2025 NHL Draft Prospect First Look: William Moore

Montreal Canadiens fans wish the team will contend for a playoff spot this year. However, the early predictions say they are still two years away from being up there with those teams. In a perfect world, if they aren't going to make the playoffs anyway, the Canadiens would love the chance to draft one of the top prospects in the class. However, fans may sacrifice one of those top picks if it means they are a bit closer to contending when the final standings hit. If the Canadiens aren't in a top-eight draft position, they may target USNTDP forward William Moore.

Moore is a big two-way center that can flash offensive brilliance. He is one of the smartest players in the draft class, and uses that IQ well to lean on his size advantage. He will attack players directly with his skill and skating, and has above-average hands and puck skills for a player of his size.

Moore scored 23 goals and 20 assists in 50 games with the US National U17 Team, and added to that total with 14 goals and 11 assists in 35 games in the USHL. He also dominated the World Under-17 Challenge, with five goals and seven assists in 12 games.

We made a case that Roger McQueen may be the Canadiens' target if they are drafting in his range. However, in the scenario where the Canadiens are a bigger contender next season, McQueen will already be off the board. McQueen was a target due to his similarities to Cayden Lindstrom, another big center who can use his skill to put up points but be a force with his body. Moore isn't as dominant right now as McQueen looked in the WHL, but he wouldn't be a bad consolation prize.

The Canadiens could use a bigger body to play down the middle in a few seasons, as they have a crop of undersized wingers. After missing out on Lindstrom but drafting Ivan Demidov, Moore could be playing in the middle alongside Demidov.

Moore committed to attend Boston College recently, and will likely join the team in the 2026 season.