Canadiens: 2022 Draft Has Chance To Turn Page On History Of Mistakes

Dan Geoffrion managed little but one solid season with the expansion Winnipeg Jets after being taken 8th overall by the Habs in 1978, in spite of being the son of a Canadiens legend in his father Bernie. Alain Heroux played just one half of a professional season after being taken 19th in 1982. Alfie Turcotte, Mark Pederson and Jose Charbonneau became little but occasional role players whilst being taken 17th, 15th and 12th overall in 1983, 1985 and 1986 respectively, and Doug Wickenheiser was the whiff of all whiffs first overall in 1980, struggling to stand out on a stacked Canadiens roster.

However, with the acquisition of players like Vincent Damphousse, Kirk Muller, Brian Bellows, as well as the franchise altering selection of Patrick Roy in the third round of the 1984 Draft, the Canadiens managed to stymy most of it and still came out with two more Stanley Cups off surprising Cinderella runs in 1986 and 1993, as well as a Cup Finals appearance in 1989.

With the 2022 Draft fast approaching, the Montreal Canadiens finally have a chance to turn the page on a history of previous draft blunders.

So, naturally, this should’ve been seen as an opportunity for Montreal to keep building for the future going into the mid-90s and beyond. Well, things didn’t exactly go that way, and when I say they didn’t go that way, they really, really didn’t go that way. To say I’m familiar with this bizarre and unbelievably depressing era in the Canadiens history would be a gross understatement, but in spite of it all, it does make the potential outcome of this upcoming draft all the more enticing. While I had previously mentioned the likes of Geoffrion, Turcotte, and Heroux in the 80s, Montreal at least managed a few solid selections here and there, capped off by a 1987 Draft that saw them pick up Andrew Cassels, John LeClair, Eric Desjardins, and Mathieu Schneider, the latter three of which were crucial to Montreal’s cup run in 1993.