Rather keep Meloche.

Thought you'd prefer Merkley and Meloche was on waivers recently, so I didn't think they were too attached?

Of course the year MTL finishes near dead last in the NHL, the top prospects aren't elite........

I think the Habs are better off , assuming they get top 2 pick, to draft best player available and hope they make my above statement look really dumb.

Habs need game breakers, not just more good players.

On waivers to come play with the big club. He isn't exempt. Sending Meloche and a 5th for a 4th isn't an improvement.

Our track record with top 3 picks hasn't been good. Savoie is less appealing to me than the top 10 RD, but is probably the BPA. My thinking is that I'd rather trade down and get a couple shots than go off board to select a D.

We can target someone else. Meloche just seems like a candidate to move.

I mean he isn't great but Merkley isn't ready for full time NHL duties, he needs to keep getting top pair minutes with the Cuda. Meloche is steady but doesn't have much upside - good call up player, not flashy, not aggressive, just basic defense.

Jiricek is definitely interesting but im not sure hes a top pairing dman. Him and Nemec are the two best dmen in the draft but neither scream stud to me. Geekie's numbers are inflated on that Wpg team also. Hes good but I don't think elite. Could be another Michael Rasmussen.

This draft man.................. the D aren't superstar potential, the forwards aren't superstar potential IMO, its a crap shoot. Maybe someone will be the next star but its not nearly as clear as in previous years.

Maybe getting two kicks at the can is better than just the one high end pick but if Habs don't generate a stud in those picks and Wright or Savoie go on to be solid players, MTL might as well just fold up shop. Im done with Habs drafting. Trade every pick every year for ready now talent. IIts probably work out for them better..

Unless MTL picks #1 OA, and they are high on Shane Wright, I really don’t see CBJ trading up like that. Two top ten picks versus #2 and, what, a pick in the mid to late twenties?

Meloche is a 7th/8th D man on most teams, Including ours. But to give up a decent low level D man to move up what 7-8 spots in the 4th round seems silly.
not a horrible trade but Meloche is a useful piece for our depth so thanks but we would have to pass.

I get what your saying but this is something that happens all the time in the NHL.
do the CBJ need 1 premier prospect to get them into contention or 2 really good ones? how is your Prospect depth? if CBJ have solid prospect depth moving up is smart if they are thin this would not be wise.
if CBJ need that 1 potential elite prospect over 2 that could be really good pieces this is smart, also what is the drop-off from the top 5 to the 8-12 picks?
lots to think about but it isn't a bad deal.
the other thing to think about is what CBJ need in the draft vs the depth at those positions, for instance there is a lot of higher caliber wingers in the draft but the top 4 of the top 5 C will be gone by the 8-9 pick. and if you badly need D help specifically RHD help there are 2 good ones but the rest fall into that middle to late 1st projections.

there's nothing wrong with drafting Savoie or Kemell or Slafkovski or Lambert or Yurov or Miroshnichenko and just being bad again next year. The problem with the habs is they always think the guys they are drafting are ready right away to make an impact at the nhl level.

Very true. I surely hope Gorton isn't looking at this year as the "ok this was our rebuild year, next year we go back to competing again" type thing....

That wld be a classic Berge move. I have to believe Gorton has a better grasp on reality. I must

God I hope so.

It's not a bad strategy if you are bad at drafting. Anaheim and Nashville have been among the better teams for developing defensemen for example, so I'd be more inclined to trade for theirs than waste picks on our own development system.

I'm taking Wright if possible, but beyond that I think this draft is a crap shoot. Too many development issues due to covid and not enough scouting to be confident. More picks is the way to go, imo.


Depends how Columbus views Savoie. He could be a high end offensive talent and less of a risk than other options drafted later. The safest bets will be off the board before they select and teams are more likely to draft by need I think. The BPA is less certain once you get outside the top 5.

very true.
But lots of teams do this too,
the sharks would do this with their young D prospects time and time again, Merkley is the first one they have actually taken the time and efort to work with him and let him mature into a guy before forcing him into the NHL lineup.

Montreal does have one of the most demanding fan bases that get upset if the team isn't turning things around faster, and when prospects take longer to mature.