ricucity Posted April 11, 2004 Share Posted April 11, 2004 Yes, Hockey's Future has ranked the Montreal Canadiens as the best farm system in the NHL! Here is what they have to say: Strengths: Montreal has an abundance of prospects who can put the puck in the opposition’s net, and plenty who can keep the puck out of their own, making them extremely formidable at both ends. Leading the well-rounded crop of forwards are steady two-way Chris Higgins, offensive dynamo Andrei Kastsitsyn, and the recently recalled Jozef Balej, a speedy winger and leading scorer in Hamilton. Alex Perezhogin, Tomas Plekanec, the raw but talented Cory Urquhart and the enigma that is Marcel Hossa complete an extremely talented group of forwards. On the blueline Montreal has the offensive minded Ron Hainsey, as well as the often over-looked Konstantin Korneev to create a potentially solid bottom pair. Andrew Archer, a big stay at home defenseman could also be a NHL regular. Weaknesses: The Canadiens, with this season’s promotion of Mathieu Garon, are now missing a blue chip goalie prospect in the system. Jaroslav Halak, Oliver Michaud and Joni Puurula all seem to have the ceiling of NHL backup at best. Montreal’s forward prospects aren’t very big by NHL standards, and that could be a concern in the future. Top Prospects: © Chris Higgins, (F) Andrei Kastsitsyn, (D) Ron Hainsey, (F) Jozef Balej, © Tomas Plekanec, (F) Andrei Perezhogin, (F) Marcel Hossa, (D) Konstantin Korneev, © Cory Urquhart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricucity Posted April 11, 2004 Author Share Posted April 11, 2004 And to add to that, Kastsitsyn is ranked 12th, Higgins 34th, Hainsey 40th, and Perezhogin 46th in HF's top 50 NHL Prospects. I think the player that may make the most impact is Higgins. Of course, many will argue that Kastsitsyn will, but he is certainly not the 2 way player Higgins is and is not too strong. I have a problem with these Russian prospects coming in and thinking they are all that, and then forgetting to play defense. I like Higgins because he never gives up, is a leader, and plays solid in both ends. Hainsey, at least to me, seems solid offensively and will throw his body around...I think all that he really needs work on is his stick positioning, but I really don't know what holds him back from making that last jump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leafs Suck Posted April 16, 2004 Share Posted April 16, 2004 Leafs are 25th, tee hee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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