Kent Hughes' real steal and major goaltender acquisition: there is a lot of praise for Yevgeni Volokhin

Just a year ago, the Canadiens didn't really have much depth in the goaltending department. Let's say that aspect was weak, so much so that Kent Hughes let go of two without offering them a contract.

The management then decided to select three at the last draft. One immediately got the impression that it was rushed work, that these selections were to silence criticism, but no.

Two of them are turning heads right now, namely the 3rd round pick in 2023 Jacob Fowler and the 5th round pick in 2023 Yevgeni Volokhin.

Fowler's performances are widely publicized within the Canadiens' circle, and rightly so. In his rookie year in the NCAA, he was outstanding, with a record of 27-5-1, a goals-against average of 2.23, and a save percentage of 0.923.


However, he is not seen as the organization's superstar in the making, according to several members of the CH. It's rather the Russian goalie. In his rookie season in the MHL, he posted a record of 20-6-3 with a 2.12 goals-against average and a 0.927 save percentage.

In both cases, these are simply incredible numbers. Even though Fowler gets much more attention, some members of the Canadiens' organization believe that Volokhin is superior.


We're already salivating at the thought of seeing Fowler arrive with the Canadiens in a few years, while another goalie could have an even higher ceiling.

What this tells me is that Kent Hughes and his scouting team have done a very good job, and if we add Florian Xhekaj's name, the 2023 draft is starting to become a real success for the organization.

It should be noted that the majority of fans were disappointed after the draft session last June, and I'm one of them.