Top 20 Montreal Canadiens Prospects Voted By Habs Fans

Our weekly Montreal Canadiens Prospect Power Rankings series is just around the corner, but before we get to how particular players are performing on a week-to-week basis, we had to establish the starting grid for all the team’s top young players.

That’s where our great community of Habs fans came into play. We asked you to cast your votes for the team’s best prospects, and as per usual, the response was fantastic, as we received over 600 completed forms. A big “Thank You” goes out to everyone who took the time to vote.

The fan votes were weighted in reverse order from their positioning. A first place vote was worth 10 points, while a 10th place vote was worth one point. The five highest and lowest votes were removed from the scoring to avoid outliers and reduce voter manipulation. We’ve also included how many top five votes each prospect received.

To qualify for the Canadiens Prospect Power Rankings, players must be 23 years old or younger, and be playing outside the NHL.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at how Canadiens fans voted.

1. Ivan Demidov, 18, Forward (RW/C), SKA Saint Petersburg (KHL), 6’0″, 192 lb. Picked 5th overall in 2024.

Top prospect Ivan Demidov cruised to the top spot, with over 90 percent of the votes placing him in first. This is the least surprising result, as Demidov represents the type of prospect Habs fans have been craving for roughly three decades now. He also solved one of the few weaknesses in the team’s prospect pool, which was the lack of forwards with star potential.

His elite skill set, combined with his sky-high potential puts him in a class above the rest of the team’s young players. All things considered, he’s off to a very solid start with SKA Saint-Petersburg despite not receiving an abundance of ice time in the early stages of his KHL career.

2. Michael Hage, 18, Centre,  University Of Michigan (NCAA), 6’1″, 190 lb. Picked 21st overall in 2024.

If there’s one player that has a chance to match Demidov’s offensive potential, it’s University of Michigan freshman Michael Hage. The silky-smooth centre immediately found his rhythm in the NCAA, scoring four goals and three assists in his first five games.

Many players can reach impressive speeds, and the same can be said about prospects who have fantastic stick handling, but few can execute plays at full speed, and that’s exactly why Hage’s explosive style of play gives him the edge in most one-on-one situations. His strong start likely played a role in the voting, but you’d be hard-pressed to argue Hage doesn’t deserve to be considered among the team’s most important young players.

3. David Reinbacher, Defenceman, 19, Laval Rocket (AHL), 6’03”, 210 lb. Picked 5th overall in 2023.

David Reinbacher received fewer first-place votes than all the other top five players, however, most fans consider him to be a top three prospect, giving him just enough points to finish ahead of Logan Mailloux. It’s an encouraging show of faith from Canadiens fans, especially since things haven’t exactly gone to plan when it comes to Reinbacher’s development. A complicated year in the NL followed by an injury in preseason that will keep him out of the lineup for the majority of the season means he’s facing the utmost adversity, in addition to the pressure of being a top Montreal Canadiens draft pick.

The good news is that he has age on his side, as he’s only turning 20 years old next week. Ideally, Reinbacher will be able to return to play in time to absorb some high-quality minutes in the AHL for the Laval Rocket, just as he did at the end of the 2023-24 season.

Unfortunately, since he’s injured, Reinbacher will not be included in next week’s Montreal Canadiens Prospect Power Rankings.

4. Logan Mailloux, 21, Defenceman, Laval Rocket (AHL), 6’3″, 212 lb. Picked 31st overall in 2021.

Defenceman Logan Mailloux received the second-most first-place votes from Habs fans, though as you saw earlier, Demidov truly dominated the first place voting. Regardless, Mailloux has rocketed up the top Habs prospect conversation thanks to his penchant for taking an impressive number of shots per game, which usually leads to an uptick in high-danger scoring chances for his team. Defensive positioning and awareness remain an issue, but there’s no denying his offensive impact.

If I am being perfectly honest, I wasn’t expecting his offensive game to graduate to the professional level as smoothly and as quickly as it did, but a 14-goal, 33-assist rookie campaign led to Mailloux representing the Rocket at the AHL All-Star Game last season. He also got off to a hot start in 2024-25, with two goals and two assists in two games before being recalled to the NHL due to Kaiden Guhle’s injury. It remains to be seen if he’ll be given regular ice time, but it’s worth noting he had very solid possession stats in his lone NHL game last year, as well as during his extended audition at Canadiens training camp.

5. Jacob Fowler, Goaltender, 19, Boston College (NCAA), 6’2″, 214 lb. Picked 69th overall in 2023.

Overall, I’d say Habs fans did a great job listing the top prospects, but I have to disagree with Fowler’s ranking. In my opinion, Fowler should easily be ranked in the top three, as he has elite potential, but that’s a discussion for another day. What matters is that Canadiens fans recognized Fowler is one of the best prospects in the organization, and there’s ample evidence available to suggest they’re absolutely right.

He led the NCAA in wins during his rookie season with the Boston College Eagles (32), and he already earned Hockey East’s Goaltender Of The Week honours after just a handful of games this year. His list of accolades over the course of the last two seasons is incredibly impressive, and his stoic approach to the game instills confidence from the very moment he makes his first save of the game, usually owing to fantastic positioning and great anticipation.

A very nice shorthanded save by #GoHabsGo prospect Jacob Fowler. pic.twitter.com/2uO0ai9IrI

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) October 11, 2024

6. Joshua Roy, Centre/Winger, 21, Laval Rocket (AHL), 6’0″, 200 lb. Picked 150th overall in 2021.

I’d also argue Roy is a little too low in these rankings, but there’s no denying he was far from the best player at what was a very chaotic camp that included little to no opportunities to watch players perform at 5v5 in the preseason. Roy runs hot and cold, with training camp taking place during one of those cold spells.

This isn’t the first time Roy has faced adversity, and if history tells us anything, it’s that he responds well to being challenged by his coach. Seeing as the team isn’t overflowing with offensive weapons, Roy’s return to the NHL will likely happen sooner than later, but in the meantime, he’ll have to find his scoring rhythm in the AHL if he’s to ensure he re-joins the Habs in top form. Fortunately, he has plenty of experience when it comes to scoring in the AHL, including his two goals on Friday night.

Josh nous redonne les devants!
And we get the lead again! #GoRocket https://t.co/fn66mnwaMc pic.twitter.com/K2K78TnCba

— Rocket de Laval (@RocketLaval) October 19, 2024

7. Owen Beck, 20, Centre,  Laval Rocket (AHL), 6’0″, 190 lb. Picked 33rd overall in 2022.

Roy and Owen Beck were ranked in their own distinct group. They weren’t very close to cracking the top five, but they were leagues higher than the eighth-place prospect.

And if there’s one player who can challenge Roy’s status as the most trustworthy prospect in the AHL, it’s Beck. He’s versatile, defensively responsible, wins most of his faceoffs, and requires very little instruction from a coaching perspective. The key will be establishing a relatively consistent scoring pace in the AHL before he is called-upon to play for the Habs, but given the lack of glaring weaknesses in his game, I wouldn’t bet against his eventual ascension to the NHL.

For now, he’s playing in a third-line role as he dips his toes in the icy waters of professional hockey, but he has a habit of quickly climbing up lineups once his coach starts to catch on to what he brings to the table every night.

A perfect end to a great night, season, and CHL career for #GoHabsGo prospect Owen Beck, as he’s named the Memorial Cup MVP.

A fitting honour for one of the hardest-working players in the league. pic.twitter.com/TBDLDgWxvG

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) June 3, 2024

8. Adam Engstrom, 20, Defenceman, Laval Rocket (AHL), 6’2″, 190 lb. Picked 92nd overall in 2022.

Adam Engstrom is one of my favourite prospects, mostly due to his ability to float slightly above the ice rather than skate on it. That may be a slight exaggeration, but you will have a hard time finding a player in the organization with a smoother stride than the offensively-inclined Swede. Training camp was a slight reality check when it comes to his NHL aspirations, but no one expected Engstrom to crack the lineup out of the gate.

While he has plenty of professional experience, more than most 20-year-old defencemen, he needs as many reps as possible in the AHL so he can adjust to the lack of time and space in North America. If he gets his timing down, there’s a decent chance he ends up surprising many by leapfrogging some of the prospects who are currently considered to be above him in the depth chart.

Adam Engstrom, one of the most underrated Canadiens prospects, ties the game. #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/FJk2uYyUzk

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) September 14, 2024

9. Jakub Dobes, 23, Goaltender, Laval Rocket (AHL), 6’4″, 201 lb. Picked 136th overall in 2020.

I have to admit, I did not expect Jakub Dobes to crack the initial top 10, especially since most of the focus when it comes to goaltending prospects is centred on Fowler. Dobes actually received more top five votes than Engstrom, but much fewer votes in the sixth to 10th range, making this is a very top-heavy ranking for the 23-year-old netminder.

His rookie season with the Rocket was tumultuous, to say the least, as the team Canadiens did a very poor job of providing goaltending reinforcements to their AHL affiliate while the Rocket’s former starter, Cayden Primeau, toiled away in various NHL press boxes. The good news is that newly-appointed Rocket General Manager, John Sedgwick,  has pre-emptively solved the issue by signing veteran Connor Hughes in June.

A goalie that is overburdened or underused rarely offers optimal performances, making the upcoming season much more important than last year when it comes to judging Dobes’ future with the franchise. He has the right wingspan to play in the NHL, and he was one of the most consistent goaltenders I’ve had the pleasure of watching during his two seasons with the Ohio State Buckeyes.

10. Filip Mesar, 20, Right Wing/Centre, Laval Rocket (AHL), 5’10”, 170 lb. Picked 26th overall in 2022.

We’ve arrived to one of the most polarizing Canadiens prospects, and the last player to crack the top 10, talented Slovak forward Filip Mesar. Most fans voted for Mesar as the ninth or 10th best prospect in the organization, which is a disappointing result if we analyze the rankings from a draft perspective. First-round picks are expected to perform better than most other players, and while the added pressure isn’t necessarily fair, it’s an eternal reality in professional sports.

I won’t deny his 1.05 points-per-game pace in the OHL with the Kitchener Rangers was somewhat underwhelming, but it would be an exaggeration to say he played poorly. On many nights, he was one of the best players on the ice, but consistency in almost all aspects of his game left something to be desired. To make it to the NHL, Mesar will have to be willing to fight for pucks in dirty areas, work harder than his opponents, and rely a little less on his natural talent.

That being said, while I understand why some are down on Mesar’s long-term potential since he was drafted, I would suggest a little more patience is in order, especially now that he’s playing in the AHL with linemates that have a higher level of anticipation and natural talent than his former CHL teammates. Speaking of which, Mesar registered a goal and two assists in his first game of the season for Laval.

Filip Mesar crée l’égalité à Providence! 🚨@RocketLaval pic.twitter.com/QqYdIVLgNg

— RDS (@RDSca) October 12, 2024

Top 20 Montreal Canadiens Prospect List As Voted By Habs Fans

Seeing as Emil Heineman and Oliver Kapanen made the starting roster out of training camp, they were not included in the initial vote, but they will be added to our weekly updates should they be re-assigned to another league.  Logan Mailloux was recalled on Friday, but he was playing in the AHL when we originally asked for the community’s input, therefore he’s still listed. If he remains on the team by next week, he will be removed from the power rankings.

N.B. The total points also include votes for the 6th to 10th spot, which is why they do not line up perfectly with the top 5 votes that are listed.