Rumor: Habs GM Kent Hughes hoping to make a major move at the draft.

Although they have held their positions for some time now, in just a few short days Montreal Canadiens executive vice president of hockey operations Jeff Gorton and Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes will be entering their first draft as members of the Canadiens organization.

Not only would this be a big deal under normal circumstances, but there are factors that make this particular instance an even bigger deal. Not only are Hughes and Gorton now representing one of the most rabid fan bases in the entire league, but they will also being doing so on home soil with the 2022 National Hockey League Entry Draft being held in Montreal.

Perhaps for all of these reasons it should come as no surprise that the new members of the Canadiens front office are looking to make a big impression in their first go of it, and it sounds like that is exactly what they intend to do. There are now a pair of NHL insiders reporting that Hughes is currently attempting to acquire another top 10 pick in the draft, on top of the 1st overall pick that the Canadiens currently hold. The first to break the news was Ottawa Senators insider Bruce Garrioch, who revealed that Hughes had inquired about the Senators pick at number 7.

From Garrioch:

The Senators are listening on the No. 7 selection in the draft. It may be too close to home for the club, but we’ve been told the Habs are looking for a second first-round pick in the top 10 and have been reaching out to every team to see what it would take to fetch.

Since the report from Garrioch, those sentiments have been echoed by NHL insider Elliotte Friedman who indicated that there seems to be a growing sense that the Habs are indeed up to something.

From Friedman:

With one exception: there is an overriding feeling, as initially reported by The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch, they are trying to get a second high pick.

If you're a Canadiens fan that didn't already have enough reasons to be excited for the draft in Montreal, it sounds like your new management team is hard at work trying to give you one more.