Chicago Steel team’s penalty-kill. His clear weakness is his skating, which is slow and a bit clumsy; if he fails to make the NHL, his skating will be the likely culprit. However, if he can improve his skating ability and his speed, he could max out as a middle-6 right-winger who scores 20 goals, 25 assists and plays big PK minutes.

To Emmanuel’s dismay, Scott grabs Mercer from his clutches with Washington’s 24th overall selection. Mercer really should not have fallen as far as he did, but alas, some players always fall beyond where they should on draft day. Washington gleefully turns the angle of their Zoom camera to reveal a Mercer jersey with the ill-fated #20 (for 2020) on the back. Mercer has high-end stickhandling (among the very best of the class) and is a coach’s dream. He does everything at a very high level with the exception of skating. He has a dangerous shot, great offensive and defensive work-rates, great hockey IQ, solid defensively, etc. Mercer’s well-rounded play makes him a high-ceiling player. It is very unlikely that he is not able to carve out a top-9 NHL role, and it is plausible that he becomes a top-6 RW. The Newfoundland native plays for the Chicoutimi Sagueneens in the QMJHL and has formed a very good partnership with Hendrix Lapierre. Last season, he put up 24 goals and 60 points in 42 games, while he has already scored two goals and one assist in his first two games of the 2020-21 season.

Having taken a moment to mourn the loss of Mercer, Emmanuel decided to pick Swedish offensive-defenceman Emil Andrae for the Avalanche instead. Colorado is stacked at pretty much every position, but the left side of their defence is already in phenomenal shape; with Andrae, they take the player who, in their minds is the best available rather than drafting for positional need. The Avalanche already have Samuel Girard, Kyle Graves and Nikita Zadorov as their left-defencemen and they have last year’s 4th overall pick, Bowen Byram in their system as well. Andrae is a small defenceman (5’9″, 183 lbs) who plays a gritty, physical style and works very hard. He is, however, not all that good defensively; he really needs to improve his defensive play in the neutral zone, his opponents get the puck into his defensive zone with control far too easily. He also has weak gap control and can be caught puck-watching in the defensive zone. However, he is a good puck handler who, when in the offensive zone, can dominate. He has phenomenal vision, which he allows him to quarterback a powerplay. He led all J20 SuperElit defencemen in points last season, with 38 in 40 games and has started this season playing in the SHL.

At 26, the 2018-19 Stanley Cup Champs get an absolute steal, with Ken selecting Rodion Amirov in their stead. Amirov is a playmaking winger who is already a veteran of 30 KHL games. 21 of those came last season and he did not look out of place while playing against men, despite accumulating just two assists in a 4th-line role. He excelled against junior competition, though, putting up 22 points in 17 MHL games. This season, he has already scored 3 goals and 5 points in 9 KHL games. He is not a goalscorer though, it is his playmaking that is his dangerous offensive tool. He has very good habits both on and off the puck and possesses a very good anticipatory ability. Amirov is a phenomenal 2-way player; the Elite Prospects Draft Guide has him ranked as the second-best 2-way forward, behind Anton Lundell. His combination of playmaking, pedigree against tough competition and two-way play makes this a no-hesitation pick for St. Louis.

For the second pick in a row, the Western Conference team just goes with the “best player available” approach. Pat Brisson’s son, Brendan has risen into most first-round rankings throughout the year, and in selecting him, the Ducks ensure that they will have two exceptionally intelligent centremen leading the charge for the next two decades with Perfetti and Brisson. Brisson is a great problem solver, on par with Perfetti in that regard. Brisson is a good playmaker and has an absolutely devastating one-timer. With the Chicago Steel in the USHL last season, the 6’0″, 185 lbs centreman put up 24 goals and 59 points in 45 games.

With their third and final selection of the first round, Omar has the Ottawa Senators selecting a 6’1″, 194 lbs goalscorer. Foerster has an excellent shot that holds a whole lot of power, this shot is lethal on the power play. Furthermore, Foerster sees the ice really well and is a very good passer of the puck. His main detractor is his skating ability, which needs to see significant improvement for him to excel at the NHL level. If he does refine this area of his game though, the right shot forward, who produced 36 goals and 80 points in 62 OHL games, could complete the Senators’ future top line, all three of whom would have been drafted in the first round in 2020, with Stutzle and Rossi; now that would be a successful day of drafting!

At 29, Teddy has the Vegas Golden Knights selecting Ozzy Wisblatt, a player who projects to be a top-9 Swiss army knife type player. Wiesblatt, the second youngest of the Wiesblatt siblings (the others being Orca, Ocean and Oasiz… that’s a lot of O’s), produced 25 goals and 70 points in 64 WHL games. Wiesblatt is a good playmaker and passer who lacks a really threatening shot. He is at his very best when playing a quick counter-attacking style as he is good in transition and potent off the rush. Vegas fleshes out their future top-9 with this selection rather than taking a home-run swing.

At 30, Scott has the Stars making a very interesting pick. Coe was the third-overall pick in the OHL draft a few years ago but never exploded offensively in North Bay. He does, however, have an intriguing skillset, which consists of steady defensive play, physical play, good habits on both sides of the puck, good speed, soft hands and good passing. The profile sounds similar to that of Joel Armia, who himself was a first-round selection, 16th overall, to be precise. Coe could very well forge himself a role as a third-line all-situations power forward, but the upside to transcend into the top-6 still exists. And Dallas has a history of making top-6 goalscorers out of big power-forwards, just looks at Gurianov and Hintz. Coe produced 25 goals and 57 points in 60 OHL games last season.

While the Sharks will not be picking with the third-overall pick that had originally been theirs, their consolation prize consists of the very last pick of the first-round… it just isn’t quite the same, now is it? Nevertheless, Emmanuel tried his very best to give San Jose a good player at the 31st draft slot, and that he did. Lukas Reichel played the entirety of last season in the DEL against men and put up 12 goals and 24 points in 42 games. He plays a high-energy game and has top-6 upside. Reichel possesses an unrelenting motor, good skating ability and is a strong forechecker and back checker. Offensively, he has a decent shot and slightly better playmaking ability, but can sometimes be a bit passive during sustained offensive-zone possession. On the defensive side of things, he is quite strong and can even be employed on the penalty-kill. All in all, Reichel is a very good pickup for a Sharks team that needs to get younger; he should be a presence in their middle-6 for a very long time, and with this pick, our mock draft, at long-last, comes to conclusion.