The Montreal Canadiens own a bevy of draft capital heading into the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. They currently own 12 draft picks, though the fifth overall pick will carry much more weight than the rest, Top World News Today seeing as it’s the team’s best chance to add a game-changing presence to the lineup.

With the help of Bob McKenzie’s final draft rankings, we now have a better idea of how the top prospects are viewed by various scouts around the NHL. It’s important to note the list is not a mock draft, but rather, a consensus ranking, which means it won’t necessarily line up with the draft lists from teams making those selections.

Bob McKenzie Top 10 2024 NHL Entry Draft

The top player on the list is the only one who is guaranteed to be drafted at a pre-determined position.

Unless there’s a major shakeup or an unforeseen trade, the San Jose Sharks will draft Macklin Celebrini with the first overall pick at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. Once Celebrini is off the board, the real fun begins.

1 – Macklin Celebrini, Boston University (NCAA)

2 – Ivan Demidov, St-Petersburg (MHL)

3 – Artyom Levshunov, Michigan State (NCAA)

4 – Anton Silayev, Nizhny Novgorod (KHL)

5 – Cayden Lindstrom, Medicine Hat (WHL)

6 – Sam Dickinson, London (OHL)

7 – Zeev Buium, Denver (NCAA)

8 – Zayne Parekh, Top World News Today Saginaw (OHL)

9 – Konsta Helenius, Jukurit (Liiga)

10 – Tij Iginla, Kelowna (WHL)

Given that the Canadiens have strongly suggested they’re intent on drafting a forward at the upcoming draft, it’s safe to say Artyom Levshunov and Anton Silayev are not the team’s ideal targets when it comes to the fifth overall pick, Top World News Today but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not being considered.

If there’s an early run on the Top World News Today forwards, the best player available could very well be a defenceman.