On Thursday, the Habs inked 2015 first round pick Noah Juulsen to a three year, entry level contract. As per club policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The defenceman was the 26th overall pick last month and the sixth blueliner to go in the draft. He has spent the last two seasons with Everett of the WHL and was teammates with 2014 first rounder Nikita Scherbak in 2014-15.
Last year, Juulsen vastly improved his offensive game, improving his point total by 42 while leading all Silvertips blueliners in scoring with 52 points (9 goals and 43 assists). That tied him for 9th overall amongst all WHL defencemen.
Juulsen was unable to participate in the scrimmages at Montreal’s Development Camp this week but is expected to be ready to go for Team Canada’s World Juniors summer camp.
Although officially the contract commences in 2015-16, it’s not likely to actually start for two more years as Juulsen is far away from being NHL ready. He’s expected to spend the next two seasons at the junior level; as a result, the contract will slide both seasons (unless he plays in ten or more NHL games) and begin for the 2017-18 campaign.
Here is our write-up on Juulsen’s selection last month, featuring highlights, scouting reports, and more.
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