Montreal Canadiens: Undrafted QMJHL Free Agents to Target This Offseason

The Montreal Canadiens have been targeting the QMJHL area more recently for prospects to add to their pipeline. They are often criticized by local media for not having enough Quebecois flavour on the team, but that could change in the near future.

They added veteran free agents Mathieu Perreault, Cedric Paquette and David Savard last offseason. Savard played well, but the two forwards had limited impact.

They also appeared to be adding more prospects from their own backyard as well. They signed Joel Teasdale after a strong QMJHL career. They drafted Rafael Harvey-Pinard and Xavier Simoneau who were undersized, but gritty forwards who had big offensive numbers in the QMJHL.

Of course, that was a previous regime. Marc Bergevin and Trevor Timmins are out of the organization and Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton are in. It wouldn’t make sense for them to just draft a bunch of QMJHL players to appease the small portion of the fanbase that wants more local players.

However, if they continue in the path Bergevin began, they could add a few previously overlooked players in the late rounds of the 2022 NHL Draft. Or just wait for the draft to end and sign a couple of overaged locals who could hop right on to the AHL roster in the fall.

Teasdale, Harvey-Pinard and Simoneau actually played another season in the QMJHL after signing, or being drafted by the Habs. They could all turn out to be NHL players in the future, and the Canadiens will have added big league local talent for next to nothing.

This is what the Tampa Bay Lightning did with Yanni Gourde and Jonathan Marchessault. They signed each of these small forwards after they were undrafted and had monster seasons to close out their QMJHL careers. Neither player is still with the Lightning, but they both have become good NHL players.

Who could the Habs grab from the QMJHL draft scrap heap?

Miguel Tourigny

Miguel Tourigny is a skilled, fast, and creative offensive defenceman. He was first eligible for the NHL Draft in 2020, having scored 30 points in 61 games that season for the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada.

He was not drafted that year, and was passed over once again in 2021 after scoring 36 points in just 32 games. This season, Tourigny was dealt to the Acadie-Bathurst Titan at the trade deadline, and put up an impressive 80 points in 65 games split between the two teams.

He immediately took over as the Titan’s power play quarterback and reads the play extremely well in the offensive zone. As a right hand shot, he could be sought after this year for teams looking to give him an AHL chance next season.

With 14 picks in this year’s NHL Draft, the Habs could certainly choose to use one on the Victoriaville, Quebec native. With his right hand shot, offensive skills and creativity with the puck, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he eventually finds an NHL role like Chris Wideman did.

The Canadiens organization will be going through a bit of a rebuild on the blue line in the next couple seasons. But, they could use another right hand shot in the minors that could eventually turn into an option for the second power play.

Xavier Parent

Another player who may already be familiar to Habs fans in Xavier Parent. While Tourigny was on the same team as Canadiens prospect Riley Kidney to end the season and Guay played on the same power play unit as Xavier Simoneau and William Trudeau, Parent was piling up numbers with Joshua Roy.

Parent was originally a 4th overall pick of the Halifax Mooseheads in the QMJHL Draft. He had tons of skill but was a bit small and played two just okay seasons with the Mooseheads before being traded to the Sherbrooke Phoenix.

HIs first two seasons there were interrupted by Covid, and he scored 19 points in 25 games, followed by a 27 point season in just 24 games. So, he was basically a point per game player for two seasons. Then, he obliterated those numbers in 2021-22.

Parent teamed up with Roy and Julien Anctil to form perhaps the best line in the QMJHL this season. By season’s end, Parent had 51 goals and 106 points in 65 games. This put him fourth in the QMJHL in both goals and points, making him one of the best offensive players in a very offensive league.

Parent didn’t slow down in the postseason either, scoring 22 points in 11 playoff games. The native of Laval would be a nice addition to the Laval Rocket lineup heading into next season. He is already 21 years old so he wouldn’t have the choice to go back to Junior for an overaged season, but he has the sill to battle for an AHL job right away.

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