For the first time since taking Stanislav Galiev a decade ago, the Washington Capitals have taken a player out of the QMJHL with a draft pick — and it was a big one. With their first-round pick, the Capitals did exactly what they should have: swung for the fences. At this point in their history, with a thin prospect pool, the Capitals needed to take a chance on some high end talent, no matter the negatives, and that’s what they did when they took center Hendrix Lapierre.
Last summer, Lapierre was seen as a legitimate top-ten, even top-five pick for the 2020 NHL draft, but after an injury-riddled season where he suffered three concussions and a neck injury he only played 19 games (although Lapierre did note during his post-draft media time that he actually only suffered one concussion).