Montreal Canadiens Best Ever NHL Draft Classes: #1

The Montreal Canadiens hold on to the fifth overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft which will begin tonight. They are looking to hit a few home runs with their selections and are hoping to add some future cornerstone pieces for the franchise.

While we wait to find out who will become the Canadiens 2023 NHL Draft class, we are counting down their hits and misses from previous years. Today, we look at their best draft class in franchise history.

The Canadiens best ever draft class came in 1984. It had plenty of depth, and one of the best players in the history of hockey. Serge Savard was just over a year into his tenure as the team’s general manager but he hit a number of home runs in this draft. Similar to the 1987 class, this one saw four great picks followed by nothing.

The Canadiens first pick in 1984 was 5th overall and they surprised everyone in the Montreal Forum when they announced it was Petr Svoboda. No one thought he would be able to make it to North America but Savard knew he was hiding under the stands in the Forum. Svoboda scored 399 points in 1028 career NHL games, helping the Habs win the Stanley Cup in 1986.

Their next pick was Shayne Corson, taken 8th overall. Corson’s mix of skill and snarl made him a perfect player for the 1980s. He never won the Stanley Cup with the Habs, because he didn’t play playoff games in 1986 and he was traded for Vincent Damphousse before the 1992-93 season. He did score 693 points in 1156 career games.

The third pick made by the Canadiens that year was Stephane Richer. He played a minor role on the 86 Cup winning team and was traded for Kirk Muller in 1991. Richer played 1054 career NHL games and scored 421 goals and 819 points.

In the third round, with the 51st overall pick, the Canadiens selected Patrick Roy. This selection secured the Stanley Cup wins in 86 and 93, though it obviously wasn’t known at the time. Roy went on to be possibly the best goaltender of all-time, winning three Vezina Trophy’s, three Conn Smythe Trophy’s five Jennings Awards.

The four picks played a total of 4267 NHL games, which is wild considering one of them was a goaltender. With their last pick they selected Troy Crosby, the father of Sidney Crosby.

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