The promising Montreal Canadiens: Top 5 players under 22 years-old
The Montreal Canadiens have gotten much better compared to the years before.
While General Manager, Marc Bergevin was trading and acquiring players, he was also making big moves during the last three drafts. Bergevin targeted picks, no matter what round, with just about every trade he made over the past few years.
This resulted in the Canadiens making 29 selections in the past three drafts, and really stockpiling the prospect cupboard that had become pretty bare.
Some of the players that were drafted could potentially become elite players, and here is a list of the best young players the Montreal Canadiens have in the system and on the ice already.
5-Kaiden Guhle
In the 2020 NHL draft, the Montreal Canadiens selected a 6’3 and 191 pounds left-defensemen, Kaiden Guhle, adding to their interesting prospect pool. The young player was drafted first overall in the Western Hockey League in 2017 by the Prince Albert Raiders, where he has accumulated a total of 40 points in 64 games in the 2019-2020 season.
This defenseman is not the only great prospect in Marc Bergevin’s pool. Many people have compared Kaiden to defensemen Colton Parayko. Guhle plays a very good defensive game and can also contribute offensively with his powerful shot. His skating is elite and his leadership is something that Montreal would love in the next years.
Kaiden Guhle will most likely play with Laval if the WHL doesn’t start its 2021 season and with Joël Bouchard’s coaching, Ghule will not have any issue developing on the right track. If his development goes well, he could become a top defenseman with the Habs in 4-5 years.
4-Alexander Romanov
Alexander Romanov is a 21-year-old Russian playing on the third line with Brett Kulak for Montreal. After spending years in the KHL, Romanov came to Montreal and signed his 3-year rookie contract starting this season. Drafted in the second round in 2018, Romanov has proved that he is an excellent player for Montreal, with his confidence and poise. He is not afraid to make risky moves on the ice and he always fixes his mistakes.
Romanov helped lead Team Russia in the 2020 World Junior to the gold medal game, with 1 goal and 5 assists in 7 games. He ended up winning the silver medal.
Romanov has a great offensive side and he’s not afraid to play hard. He plays in the second power-play line with the Habs and he proved to be an excellent choice. The 21-year-old is a great skater with a great slapshot, which he isn’t afraid to use on the power-play. Alexander Romanov is an overall great young player who could potentially be the next Andrei Markov for Montreal.
3-Cole Caufield
In the 2019 draft, the Montreal Canadiens have selected possibly one the biggest steal of the entire draft, with forward Cole Caufield at the 15th selection. Caufield had a total of 72 goals and 28 assists in 64 games with the U.S. National Development team program in 2018-2012, marking a new record for most goals scored in this program. He passed players like Patrick Kane, Auston Mattews, Jack Eichel, and Phil Kessel.
Caufield recently won the gold medal with Team USA in the 2021 World Juniors. He scored 2 goals and had 3 assists in 5 games.
Many teams passed Caufield in the draft, because of his height (5’7) but this player is an elite goal-scorer with great hands, a kind of player that Montreal could definitely use. Not only is Cole able to score goals with his shot, but he also possesses really good hand-skills. His skating has gotten much better since he was drafted and he now leads his Wisconsin team with 24 points in 17 games.
2-Jesperi Kotkaniemi
At the 2018 NHL draft, Montreal selected center Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the 3rd overall Kotkaniemi had a good rookie season, and many fans were excited. However, after the holiday he seemed exhausted and wasn’t producing much, which led him to miss the first half of the next season to go play with the Laval Rockets.
When the pandemic forced the NHL to cancel the season and continue with a playoff bubble, Kotkaniemi was given the chance to prove what he could do and he gave us a great impression. In 10 games, ”KK” scored 4 goals and was +4.
At the beginning of the 2021 season, Kotkaniemi is playing on the 3rd line with Tyler Toffoli, Joel Armia, and Correy Perry. Kotkaniemi is known for his great shot, not only powerful but precise. ‘’KK’’ was often compared to Jean Béliveau or Anze Kopitar and if he develops to become that kind of player, he could be a solid member of the organization for the years to come.
1-Nick Suzuki
Nick Suzuki was acquired in the Max Pacioretty trade in 2018. In his rookie season, Suzuki proved to be an impressive young player with a great hockey IQ, with 13 goals and 28 assists in 71 games. Many Canadiens fans were excited to see the future with Suzuki because he was becoming a dominant player for the Habs.
Suzuki plays as if he had been in the NHL for years, with a lot of confidence. Suzuki had a good playoff run with 7 points in 10 games last year and since then, many analysts and amateur have projected Suzuki to become the number one center for years to come. This player is extremely smart and he always makes the right decision offensively and defensively.
With the 2021 season, Suzuki has already produced well. He is playing with Josh Anderson and Jonathan Drouin. Every time this line is on the ice, something is happening, especially because of Suzuki. With talent, intelligence, great shot, and good hands, Suzuki is an overall excellent young player at 21 years-old.