Forecaster gave the Habs a C+ for their draft, I might give them a higher grade at this point especially if you factor in the draft day trade for Huet and Bonk for Garon and a 3rd.
Kyle Chipchura 18th- Not flashy at all, a bit on the slow side, likely won't ever be much of a goal scorer imo. But he should be a strong lock to play in the nhl. In his rookie year in Hamilton he's been solid for sure, very good on the PK and in his own end. Had hoped for more offense from him, in a total of 78 ahl games he's got 34 points, not too impressive but he's big and strong, something we lack down the middle. Forecaster said the Habs might regret passing on Lauri Korpikoski, Wojtek Wolski or Andrej Meszaros, looks like they were right in regards to Wolski and Meszaros for now.
Alexei Emelin 84th- If the Habs can get him to come over then it's looking like a good pick. Was impressive at the wjc's and in the RSL (at least last year, haven't seen him this year) He's easily one of our top D prospects so hopefully they can get him over here within the next year or two.
J T Wyman 100th- Big strong winger with decent hands, skates well with good speed and solid at both ends of the rink. May have been Dartmouth's best player in the playoffs this year, also filled in on defense this year when injuries hit the blueline. I assume he finishes up his senior year and then makes the jump to Hamilton after that. Tough to say if he will make it cause the Habs do have a lot of depth at RW so he'll need to really progress over the next 3+ years.
Mikhail Grabovski 150th- Very very nice pickup. I didn't like the pick at the time but now I love it. Grabovski has been one of Hamilton's top players this year and formed an impressive duo with Andrei Kostitsyn as the former teammates showed good chemistry together. He's likely the fastest prospect in our system, he creates lots of offense with his speed and passing skills plus he's got some sick moves. But he's small, needs work on his face-offs, tries to do too much with the puck, turns over the puck a lot. That said imo he's one of the Habs top prospects.
Loic Lacasse 181nd- Brutal pick, not sure how he got a contract but with all the goalies the Habs have in their system, he's got a lot of work to do. Lost his starting job with the Remparts, got a 2nd chance with Oshawa, seems to give up a lot of goals on a lot of shots. You never really know with goalies but at this point I am still shaking my head that he got a contract.
Jon Gleed 212th- Gleed is not flashy but he's very steady in his own end. No clue what his future holds, he's on a AHL contract with Hamilton, from what I hear he's been really good in his rookie year in the ECHL and he's played well in all the games I've seen him in Hamilton.
Greg Stewart 246th- Stewart was decent in the ohl and seems to be doing fine in the ECHL this year. He works hard, skates well with good speed, plays with energy, takes the body, drops the gloves. But not much offense and could end up a 4th line energy type down the road.
Mark Streit 262nd- Another solid pickup, I hated the pick at the time, never cared for overaged Euro picks but I changed my opinion as soon as I saw him at the WC's. He was ok in his rookie year last season but this year he's really stepped up and played well at forward and defense. I expect him to play a bigger role with the team next year.
Alex Dulac-Lemelin 278th- Bust
