Montreal Canadiens 5th Overall History Part 4: Cam Connor
The Montreal Canadiens recieved the 5th overall pick this year, for the 8th time in their long and storied franchise. So for the summer months we are going to go over all the past 5th overall picks, from Bouchard to Reinbacher. This time we are looking at Cam Connor.
The Montreal Canadiens are selecting 5th overall in the 2024 NHL draft, and not matter who they pick, the future is more than likely very bright. Generally, the 5th overall pick turns out to be a quality NHL player, and Habs fans are hoping David Reinbacher and this year's pick will continue that trend.
The first ever 5th overall pick for the Montreal Canadiens was Pierre Bouchard, son of Canadiens legend and former captain Emile "Butch" Bouchard. Pierre Bouchard was a physical, defensive defender who won many Stanley Cups with the Habs, before ending his career with the Washington Capitals.
Phil Myre was selected the next year at 5th overall, but ultimately was blocked from establishing himself with the Canadiens by the emergence of Ken Dryden. Myre did earn a Stanley Cup ring with the Canadiens, and was part of the Philadelphia Flyers who went to the Cup Final, and was part of the longest unbeaten streak in North American sports history.
A few years later, the Canadiens selected the Can't Miss Kid, Ray Martyniuk (or maybe Martynuik), as the second highest goalie pick at that time. Stop me if you heard this one before, but the emergence of Ken Dryden blocked Martyniuk from establishing himself at the NHL level, and he retired without ever playing an NHL game, and with his goalie equipment at the bottom of a lake in British Columbia.
It would be another 4 years until the Canadiens would draft 5th overall, in 1974. In that time, the Habs drafted Guy Lafleur, Bob Gainey and Larry Robinson, and were on the verge of starting another dynasty. And the brass were hoping the high scoring captain of the Flin Flan Bombers, Cam Connor. Yep, that's right. The last two 5th overall picks by Montreal were both stars of the Flin Flan Bombers.
Of the first round picks Montreal had that year, Cam Connor had one of the weakest NHL career. Doug Risebrough was selected two spots later, and the Bionic Blueberry Mario Tremblay was drafted 12th overall and were important parts of the team for years to come.
Defender Rick Chartraw had a solid 400+ game career was taken by the Habs 10th overall, but the biggest miss was Gord McTavish, who only played 11 NHL games, none with the Canadiens.
Three players drafted in the 1974 draft played over 1,000 games. Brian Trottier was drafted in the second round by the New York Islanders, Harold Snepsts was selected by the Vancouver Canucks in the 4th round, and Bob Murray went in the third round to the New York Rangers. And David "Tiger" Williams, career leader in penalty minutes all time, went right at the middle of the second round.
Cam Connor only played 89 games in the NHL, but that could have changed with one small decision.
The Secret Drafts of 1974
1974 had possibly one of the weirdest draft years of all time. This was the height of the competition betweent the National Hockey League and the World Hockey Association. There were only so many players for an excess of teams, so each league tried to get their hands on prospects as early as possible.
So each league had a secret draft, held earlier than usual, in order to try to gain a monopoly on the best players. The NHL draft was held on a conference call in May. It took over two days to complete, and because it was a conference call in the '70s, the whole thing was a nightmare.
In fact, the Buffalo Sabres general manager Punch Imlach selected Taro Tsujimoto from the Tokyo Katanas. Both the player and the team did not exist.
The WHA draft was held in secret in February, and Cam Connor was selected 4th overall by the Phoenix Roadrunners. Connor, being a high profile prospect, was highly coveted, and the Roadrunners offered a lot of money, an amount that Connor accepted.
The Canadiens matched the amount offered by Phoenix, but Connor had already accepted the contract and would not go back on it. Connor would play 5 seasons in the WHA, including with the Houston Aeros and Gordie, Marty and Mark Howe.
After the WHA folded, Connor moved to the NHL, but had a hard time cracking the stacked roster at the time, and was left exposed and selected by the Edmonton Oilers, and played with a young Wayne Gretzky.
Connor's biggest moment came when he scored the overtime winner against the Toronto Maple Leafs, on the way to winning the Cup. However, because of injuries and food poisoning, Connor didn't play enough games to get his name on the Cup. However, his teammates complained and got the rule overturned.
After breaking his back, Connor retired from the NHL as a member of the New York Rangers. Now, he hosts a podcast A View From the Penalty Box.