For the month of May, aside from the NHL Draft lottery, there isn’t much going on. So here at A Winning Habit, I’ve decided to rank the 24 best Canadiens under 24 years old. I opted to rank players that are closest to the NHL, so aside from David Reinbacher, there are no 2023 Draftees.
So, without further ado, let’s go ahead with the 9th best player, in my opinion, Logan Mailloux.
Logan Mailloux has been one of the most talked about Montreal Canadiens draft picks in some time. He renounced his draft rights, based on some poor decisions while playing hockey in Sweden. Former general manager Marc Bergevin disregarded that fact and still drafted the 6-foot-3 right-shot defender.
Mailloux was suspended by the Ontario Hockey League, missing significant development time, while part of the London Knights' organization. It could have completely derailed his development, but instead, he grew in more ways than one. Mailloux was apologetic and underwent a ton of work to prove his remorsefulness, all of which proved sufficient by the OHL and then the NHL for him to be able to continue his hockey career.
The Belle River, Ontario native played 59 games in his final season of junior hockey, after playing just 12 in the previous season. Mailloux recorded an impressive 53 points in that span, including 25 goals as a defenseman. He then went on to post 24 points through 21 postseason games, which tied a bow on his junior career.
Expectations were tempered before his first season with the Rocket and few knew what he had in store for the Habs' brass. Everybody had an idea how smooth he was for a big man and that he was a shooting threat. But the way he adjusted to the next level, not without faults, but learning from his mistakes and carrying on, showed a maturity and poise that impressed Kent Hughes and Martin St. Louis.
I have expectations that Mailloux will end up becoming a top-four staple for the Canadiens on the right side. I feel like he would be a tremendous partner alongside Kaiden Guhle and that would be a pair that wouldn't be fun to play against. Mailloux can play physically, he defends well, leveraging his quick feet and smart defensive stick to be disruptive and he drives the play, posing as a shooting threat at all times in the attacking zone.
Mailloux ranks ninth on my U24 list and he is in the thick of some stiff competition, but he was selected in the first round because of his talent. Furthermore, he earned AHL Allstar honours as a rookie because he is a gamer. I think he has the potential to climb the list, but if he doesn't, it's less because of poor play, but because of the strength above him.