Montreal Canadiens: Three QMJHL Players To Target To Continue Successful Recent Habs Trend

Markus Vidicek

Markus Vidicek is a player who really is starting to look like he could follow the same kind of path Rafael Harvey-Pinard took to the NHL. He originally was eligible to be drafted in the 2022 NHL Draft but was passed over. He was passed over once again last spring but continues to just get better on the ice.

Even though he was not selected, Vidicek put up an impressive 65 points in 68 games. Last seaosn, he upped that total to 80 points including 32 goals in 68 games. That left some thinking he could be selected in the 2023 NHL Draft but he was not.

This season, the Kirkland, Quebec native has already scored 35 goals and has 65 points in 47 games for the Halifax Mooseheads. His team lost their top offensive player, Jordan Dumais, following the World Juniors but it has not slowed Vidicek down even without his usual right winger.

Vidicek, who nearly made the World Juniors himself but was among the final cuts, is second in the QMJHL in goals and fourth in the league in points. He is a smart, skilled two-way center who would have been described as a playmaker until this season but has developed a wicked shot as well and is beating goaltenders on a regular basis with his quick release and accurate shot.

Like Harvey-Pinard, if the Canadiens draft Vidicek late in the 2024 NHL Draft they own his rights for two years. That means he could go back and dominate Junior as an overager and then pretty much have to sign an AHL contract to join the Laval Rocket in 2025-26.