Cowan: Canadiens prospect Michael Hage displays potential at centre

Montreal Gazette

20-06-2025

Montreal Canadiens
By
Michael Hage's skill level made him stand out at the Canadiens' development camp last summer in Brossard.
You could see right away why the Canadiens selected Hage in the first round (21st overall) of last year's NHL Entry Draft after taking Ivan Demidov with the fifth overall pick.
Demidov, 19, made the jump to the NHL this year after completing his KHL season with 19-30-49 totals in 65 games with SKA St. Petersburg, setting a league record for most points by a player younger than 20 and winning the rookie-of-the-year award. Demidov had a goal and an assist in two regular-season games with the Canadiens and added two assists in five playoff games. He showed he's ready to play regularly in the NHL next season.
Hage, also 19, is coming off an impressive freshman season at the University of Michigan, where he had 13-21-34 totals in 33 games and was named his team's top rookie. Hage still isn't ready for the NHL, but if all goes well, the Canadiens hope he can develop into the second-line centre they need behind Nick Suzuki.
Rob Rassey, the associate head coach at Michigan, believes that can happen.
'Yeah, I do,' Rassey said during a phone interview on Thursday. 'I think he's got top-six potential at the NHL level. It's going to take him some time to get there — it's not going to be an overnight thing. But from a potential standpoint, his ceiling is extremely, extremely high.'
Hage is listed at 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds and needs to add more muscle in order to compete in the NHL. He's continuing to work on that with the University of Michigan players going through their spring-term training sessions with the team's strength coach.
'It's hard throughout the course of a hockey season to be able to grow and add (muscle),' Rassey said. 'But to see what he's done so far in the eight weeks in the post-season and still having eight weeks to go, I think he's going to be a different player next season from a physical standpoint. He looks really good in the gym.
MICHAEL HAGE ALL BY HIMSELF ️ @umichhockey
It's all tied up in Ann Arbor, 2-2. #B1GHockey on BTN pic.twitter.com/DYELohl3yb
— Big Ten Hockey (@B1GHockey) February 16, 2025
'What impressed me most about Michael is you kind of underappreciate his 200-foot game,' Rassey added about Hage's freshman season. 'It's still an area where he has to grow and develop to play at the National Hockey League level. But for me, seeing how engaged he was and willing to learn the responsibilities of playing a 200-foot game and a complete hockey game — not just skill — because he has the skill to be able to take over games. But as he moves up, that's harder to do. I thought he still made some plays this year that make you go 'wow!' But I also feel like throughout the course of the year he really developed and grew into a 200-foot player.'
Hage first caught the eye of Rassey and University of Michigan recruiters when he was playing for the Toronto Junior Canadians U16 team in the Greater Toronto Hockey League and posted 57-46-116 totals in 57 games.
'He was outstanding,' Rassey recalled. 'I remember watching him in the OHL Cup and he was absolutely electric.'
The Canadiens drafted Hage last year after he had posted 33-42-75 totals in 54 games the previous season with the USHL's Chicago Steel.
Making the jump from the USHL to the NCAA's Big Ten Conference is a big one for a teenager, but Rassey said Hage handled it very well.
'The Big Ten is an extremely competitive conference in college hockey — probably the most competitive from top to bottom,' Rassey said. 'He's an 18-, 19-year-old kid playing against 23- and 24-year-olds on a nightly basis. So just from a physical standpoint, the demand that takes is hard. It's hard for a young kid. With the puck, he had less time and space to make plays, but he could still do it. But away from the puck, that's where you get challenged. You got to take the puck from a guy that's four or five years older than you and learning how to do that isn't easy. I definitely thought he got better at it as the year went on.'
The recipient of this year's Dekers Club award, given to the most outstanding rookie is ... Michael Hage. #GoBlue ️ pic.twitter.com/xuLJTOVXff
— Michigan Hockey (@umichhockey) June 16, 2025
Rassey was an assistant coach at Harvard University for six seasons before moving to Michigan three years ago. During his time at Michigan he has coached two other fist-round draft picks — centre Adam Fantilli, selected third overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2023, and defenceman Luke Hughes, selected fourth overall by the New Jersey Devils in 2021. Fantilli and Hughes are both playing in the NHL.
I asked Rassey if he sees any similarities in Fantilli, Hughes and Hage.
'I feel like they're all different,' Rassey said. 'I think Adam is different from Luke and I think Michael is different than both of those guys. But I was really impressed my first year having Michael. I thought he handled himself really well. I think he's a kid that really wants to win. Those guys that you mentioned have that competitive edge and Michael definitely does, too.'
Canadiens fans will get their next look at Hage when the team holds this year's development camp in Brossard from July 1-3.