While attending the 2023 NHL Combine in Buffalo, Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes met with media members on Thursday.
In the brief availability, the Habs GM was asked a variety of questions, including one about the likelihood of Montreal selecting top Russian prospect Matvei Michkov with the fifth overall pick.
Le directeur général des Canadiens, Kent Hughes, s'adresse aux médias à la Séance d'évaluation de la LNH à Buffalo.
Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes addresses the media from the NHL Combine in Buffalo.#GoHabsGo https://t.co/iiNRHeLCWi
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) June 8, 2023
Hughes is very aware of the risks that come with selecting the highly talented forward, who is under contract with Kontinental Hockey League club SKA St. Petersburg through the 2025-26 season, is not counting him, but appears to be approaching the idea with caution.
“With Russian players, there’s the geopolitical aspect and his contract status. And so we have to do our homework on these matters,” Hughes explained. “We have to evaluate him first and foremost as a hockey player and compare him to the other players available.”
Hughes also revealed that watching Michkov in person would help him better evaluate his potential. “Ideally we’d like to see him in person but I think the videos have given us a certain idea,” he said. “We have enough people to evaluate his game and his character.”
Michkov has long been cited as one of the best players in the 2023 Entry Draft, with some experts even claiming that his upside is equal to Connor Bedard’s. The fact that he may never make his way over to the NHL will be enough for teams to pass on him, though.
When asked about potentially selecting Michkov following the NHL draft lottery in May, Hughes called the five-foot-10, 172-pound winger “a special case,” and says the organization has to evaluate the risks that would come with selecting him fifth overall if he’s still available.
While he acknowledged important attributes like character, skating, hockey sense at the Combine, Hughes said the Canadiens want to select “the best player available” with the No. 5 pick, adding that the team will hold meetings next week.
The first round NHL Entry Draft will take place in Nashville on June 28.