Thoughts From The Habs Development Camp - Sergachev is For Real (Habs)

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Thoughts From The Habs Development Camp - Sergachev is For Real

By Jennifer B Cutler

Jul 7, 2016 • 8:23 pm

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Thursday morning’s scrimmage marked the end of the Montreal Canadiens development camp and fortunately I was able to attend it in person to get a read on the Habs prospects. A full house packed into the Complexe Bell stands to take in the scrimmage and get their hockey fix until the Rookie Camp opens in September. Fans were treated to a 4 on 4 two period game, Whites vs. Reds:

Highlights from the scrimmage can be seen here:

There has been a lot of hype surrounding Mikhail Sergachev since he was selected 9th overall by the Canadiens on June 24th. It followed him through the development camp as he scored 3 goals during Tuesday’s scrimmage. After watching him compete during the final scrimmage of camp, I can sincerely say that all of the praise that has been showered on him is well-deserved. Sergachev is a complete defenceman. He is big. He is physical. He has excellent offensive instincts. He can skate. He can defend. He can score. Martin Lapointe, the Canadiens Director of Player Development threw some more wood into the fire after the scrimmage when he said:

Sergachev is very good now. He could likely play in the NHL this Fall but he would not be effective over an 82 game season. There is no need to keep him up in Montreal playing limited minutes. Just imagine how much better he will be after one more season with Windsor in the OHL, competing in the Memorial Cup.

What impressed me most about Sergachev is that he is always in the play, trying to make something happen. He is so strong on the puck that he could easily take it right to the net 4 on 4. Even if he gets knocked down he still kept possession of the puck. His compete level is off the chart, and he was not afraid to get into it with Michael McCarron:

McCarron was equally impressed with Sergachev:

For his part, McCarron looked like a man amongst boys on the ice. It is so easy to think that a 6’ foot player is short just because he is going up against McCarron. He was excellent taking faceoffs and skated well. Really, he looked like he could destroy his opponents if he wanted to. After playing 20 games with Montreal last season, McCarron will be looking to build from that experience and compete for a spot in September. He needs to continue to work on his endurance and play without the puck. I believe that he will start the season in St. John’s but will have earned the 3rd line center position before the year is over. I can easily imagine a line such as Daniel Carr - McCarron - Andrew Shaw giving opposition fits, especially in the playoffs… Since McCarron was drafted in 2013 by the Canadiens, he has improved with each passing season. I would expect nothing less than him continuing to climb that ladder this coming year.

Charles Hudon is the other player that is the most NHL ready. He is so smooth with the puck and gets into position. He sees the game well and makes his linemates better. This training camp is an important one for him to prove that he’s capable of becoming a full time NHL player.

The draft class of 2016 certainly has the potential to be a very good for the Canadiens. Will Bitten scored a very nice goal today making a nice move before putting the puck behind Zach Fucale on a second effort. He is skilled and fast. For his sake, I hope he gets traded from Flint in the OHL to another team where he will not be surrounded by a gongshow and have a real opportunity to further his development.

Victor Mete has speed as well. He skates well with the puck and gets back to defend quickly. He may be on the smaller side for defencemen and needs to add some strength to make it to the next level but he has some very good tools…

Arvid Henrikson stood out and not just because of his size. At 6’5…, 209 lbs, he is a big guy but is a very smooth skater for someone of his size. He has a good first pass and is a strong defender. This 7th round draft pick could just be a diamond in the rough. Henrikson will not wow with dekes and goals, but he is a solid defenceman with real NHL potential.

Last year’s 1st round pick Noah Juulsen did not get a lot of press this time around at camp. He does not have the same flare and flash of Sergachev or Nikita Scherbak. However, he should not be overlooked. Juulsen is very calm and confident with the puck. He can shut down the opposition and makes the little plays look easy. Hopefully, he will have an opportunity to play on Team Canada at this year’s World Junior tournament…

Scherbak had a good camp but he is not NHL ready. I don’t expect him to compete for a spot with Montreal to start the year although hopefully he earns a few games over the course of the year. However, he has some serious skill. He is big and strong on the puck and has the ability to make things happen. He played with Lukas Vejdemo for the most part today and they were in the offensive zone most of the time they were on the ice. However, Scherbak was there to cover his defencemen if they jumped into the play. Lapointe commented today on Scherbak:

Charles Lindgren impressed the most in nets. He was always in position and made the saves look easy. He seems more steady than Fucale at this time and could surpass Mike Condon on the depth chart but I don’t expect him to challenge Al Montoya to backup Care Price. Lindgren needs to play regularly to further his development.

If there are players that you would like a report on that I haven’t highlighted, let me know and I’ll reply back in the comments.

Also, I’ll be doing another mailbag next week so please send in your Q’s!

Cheers & follow along!

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