Updated top 5 prospects - #3: David Reinbacher

The Montreal Canadiens had a great first round at the 2024 NHL Draft.

One that significantly improved their prospect pool, so much so that their top five prospects shuffled significantly. The direction of the rebuild has been steadily forward and the drafting is a big reason why. With development taking such precedence, the Canadiens are looking like a safe bet to become a problem for the league soon enough. 

As mentioned, the prospect pool got some fine new additions. The top five in the organization have two new additions, who, in my opinion, will be impact players for a long time. I can’t help but think that Kent Hughes is very pleased with the talent he has accumulated. 

Without further ado, let's dive into the post-2024 draft top five prospects. We’ll start at five and work our way through to one. Number three is a guy who played overseas for the 2023-24 season, which slowed his offensive growth. But upon his arrival, he proved prepared for the professional game on North American ice.

David Reinbacher

David Reinbacher might not be the pick that everybody wanted, but it's still too early to call him a bust. Reinbacher was drafted to solidify the Habs' defence of the future, and all signs point to him being able to do just that. He appears to be the ideal number-two defenseman, who can slot in alongside an offensive-minded defenseman,

Now, without him having played any NHL games, predicting him to only be a number two defender could be discrediting what he might grow into. I think based on where he was selected and the tools that he possesses, he could become a very good number-one defenseman, who isn't elite offensively, but does everything else very well. It is tough to determine what he will become, but you don't earn the top defenseman rank in your draft class if you don't have high potential.

Reinbacher will very likely play the 2024-25 season with the Laval Rocket and I wouldn't be surprised if he established himself as their best defender before season's end. That is assuming that he stays healthy and gets to play on the power play and penalty kill. Which would mean that Logan Mailloux plays in the NHL, or divides the important minutes with Reinbacher.

A big, mobile defenseman who skates smoothly like Reinbacher doesn't grow on trees and the Habs development staff know what they have. With the proper coaching and time for him to grow and mature, without rushing him will be what serves him best in his path to the NHL. It's hard to say much more about him until he puts together a bigger sample size of games, but I think he will be just the piece the Habs envisioned him being when he arrives.