Monday, July 4, 2022

News and notes from the opening round

The Cape Breton Eagles selected defenseman Tomas Lavoie with the first overall pick in the 2022 Quebec Major Junior Hockey Entry Draft.

Former Eagles forward Pierre-Luc Dubois announced the pick at Cape Breton's draft party on Monday night. Lavoie was in attendance.
The 16-year-old recorded seven goals and 21 assists in 34 games last season.

Lavoie was the No. 1 ranked player by QMJHL Central Scouting and No. 4 by HockeyProspect.com.

Cape Breton made three picks in the opening round. Along with Lavoie, the Eagles selected forwards William Shields (11th) and Thomas Desruisseaux (13th). It's the first time Cape Breton has made three picks in the first-round of a draft.

The full list of first-round selections can be found on the QMJHL website. Rounds 2-14 and the American draft will take place Tuesday beginning at 10 a.m. Atlantic.
More notes and takeaways from Monday night...

  • Before the draft, QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau congratulated the Saint John Sea Dogs and the Shawinigan Cataractes on their championships. Courteau also congratulated Mark-Anthony Ashfield and the Memorial Cup organizing committee on a successful tournament.
  • Goaltender Gabriel D'Aigle, who was ranked No. 1 by HockeyProspect.com, went second overall to the Victoriaville Tigres. D'Aigle becomes the highest goaltender picked in the QMJHL Entry Draft since 2000.
  • The Chicoutimi Sagueneens went a bit off the board with the No. 3 pick, selecting forward Maxim Masse. Masse was ranked 14th by Central Scouting and 13th by HockeyProspect.com.
  • Forward Justin Poirier, the younger brother of Sea Dogs defenseman Jeremie Poirier, was selected fourth overall by the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. He is considered to be one of the best goal scorers in the draft. Jeremie Poirier was picked eighth overall by Saint John in 2018.
  • The first Maritimer selected was defenseman Spencer Gill, who spent last season with the Telus Cup champion Moncton Flyers. Gill, ranked 13th by Central Scouting and 16th by HockeyProspect.com, went fourth overall to the Rimouski Oceanic.
  • The Oceanic acquired the ninth overall pick from the Drummondville Voltigeurs in exchange for a bunch of picks. The Oceanic used the pick to select Halifax Macs forward Quinn Kennedy.
  • The top-10 picks consisted of five forwards, four defensemen and one goaltender.
  • The Cataractes acquired the 14th overall pick from the Gatineau Olympiques in a major deal involving Buffalo Sabres prospect Olivier Nadeau. The Cataractes then traded the pick to the Moncton Wildcats who selected defenseman Adam Fortier-Gendron, who was ranked sixth by Central Scouting and ninth by HockeyProspect.com.
  • With the 16th overall pick, which was originally Saint John's, the Sagueneens (after acquiring the pick from the Eagles) selected defenseman Xavier Veilleux.
  • The Sagueneens made four picks in the first-round: Masse (third), Sacha Boisvert (12th), Veilleux (16th) and Jeremy Leroux (18th).
  • The Oceanic made four first-round picks in last year's draft and three this year. There's been talk of the team bidding on the 2025 Memorial Cup and they've certainly got a strong base built for that.
  • Along with Dubois, former Eagles Drake Batherson, Logan Shaw and James Sheppard were in Sydney for the team's draft party.
  • Another solid virtual draft production by the QMJHL (and Eastlink). You can rewatch the entire first-round broadcast(s) here.
  • Patrick Roy: he stay!
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