The Canadian has therefore just invited three hopefuls to join his organization: Jayden Struble, Emil Heineman and Sean Farrell.
The two second-round picks, Struble and Heineman, in 2019 and 2020 respectively, headed straight to Laval. The final fourth-round pick of 2020 at No. 124, 21-year-old Farrell enters through the front door and could even play his first NHL game in the coming days.
The draft can be a curious beast. Some specialized sites had predicted Farrell a selection in the first round, three years ago. The majority of experts saw him rather chosen in the second round.
Farrell was coming off a 56-point, 44-game season with the Chicago Steel in the USHL, the American junior league.
But he had a few holds against him. First his height, 5 feet 8 inches and 175 pounds. He was also criticized for a lack of explosiveness for a player of his size. He was also born late, on November 2, so was one of the oldest players in his class.
Some explained the interesting production of this boy from Massachusetts by the quality of his teammates. There were potential first-round picks such as Brendan Brisson – son of famous Quebec agent Pat Brisson – Owen Power, Matt Coronato, Matthew Samoskevich and an early second-round pick, Sam Colangelo, an unprecedented harvest for a USHL team. .
In the midst of a pandemic that year, Farrell was seated at the Chelios Pub and Grill in Aurora, Greater Chicago, with family and Steel teammates, to watch that virtual draft.
The young man began to get impatient from the third round. And to boil in the next round. Brisson, three points ahead of him in the season, was a 29th-round first-round pick by Vegas; Colangelo had found himself in Anaheim, just seven rows away.
However, no one had amassed more assists than him at Steel the previous winter. Steel GM Ryan Hardy even crossed the street from a box at Fox Valley Ice Arena, where he was with the other part of the team’s players, to Chelios’ pub to comfort his colt. He stayed there until the Canadian finally uttered Farrell’s name with the final fourth-round pick.
Once the suspense was over, the day ended in joy over tacos and margaritas. And the pride of having seen a team set its sights on him.
Montreal held several picks in the first four rounds and had time to draft five players before it: Kaiden Guhle ranked 16th in the first round, Luke Tuch and Jan Mysak in the second round, and two American high school players in the fourth round. Jack Smith and Blake Biondi.
A little less than three years later, Guhle was already a mainstay in defense in Montreal when he suffered an injury, as one would expect for a first-round midfielder. Luke Tuch (47), a power forward and brother of Sabers forward Alex, just reached the Final Four with Boston University in his third season in the NCAA. He peaked this winter with 20 points in 39 games. Let’s see if he gets a contract in Montreal.
Czech Jan Mysak is playing his first full season in the American League with the Rocket. He has six points in 35 games, and is now way down the U-Look.
Jack Smith, a 5-foot-11 center, is lost in the maze of the system. He finished his season at Minnesota-Duluth with five assists in 24 games. Injured, Blake Biondi was content with six assists in 17 games for the same team.
Farrell joins the Canadiens after amassing 53 points, including 20 goals, in just 34 games at Harvard. He is one of ten finalists for the Hobey-Baker Trophy as NCAA Most Outstanding Player.
In his second and final NCAA season, 2020-21, Cole Caufield had 52 points in 31 games. He was, however, playing in a more competitive division with the University of Wisconsin.
Although they have short stature and intelligence in common (Farrell is still 5’9 today, compared to 5’7 for Caufield), Farrell and Caufield are different players. The first is especially recognized for his qualities as a passer, the second as a scorer.
His direct promotion to Montreal, bypassing the American League, makes sense. Farrell opened his eyes midway through the year after his draft with a production of 101 points in 53 games with Chicago Steel. He became the first player in ten years to reach 100 points in the USHL.
His exploits earned him the respect of the United States national team. He was invited to take part in the Olympics last year with young leaders Matthew Beniers, Jake Sanderson, Noah Cates, Brendan Brisson and Matthew Knies, among others. He finished first in scoring on his team with six points in four games.
Then Farrell went to the World Championship, this time with some NHL players Seth Jones, Matt Boldy, Ryan Hartman, Nate Schmidt, Alex Galchenyuk, Adam Gaudette, and also prospects Luke Hughes and Thomas Bordeleau. He was second in scoring at the club with six points in ten games.
Montreal welcomes a talented player, but also seasoned to a certain extent.
Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Jesse Ylönen were traded to the Laval Rocket on paper at the trade deadline to allow them to join the team ahead of the playoffs. They would have been the most vulnerable with the arrival of Sean Farrell according to the initial plan, but not only are they not ringing with the Canadiens, but the Rocket also risks missing the detail.
With his three goals on Saturday, all in the second period, Harvey-Pinard, 24, took his tally to twelve in just 29 games, sixth in scoring for the Canadiens. He has even played 20 minutes or more three times in CH’s last nine games.
Ylönen, 23, is a little more low-key, but with four goals in his last five games, and a host of small, effective gestures on the ice, he’s 14 points in 30 games, just three behind Harvey-Pinard , in one more game.
The Finn has also amassed 12 points in his last 19 games, compared to 8 for Harvey-Pinard during the same period, but the Quebecer has nevertheless had a greater impact on the team in recent weeks.
