Hockey

Justin Carbonneau: Bob McKenzie puts him ahead of the Habs on his list
Félix Forget
Justin Carbonneau: Bob McKenzie puts him ahead of the Habs on his list
Credit: The NHL amateur draft is just days away. At the time of writing, the Habs have the 16th and 17th picks for Friday night… and we wonder what they’ll do with those two. Ideally, they’d use them to pick up reinforcements more immediately, but no one seems to want to be on the other side […]

The NHL amateur draft is just days away. At the time of writing, the Habs have the 16th and 17th picks for Friday night… and we wonder what they'll do with those two.

Ideally, they'd use them to pick up reinforcements more immediately, but no one seems to want to be on the other side of this deal.

So, until we have proof to the contrary, we have to assume that the club will use these two picks. And today, Bob McKenzie, who is (by far) the most well-connected informer about the draft, released his final rankings of prospects for the draft.

It's not a mock draft, but a ranking of prospects based on what McKenzie hears. But usually, this ranking is the closest to reality.

That's why it's interesting to see that the 16th-ranked player is Justin Carbonneau. Because that's the Habs' selection rank.

We know that in Montreal, Carbonneau is a popular player with fans. We don't know if that's necessarily the case with Habs management(and there's reason to doubt it), but we do know that they're good at hiding their game.

And we know that, according to David Ettedgui, if the Habs ever keep their two picks, Carbonneau will definitely become a member of the Canadiens.

For those interested, we also note that at #17, McKenzie places Jack Nesbitt, a big left-handed center who could eventually play on a top-6 team if he improves his skating stroke. That, too, would fill a need in Montreal.

Note that McKenzie ranks Carter Bear, another popular name in Montreal, 14th. As for Caleb Desnoyers, he's ranked 5th… but according to McKenzie, some put him 3rd, while others put him 9th.

And that's just like many of the prospects in the top-10: it looks like we can expect some surprises on Friday night… except at number one: it'll be Matthew Schaefer who will be the Islanders' choice.


Overtime

– What an image.

– Signing in Calgary.

– Sad news in the NBA.

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