More than two years after his controversial first round pick by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2021 draft, Logan Mailloux has been officially given the green light by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to play in the NHL. The big question now is: Can he earn a place with the Habs next season?
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The simple answer is that he will be busy for a number of reasons.
On the hockey side, Mailloux has had just one full and dusty season since the Canadiens made him their first-round pick in July 2021. It wasn’t until September, after his selection, that he was suspended from the Ontario League (OHL). for the remainder of 2021 for his misconduct in Sweden in 2020, when he was found guilty in court of transmitting images depicting compromising acts of a young woman without her consent. He finally finished the season with the London Knights and played 12 games there.
“He needs to play games, which he hasn’t done much in three years,” recognized the Canadian’s head of player development, Rob Ramage, during recent development camp. This year he played about 30 minutes a game and was solid most of the time. He is aiming for a position in Montreal but there would be nothing wrong with starting at Laval.
Fine-tune defensive play
Last season, he showed the full extent of his talent by amassing 59 points in 53 games before adding 24 points in 21 playoff games.
“I think he’s going to have to have a good year at Laval,” a recruiter who spent a lot of time in Ontario last season told the Journal. His defensive play lacks structure, but other than that, he’s ready for the NHL.
Competition
Mailloux will also have to fight several other right-handers in the next training camp.
However, it is not a position of strength at the moment as it is difficult to establish the hierarchy to the right of defense alongside David Savard. Johnathan Kovacevic, Justin Barron, Chris Wideman and team new signing Gustav Lindstrom are the other righties most likely to play in the NHL, not to mention Jordan Harris has patrolled right defense a few times over the last year.
However, unlike Barron and Mailloux, Kovacevic, Wideman and Lindstrom would have to forego waivers if sent back to the American Hockey League.
While we shouldn’t jump to conclusions – as a superb camp could allow Mailloux to force the hand of Habs management – everything leads us to believe the right-hander will start his pro career with the Laval Rocket.