Story by
Discover the Top Canadiens Prospects According to Fans
- Story by
- Discover the Top Canadiens Prospects According to Fans
Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Even though the hopes and dreams of Montreal Canadiens fans are no longer solely linked to the NHL Entry Draft, there's still an impressive level of interest when discussing young players in the team's prospect pool.
We decided to return the power to the fans by asking them to vote for the top Habs prospects, a project that always yields very interesting results.
Advertisement
In this era, information is available to everyone, which leads to fans having a strong, informed opinion on the players evolving in various leagues around the world.
With that in mind, it's time to discuss how Montreal Canadiens fans ranked the team's top prospects.
Methodology
Eligible prospects were limited to players who are 23 years old or younger, and have not yet established themselves in the NHL. This means players such as Ivan Demidov , Lane Hutson , and Juraj Slafkovsky were not included on the voting form that was filled out by thousands of Habs fans.
Fans ranked players from 1 to 10, giving us a perfect overview of how the fanbase judges the current crop of Canadiens prospects.
Advertisement
Throughout the Olympic break we will publish in-depth articles on the top 10 prospects, while keeping a close eye on the players who just missed the cut, starting with the honourable mentions.
Honourable Mentions
25. Luke Tuch , Forward, Shoots Left, 23, Laval Rocket (AHL), 6'2″, 215 lb. Picked 47th overall in 2020.
Tuch is one of the oldest players on the list, but it's worth noting he's only in his second full season with the Laval Rocket, having spent four years playing for the Boston University Terriers in the NCAA before making the jump to professional hockey.
He mostly played a first-line role for Boston University, a situation that saw him share the ice with phenoms such as Hutson and Macklin Celebrini . This led to a somewhat inflated production rate, a situation that has been reversed now that he's playing in a bottom six role with the Rocket.
Advertisement
After scoring six goals and eight assists in 44 games as a rookie, Tuch's scoring rate has dropped in his second professional season, to the tune of seven goals and two assists in 45 games.
If Tuch has a legitimate chance of making it to the NHL, it will not be in a situation conducive to scoring, but rather, a grinding role that allows him to use his physical play to his advantage. Tuch has developed into a hard-working, gritty forward who will not hesitate to drop the gloves when need be. Unfortunately for his NHL aspirations, there are severeal prospects who will look to fill that same role, including Florian Xhekaj.
A realistic projection would see him stay in the AHL, and serve as a mentor and leader for incoming players, much like the role played by current Laval Rocket captain Lucas Condotta .
24. Yevgeni Volokhin, Goaltender, Catches Left, 20, Khimik Voskresensk (VHL), 6'3″, 168 lb. Picked 144th overall in 2023.
Advertisement
Volohkin has put together fantastic numbers while playing in the MHL, which is essentially the Russian equivalent to the CHL. In 70 career games, he established a 47-11-9 record, paired with an impressive .932 save percentage.
He ended up playing in the KHL last season, a rather tall task for a young goalie. Despite this, he produced a .901 save percentage for HC Sochi, one of the worst teams in the league. However, he had a rough start to the 2025-26 season, which saw him demoted to the VHL, the Russian equivalent to the AHL.
Since then, you could build a strong case to suggest he has bounced back nicely, to the tune of a 19-6-4 record, and a .948 save percentage.
It's always difficult to get a good read on Russian netminders, but it stands to reason that Volohkin has played well enough to be considered as a dark horse candidate to one day make his way to Montreal. To do so, he'll need to bulk up, but his agility alone is enough to keep him in the prospect conversation, for the time being.
23. Sam Harris, Left Wing, Shoots Left, 22, University Of Denver (NCAA), 5'11″, 186 lb. Picked 133rd overall in 2023.
Advertisement
Not many prospects can boast they are NCAA Champions, but Sam Harris is one of the elite few, having won the national championship with the University of Denver in 2023-24, his first season in the league.
Harris scored 14 goals and seven assists as a rookie, following it up with a significant uptick in production during his sophomore season, which saw him score 23 goals and 12 assists in 43 games. He had an impressive showing at Montreal Canadiens development camp, scoring three goals in one of the team's intrasquad scrimmages.
This year, he's scoring at a slightly lower rate, to the tune of 0.72 points per game, which is a concern given that he's yet to reach a point per game in the NCAA.
Like most players drafted in later rounds, Harris will have to jump multiple hurdles if he's to one day make it to the NHL. He owns a relatively well-rounded tool kit, including a good shot and a motor that seemingly never runs out of gas, but skating remains a red flag in his overall game.
22. Filip Eriksson, Centre/Wing, Shoots Left, 21, Luleå HF (SHL), 5'11″, 179 lb. Picked 165th overall in 2023.
Advertisement
Eriksson may be the most underrated prospect in this year's rankings, especially when we consider he's already playing professional hockey in the SHL. Not only is he facing professionals, he's scoring at a relatively strong rate, with 13 goals and 13 assists in 42 games to his credit. He's averaged a little under 15 minutes of ice time this season in the SHL, while playing slightly more than 15 minutes in the Champions Hockey League.
Eriksson has a good shot and solid skating, not to mention a strong work ethic.
Like most players who are still slowly adapting to an uptick in quality of competition, Eriksson has gone through peaks and valleys. He started the season with a four-point game versus Malmö, and followed it up with a three-point effort against Brynäs.
He then endured a seven game scoreless streak in October, before picking up his play in December, and eventually landing in another valley in January. It's part of the process, and we should guard against dismissing him outright, but he will have to work on his consistency should he one day aspire to play hockey in North America.
21. Logan Sawyer, Left Wing, Shoots Left, 19, Providence College (NCAA), 6'1″, 174 lb. Picked 78th overall in 2024.
Advertisement
Sawyer's route to the NCAA took him through the GTHL, the CAHS, the AJHL, and the BCHL before joining Providence last season, and though he's never produced at a rate that would be considered elite, he's certainly improved his scoring pace in his sophomore season.
As a freshman, Sawyer scored just six goals and 10 assists in 37 games for the Friars, whereas he's managed to produce 11 goals and 10 assists in 25 games during his second year with the team, a considerable increase.
Once again, he's a prospect who displayed great work ethic, and an innate scoring instinct, using a cerebral approach to generate most of his offensive opportunities, as well as his solid defensive positioning.
To make it to the professional level, Sawyer will have to work on his skating and strength to stand out in a league that offers little to no time and space for skilled players.
All Montreal Canadiens prospect rankings are established by fans, via over 2500 votes.
Advertisement
All Montreal Canadiens prospect details via Elite Prospects .
Related Headlines
