Day two of the 2022 NHL Draft brought a slew of new additions to the Habs’ North American talent pool, featuring a ton of high-risk, high-reward swings as well as possibly the safest pick in the entire draft. We’ll take a look at each of the seven add-ons in the pool and rate each of them based on price-quality for selection, then break down their areas of strength and improvements that would boost their overall game the most.
No. 33 — Owen Beck, C, Mississauga (OHL)
Value for choice: B+ I love Owen Beck. He’s the textbook definition of a safe pick, a surefire NHLer with so many facets to his game that at least one of them is bound to translate. His defensive game is among the best in the 2022 NHL Draft. The way he occupies space in the defensive zone, reads opponents two or three steps ahead and uses his stick to disrupt and intercept makes him a prospect who, at the very least, he’ll nail down a role in any NHL’s bottom six. lining up. Owen Beck (MTL) checks a bunch of boxes: above average tools, interior driven, defensive ability, gift game. It’s easy to envision him playing in the NHL, and there’s plenty of room for improvement. pic.twitter.com/C5WeAPO033 — Mitchell Brown (@MitchLBrown) July 8, 2022 However, he still offers some promise as a prospect with relentless drive who excels in transition. Higher upside prospects were available and picked up soon after, such as scoring winger Jagger Firkus and right-handed defenseman Mattias Hävelid, but Beck provides a nice balance to the crop as a stud in a sea of home run swings. His offensive tools lack high-end pop, but it’s easier to build upward from a solid base, and Beck has that.
No. 62 — Lane Hutson, LD, USNTDP (USHL)
Value for choice: A From my first viewing of Lane Hutson, I was a huge fan of his game. While his slight frame at 5’8″ and 159 pounds can be a problem, he has arguably the best brain of any defenseman in this draft. He can take control of any given shift and show off his silky hands , his elite understanding of systems and open ice exploitation to make play after play under pressure.The sequence below will pretty much explain it all. Amazingly, he also brought an endocrinologist exam to the Combine to show scouts that he still has about two inches of bone growth ahead of him. His main downside right now is how easy he is to get out of the rush. Anyone forward with enough wingspan and strength to drive wide on him ends up in an open lane to the net. If Hutcheson can partner with Adam Nicholas to match legs defensively and funnel opponents into the boards, the Habs could have a top offensive defenseman here. I’d argue that if Hutchins were 6’0″ or taller, he would definitely be a top-10 pick.
No. 75 — Vinzenz Rohrer, RW, Ottawa (OHL)
Value for choice: B Vinzenz Rohrer’s physical dominance as a 5’11”, 168-pound forward is something you rarely see in the OHL. He uses tremendous body and stick placement to catch much bigger defenders by surprise and turn pucks around the ice. Although the Austrian forward shows some flashes of play, it is not a consistent element of his game and tends to end up on the perimeter a lot or struggle for clear space up front as a result of his high-intensity predictive game. Another fun pick from the Habs. Vinzenz Rohrer is one of the most projected physical players in the draft. Violent, and most importantly, always looking to get into position on defenders and then immediately make the next play. Passing ability and defensive upside, too. pic.twitter.com/L6AWuaDk5s — Mitchell Brown (@MitchLBrown) July 8, 2022 Plays with speed, intensity and average streak. As it stands, however, his offensive upside is relatively limited. If the Habs can add some mid-range scoring and playmaking to Rohrer’s game, combining that with the Bulldog style of play would do quite a bit at the NHL level.
Never. 127 — Cedrick Guindon, C/LW, Owen Sound (OHL) .
Value for choice: A Cedrick Guindon’s offensive contribution is truly a dual threat, as the player’s 30 goals and 29 assists in 68 games clearly show. However, the fine brain and ability to push the tempo is what makes Guindon’s game stand out. He lingers, plays his passes quickly and accurately to the best option, and even the way he hides his release while hanging on to it shows the intelligence required to regularly beat defenders and goalkeepers. Off-foot, he supports his defenders, circles low and speeds up to ensure every play is quickened and facilitated. There are a lot of little things he does very well. Another small detail that Guindon regularly displays is his ability to hit pockets of space at the right time to clear loose pucks. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see Guindon make the NHL in a middle-six role in four or five years.
No. 130 — Jared Davidson, C, Seattle (WHL)
Grade for selection: C+ I caught Jared Davidson on a few screenings of other Seattle Thunderbirds prospects like Kevin Korchinski and Reid Schaefer, and I wasn’t too impressed with his overall projectability. The overage center has a strong release and led his team with a game-high 23 points, but he’s not much of a lane driver and tends to shoot up and down anywhere. I will watch him more closely during this upcoming season and see if I start to enjoy his game more with a larger sample size.
No. 162 — Emmett Croteau, G, Waterloo (USHL)
Value to choose: TBD I don’t have many notes on Emmett Croteau as a prospect to be honest — I didn’t spend much time scouting netminders this year and I didn’t catch enough Waterloo games to get a lasting impression of his style of play. Statistically, he was one of the top 10 netminders in the USHL and always seems to step it up a notch in the playoffs. The 6’4”, 194-pound goalie will be my first set of projections before fall training camp begins.
No. 216 — Miguël Tourigny, RD, Acadie-Bathurst/Blainville-Boisbriand (QMJHL)
Value for choice: A This is a great pick for the Habs in this series. Although Miguël Tourigny is small at 5’8″ and 178 pounds, his terrific skating and footwork make him a solid defenseman, and he is one of the most offensively productive blue-liners in the QMJHL right now. The twice-as-large prospect age follows the Habs’ recent trend of selecting re-entries from Quebec in the final rounds. Teammate Riley Kidney also plays with an edge and doesn’t back down from offensive activation opportunities, leading him to finish second among QMJHL defensemen in goals (31) and points (80) in 65 games split between the Armada and Titan. I’m just wondering if he really has enough runway in front of him to develop or if he’s already nearing his full potential. Regardless, it’s a great seventh-round swing for the Habs. Thanks for reading. Follow me on Twitter @HadiK_Scouting for more Habs prospects and to keep up with the rest of my scouting work!
