The Montreal Canadiens’ 2021-22 NHL Draft was the first to be conducted under a new management team. Normally, it takes time for people to adjust to their new roles, but the Habs’ management staff appears to have done an excellent job with their first draft.
The contentious decision to draft Juraj Slafkovsky first overall looks better with each passing game. His size, speed, technique, and intelligence combine to give him the potential to become a force in a few years.
Owen Beck, Juraj Slafkovsky and Filip Mesar
Filip Mesar was picked late in the first round, followed by Owen Beck and Lane Hutson in the second round. Beck and Mesar are generating points in the OHL, and Hutson is scoring at a rate of more than a point per game as a rookie defense in college hockey.
Adam Engstrom and Vinzenz Rohrer, both third-round choices, have also had great starts to their seasons. Rohrer had 11 points in 11 games with the Ottawa 67’s this season, and Engstrom, a previously unknown defender, is one of Sweden’s greatest Junior level defensemen this season.
The Canadiens look to have found another gem in the fourth round, where the sequence of hits continues. Cedrick Guindon was taken 127th overall in the draft, but his play thus far this season suggests he could have gone much earlier. Things look spicy for the Canadiens, and the big question will be how they can maintain their good form. The fans are dreaming, and paris sportif au Quebec has been taken to another level.
Guindon scored three additional points in his most recent game between his Owen Sound Attack and the Kingston Frontenacs.
After taking up the puck at center ice, he made a fast pass for his first point. He moved into the attacking zone with possession before slipping a short backhand pass to teammate Julian Fantino, who hammered home a wrist shot just over one minute into the game.
Later on, Guindon came alive. He skated through the slot, collected a pass fast to the blade of his stick, and wired a wrist shot just under the crossbar into the top of the net.
The Canadiens prospect scored his third goal of the game, but it wasn’t as nice. He did make a good defensive play, cutting up a passing channel and causing a turnover by having the puck bounce off his leg and into the path of a teammate.
Julian Fantino, his linemate, finished the job, scoring a wonderful goal. While Guindon had no direct influence on the goal, his alertness to block the passing path contributed to the scoring opportunity.
In 13 games this season, the Canadiens’ fourth-round selection has five goals and 13 assists for 18 points. He scored 30 goals and 59 points in 68 games as a 17-year-old last season and is currently averaging nearly a point and a half per game as an 18-year-old.
Guindon is leading his squad in scoring and has been instrumental in their 9-4-0 start. That’s an outstanding start to the season for an 18-year-old and a tremendous start for a fourth-round choice.
Last season, the Canadiens had two choices in each of the first three rounds, and all of them are off to strong starts this season. Guindon was not selected until the fourth round, but it is time to start the hype train for this teenager, who can’t stop scoring in the OHL.