Ty Smilanic makes the jump to the pros: he’ll be at the rookie camp

As you know, rookie camp is just around the corner. It all kicks off in five days. The Canadiens have announced the prospects who will be attending the camp.

We’re talking about 27 guys.

The more you look at it, the clearer it becomes: the Habs have everything they need to dominate at rookie camp. There are a lot of good young players who can make a difference.

I can’t wait to see the big names (David Reinbacher, Owen Beck, Sean Farrell, Emil Heineman, Joshua Roy, etc.) in action over the next few days. The tournament takes place September 15-18 in Buffalo.

What’s worth noting is that a number of hopefuls won’t be there – notably those playing in Europe or in the NCAA… or those who, like Nathan Légaré, have two pro seasons under their belts.

Lane Hutson, for example, can’t be. Otherwise, he would lose his eligibility to play in the NCAA.

That’s why we can make the leap when we see that Ty Smilanic is there. Smilanic is a prospect who was acquired in the deal that sent Ben Chiarot to Florida. We expected to see him return to the NCAA for lack of news, but now he’s clearly making the jump to the pros.

So he should go to Laval. But for that, he needs to sign a contract.

Surprisingly, Smilanic switched universities last year to play more, but mental health problems prevented him from playing more than 14 games.

His transfer from Quinnipac to Wisconsin didn’t pay off hockey-wise either. His head wasn’t in field hockey, so his stats weren’t up to scratch.

My first observation is that if Smilanic makes the jump to the pros, it may be because he’s getting better. That’s great news in the first place, and that’s what matters most.

But I wonder, hockey-wise, if it’s the best.

Obviously, I’m not the one who decides, and I haven’t evaluated him the way the CH has. But Laval will have a young club this year and it seems to me that going to dominate Wisconsin would have been a good idea, on paper, wouldn’t it?

Maybe going to university, for many reasons, wasn’t ideal for him, and maybe getting out of the Wisconsin environment will help him mentally. It remains to be seen, but I’m curious to see how he does.

Prolongation

– New number for David Reinbacher.

– Oliver Kapanen, a notable absence.

– The three guests of the lot.

– Here are the lesser-known players.