Failing to draft the ‘best on the board’ this summer, regardless of round
For 2024, the Canadiens will end up with a high draft pick. We just don’t know when Hughes will be selecting. Regardless I stressed in an earlier piece that he must make a wise choice, and one that is both a safe and high-potential selection.
It can sometimes be tempting to roll with a risky but high-potential prospect, but that shouldn’t be the case this June, with so much room for growth in the Habs prospects pool. One way to best ensure the newest and youngest member of the Canadiens organization will perform as advertised is to roll with the tried and true “best on the board” mentality.
Suppose Montreal doesn’t land in the top-four, but they also don’t fall out of the fifth spot; there is a 100 percent chance they end up with a safe pick. Even if they fell out of the top-five, the 2024 class is still rich with surefire NHLers, and Hughes wouldn’t need to overthink if he plans on drafting a player with a high probability they will make the Canadiens better.
While taking a high-risk, high-reward prospect wouldn’t be a dealbreaker, Hughes isn’t in a position to take anyone with “draft bust potential” this season. Later in the rebuild, or best yet, when the Habs become a mid-tier organization again, then he can have some leeway. The strategy also shouldn’t apply only to the first round, but for every pick Hughes has this season.