What if Lane Hutson was a franchise player?

All rebuilding clubs cling to the hope of winning the lottery to draft a super star. The Canadian is no exception. This was his wish when he occupied the bottom of the circuit between 2022 and 2024. But what if rather than finding his future concession player in the first row, the Habs had unearthed him in 62^e echelon, in Lane Hutson?

Because yes, the American plays like an exceptional hockey player. Am I exaggerating? Consider this. Of all the defensemen born after 1970, how many averaged more points per game than Lane Hutson the season they turned 20?

Thirty ? Lower.

Twenty ? Less.

Ten ? Even less.

Only one: Quinn Hughes, who later won the Norris Trophy.

That means that in his age-20 season, Lane Hutson is producing proportionally more than Erik Karlsson, Scott Niedermayer, Victor Hedman, Zdeno Chara, Alex Pietrangelo, Rasmus Dahlin and PK Subban. Is your brain going to explode? Wait. At 20 years old, Nicklas Lidström and Roman Josi weren’t even established in the National League yet! I swear to you that if, at this point in his career, Juraj Slafkovsky was ahead of Auston Matthews or Evgeni Malkin at the same age, the Canadiens’ fans would become as crazy as Fraggle Rock.

So why do we hesitate a little before considering Hutson as the most important foundation of this reconstruction? Perhaps because after a quarter of a century of fleeting romances, the fans have hardened. The list of fallen hopes, from Alex Kostitsyn to Jesperi Kotkaniemi, is as long as the list of territories that Donald Trump wishes to annex.

Sensitive hearts have understood that it is better to lower expectations to avoid disappointment. Except that Lane Hutson produces. At a crazy pace, too.

I suspect that if the fans have one foot on the brake, it’s more because of Hutson’s size. Recruiters expressed the same reservations on the day of his draft. So much the better for the CH, who picked it up at 62^e step.

Yet Hutson’s portfolio was already prodigious. A few days before the draft, statistician Byron Bader’s algorithm, based on past performances, predicted that of all defensemen, Hutson had the best probability of becoming an NHL star, at 57%. His index was higher than those of Simon Nemec, Logan Cooley and Shane Wright, and almost five times higher than that of Juraj Slafkovsky.

Thirty months later, Hutson is surpassing all expectations. As of Tuesday morning, he was ahead of Matvei Michkov and Macklin Celebrini at the top of the rookie rankings. Well, it’s true that Celebrini, first choice in the last draft, missed around ten games, otherwise he would surely have more points than Hutson.

Nonetheless, the Canadian’s number 48 is clearly one of the favorites for the Calder Trophy. A defender at the top of the rookie scoring charts. It’s rare. Very rare. As much as a goal from Victor Mete. In the last 100 years, only five guards have finished first in the rookie cohort.

Excellent company. Day, Orr and Leetch are in the Hall of Fame. Young was the captain of the Detroit Red Wings for four years. Hughes was a first-team all-star last season.

What impresses me most about Hutson is his confidence. When the team falls behind, he takes on the pressure. He takes risks. He initiates the lifts. He seems to want to be the big occasion player. Not for nothing is he the player most used by head coach Martin St-Louis when the Canadian is in catch-up mode. Monday evening, against the Vancouver Canucks, Hutson is also the only CH player to have remained on the ice during the last three changes of the game.

When he has the puck, he reminds me of a conductor. He is always on the move. He sets the pace. He coordinates the play of his teammates. It is up to others to follow him – if they are able to do so. I stopped counting his perfect passes to unmarked attackers who did not anticipate his gesture. But when all the violins are well tuned, his quintet is formidable.

Frankly, of all the Canadiens players of the last 25 years, Lane Hutson is the one who has most successfully made the transition between the amateur ranks and the NHL. I asked him, after Monday’s match, if he expected such an easy sequence. The question made him blush. On the one hand, you don’t want to say yes and seem arrogant. On the other hand, you can’t ignore the facts and say no. He wore the smile of the student who knows he will get 100% on the exam, plus 10 points for the bonus question.

“It’s certainly not easy,” he replied. There are so many great players in this league. The best are capable of excelling every night, not every second or third game. I would like to achieve this consistency. But I’m having fun, and the guys are helping me a lot. »

For a new player, the consistency is still there, I stressed to him. “Maybe I’m getting there.” Maybe not. I try to focus on what I can control. I pay attention to all the small details that can influence the outcome of a game. »

Okay. His backward skating could be improved. His reading of the defensive game too, although it is already better than that of many offensive defenders. He is also the player who causes the most turnovers for the Canadian. Afterwards, it’s a bit normal, since he takes risks when the club loses at the end of the match. Given the number of quality chances that Lane Hutson generates for his teammates, he will be forgiven more easily than others.

A privilege reserved for few players. To the best, in fact. To those who demonstrate the will and ability to take their club to the top.