The Montreal Canadiens will continue to be unable to bring Logan Mailloux to the NHL level. A recent announcement from Gary Bettman and Bill Daly of the Commissioner’s Office made it known that he will remain ineligible for competition.
After being drafted by the Montreal Canadiens with their first-round pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, he could not partake in training camp. The latest announcement keeps him ineligible to join an NHL club officially.
While he has signed an entry-level contract and partook in training camp this summer/fall, he was loaned back to the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League. In a time where Mitchell Miller’s situation is all over the news circuit, Habs fans have to think back to when the Habs took Mailloux, and there was plenty of criticism surrounding the move.
For the Habs, they continued to pilot that they made the decision, thinking it through thoroughly and making the best decision for the hockey club. For now, that will result in Mailloux continuing to be ineligible and unable to join the Habs.
Montreal Canadiens prospect Logan Mailloux remains ineligible to play.
For those who still are not caught up on the situation. Mailloux was charged and given a fine for distributing an explicit and offensive photo of an 18-year-old woman during a consensual sexual encounter in 2020.
Mailloux has already addressed the situation to the media, even asking teams to pass on him in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. However, Mailloux was drafted by the Habs; there was a lot of criticism surrounding the organization and the Mailloux situation.
The Habs continue to say that their decisions were in the best interest of the hockey club moving forward. While that’s up for debate amongst those in the fan base, Mailloux still has a long road ahead to find his way to the NHL level.
Before Mailloux can play for the Habs, they will have to get it cleared by the league’s office. The news surrounding Mitchell Miller and the Boston Bruins prompted Mailloux to enter the news cycle again.
With that happening, Bettman and Daly offered to keep the NHL’s viewpoint clear and concise. They opted to make sure it was clear where the league stands on Mailloux and getting to play for the Habs at the NHL level.
For now, he will continue to stay with the Knights in the OHL and try to keep developing as a good hockey player. His time down the road to join the Habs may come as they continue to make decisions as a business and a hockey club focused on the players on the ice.
But the situation Mailloux is in brings criticism and attention off the ice, which will resurface again before he hits the ice in a Habs uniform.