Can you have enough puck moving defencemen and prospects in the fastest game on
Earth? In short, you can’t but if you have six puck movers they have to bring more than that otherwise you’ll end up with the softest
defence in the league, something the Canadiens are already very close to.
Although Mirco Mueller isn’t going to add toughness to the Habs, there are parts
to his game that would make him worth considering at pick #25.
Defenceman
Born: Mar 21, 1995 – Winterthur, SUI
Height: 6’3" Weight: 183 lbs Shoots: Left
ISS Rank: 35 THN Rank: 18 CSB Rank: 9
(NA Skaters)
Statistics
Mirco hails from Switzerland whom over the last decade has started to produce a lot more NHL talent both through the draft and via undrafted free agency and the Canadiens have had great success with both avenues. Mark Streit and Yannick Weber
both joined the team out of the entry draft and Raphael Diaz through free agency
so there is a Swiss connection for sure.
Before this season it was well known Mueller had to get more physical especially in puck battles and in front of the net and he did improve in both of these areas this year and at 6-foot-3 he has the frame to play that game.
However, he is just 183 pounds so he will need to gain some muscle before he will be successful
in any type of physical game especially in the Canadiens’ division which is chock full of big strong forwards.
Mueller will tell you he models his game after Nicklas Lidstrom and to me that makes sense; although he will never be half the player of Lidstrom was, his play according to scouting reports fits that
mould. He would prefer to use his stick and body position rather than physicality and loves to make great breakout passes to create
offence. Some have compared him to his teammate from last season and 2012 2nd overall pick Ryan Murray.
Although I think Mueller would look great in a Canadiens jersey, I don’t believe it will be in the cards even if he is available at
#25 because he would be more of the same for the Habs whom already lack
physicality on the back end both in the NHL and the prospect pool. He
should become a quality middle-pairing defenceman but there should be other
prospects on the board that better fit the organizations’ needs.