Montreal Canadiens: Getting To Know Development Camp Invitees

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.