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2022 NHL Draft Deep Review: Canadiens Picked The Best Player

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montreal canadiens lane hutson credit annik lemire

The 2022 NHL Entry Draft was monumental to the Montreal Canadiens for a number of reasons.

Not only was it the first time incoming general manager Kent Hughes was in charge of the draft, the team also owned 11 draft picks, not to mention the first overall selection.

Seeing as there’s no NHL hockey on the schedule until Saturday, it’s a good time to take an (early) look back at the players picked by the Habs in 2022. Things can, and probably will change, but for now we have a decent idea of the potential for the players chosen by the Canadiens.

Juraj Slafkovsky – 1st Overall

While much has been made about the Slafkovsky pick, we should start off by reminding everyone there was no consensus first overall pick heading into the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The narrative dictated that Shane Wright, the player who was eventually drafted fourth overall by the Seattle Kraken, was likely to go first, but players such as Logan Cooley Simon Nemec, and David Jiricek were also discussed as potential first overall picks.

As it stands, Slafkovsky is the most productive player from the draft when evaluating raw numbers, with 90 points in 174 games, however, when we keep ice time in mind, Cooley clearly emerges as the player who is most capable of making a positive impact this season, as evidenced by his 87 points in 132 games.

We should also recognize that despite his slow development, Wright is quickly closing the gap. He’s currently on pace for a 46 point season, the same projection as Slafkovsky, however he’s scoring goals at a much higher rate than his Slovak counterpart, and has a lot less NHL experience under his belt.

It’s a good reminder that development is not linear, which brings us back to the Canadiens’ pick.

With the power of hindsight, we can suggest Cooley would have been the best option for the Habs, but I would push back on the idea that drafting Slafkovsky first overall lacked logical reasoning, especially in what was clearly a weak draft.

When there’s no clear-cut target available, swinging for the fences is rarely a bad idea.

As Hughes explained after the draft, Slafkovsky was a long-term project that needed refining before making a significant impact in the NHL. He also pointed to Slafkovsky’s physiology as an important factor in the decision.

“There aren’t many players who can skate, who have a big body and are able to score like Juraj,” explained Hughes. “We’re hopeful that, wherever he starts, based on how he looks over the remainder of this summer and in training camp, if he shows that he’s ready to play in Montreal, he’ll play in Montreal. If not, he’ll play in Laval.”

Perhaps it was the pressure of potentially having the only first overall forward in the last 30 years not start his career in the NHL, or perhaps Hughes and Co. were still strongly influenced by Slafkovsky’s one-off performances against various countries during international competition, but even with a very difficult rookie season that saw him produce just 10 points in 39 games, Slafkovsky was kept in a high-pressure situation in the NHL, rather than heading to the AHL to iron out some of the evident issues in his game.

A strong stretch on the top line alongside Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield in 2023-24 did part the cloudy outlook, at least temporarily. Not only did they produce strong underlying numbers, they were scoring at a legitimate first-line rate, a rarity in Montreal.

But now that Slafkovsky is three years into his NHL career, the dark clouds have started to reappear. He was recently demoted from the top line, and is on pace for just 12 goals and 33 assists in 79 games, which would be a regression from a production standpoint.

It’s not all bad.

MUST READ: Canadiens Mythbusting – Juraj Slafkovsky Edition

There are a few areas in which Slafkovsky excels, and if he can ever manage to improve his lowly shot rate, the points will improve. He’s also still the youngest player in the lineup, at just 20 years old. He has a very long runway left in his career.

But it’s very difficult to ignore the curious development plan put in place by the Canadiens.

They said all the right things, and then proceeded to fast-forward Slafkovsky’s development as if he was a blue-chip, franchise player. The pressure is already reaching a boiling point, and it will only mount for the Slovak forward, as his eight-year contract extension that carries a $7.6 million annual average value (AAV) is set to kick in next year.

Filip Mesar – 26th Overall

The Canadiens had quite the story on their hands when they drafted both Slafkovsky and Mesar. Not only did they pick two Slovaks in the first round, Mesar and Slafkovsky were childhood friends, making it quite a heartwarming situation.

As opposed to forcing him into a role for which he was not ready, the Canadiens decided to send Mesar to the OHL, where he spent two relatively underwhelming seasons with the Kitchener Rangers. He wasn’t terrible by any means, but producing 106 points in 97 games is far from exciting when you consider he was a first-round pick with professional hockey experience.

Heading to a new country as a young player is difficult, and we do have to allow for a long acclimatization period, but Mesar never really found his rhythm in the OHL, displaying a penchant for running hot and cold throughout the year.

The biggest test was set to take place this year, and Mesar got off to a great start in the AHL, earning three points in his first game with the Laval Rocket. But an unfortunate injury a few games later forced the forward to miss almost two months of action, effectively destroying any semblance of momentum Mesar had created.

Since then, it’s been a difficult season for the 21-year-old. He’s scored just two goals and seven assists in 25 games, which projects to an 18-point, 50-game season. In addition to missing 22 games this year, he’s back in the infirmary dealing with an upper-body injury.

A little more luck on the injury front, paired with a strong start in 2025-26 could quickly restore Mesar’s status as a top prospect, but for the time being, it’s quite clear that he’s not living up to his first-round draft position.

Owen Beck – 33rd Overall

Several teams were interested in drafting cerebral forward Owen Beck, including the Toronto Maple Leafs. In the end, Toronto had to package their first-round pick to unload Petr Mrazek’s contract, giving the Canadiens a great opportunity to put their hands on a versatile forward who already possessed the type of skill set necessary to one day ascend to professional hockey.

There was a fair amount of internal debate at play, and I can confirm the Canadiens had a very intense conversation prior to choosing Beck with the first pick of the second round.

Beck would go on to enjoy a very solid carer in the OHL, demonstrating that he can play an important part in any lineup, regardless of his assignment. When Beck was given pure defensive responsibilities, his offence slowed down, but his defensive play shone. When he was used in a more offence-orientated situation, his production immediately improved.

To put a fine point on his time in the CHL, Beck’s final game saw him capture the Memorial Cup with the Saginaw Spirit. He was also named the Most Valuable Player, thanks to his two-goal effort versus the London Knights.

Playing well in the CHL is one thing, but the true test started this season, as Beck dipped his toes in the icy waters of professional hockey by joining the Laval Rocket in the AHL.

Not only did he rise to the occasion, which is a common theme when discussing Beck’s play, he represented the Rocket at the All-Star weekend, and was recently promoted to the NHL, where he put together very solid underlying numbers in a difficult assignment.

MUST READ: Prospect Owen Beck Gives The Canadiens More Options At The Trade Deadline

It remains to be seen if the Canadiens will recall Beck once the 4 Nations Faceoff tournament is over, but it’s safe to say he’s turning into the exact type of player the team desperately needs. He’s smart, works hard, and can be used successfully in almost any situation, but most importantly, he understands what he needs to do with very little instruction, thus making life easier on his head coach.

Beck is the epitome of a plug and play prospect, and with the power of hindsight we can confirm he was indeed a good draft pick by the Canadiens.

Lane Hutson – 62nd Overall

We don’t need to run through the reasons why Hutson was an excellent pick, though it’s worth noting every team avoided him at the draft, including the Canadiens, who opted to draft three players ahead of the extremely talented blueliner.

That doesn’t matter at this point, but it’s a healthy reminder that great things can come in small packages, and the obsession about size has led to many poor decisions at the NHL Entry Draft, even if we have a stable of diminutive defencemen in the NHL who have recently captured a Norris Trophy as the best defenceman in the league, including Adam Fox, Quinn Hughes, and Cale Makar.

We can also confirm the Canadiens did indeed put their hands on the best player at the draft, it just took them a few tries to get there.

ON TOPIC: Calder Trophy Talk – Historical Comparisons For Lane Hutson’s Excellent Rookie Season

That may not provide solace for all, but there’s no denying Hutson will go down as one of the team’s best picks in the modern era. He’s already producing more than many All-Star defencemen, and he’s only beginning to begin his professional hockey career.

Full marks to the scouting team that pushed for this selection, though again, I can’t help but think it’s silly they had to convince anyone about Hutson’s potential. The proof was in the pudding, as they say.

Third Round And Beyond

We can’t expect every draft to provide a bevy of NHL calibre players. If you can manage to get two or more players that will one day play in the NHL, you’re already batting well above average.

But the 2022 NHL Entry Draft provided the Canadiens with a few players in the later rounds that could tip the scales in favour of the host team when using hindsight to evaluate picks.

Vinzenz Rohrer, 75th overall, is currently playing for Zurich in the NL, where he plays a gritty role reminiscent of current Canadiens player Brendan Gallagher. He’s gaining important experience, playing for a great franchise, against professional competition. He’s on pace to earn 25 points on the third line, which isn’t groundbreaking, but it’s definitely encouraging given that he was a third-round pick.

Adam Engstrom, 92nd overall, also has a wealth of professional experience under his belt, dating back to 2022. His development with Rogle in the SHL was great, as he was used in a critical role and was given a healthy dose of ice time.

Of course, many prospects who thrived in Europe have failed to adapt to North American hockey, which is why Engstrom’s fantastic play in the AHL with the Laval Rocket is so exciting. With 22 points in 39 games, Engstrom is scoring at roughly the same rate as fellow defenceman Logan Mailloux, however, his defensive play evokes much more confidence.

The final player worth discussing was one of my favourite prospects to watch in the WHL. Jared Davidson, 130th overall, epitomizes excitement. If he’s not busy fighting a player who is much bigger than him, he’s hard at work creating chaos in the offensive zone, where he uses his great one-timer to capitalize on almost every shooting opportunity.

With 17 goals and 13 assists to his credit, the 22-year-old is currently second in Rocket scoring, enjoying an impressive uptick in production when compared to his rookie season. His potential is somewhat limited, to be expected given that he was picked in the fifth round, but he does profile as a prospect who can one day make an impact in the NHL, which means he’s already clearly ahead of the draft curve.

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