At the latest draft, the Montreal Canadiens picked up a skillful center with their fourth-round pick, the 113th selection overall, when they chose LJ Mooney. Just like they did with Cole Caufield, the Habs didn’t hesitate to pick up the 5-foot-7 center despite his small stature. Since being drafted, the youngster has had a great time getting to know the organization and its staff.
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In a recent interview with Research Ground, the 18-year-old explained how he enjoyed the development and getting to learn from Director of Hockey Development Adam Nicholas, a great hockey mind he knew already:
He worked with my agency a little bit before, so I knew him before I got to camp. He’s a great guy and is unbelievable at what he does, so getting to skate with him was big. He sends a couple of clips here and there on stuff to work on. It’s pretty cool to have him.-
This upcoming holiday season, the youngster hopes to represent the United States at the World Junior Championship, just like his cousin Logan Cooley did. Mooney confesses that he gets a helping hand from his cousin, as he’s been through it all before and is excellent at encouraging him to keep going and improve.
Participating in the tournament would be special for him, as it will be held in his new backyard, where he joined the Minnesota Gophers this season. The youngster doesn’t sound like someone who doesn’t enjoy the attention, and while he was surprised at the level of interaction and support he got from Canadiens’ fans, he now uses it as further motivation.
On Friday, the youngster will officially start his first season in the Big 10 when the Gophers take on Michigan Tech at 7:00 PM. Mooney will be one of the prospects worth watching this season since he was rather impressive at development camp.
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