There are plenty of players who could be of interest for the Montreal Canadiens at the upcoming draft, and former Erie Otter forward Malcolm Spence is one of the options. We discussed him briefly earlier this month, but yesterday, Marco D’Amico from RG.org published an interesting piece about him.
Like more and more players, Spence has decided to jump ship and leave his CHL team behind to play in the NCAA, and he’s elected to play for Michigan University, just like Canadiens’ prospect Michael Hage.
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Spence is ranked 17th amongst North American skaters on the Central Scouting Final rankings and is a 6-foot-2 left winger who weighs in at 201 pounds, and according to D’Amico’s interview, he’s got a good head on him. The youngster has elected to commit to the University of Michigan in the NCAA because he feels that league will give him the best opportunity to develop what he needs to work on.
He believes he is filling out his frame, but he is also learning to eat the right food and spend the right amount of time in the gym. The lighter NCAA schedule will provide him with the opportunity to do that, while the busier CHL schedule couldn’t accommodate his needs. As for the reason he decided to pick Michigan, it was because of the glowing reviews he received from friends and acquaintances.
One of those friends is Canadiens’ prospect Hage, a childhood friend he grew up with when they lived on the same street. The Canadiens selected Hage at last year’s draft with the 21st overall pick, and to this day, he remains one of Spence’s closest friends.
Of course, nobody is advocating for the Canadiens to pick Spence solely because he’s friends with one of the Habs’ top prospects, but his skill set and mindset would fit right in with the culture that Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton are trying to build in Montreal.
The left winger is all about making long-term improvements and helping the team win, rather than chasing individual honors and glory. That willingness to learn is a significant character trait for someone who could play under Martin St-Louis, a coach who prides himself on teaching the game and every aspect of it to his players.
Photo credit: Michael Augello
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