Does Size Matter?

Ease your dirty minds... this is about hockey. With the NHL shifting to a more talent-based league, rather than the heavy-hitting style of old-school hockey, size seems to matter less in the modern game. If you are talented enough, you will produce, regardless of your stature.

Some of the league's best players these days are under the 6-foot mark when in the 90's, that might've been the sole reason your name was scratched off of draft boards. However, even in the modern era, the Montreal Canadiens selected Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson far below their talent level suggests, due to concerns about their size.

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Small But Mighty

Caufield fell to the 15th overall pick despite his clearly elite scoring talent, tallying over a goal per game in his final USNDTP season. 7 years later, Cole is one of the most prolific goal scorers in the NHL, on pace for 50 goals this season, with a shot to win the Rocket Richard trophy. Not to mention, he's doing this with elite defensive numbers....he's 5'7.

The craziest part is that the NHL allowed the Habs to do this twice. Lane Hutson was passed on by nearly every single team two times in the 2022 NHL draft, being selected at pick 62. No one thought a 5'8 160lb defenceman would have any chance of succeeding at the NHL level. Hutson has proved everyone wrong, now sitting at 69 pts in 70 games and is top 5 in Norris trophy betting odds in only his sophomore season. In fact, some advanced analytics have him as one of the most valuable players in the entire league.

Thankfully, these two have had the privilege of learning under one of the greatest undersized players of all time in Martin St. Louis. At 5'8, the current Canadiens coach amassed over 1000pts in his legendary NHL career, along with a Stanley Cup, Hart Trophy, and multiple Art Ross trophies. St. Louis has passed along his knowledge of how to succeed with a smaller frame to his players, and it's paying dividends to the team's success.

Many have suggested these players wouldn't be successful in the playoffs once the games get tighter and more gritty. Well... Hutson and Caufield finished first and second in scoring for the Canadiens in last year's playoffs.

Around the NHL

We saw the dominance of the 5-foot-10 Hughes brothers at this year's Olympic Games, and we have been seeing this all throughout their careers. Both Jack and Quinn have averaged around a point per game since entering the league, yet again proving to be elite regardless of size.

Current Detroit winger Alex DeBrincat was also selected far later than he should've been due to his 5'7 frame (selected by the Blackhawks). Debrincat surpassed the 100-point mark in every single junior season he had with the Erie Otters, and has reached the 25-goal mark in every single healthy season he's had in the NHL.

Brad Marchand, Jonathan Marchessault, Patrick Kane, and Brayden Point are a few more undersized names that have been crucial pieces on Stanley Cup-winning teams in recent years... so why do NHL teams keep misvaluing these players due to their size?

Jonathan Marchessault hoists the Conn Smythe trophy as he led the 2023 Vegas Golden Knights to a Stanley Cup victory.

Old School GM's

These old-school NHL GMs often undervalue smaller players because of their long-standing scouting bias that ties size to potential, durability, and overall "safety", leading them to favour bigger, and sometimes less skilled players under the belief that “you can’t teach size.” They have concerns that smaller players cannot handle the physical demands of an 82-game season or playoff hockey, despite clear evidence of this being incorrect.

The criticism of small defencemen is fair, based on analytics tying larger defencemen to postseason success. Nevertheless, every team needs a skilled offensive defenseman to drive play from the back end and quarterback the power-play, so why should their size matter if they're clearly skilled enough offensively?

In the future, the NHL should evaluate players for their skill relative to their size, rather than just one or the other. Finding a sweet spot that balances both attributes will undoubtedly be the key to the future success of NHL teams, and it seems like the Montreal Canadiens may be one of the first teams to prove this.