Canadiens land a pair of potential stars in Team-by-Team NHL Mock Draft

6th Overall: Utah Hockey Club - Cole Eiserman, LW/USNTDP

I’m not the biggest fan of Cole Eiserman because I feel he’s too one-dimensional, but if there’s the best fit for him, it’s the Utah Hockey Club. Eiserman’s exciting game coming to the new organization will provide an immediate spark, even if it will be a minute before he debuts and plays full-time in the NHL. 

7th Overall: Ottawa Senators - Konsta Helenius, C/Jukurit

There may be a few more exciting players still available at this spot, like Cayden Lindstrom, but Konsta Helenius could be on the fast track to the NHL. Let’s not take that too far out of hand - he will still need to develop, but he’s already playing well against men in Liiga, and it’s the first step to a successful NHL career. 

8th Overall: Seattle Kraken - Zayne Parekh, D/Saginaw Spirit 

In a defensive-heavy draft, teams will have the option of rolling with blueliners who can score at will, and Zayne Parekh may epitomize that in the 2024 draft class. That said, I’m surprised he lasted this long in the simulation, and I can see him landing somewhere in the top six come next Friday. 

9th Overall: Calgary Flames - Sam Dickinson, D/London Knights

Yet another high-scoring blueliner goes to the Calgary Flames in this sim, and one with NHL size, so once again, I would have a high opinion of this pick should it be the case on June 28th. 

10th Overall: New Jersey Devils - Zeev Buium, D/Denver

I’ve been sold on Zeev Buium since the college hockey season, and in the simulations I’ve run so far, he’s rarely fallen out of the top 10, if that even was the case. He’s yet another high-scoring defenseman and right now, the Devils need a few more blueliners in their prospect pool period. 

11th Overall: Buffalo Sabres - Anton Silayev, D/Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod

Everyone knows the Buffalo Sabres have lacked physicality throughout the 2020s, and few prospects in this draft class can inject a hitter’s mentality more than Anton Silayev. Mattias Samuelsson currently fills that role, but he’s injury-prone, so a pick like this makes a ton of sense. 

12th Overall: Philadelphia Flyers - Cayden Lindstrom, C/Medicine Hat Tigers

Way too many teams passed on Cayden Lindstrom in several simulations, and injuries could be the main reason he’s been falling back. Though I doubt it, maybe that will be the case next Friday, and if it is, someone’s getting a steal here, and you can say the same for the next pick.