The Montreal Canadiens 2023 fifth-overall selection David Reinbacher has high expectations for his first season in North America.
There is a chance that he makes the Habs out of training camp, though the slow and steady approach is the wisest decision. Reinbacher has some stiff competition at the upcoming Canadiens training camp, with no spots guaranteed. With that said, however, should he land in Laval, he will have some great options to play alongside.
Regardless of where he plays, the goal remains the same, to play his best hockey and give his team the best chance to win every night. He will need to improve his gap control on the smaller ice and move the puck quicker than what he is accustomed to, but he was drafted fifth overall for a reason. Reinbacher is the total package - he defends well and has tremendous room to grow his game offensively.
With EHC Kloten, Reinbacher put an onus on his defensive play, which demanded much of his attention, because of how poor his team was. But when he hit the ice with the Rocket, while he still defended well, there were sparks of offence that he didn't get to show much this season. He has great mobility and his hockey IQ is high, he knows when to elevate and when to drop back and disrupt the opposition.
I don't know that he will be as good offensively as Logan Mailloux is, but I do think that his defensive game will be much better. Mailloux is a riskier player, whereas Reinbacher is a little more calculated and picks his spots better. I could end up with an egg on my face with my prediction, but I think Reinbacher has a higher upside and is more likely to play a top pair role, whereas Mailloux will play second pair, but earn his minutes on the power play.
I think Mailloux will need a little more time to clean up his defensive zone play, where Reinbacher already played in a professional league and had to focus on playing responsibly in his zone. Both are first-round talents undoubtedly. Reinbacher just feels like a safer player to project to the NHL, because he plays such a smart, well-rounded game.