Canadiens Draft 2018: Day 2 (poll)

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Canadiens Draft 2018: Day 2

By Brandon Smillie

Jun 23, 2018 • 1:40 pm

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***This will be were the updates will be located later today and tonight!***

***Habs draft Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the 3rd overall pick! Sounds like he's heading back to Finland for another season. Habs get the coveted, high end C they need in the system!***

***Well that's it folks, I had hoped the Habs could move up to get Bokk, Sandin, K Miller, of Velano but I guess deals weren't on the menu tonight for the Habs.

I hoped they would land Tkachuk at #3 but the Canadiens feel they drafted their Center of the future and thats what everyone knows the team needs so it will be great to watch his development. We will wait patiently for him to reach North America to play for the Canadiens.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the draft!***

***Day 2 has begun in Dallas and the Canadiens have many selections to make today. I’ll try to get them all up here in a timely manner today but I am working from my iPhone so I may be a bit slower.

Pick 35: RW, Jesse Ylonen. 6’0…, 168lbs Speed and skill

Pick 38: D, Alexander Romanov. 5’11…, 185 lbs. Offensive D.

Pick 56: C, Jacob Olofsson. 6’3…, 190 Great Pick, smart and skilled

Trade. Canadiens trade for 71 and 133 from Edmonton for pick 62

Pick 66: C, Cam Hillis 5’10, 168 lbs. Huge grab.

Pick 71: D, Jordan Harris 5’11…, 179 lbs

Pick 97: C, Allan McShane 5'11", 185 lbs. Ranked 43 by McKeens. Great slider pick.

Pick 102: Habs trade 102 to San Jose for 123 and 139

Pick 122: Habs trade pick to Calgary for the Flames 2019 4th round pick

Pick 123: LW, Jack Gorniak. 5'11", 181 lbs. High scoring high schooler.

Pick 128: C/LW Cole Fonstad. 5'10", 159 lbs. Skilled, undersized.

Pick 133: C Samuel Houde. 6'0", 160 lbs.

Pick 139: Traded to Chicago for their 2019 5th round pick.

Enjoy Day 2 of the 2018 NHL Draft!***

Tonight is an exciting night for Canadiens fans. The first exciting night for us in a long time since about November 2017 really…

The Canadiens took it on the chin nightly over the course of the 2017-2018 NHL season and just never seemed to get into a groove. The instances where they did they were immediately scored on and sometimes again within minutes, destroying any confidence and momentum they were building.

Couple that with immediate injury to Weber, subsequent injuries to Drouin and Shaw, and a combination of subpar play and injury to All World goaltender Carey Price and this season was a write off by almost all accounts.

There were a few bright spots including career years by future captain Brendan Gallagher and Jeff Petry. The kids really had a chance to grow with opportunity and allowed all of us to see what the Habs have going forward and some of the kids are looking alright.

Mete impressed as a teenager and Juulsen stepped into the NHL after missing about half the season with a busted foot. The addition of Reilly at the deadline has the makings of a steal written all over it to me also. The much maligned D group didn’t look like it was too far off after seeing these three kids auditions and there is still stellar prospects like Valiev, Bourque, Lernout, Brook, Fleury, and Tyszka in the system.

I’m not saying all these guys will pan out, but they don’t look terrible either. Oh, and I can’t forget about the addition of the two Czech’s Sklenicka and Moravcik after the Worlds either. This upcoming D core (if unchanged) will have a combo of Vet’s and sophomores that should look better than what we saw last year.

This offseason there were calls from the rooftops for change.

Smoke signals from Canadiens fans around the world demanded a better farm system and big changes.

The changes started almost immediately when Lefebvre and co were released from the Laval Rocket followed shortly thereafter by NHL assistants Lacroix and Daigneault.

The changes should be lauded as there was a definite adjustment needed in style to adapt to the changing NHL. The game is about youth and speed and taking the puck out quick and driving the net.

The Canadiens added junior coaching stars D Ducharme as a new NHL assistant to Julien and Muller and gave Bouchard a chance at the pro’s by naming him head coach of the Laval Rocket. These two moves that should be lauded as a huge step in the right direction. Veteran, successful coaches mixed with new age coaches that have had major success with kids. Just incredibly smart moves that start pointing the organization in the right direction heading into this crucial offseason that will see the Canadiens load up on at least one elite prospect and four 2nd round picks that will yield at least a couple very good prospects.

The changes are far from finished as the Canadiens moved former 3rd overall pick Alex Galchenyuk to Arizona for a speedy, skilled, heart and soul player in Max Domi. Galchenyuk had 6 NHL seasons to live up to his hype and unfortunately it never happened in MTL. Perhaps in a low pressure environment like Arizona he can become the player most hoped, but I’m moving on and am excited to add a player like Domi to the Canadiens.

Galchenyuk always seemed to have a mental block in his game. He always appeared timid to me, like he didn’t believe he was a grown up playing with other grown ups. He always appeared like he lacked killer instinct, played soft, and was a very streaky player. When he wasn’t creating offence he was a liability, for 6 years…

Habs got a younger player with similar potential, and a better cap hit in Domi. They also get a player that likely fears no one and that alone will change the teams dynamic in the top 6.

This offseason has been a good one so far and we will see if it continues tonight in Dallas. There are so many rumors out there for tonight that I’m already ensure I have outlets available to charge my laptop and phone to keep up all night.

At minimum the Canadiens add an elite prospect at #3 and I would bet they don’t pick all 4 of those 2nd round picks they have tonight…. At max, Pacioretty is traded and we all have a lot to debate about for a week until July 1st. Zadina? Tkachuk? Kotkaniemi? I can't wait to find out!

Check back here for Canadiens Draft news as I’ll update it as the picks are made!

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