The Montreal Canadiens' onus on establishing their backend has shown early rewards, with Logan Mailloux leading the way for non-NHL skaters.
A native of Belle River, Ontario, Mailloux has had an impressive start to his pro hockey career. With the Laval Rocket, the six-foot-three right-shot defender sits fourth in team scoring with 28 points. His 10 goals are good for fourth on the team and his 18 assists rank him fourth one behind Joshua Roy.
Logan Mailloux is currently on a 7-game point streak scoring 8 points in that span and has 28 points in 40 games this year
— Costa Rontzocos (@Rontzeeez) January 28, 2024
A nice statical output from the Rocket Rookie#GoHabsGo
It was unclear at the beginning of the year, how Mailloux would adjust to the AHL. While he does make mistakes and get beat, he has been given the confidence to keep growing. The emergence of his offensive game resembles that of a top-four NHL defenseman.
Mailloux is in the perfect setting to polish his game in the attacking zone while tightening up his defensive zone play. Naturally gifted with a large frame and long reach, Mailloux has the tools to shut plays down and loves to play the body. With pro coaches teaching him, there’s no telling how much his game will grow over the next year.
On the thin right side of the Habs defence, a guy like Mailloux is fully aware that he will fill a big role. I would argue that aside from Mike Matheson, Mailloux would be the best offensive defender on the Habs. Offensively, Mailloux has the highest ceiling of all the right-shot defensemen in the Habs system, at this juncture.
To be considered: With a significant organizational need for elite offensive talent, the budding defence group could fuel a trade.
Mailloux, Barron and Reinbacher will be in the mix soon enough. If Barron, Mailloux and Reinbacher are battling for two spots, trading the odd man out could work in the Canadiens' favour. These young guys need to be playing every night, especially this early in their development to becoming NHLers, bottom-pairing minutes won’t cut it.