When Adam Engström scored on September 8, it marked not only the first adult-level goal of his career, but also the first adult-level competition goal scored by a member of the Montreal Canadiens organization for the 2022-23 season. Since their seasons start earlier, it’s hardly unexpected for a European prospect to tally this icebreaker. However, what was surprising was that it was Engström, the 92nd overall pick in his draft-plus-one year, rather than Oliver Kapanen, a 64th overall pick in his draft-plus-two campaign, who lit the lamp first.
Setting aside the fact that the goal came as part of a 7-1 drubbing of Hungarian side Fehérvár AV19, the very presence of 19-year-old Engström in the senior side is a testament to a player who was almost a complete unknown on draft day.