On July 7, 2022, when the Montreal Canadiens had a golden opportunity to select a large right-handed defender, the organization preferred to turn to Filip Mesar.
A year and a half later, this decision is not only being called into question, but it is also becoming a source of ridicule for Kent Hughes and his recruiting team.
Maveric Lamoureux, a 6-foot-7, 214-pound Quebec defenseman, drafted immediately after Mesar by the Arizona Coyotes, is experiencing a moment of glory today.
Tonight, he will be at the Bell Center… but as an opponent of the Canadiens.
With Kent Hughes now scouring the trade market for an imposing right-handed defenseman, fans bitterly remember that he had the opportunity to draft such a player in 2022.
Lamoureux, with his physical potential and his constant progress, embodies everything that the CH lacks on the blue line.
Meanwhile, Filip Mesar was going through a dark period, unable to establish himself in the American League, much less in the NHL.
According to renowned analyst Simon “Snake” Boisvert, Mesar should never have been a first-round pick. In the Process podcast hosted by Mathias Brunet, Boisvert described Mesar as a “peripheral” player, incapable of breaking into North American hockey.
These comments, as scathing as they are lucid, reflect the growing opinion among experts: the Mesar bet is a failure.
For his part, Maveric Lamoureux did not hesitate to express his opinion on the 2022 draft, going so far as to indirectly ridicule Hughes and his team. In a recent interview, he confidently stated:
“The way Logan Cooley sees the game, it’s another level. It’s going to be amazing. »
By praising Cooley, Lamoureux also points out the Canadian’s monumental error in not having selected the American center.
A double blow to Hughes, already criticized for having preferred Juraj Slafkovsky to Cooley.
But Lamoureux doesn’t stop there. When asked about his progress and that of the young defenders, he was confident:
“We are going to be a heavy team and we are going to be scary. »
A statement which, although arrogant, highlights the confidence and combativeness of a player that the Canadian could have had in his ranks.
This series of errors is sadly reminiscent of the bad moves of the Trevor Timmins era. Between Mesar’s selection and Slafkovsky’s selection, some fans see a worrying continuity in questionable draft decisions.
Lane Hutson, the only real highlight of 2022, is not enough to save the day.
As Maveric Lamoureux hits the ice at the Bell Center this evening, fans will be sure to ask themselves “what if…”.
What if Hughes had shown vision by selecting a right-handed defenseman from Quebec with an imposing physique, rather than a small Slovak forward who was losing momentum just because he is Slafkovsky’s friend.
What if this error was a sign of misguided management, influenced by dubious promises and friendships?
Time will give its verdict, but for now, Maveric Lamoureux has the last word, and Kent Hughes will have to live with this choice which already haunts the Canadian.
The million dollar question: Logan Cooley and Maveric Lamoureux for Juraj Slafkovsky and Filip Mesar, what do you do as GM?
To ask the question is to answer it.
