Canadiens: Top 2023 NHL Draft Prospects To Watch At Hlinka Gretzky

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The Montreal Canadiens just closed the book on a fairly poor season. They have already begun preparing for next season as the free agent period is underway, but the work begins anew for next season already.

While many coaches, players and general manager may take a bit of time off in late July and into August, NHL scouts have a pretty large event circled on their calendars at this time of the year.

The annual Hlinka Gretzky Cup is a best on best tournament featuring the top draft eligible players for next year. The group of players who will be selected in the 2023 NHL Draft are taking part in an event that is essentially the World Junior Championships, but for 17 year olds.

Unfortunately, the event doesn’t get near the publicity of the actual World Juniors, because these kids don’t have NHL teams attached to them already, and the tournament takes place in the middle of summer instead of the middle of the holidays each year.

However, it is a phenomenal tournament to watch and introduces viewers, and NHL scouts alike, to the best players who are potential draft picks next June. Canada, United States, Sweden, Finland, Czechia, Slovakia, Switzerland and Germany all have teams competing, but some of the top draft eligibles won’t be participating this year.

The reason for that is, the best 2023 draft eligible players, like Connor Bedard, are representing their country in the 2022 World Juniors which will take place from August 9th – 20th in Edmonton.

The Hlinka Gretzky Cup is taking place in Red Deer, and begins with three games today, including Canada taking on Switzerland in the night cap.

Who should you be watching for? Well, we expect the Canadiens to have a really high draft pick again in 2023, so let’s keep and eye on these three potential top 10 picks.

Quentin Musty

The Canadiens drafted Juraj Slafkovsky over Shane Wright in part because it is not easy to find a player that combines size with speed and skill. Well, they may have an opportunity to draft yet another big, highly skilled winger early in next year’s NHL Draft.

Quentin Musty has an incredible name, but he also possesses a similar portfolio as Slafkovsky. Of course, he hasn’t played at a World Championships, or the Olympics, but he has played well on the Junior stage.

Musty is from New York, but chose to play in the OHL after being selected first overall in the 2021 OHL Draft. He just played his rookie season with the Sudbury Wolves and showed plenty of promise. While the Sudbury Wolves struggled, Musty showed flashes of brilliance without much of a supporting cast.

The 6’2″ and 203 pound left winger scored 12 goals and 31 points in 50 games, but showed a lot of skills with the puck as well as the ability to win battles and run through an opponent to get to the net. If the Habs liked Slafkovsky, they are absolutely going to love Musty as well.

The United Starts don’t always send their elite team to this tournament, which means Musty is likely to play a huge role. Look for him to bowl over the competition and really stand out for the Americans.

He is ranked as a first round pick by most, though he is far from a guarantee to go in the top ten. The Canadiens will probably pick inside the top ten, but if not, Musty is a player worth keeping an eye on this season.

Jul 8, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CANADA; Montreal Canadiens table. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports /

Kasper Halttunen

The Canadiens need help just about everywhere in the lineup, but the 2023 NHL Draft is shaping up to be stacked with forwards in the early going. The Canadiens will need to fill the depth chart with wingers once all these veterans have their contracts expire in a year or two.

Kasper Halttunen would be a skilled guy who could eventually take on a prominent role on the wing. The Finnish right shooting winger is a talented goal scorer who is going to be an early pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.

He will play a big role for Finland at this event, and could be a favourite to lead the whole thing in goals. He scored 24 goals and had 38 points in 41 games in the Under-20 league in Finland. He was only 16 years old and still finished third in the league in goals, playing against many players three years his senior.

At 6’3″ and close to 200 pounds, Halttunen is as much of a power forward as he is a sniper. Like Musty, he has a package of size, skill and scoring that is difficult to find around the league. Halttunen made the Hlinka Gretzky team last summer but didn’t score a point. Expect him to be among the goal and point leaders this time around.

Jul 8, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CANADA; General view of the Montreal Canadiens. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports /

Brayden Yager

Yet another highly skilled forward to watch is Brayden Yager. The Saskatchewan native plays for the Moose Jaw Warriors and has put up incredible numbers in his short time with the WHL organization.

Yager was the third overall pick in the WHL Bantam Draft in 2020, and then scored 18 points in 24 games in 2020-21 as a 15 year old. This season was technically still his rookie campaign and he was incredible, scoring 34 goals and 59 points in 63 games in his 16 year old season.

He was named the WHL and CHL Rookie of the Year for his great 2021-22 season. It is pretty rare you see a player Yager’s age scoring over 30 goals in the WHL, and it just shows how great of a release the 17 year old possesses.

He is a fantastic two-way centre who is poised to dominate at this event and could possibly become a top five pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. No one is taking top slots away from Connor Bedard or Adam Fantilli next season, but Yager is going to make a case to be drafted as high as third overall.

A skilled, goal scoring two-way centre is not easy to find, and Yager fits that description. Expect him to show he is among the very best players at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and begin to show that he is one of the best draft eligible prospects in the world.

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