The Montreal Canadiens made the right move keeping Lane Hutson in the NCAA

On Wednesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff Live, Steven Ellis joined Frank Seravalli and Mike McKenna to break down Lane Hutson’s decision to return to Boston University for the 2023-24 NCAA season.

Frank Seravalli: Lane Hutson, a prized draft pick by the Montreal Canadiens. He had a breakout season this year at Boston University, and he’s going back for another year with the Terriers. Do you think is that the right move, and maybe does that partially have to do more with the Montreal Canadiens?

Steven Ellis: I kind of got the sense that no matter how he played this year, he was going to go back for that extra year. He’s been able to put on a couple of inches. He was 5-foot-8 when he was drafted, he’s listed as 5-foot-10 now, so he’s definitely bigger. I’d like to see him build up a bit more strength, kind of like Cole Caufield. He went to the NCAA, and part of that was just to build that upper-body strength.

With Hutson, he is a defenseman, but sometimes it feels like he’s trying to play a bit too much forward out there. A couple of scouts have told me recently they’d like to see him work on that. He’s going to be a very valuable power-play player in the NHL, and I think he’s going to have no problem putting up points. But defensively, I think he still takes too many risks, and that’s because he’s very skilled. He’s trying to do things that won’t work in the NHL. So I think going back, becoming a bit more grounded, a bit more relaxed and not throwing the puck up just to make a play is going to be very important here.

Now, he goes out there and gets 48 points this year. What’s he going to do next year? I think the sky’s the limit here. For Canadiens fans, next year isn’t going to be easy. You’re going to get a high pick, and maybe someone who can step into the NHL right away. You’ve got a couple of other good young defensemen to look forward to right now.

No question to me, Hudson was a top-five prospect last year. I was shocked he fell that low in the draft, but I think he’s still going to be a star player for the Canadiens. It’s going to probably be another year or two from now.