The Montreal Canadiens are currently undergoing a rebuild which means a lot of emphasis has been placed on the NHL Entry Draft, the easiest way to acquire young talent. Kent Hughes and his team have already done a nice job stockpiling young talent, building one of the deepest prospect pools in the NHL.
But they are not done just yet. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at the picks the Canadiens currently own for the next few drafts, and what that could mean for the future of the club.
In the 2024 cycle, the Canadiens have 11 picks, including six of their own. They are without their own second-round pick, as it was traded away in exchange for Christian Dvorak back in 2021. But they own Colorado’s second-round pick, which they got in exchange for Artturi Lehkonen.
The Canadiens have 11 picks already for 2024, including four in the first three rounds. Will be interesting to see if Kent Hughes can add more.
— Ryan Praught (@RyanPraught) September 11, 2023
They also already have 10 in 2025, including Calgary's first round pick with a million conditions.
With some possible deadline moves, the Canadiens could certainly add to this total as well. But the Canadiens are at a point in their prospect pool where quality should matter more than quantity. They don’t necessarily need more picks, but they could certainly use better picks. Perhaps adding more picks could open up the possibility of moving up in 2024.
As for 2025, the Canadiens are already well stocked there as well, with 10 picks already in the Habs possession, including all seven of their own picks. They have two first-round picks, with the second coming from Calgary in the Sean Monahan trade. That pick has a plethora of conditions and could ultimately become a 2024 first-rounder.
One interesting storyline to observe for 2025 will be dependent on the success of the team. I suspect the Canadiens to remain a bottom-tier team in 2024 but start competing for the playoffs as soon as 2024-25. If so, the Canadiens would certainly have the buying power to add at the deadline if they wanted to.
Or, as they could in 2024, use the additional picks to move up in the draft if they wanted as well. The Habs certainly have options, and it will certainly be interesting to see what they do with that. The success of the team in each of the next two years will no doubt have an impact on those decisions.
As for 2026, the Canadiens currently own just seven picks, all of which are their own, but it wouldn’t shock me to see them start to add to that total relatively soon as well. Or perhaps it’ll be depleted as the Canadiens start to swing for the fences and try and compete for the cup.
The trade deadline is often a boring day for Habs fans, as the potential to be exciting is there, but is rarely delivered upon. In 2024 and beyond, the Canadiens might start to change that narrative. They certainly have the ammunition to do so.
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