Canadiens Prospect Rankings – Family Trees & Pedigrees

24. Dmitri Kostenko, 21, Defenceman, Khimik Voskresensk/Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk (VHL), Picked 87th overall in 2021.

Very little has been made of the Canadiens’ decision to pick Kostenko in the third round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. Logan Mailloux was selected in the first round, while Oliver Kapanen and Riley Kidney were picked in the second round, which led to Kostenko flying under the radar. Oh, and there’s a certain member of the Canadiens that was picked in the fifth round who went on to secure a gold medal for Canada at the 2023 World Junior Championship.

But even if he’s not the most highly-touted Russian defenceman in the prospect pool (that honour belongs to Bogdan Konyushkov), we should be careful before dismissing Kostenko’s long-term value. His transition from the MHL to the VHL was seamless, and was followed by a surprise promotion to the KHL when he was loaned to Kunlun Red Star in 2022-23, giving him an early and heavy dose of professional hockey experience.

Last season Kostenko was back in the VHL, where he split time with two teams. He finished the year with 11 goals and 14 assists in 42 games, a fairly impressive production rate given the circumstances. Kostenko’s offensive prowess is evident. He’s comfortable controlling the puck in the offensive zone, where he uses his solid skating to create time and space for his teammates. Fortunately, thanks to his excellent shot, he can also carve out precious ice in high-danger scoring areas before he unleashes his deceptive release.

23. Aatos Koivu, 18, Centre, TPS (Liiga, U18, U20), Picked 70th overall in 2024.

Heading into the second day of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft I mused that the Habs may as well throw the dice and pick Aatos Koivu in the third or fourth round. This was on the heels of the Los Angeles Lakers drafting Bronny James in the second round of the NBA Draft, which led to an interesting dialogue regarding nepotism in sports.

And while most of my tweets are written with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek, there was some honesty involved in this case. In the NBA, there’s a strong link between pedigree and success, and much of that pedigree comes in the form of having elite athletes somewhere in your family tree. That’s not necessarily the case in the NHL, or rather, we’re yet to prove any sort of link in hockey, but seeing as there’s a laundry list of family members who made their way to the best hockey league on earth, I have a suspicion there’s some logic in the concept. On that note, now that he’s a Hab, Saku Koivu’s son will have to forge his own path and forget about filling the impossibly large shoes left behind by his father.

Fortunately, Aatos has an excellent shot and a very well-rounded skill set. He’s considered a late bloomer, which is fine in my books. I tend to lean on recent production when it comes to evaluating prospects. I believe it’s more indicative of their potential compared to how many goals they scored when they were 16 years old. Koivu split his time this season between Turku’s U-20 and U-18 programs, where he established very encouraging scoring rates. He didn’t produce as much as his father did, and that’s fine. Knee injuries slowed Saku’s production in Montreal, but prior to the issues he was among the most electrifying offensive talents in the league. That won’t be the case for this particular Canadiens prospect, and we would be unreasonable to set such high expectations, but he will have an opportunity to eventually join the team in a middle-six role if he continues to develop at the same rate as he did last season.

22. Luke Tuch, 22, Left Wing, Boston University (NCAA), Picked 47th overall in 2020.
 

Speaking of family trees, the Habs were hoping Luke Tuch would end up following the same path as his brother Alex, who has become a top player in the NHL after great seasons with both the Vegas Golden Knights and the Buffalo Sabres. Luke doesn’t possess the same type of skill set as Alex, but that doesn’t mean he has no place within the organization.

The Canadiens prospect ended up producing 33 percent more this year compared to the last, though it should be noted he spent the majority of the season playing on the Boston University Terriers’ top line, alongside a certain player named Macklin Celebrini, with a defenceman named Lane Hutson backing him up on the blue line. With all due respect, most players would enjoy a significant uptick if they ended up playing their shifts with two of the most talented players in college hockey. But we also have to conceded that Tuch did a lot of the dirty work on that line, work that was not necessarily reflected on scoresheets.

He was in charge of winning puck battles, tying up opponents behind the net, and creating chaos in the crease, three things that most coaches tend to preach ad nauseam to young players attempting to make the jump to professional hockey. His work ethic is beyond reproach, but he will have to establish himself as a source of secondary scoring if he’s to earn big minutes with the Laval Rocket next season.

21. Tyler Thorpe, Right Wing, Vancouver Giants (WHL), Picked 130th overall in 2024.

Admittedly, there’s always some recency bias in these rankings. Shiny, new toys get a lot more attention than the tried-and-true toys that you’ve owned for a few years. But I don’t feel Thorpe fits that bill, at least not to the same extent as some other players I have already listed.

The 6’5″ forward has soft hands, but more importantly, he looks very smooth out there when you consider he’s almost a foot taller than Martin St-Louis. It’s also worth pointing out he scored 23 goals and 21 in 55 games for the Vancouver Giants last season, a huge uptick in scoring compared to his four goals and two assists in 2022-23. That’s the type of excellent upward trajectory that tends to command attention throughout NHL ranks, not to mention a lot of attention from Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes.

Do you agree or disagree with the Montreal Canadiens prospect rankings posted above?