Canadiens prospect Sean Farrell is a phenomenon on and off the ice
PUBLICATION
Jeff Drouin
August 16, 2021 (4:25 PM)
In the shadow of Kaiden Guhle, Jordan Harris, Mattias Norlinder and Jesse Ylonen, there is another prospect part of the Habs who is a little less known, but who made headlines last season. Young left winger Sean Farrell stood out on several levels during the 2020-21 campaign, which he played in the USHL, the highest level of American Junior hockey.
In his third year in the league, Farrell broke a ton of records, including the most points (101) and assists (72) in a single season in the Chicago Steel history, the most total points in team history (157) and the most consecutive games with at least one point in USHL history (24 games). These masterful performances earned him the Dave Tyler Trophy, awarded to the nation's top junior player, as announced by the Chicago Steel on its Twitter account on Monday.
Selected in the fourth round (124th overall) by the Habs in 2020, Farrell has all the tools in hand to become a real steal from the NHL Draft. In addition to his natural talent for hockey, it is his ability to combine hockey and academics that impresses those around him. Indeed, while he was splashing the USHL with his talent, the 5-foot-9, 174-pound forward was also doing his first year at the prestigious Harvard University, in the context of a pandemic that forced him to take all of his classes online.
In the United States, the magic number for evaluating academic performance is the grade point average, commonly known as GPA. The number four represents the highest score, and Farrell has done very well at this level with a GPA of about 3.5.
"I'm sitting at 3.5 or 3.6. But it's going to go up. I had a few classes this summer and I think they went well," reveals Farrell, who eventually wants to focus on economics after completing some core courses.
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If the fact that the 19-year-old is a dedicated and studious student could lead Habs fans to fear another Jordan Harris-type situation, who decided to spend a fourth year in University and will be free as a bird at the end of next season, the main interested party is clear in his intentions: he wants to make a career in the NHL, even if he has other projects in mind outside of hockey.
"My goal is to play in the NHL," said Farrell. "When the Canadiens think I'm ready, that's when I'll make the jump to the pros. Right now, I'm taking as many classes as I can so I'm pretty much done with school by the time I'm in my fourth year."
Getting back to hockey, the Hopkinton, Massachusetts native will make the jump to the NCAA college circuit next season. While he has already shown that he is ready to take his game to the next level, many skeptics still like to mention that his size will hurt him in a league where he will be playing against men much bigger and more physical than him.
However, Farrell remains confident in his abilities, including playing with former Chicago Steel teammate Matthew Coronato, and has no doubt that he will be able to score his fair share of points in a Harvard University uniform.
"Not at all," Farrell says. "Every level of play requires an adjustment, but I'll be fine, especially with the team we have."
"I feel like my game improved dramatically last year. The production was there, but my overall game is made so much better. Offensively, I think I'll carry that over to the NCAA next year."
In summary, Sean Farrell is undoubtedly one of the many gems the Canadiens' scouts have unearthed in the American development program. He will therefore be one of the most interesting prospects to follow in the Canadiens' organization for years to come.
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