Every year at the NHL draft, we hear the same trope about players who are under six feet tall:

• Will their game translate to the NHL level?

• Will they be too small to play against big forecheckers and win net-front battles?

• Are they special enough to make their size moot?

We heard those refrains about Alex DeBrincat, Cole Caufield, Brad Marchand, Brayden Point, Jared Spurgeon, Adam Fox, Torey Krug, and the late Johnny Gaudreau. Each of those players went on to be impactful NHL players because their skill outshone their size.

In 2022, we heard similar things about Lane Hutson. After sitting in NHL scouting meetings during the 2021-2022 season, I can tell you that Hutson was the subject of much debate. He was far and away the most skilled defenseman in the draft, but many scouts questioned whether he would be able to accomplish his feats at the NHL level, with a few scouts placing bets against him. One scout said, "if he was 6-2, he'd be a top-5 pick."

That scout will remain unnamed, but suffice to say, Hutson would be a top-5 pick, without question, if there was a redraft three years later.

Here's how the Canadiens rookie sensation proved all the doubters wrong, and what Montreal has in him for the future.

JUST HOW SKILLED is Lane Hutson? He leads all rookies in scoring, and his 58 assists are the most for any rookie since Mathew Barzal, a forward, recorded 63 in 2017-2018. Hutson is the offensive catalyst for Montreal, ranking third among NHL defensemen with 5.45 shot assists per game.

This should not be a total shock. In the season prior to being drafted, playing for the U.S. National Team Development Program, he led draft prospects in many offensive categories tracked by Stathletes, including many transition categories.

Flash forward to 2024-25, and Hutson ranks second in the NHL for end-to-end rushes by a defenseman, behind past Norris Trophy winner Quinn Hughes and ahead of current favorite Cale Makar. He sparks Montreal's transition offense with his ability to transport the puck, ranking in the top 10 in the NHL in carried zone exits and zone entries -- a direct translation from his tracked statistics throughout his draft year.

It is reasonable to assert that if a defenseman's skating ability is as special as Hutson's, and his transition numbers are elite in his draft year, it will translate to the NHL level. His skating is nothing short of extraordinary, and puts him in the same category as Hughes and Makar, by far the best skating defensemen in the sport.

According to Stathletes, based on passing alone, Hutson ranks third in expected goals created among defensemen, with 17.29 this season. He is ranked fourth in passes completed to the slot, the most dangerous area of the ice, and eighth in cross-ice passes completed. It is likely that Hutson would rank even higher had Montreal's coaching staff given him the reins to the top power-play unit earlier in the season.

Not only is Hutson a tremendous facilitator of the puck -- and will be one of the best offensive catalysts from the blue line for years to come -- but he also creates for himself. Hutson ranks third among all defensemen in scoring chances per game with 1.24, per Stathletes. He's able to create chances with excellent edgework and patience. He is fourth among blueliners in offensive zone possession time per game, and third in possession time per game. The others in the top 5 are Hughes, Makar, Zach Werenski and Rasmus Dahlin, which is elite company.

Montreal's rise in the standings to a playoff position is directly linked to Hutson's improved defensive play. Prior to the 4 Nations Face-Off, Hutson was minus-15. He is plus-14 since, and it is no coincidence that his improved defensive impact has coincided with the Canadiens' rise in the standings. While plus-minus is most definitely not the be-all, end-all analysis of a player's defensive value, it is one indicator.

There were numerous situations in the first half of his rookie season where defensive lapses were costly, and there are legitimate concerns about Hutson's ability to defend at the NHL level. To combat this, Hutson has leveraged his skating ability in defensive transition, which has led to less time spent in the defensive zone and fewer scoring chances given up.

DEFENSEMEN HAVE A longer, more arduous development path, and are more prone to costly errors as they adjust to the NHL level. This is especially true for players that play significant roles -- Hutson is averaging nearly 23 minutes per game -- and possess the puck as frequently as Hutson does. Players who have the puck more will make more mistakes.

Defensemen with the most turnovers in the NHL include the likes of Erik Karlsson, Evan Bouchard, Zach Werenski and Thomas Harley. It's not because they are irresponsible with the puck, but because they have the puck more often, which increases the opportunity for turnovers. Turnovers per puck possession time or some function of that would be a better evaluator of how responsible a player is with the puck than just the total.

Hutson has turned the puck over his fair share of times, but his offensive prowess and ability to create scoring chances heavily outweigh the turnovers. Outside of his improved transition defense, Hutson has improved in the defensive zone. He takes more efficient paths allowing him to contain bigger offensive players, uses his outstanding edgework to keep players in outside positions. He has also simplified his puck play to reduce turnovers on breakouts.

The combination of those improvements has led to decreased defensive zone time and scoring chances against. Hutson has been winning the scoring chance battle since February, and as he continues to develop, that will be a key statistic to monitor. While Hutson is one of the NHL's best defensemen at scoring-chance creation and offensive play, the real development will come if he consistently tilts the ice in Montreal's favor over the balance of all scoring chances that occur while he's on the ice.

The season Hutson is having is nothing short of remarkable, and is historic. He ranks second in assists by all NHL defensemen, and is fourth in points. Hutson has been involved in 27% of Montreal's goals this season, a number that would be excellent for any defenseman, let alone a rookie. Dustin Wolf and Macklin Celebrini had high-quality rookie campaigns, but Hutson has separated himself as the league's best first-year player.

Sophomore slumps are expected, particularly for defencemen, but Hutson was an exception to the "size" rule, and it should not surprise anyone if he is an exception to the "sophomore slump" rule, either.

Hutson is a top offensive defenseman in the NHL, and teams will start to scheme against him, as they do Makar, Hughes and Fox. If Hutson can continue to win the scoring-chance battle despite that, there is a real chance Montreal has one of NHL's top-5 defensemen for years to come.