Episode 56 of the Hockey Free For All Podcast, The post draft episode 06-29-2023

Episode 56 of the Hockey Free For All Podcast, the post draft episode, the topic include-

#1. So much for all of the excitement of massive and continuous trades at the 2023 NHL Draft. Wow, it was truly like crickets, there was nothing going on at all.

#2. The 24 hours prior to the draft were insane.

#3. Montreal’s draft was a complete dud.

#4. So many were looking forward to Montreal making a ton of noise at the draft, starting with a trade with the Washington Capitals for Mitchkov that never happened.

#5. I have nothing against David Reinbacker, I’m sure he is a good player. However, that was not Montreal’s pressing or priority need.

#6. Montreal already has Justin Barron, Jonathan Kovacevic, Kadian Guhle, Arber Xhekaj, Jordan Harris, Mike Matheson, Joel Edmundson, David Savard, Chris Wideman which makes 9 defensemen on the NHL roster right now. That doesn’t include the all world/all class Lane Hutson or Adam Engstrom or William Trudeau or Miguel Tourginy or Petteri Nurmi.

I purposely left the best to talk about for last, and that right defensive prospect is Logan Mailloux, who is a number 1 right pairing defenseman, who is 6’ 03, 215 plus pounds, is a top end NHL level skater right now, has an excellent NHL level transition game right now, who is a power play quarterback with a heavy and extremely accurate NHL caliber rifle shot right now! and plays a physical game with a mean streak. Oh, and I almost forgot can play 28 plus minutes a game, and is on the ice in any and all situations right now. Montreal has not seen a defensive prospect like Logan Mailloux since Larry Robinson, and I am not saying that Logan Mailloux will be Larry Robinson or have a career like his, but I am saying that Montreal has not had or seen of defensive prospect with frame, package, and skill that Logan Mailloux has since Larry Robinson.

#7. Anyone else develop their own mock draft? I have since the 1978 draft. In some draft my predictions, they players selected actually match who I believe Montreal will take. In other years its hit or miss, with mostly hits in round 3 and above. However, in the 2023 NHL draft for the Montreal Canadiens. Wow, I was not even close. I predicted one player they took correctly and one thing that Montreal would do in the 2023 draft. Montreal did in fact draft 3 goaltending prospects like I thought they would, however, the goalie prospects that I wanted Montreal take were already gone, and the one and only player that I had on my mock draft that Montreal did select was Florian Xhekaj in the 4th round with the 101st pick.

#8. The trade for forward Alex Newhook.  Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes have hit home runs with everything that they have touched from the day they took their positions. There has been very times and even fewer things in my entire that I have used the phrase, ones just going to have to trust things. Call me highly skeptical if you want, buts it truly kept me alive and repeated made the not possible, not only possible, but a reality, and that is what I am going to have to do regarding the 2023 draft and the acquisition of forward Alex Newhook.

Kent Hughes likely know this players better than anyone else in hockey having coached him, as well as having been his agent. With that knowledge, perhaps that’s the reason why Kent Hughes did not see the need to draft any of the offensive talent available in the 2023 draft, as he believes he has already obtained an NHL ready now version at 22 years of age in Alex Newhook. I hope that Newhook turns out to be at least as good as the acquisition of Kirby Dach has, if not, it will be the first blemish, and a big one for the organization.

#9. Montreal’s trade with Colorado that sent the 31st and 37th selections in the draft to Colorado changed the 2023 draft for Montreal far more than they thought it would. I had a funny feeling that Montreal Management thought that they were going to be able to get back into the bottom half of the first round and back into the 2nd round, and I think that door got slammed in their face hard, as there was very little activity at all, verses what was expected.