Ryan Leonard fits in with what the Sharks want

This morning, my colleague Marc-Olivier Cook talked about Ryan Leonard. Basically, he said that being compared to the Tkachuks is a good thing for him in the draft.

Why is that? Because of recency bias.

Teams are trying to win the Stanley Cup, and the best way to do that is to try to copy the model of successful clubs. And since Matthew Tkachuk took his club to the finals…

The playoffs are still on our minds, and if a club thinks it can go out and get a Tkachuk, it’s a good idea to think about it.

We know it doesn’t shake the pillars of the temple in Chicago, where suspense doesn’t exist. The Ducks may also be wavering between Adam Fantilli, Leo Carlsson or Matvei Michkov… but not with Leonard.

As for the Blue Jackets? They’ll probably take either Fantilli or Carlsson.

That’s the most logical scenario, and it’s probably what CH GM Kent Hughes has planned in an attempt to anticipate what promises to be an eventful draft.

And just as well: he’s ready for anything.

All this to say that if there’s one club that can help the Habs avoid falling into the “Matvei Michkov or a guy outside the top-5 in talent” dilemma, it’s San Jose.

Unless the CH moves up in the draft, of course.

Rumor has it that Ryan Leonard is exactly what the Sharks are looking for. They’d like a player who’s willing to eat tape, which fits Leonard better than Will Smith or Matvei Michkov.

This could lead the club to think that Leonard, who can play center, could be the player the club needs to take it to the next level. And from there, seeing him emerge in the top-4 is possible.

Obviously, for the CH, this would be ideal. Kent Hughes could draft Will Smith, a player he likes and a young man who also seems to be right up his alley.

That would help the CH.

In gusto

– Big news in the Q.

– What will he do?

– Really?

**Keep an Eye 👁️ On**
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– Kevin Weekes (@KevinWeekes) June 23, 2023

– To be continued.

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