The Montreal Canadiens are heading into the 2022-23 NHL season knowing full well that it is going to be a rebuilding season. A team’s objective during a rebuilding season is to trade away veteran players who won’t be around when the team gets good, and load up on prospects and draft picks.
A quick glance at the draft picks owned by the Canadiens show they have already loaded up on draft capital. After selecting 11 players in the 2022 NHL Draft, the Canadiens could add even more players to the organization in next year’s event.
Right now, the Canadiens have 11 picks for the 2023 NHL Draft which doesn’t have a host city quite yet. They are very likely to be looking to trade a few more players for picks throughout the season, so that number is likely to climb.
The draft is a seven round event, so the Canadiens started with their own seven picks. They have already added a 1st round pick in 2023 from the Florida Panthers in the Ben Chiarot trade. They acquired a 4th round pick from the Penguins as part of the Jeff Petry trade. They shipped out a 4th round pick at the 2022 NHL Draft and acquired a 2023 4th round pick from the Vegas Golden Knights. They also added a 5th round pick from the Calgary Flames as a part of the Tyler Toffoli trade.
The Canadiens are not likely to be trading away any picks for players during the NHL season, as they are expected to be bad and won’t be using any draft picks to fill holes midseason. Expect them to trade a few more veterans before the trade deadline and add even more picks to their stockpile.
The 2023 NHL Draft is supposed to be a very deep one. It won’t take place for nearly a year, but already the Canadiens have loaded up on picks, and should continue to do so for the next 11 months.
Combining their 11 picks from the 2022 NHL Draft with a dozen or more picks in 2023 gives the Canadiens plenty of chances to land a few star players for the next decade. There are no guarantees in the NHL Draft, but the more players a team takes, the better chance they have at finding an impact player.
No team in the league is going to pick more players than the Canadiens in the 2022 and 2023 NHL Drafts. Let’s hope it pays off with a long run of contention in a few years.
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