With just over 24 hours until the first round of the draft, Jeff Gorton spoke to the media in Vegas.
Obviously, the CH vice-president of hockey operations answered a few questions related to the draft…
But he didn’t stop there. For example? He told journalists that Jesse Ylönen will not receive a qualifying offer from the Canadian.
Does this mean that the Finn will automatically leave the Montreal organization this summer?
No, because there is a world where the CH can still decide to offer him a new contract… But ultimately, seeing him return to Montreal for the next season would be very, very, very surprising.
There is no one who will cry if Jesse Ylönen is not back next year.
For what?
Because the player has never proven his usefulness in the Canadiens’ lineup since his arrival in North America (2020-2021).
It’s time to move on… Because in 111 games played in a CH uniform, Ylönen has never performed up to his potential.
The player was still selected 35th overall in the 2018 draft, after all… and he should have been able to give more.
Jeff Gorton also looked at other subjects. Here’s what I took away from his press conference:
1. Kent Hughes is involved in several discussions at the moment.
The Canadiens’ GM puts his phone on the phone and is active on the market.
It’s that time of the season, after all.
2. Jeff Gorton persists in saying that tomorrow, the Canadiens will choose the best player available in 5th place.
Gorton also said he was confident his group would choose a player with the fifth selection, even if the possibility of trading him is still on the table.
But the club’s vice-president of hockey operations also said he likes the opportunity and that the CH wants to take advantage by selecting a player who can help the club in the long term.
3. Unlike Ylönen, it should be noted that Justin Barron and Arber Xhekaj will receive a qualifying offer from the Canadiens.
It’s logic.
4. Gorton confirmed that there is a meeting today between the CH and Ivan Demidov.
He said the young man “seems like a good kid” and spoke English very well.
5. We’ve known it for a while, but Jeff Gorton has confirmed it (again): there will be no buyout this summer at the CH.
We must forget this scenario.
6. In conclusion, we should not expect to see Kent Hughes be aggressive in seeking out “a big name” this summer on the free agent market.
Gorton told reporters on site that it may be a little “too early” to do so…
Because the team is not yet ready to compete against the best teams in the NHL.
That sums up Gorton’s point.
There, all that remains to do is wait until tomorrow evening… Even if the wait is really starting to be interminable.
There’s not much left, as the other one would say!
A lot of
– There were people there to see Gorton!
– To be continued.
– So much the better!
