|
|
|
Wednesday, November 8, 2000
Montreal Canadiens
|
First Round Picks: 13th, 16th (from San Jose)
1999-2000 Record: 35-38-9 (4), 83 points (Tied for 18th overall).
What they need
The Habs are yet another team in need of offensive firepower. Their 196 goals were the third fewest in the NHL this past season and they had just two players eclipse 20 goals (Sergei Zholtok with 26 & Martin Rucinsky with 25). The blueline could also be a concern after the March trade that sent Vladimir Malakhov to the champion Devils.
|
HOMEGROWN CANADIENS
|
|
Canadiens draftees who played over 20 games with Montreal in 1999-00: (All stats with Canadiens) |
| Name (drafted) |
GP |
G-A-Pts |
Craig Darby
(43rd in '91) |
76 |
7-9-16 |
Shayne Corson
(8th in '84) |
70 |
8-20-28 |
Turner Stevenson
(12th in '90) |
64 |
8-13-21 |
Craig Rivet
(68th in '92) |
61 |
3-13-16 |
Patrice Brisebois
(30th in '89) |
54 |
10-28-38 |
Benoit Brunet
(27th in '86) |
50 |
14-15-29 |
Oleg Petrov
(127th in '91) |
44 |
2-24-26 |
Brian Savage
(171st in '91) |
38 |
17-12-29 |
Aaron Asham
(71st in '96) |
33 |
4-2-6 |
Jason Ward
(11th in '97) |
32 |
2-1-3 |
Jose Theodore
(44th in '94) |
30 |
12-13-2, 2.10 |
Matt Higgins
(18th in '96) |
25 |
0-2-2 |
Saku Koivu
(21st in '93) |
24 |
3-18-21 |
Miroslav Guren
(60th in '95) |
24 |
1-2-3 |
In their system
Center Eric Chouinard (16th overall in '98) had another big season for the Quebec Ramparts (QMJHL), where his dad, ex-NHL 50-goal scorer Guy, is the head coach. The younger Chouinard scored 50 goals for the second year in a row. He also finished the season with 107 points and 105 PIM's. Another Habs draftee, center Mike
Ribiero (45th overall in '98) joined Chouinard in Quebec in 1999-2000, and had 49 points in 23 games. However, questions
still remain about Ribiero's size (listed at 5'11", 164). Making the transition from Europe to North America this season
was left wing Alexander Buturlin (39th overall in '99), who had 20 goals and 47 points in 57 games at Sarnia (OHL). Among defensemen, Chris Dyment (97th overall in '99) had a solid season for Boston University (NCAA-Hockey East) with 32 points and 42 PIM's in 42 games. Another rearguard of note is Andrei Markov (162nd overall in '98), who had
23 points and 28 PIM's in 29 games for Moscow Dynamo (Russian League).
Recent draft history
Montreal leaned heavily toward frontliners with their first round picks in the 1990's.
However, of the seven forwards they chose in the first round during the decade, only Saku Koivu (21st overall in '93) and Turner Stevenson (12th overall in '90) have been regulars in Montreal.
|
FIRST-ROUND SELECTIONS (LAST FIVE YEARS)
|
| YEAR |
PICK |
PLAYER |
POS. |
'99 TEAM |
'99 G-A-Pts |
| 1998 |
16 |
Eric Chouinard |
C |
Quebec (QMJHL) |
50-57-107 |
| 1997 |
11 |
Jason Ward |
RW |
Montreal (NHL) |
2-1-3 |
| 1996 |
18 |
Matt Higgins |
C |
Montreal (NHL) |
0-2-2 |
| 1995 |
8 |
Terry Ryan |
LW |
Long Beach/Utah (IHL) |
7 GP, 3 pts., 28 PIM |
|
|
ALSO SEE
Canadiens' first-round history
Team Needs: Boston Bruins
Team Needs: Buffalo Sabres
Team Needs: Ottawa Senators
Team Needs: Toronto Maple Leafs
|
|
