Lane Hutson's Hockey Night in Canada performance draws praise from panel

The future of the Montreal Canadiens was on full display when Lane Hutson helped set up Emil Heineman's first career goal. It was a special moment for Heineman, but it was hard not to marvel at Hutson's effort to make it happen. Heineman immediately acknowledged the effort, as he beelined to celebrate with Hutson instead of soaking in his first career marker.

Hutson is already getting the ultimate respect from his peers. The opposing teams are zeroing in on him with their defensive game plans, leading to open looks for his teammates. Hutson sped up the ice, gained the zone, and drew two defenders to him, which left Heineman with plenty of daylight in the slot.

If the respect from his peers wasn't enough, Hutson even got some love from the Hockey Night in Canada panel, specifically Jennifer Botterill. The compliments from the panel show how well Hutson has been performing since the Canadiens don't generally get love during the intermissions. It's only a 10-15 minute segment, and it's difficult to fit in any Habs discussion after they talk about the Maple Leafs for 90% of the intermission.

We won't complain about the HNIC coverage too much but instead agree with Botterill's claim. Hutson already looks like a star in the league and should be the early front-runner for the Calder Trophy. The scary thing for Habs' opponents is he's doing it all without playing on the team's first powerplay unit. Once he takes his rightful spot as the quarterback of that unit, Hutson's stardom will rise to unimaginable levels.