Stu Cowan: Lane Hutson shows why Canadians have high hopes for him

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Lane Hutson looked like a kid borrowing his dad's oversized Canadiens sweater when he met the media after being selected in the second round (62nd overall) of the 2022 NHL Draft at the Bell Centre.

Hutson was ranked 25th among North American skaters by the NHL Central Scouting Draft and was listed at 5-foot-9 and 148 pounds at the time. The Canadiens selected Juraj Slafkowski — who was listed at 6-foot-4 and 218 pounds — with the No. 1 overall pick that day, making Hutson look even smaller.

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But the Canadiens saw a lot more than Hutson's size under that oversized sweater.

“That kid's got a big brain,” said Canadiens co-director of amateur scouting Nick Bobrow after drafting Hutson, who went 6-26-32 in 27 USHL games with the USA National Development Team last season. “His hockey game is very interesting. He has a chip on his shoulder, it's very real. The size doesn't get in the way, and I think you'll get a feel and a taste of what's inside when you need it.

“What he does on the ice, mostly it's special rolls, it's playing power, thinking, finding seams, making plays, finding lanes,” Bobrov added. “That's why you have to go after such defenders, because it's hard to find them. We have high hopes for him.”

Hutson made his NHL debut Monday night in the Canadiens' 5-4 overtime loss to the Red Wings in Detroit and showed exactly why Bobrov and the Canadiens have high hopes for the offensive defenseman, who went 15-34-49 in 38 games. as a sophomore at Boston University this season.

It took just 4:25 into his NHL debut for Hutson — now 5-foot-10 and 162 pounds — to register his first point and assist on Brendan Gallagher's goal. Hutson showed off his quick feet, soft hands and vision as he made a cross-ice move inside the offensive zone before sliding past defensive partner David Savard along the blue line, then paused before driving toward the net and firing a shot. On the line, with Gallagher then bounced back.

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No one on the rink was more excited than the veteran Gallagher, who pointed at Hutson and then told him to lead a line of Canadiens skaters to the bench to high-five his teammates instead.

Head coach Martin St. Louis decided to pair Gutson with Savard — just like he did last season with Kaiden Goulet as a rookie — and wasn't afraid to use him. Hutson finished the game with 21:54 of ice time, and he was the hero in overtime.

In the final minute of OT, Hutson took a pass from Nick Suzuki along the boards in the offensive zone, cut up the middle and dropped deep before getting a really nice shot on Red Wings goaltender Alex Lyon, who made the save with 34 seconds left. left in the hour.

“I was fresh … I jumped on the ice, I saw an opening,” Hutson told reporters in Detroit after the game. “I want him to come in. That would be great. But, unfortunately, it didn't happen.”

As is often the case in OT, a good scoring opportunity on one end leads to another scoring opportunity the other way with two players trapped deep in the offensive zone. The Red Wings' Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond went the other way in a two-on-two with Canadian forward Josh Anderson trying to play defense. Hutson showed off his speed as he ran back and tried to catch Raymond, but couldn't get there in time as Raymond scored the game-winning goal with 25 seconds left in OT.

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“I felt good,” Hutson told reporters in Detroit about his debut. “It was good to be there. The Red Wings have a good team and we have a good team. So there are two good teams involved … it was interesting. You never know what to expect. I was glad to be there.

“You always remember your first game – that's what happens,” Hutson added. “I remember skating without a helmet (for a rookie before a game), hopefully never again. Little things like that.”

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Hutson wore number 20 at Boston University, but Slafkowski took that number with the Canadiens, so he now wears number 48. Only five other players in Canadiens history have worn the number: JJ Daigno (1990-96), Francois Groleau (1996-98), Miloslav Guren (1999-2000), JT Wyman (2010) and Daniel Briere (2014). .

There is no doubting Hutson's offensive ability. The big question mark is whether he will be physically strong enough to defend against big forwards in the NHL. The 6-foot-1, 199-pound Larkin was able to keep Hutson out before cutting through the net in the first minute of overtime and forcing goaltender Samuel Montembo to make a huge save.

But Hutson also showed why the Canadiens have high hopes for the small defenseman.

It sure is fun to watch.

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