According To An Expert, A Future NHL Star Will Be Joining The Montreal Canadiens In A Few Months
The 2023 NHL draft has barely wrapped up and already teams are setting their sights on the 2024 cohort, a group anticipated to be bursting with talent, especially within the early selections.
Given the current circumstances of the Montreal Canadiens, where many predict another tough season is in the pipeline, an expert from EP Rinkside suggests that the organization will have the chance to acquire a future NHL star in the coming months.
In fact, according to preliminary projections based on the moves made during the offseason, the Canadiens could find themselves ranked 31st in the league in the 2023-2024 season.
While the prospect of a second consecutive season languishing at the bottom of the NHL might initially be a tough pill for Canadiens fans to swallow, it could also provide the ultimate ammunition for the second stage of the team's reconstruction.
The end of the upcoming season could see a top-3 draft pick composed of Cole Eiserman, Macklin Celebrini, and Ivan Demidov. This could provide the Canadiens with the opportunity to snag the elite forward they missed out on in the 2023 draft.
This expert's forecasting model has proven to be highly effective, especially for those teams at the lower end of the standings. Last year, the expert had projected a 71-point season for the Canadiens, and the team ended up with a 68-point haul. He anticipated the club would be the fourth-worst team in the league, and in reality, the Canadiens finished in fifth place. These predictions were nearly spot on.
To whet your appetite for the top three prospects of the 2023 draft, here's a quick snapshot of their profiles:
Cole Eiserman (LW): He's an absolutely terrifying sniper on the ice. Despite being a year younger than most players on the US development team, Eiserman ended the campaign with 26 goals and 32 points in just 20 games. For comparison, at the same age, Cole Caufield achieved 10 goals and 17 points in 19 games.
Macklin Celebrini (C): This player is a powerhouse on the ice, boasting an incredibly rounded game, capable of scoring goals in droves and making exceptional plays. He wrapped up the last season in the USHL with a tally of 46 goals and 86 points in 50 games. By comparison, Adam Fantilli posted 37 goals and 74 points in 54 games. What's more impressive about Celebrini is that he did this while being eight months younger than Fantilli. Interestingly, he will be playing in the NCAA with Boston University in the fall, the same team as Lane Hutson, while only 17 years old.
Ivan Demidov (C/RW): What would a draft be without a future Russian star? Demidov is a forward who strangely reminds us of this year's Matvei Michkov. However, he has the advantage of standing close to 6 feet tall at the age of 17. He dominated the Russian junior league with 62 points in 41 games. However, he's more of an elite playmaker than a natural scorer like Michkov. For comparison, at the same age, the seventh overall pick of the Flyers ended the season with a total of 38 points, including 22 goals, in 22 games.
| POLL | ||
What would your feelings be if the Canadiens were to finish in the bottom five of the league again? | ||
| Thrilled, it means another elite prospect | 76 | 43.4 % |
| Disappointed, it's time to start winning | 72 | 41.1 % |
| It doesn't bother me | 27 | 15.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
