Canadiens: Get To Know The Development Camp Invitees

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The Montreal Canadiens annual development camp is taking place this week. It already began yesterday with players arriving and doing off-ice testing and measurements. The 37 players will get to hit the ice today, as well as the next two days, in skills sessions and will wrap up on Tuesday with a scrimmage.

Most of the players in attendance have been drafted by the team in recent years. Some were acquired via trade but are prospects in the team’s system currently. Others, and there are seven of them in fact, are invitees that are not property of any other team right now and have been passed over in NHL Drafts.

The Canadiens have recently had success with non-roster invitees at development camp when they brought in Arber Xhekaj two years ago. He played quite well at development camp and was then invited to the team’s training camp a few months later. He played well there again, and looked comfortable in a few exhibition games so he was given an entry-level contract. After one more year of Junior hockey, he was playing in the NHL.

The Canadiens will be hoping to have the same luck with another player at this year’s camp. Someone who jumps out at them after a few skates and looks great in the scrimmage. Could they find another future NHLer from their list of invitees who haven’t even been drafted? It is possible, so let’s take a quick look at the seven players that were invited to this year’s development camp.

MONCTON, NB – APRIL 01:Isaac Dufort #19 of Baie-Comeau Drakkar. (Photo by Dale Preston/Getty Images) /

Forwards

Isaac Dufort is a 20 year old forward who is coming off a strong season in the QMJHL with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. He scored 21 goals and 41 points in 61 games on a rebuilding team and added seven more points in seven playoff games. He isn’t lighting the league up with his scoring, but that’s why he hasn’t been drafted yet.

Dufort is worth keeping an eye on as a possible signing candidate and could get the same deal that Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Xavier Simoneau and Joel Teasdale got which is to be sent back to the QMJHL for their overage season and then signed to an AHL-only contract for one year. At 6’2″ and 180 pounds, the Laval native is definitely on the Canadiens radar as a potential future Laval Rocket.

Gabriel Seger took an interesting route to get here as the Swedish forward has been playing college hockey in the United States. That’s not unheard of, but college hockey teams don’t have a ton of European players in their lineups. Seger was named to the ECAC Rookie All-Star Team in 2020 after scoring 22 points in 37 games with Union College. He missed the entire next season as Ivy League schools did not compete in 2020-21 due to Covid so Seger didn’t play a game.

He had 21 points in 34 games in 2021-22, showing little improvement from his freshman season, but he didn’t play hockey for a year in between. Last season, he stepped up and scored 30 points in 30 games for Cornell after transferring there for his final college campaign. He is now 23 years old and 6’4″ and 223 pounds. Is he a late bloomer who suffered from a year off but is back on track? Could be ready to step right into an AHL lineup at his age and size.

William Vote is a skilled young player who was kind of surprisingly passed over in the 2023 NHL Draft. He was ranked as a 4th-5th rounder by a lot of scouting outlets but was not picked at all in the seven round event. That would only be because of his size. He is 5’7″ but quite skilled as he put up 16 goals and 45 points in 61 games for the U.S. Development Team last season.

Vote also had seven points in seven games at the World Under-18 tournament and is headed to Boston College next season. He is not eligible to sign an entry-level contract as he must re-enter the NHL Draft next season. The Canadiens selected a few overagers at this year’s draft and could have their eye on him in the later rounds of next year’s draft.

QUEBEC CITY, QC – OCTOBER 26: Charle Truchon #47 of the Quebec Remparts. (Photo by Mathieu Belanger/Getty Images) /

Defensemen/Goalie

Jeremie Bucheler is a big, defensive minded defenseman who played the past four seasons at Northeastern. The Canadiens would have had plenty of viewings of him as he played with Jordan Harris and Jayden Struble who were Habs prospects at the time as well as Jack Hughes who is the son of Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes as well as Ryan St. Louis who is the son of Habs head coach Martin St. Louis.

Bucheler is from Montreal and though he does not put up much offense, he clearly caught the attention of the Canadiens brass with his play at Northeastern.

Francesco Dell’Elce is another 18 year old who many thought would be drafted last week. He was not, and is headed to the BCHL next season to play for the Penticton Vees who are a highly regarded organization. Following that he is committed to joining the University of Massachusetts which is a strong college program.

Dell-Elce played prep school hockey last season and scored 20 goals and 62 points in 51 games. That isn’t against the toughest competition so even though he showed off some skill, he will need to prove he can do it at a higher level before an NHL team uses a draft pick on him. He will re-enter the draft next season and is not eligible to be signed before then.

Charle Truchon will be an overaged defenseman in the QMJHL next season and just won a league championship. He played the past four seasons with the Quebec Remparts and scored six goals and 30 points in 68 games and another ten points in 16 playoff games. The Remparts also won the Memorial Cup with Truchon adding two points in four games.

Samuel Urban is a goaltender from Slovakia who was also ranked by some to be drafted in the 2023 NHL Draft but he was passed over. He had an excellent World Under-18 championships for an overmatched Slovakian squad.

He played most of the season in Slovakia’s tier-2 league, but with an Under-18 team. His numbers don’t look great but his team was also 1-13-0 in his 14 starts. He did play four games with the Sioux City Musketeers in the USHL and had a 2.80 GAA and a .918 SV%.

The invitees will be interesting to keep an eye on this week. The goaltenders at Hasb development camp take to the ice this morning at 9:15 AM at the Bell Sports Complex in Brossard this morning. Forwards and defensemen will follow at 11:15. The same schedule will follow tomorrow and then on Tuesday goalies will take the ice at 9:15 and the scrimmage will happen at 11:15.

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