Scott Wheeler’s Top Prospects List: Six Habs skaters in the top-80

Right now, the Habs can boast some good prospects for the future.

Management has done its job at the draft level in recent years, and it looks like a lot.

Especially when you look at Scott Wheeler’s Top 100 list, which specializes in this area.

That’s significant, because the Canadian is really well represented in The Athletic’s expert ranking.

They include :

• Ivan Demidov (3rd)
• Lane Hutson (26th)
• David Reinbacher (38th)
• Michael Hage (41st)
• Joshua Roy (68th)
• Logan Mailloux (79th)

Scott Wheeler also lists Jayden Struble and Owen Beck among those who “missed the cut”:

My annual top 100 drafted NHL prospects ranking is out @TheAthletic!

Featuring nearly 50,000 words of analysis, player tiers, and more, all packaged in our sleek and customizable user interface.

The full list: https://t.co/wCMfYUvZCe pic.twitter.com/LZ0yM2wjwA

– Scott Wheeler (@scottcwheeler) July 16, 2024

There are a lot of players from the 2024 draft in the top-20 list, and there’s one thing in particular that catches my eye.

Ivan Demidov is ranked 3rd… while Cayden Lindstrom, who was drafted one spot earlier, is ranked 18th.

We knew that Scott Wheeler thought the Habs had made a good choice, and that’s understandable when you see the gap between Demidov and Lindstrom in his rankings.

Another striking observation?

Michael Hage (21st pick in 2024) is 41st… And Sacha Boisvert (18th) isn’t even in Scott Wheeler’s top-100.

All this to say that there are six Habs skaters in the top-80, with two others approaching the top-100… And let’s not forget that this doesn’t include goaltenders.

It’s encouraging, we agree.

The Habs have what it takes in their prospect bank to become a wicked good hockey club over the next few years, and while the wait may be long in the eyes of some, patience could really pay off at some point.

Now we’ll have to find a way to coach the youngsters to prioritize their respective development.

And if they can become the players we think they’ll become, the Habs will be in the car for a long time to come.