The NHL Draft is less than three weeks away, and at this point, it seems more likely that the Montreal Canadiens will trade their first-round pick instead of making a selection. However, if they do make the pick, they have the luxury of selecting a player with a great skill set who may need time to develop.
In the recent mock draft on Bleacher Report, that is exactly who Hannah Stuart had the Canadiens selecting with the selection of Maddox Dagenais with the 28th overall pick. She wrote about the selection:
"Dagenais proved that his hockey sense is the real deal over the second half of the season, switching into a higher-intensity mode and showcasing both a more power-forward nature and flashes of high-end processing ability.
Right now, Dagenais is a project. The best way to describe him to you is an artist's palette full of skills that you feel confident will project to the NHL, but right now they're just blobs of paint. The painting hasn't been created yet. Those skills (or blobs of paint) include a motor that doesn't quit, solid playmaking with flashes of creativity and deception, vision with a knack for finding teammates, extremely effective reverse hits, and a whole lot more."
Dagenais has spent the past two seasons with the Quebec Remparts in the QMJHL, and after a modest first season with 26 points in 43 games and a +/- of -22, he was a point-per-game player this past season with 62 points in 62 games.
As Stuart notes, he was also very productive at the U18 World Junior Championship with one goal, one assist, and a +/- +5 in five games.
Montreal Canadiens could address a big need in the future with the selection of Maddox Dagenais
During the Canadiens' latest Stanley Cup Playoff run that reached the Eastern Conference Finals, they showed they can play with the faster teams, like the Buffalo Sabres. However, they struggled a little more with the bigger, physical teams like the Lightning and the Hurricanes.
Dagenais is already 6'4" at 18 years old, so he is going to have the height to help fill that need in the middle of the ice. He will need to add a little more weight and strength to compete in the NHL, but that is something that can come with time.
A player like this could be a long-term answer to replacing Phillip Danault as the third-line center, or if he develops even more, maybe as a wing on the Canadiens' second line. In the latter half of the first round, teams are looking for upside, and projecting comes more into play. A player like Maddox Dagenais is one worth taking a gamble on with the ceiling he presents.
