Five prospects drafted after David Reinbacher and rated higher by

Five prospects drafted after David Reinbacher and rated higher by Scott Wheeler

Entertainment News / By /

The NHL draft generates a lot of interest, but it also raises many questions about the future of the prospects selected by each team.

As we know, the draft is a form of gambling combined with the work of recruiters trying to vet the best prospect for each selection.

The top prospects in the draft are expected to be taken early, but there are plenty of surprises in the other rounds too.

In 2023, the Montreal Canadiens have their sights set on David Reinbacher, fifth overall.

This pick sparked a lot of criticism from many fans as it was a draft that was well stocked with good offensive options and the CH has a critical need at this level.

Kent Hughes instead decided to choose the best defender of the year. But is it really?

If we rely on Scott Wheeler's ranking of the top 75 draft prospects (The Athletic), there is Axel Sandin Pellikka, the Swedish defenseman selected 17th overall in 2023, who is ahead of Reinbacher.

There are also four prospects drafted after Reinbacher in the 2023 auction who are ahead of the Austrian defender in the same rankings:

There's probably reason to be frustrated that Hughes was ranked No. 5 in these rankings.

Reinbacher is ranked 25th in The Athletic's rankings and ahead of him are young talents Matvei Michkov, Ryan Leonard, Gabe Perreault, Zach Benson and Sandin Pellikka. They were all ignored by the Canadian in the 2023 draft.

Personally, I believe that the ranking does not really reflect reality, at least in Reinbacher's case.

The poor 19-year-old defender had to play in 2023-2024 in a very bad team (Kloten), which changed coaches and could be relegated to the second Swiss league.

Bob Hartley once mentioned that he was a hard worker but was given too much responsibility.

Furthermore, we must not forget that Reinbacher is not an offensive defender and will never, or almost never, achieve a high points rate per game.

His strengths are defense, intelligence and mobility. With these skills, there is a good chance of becoming a very good defender in “the show”, especially if he manages to improve his offensive team.

With the intelligence he displays, it becomes easier to learn or improve certain aspects of the game.

So I don't understand why Wheeler ranked Reinbacher so low, but it's fair to say he's definitely ranked higher than me.

The fact is that we are all looking forward to seeing Reinbacher at EHC Kloten in North America after his season in Switzerland.

Furthermore, his arrival is getting closer and closer as the regular season is officially over.

Only the fourth of seven series remains between Kloten and HC Ajoie to avoid relegation to the second division. However, this series cannot be contested as only two teams in Division 2 have the means to achieve promotion.

So if they are eliminated before the final, Kloten and Ajoie could stay in the first division, as the Journal de Montréal reports.

Much

– Newhook seems to have found its place in Montreal.

– I would be more than happy to have a player of Mikko Rantanen's caliber in Montreal.

– Panarin is in good company

– The Jackets rookie is having a lot of fun with his new team. He has now scored six points in his last three games.