Cole Caufield

March 2022 – While Cole Caufield struggled to produce this season under Dominique Ducharme, with just one goal and eight points in 30 games, the freedom to play his dynamic offensive game under Martin St. Louis has brought an explosion in offensive production and opportunity. He now has scored 13 goals and 24 points in just 20 games since the coaching change. In addition to freedom, St. Louis has given Caufield (and the confidence that accompanied that) the upswing in playing time at both even strength and on the power play. Of course, the main factor in Caufield’s suddenly elite offensive output has been his chemistry with Nick Suzuki, whom he has played almost exclusively within this stretch. Caufield is elite at finding space off the puck in the offensive zone and has an even better release. However,  he needs to play with a highly-intelligent playmaker who can feed him the puck and create space for him through his skating routes, both of which Suzuki has done. If the Canadiens can add a winger to complement their two budding stars, they will have constructed a very good first line that can produce offense at a high rate. Sebastian High

November 2021 – After a slow start of one assist in ten games, Caufield has been sent down to the Laval Rocket. He clearly fell out of the Canadiens coaching staff’s favour as he only saw 11 minutes of ice time in his last game before being sent down. He likely won’t spend much time in the AHL as he is far too talented, and will likely have some productive games to force his way back up to the NHL. Pablo Ruiz

July 2021 – The emergence of Caufield was one of the big storylines in the Canadiens cinderella run to the cup finals. He was continuously their most dangerous player when he was on the ice. He finished with 12 points in 20 playoff games, but most notably his four goals and one assist lead the Canadiens upset over the Golden Knights in the semi-finals. His combination of speed, skill, and elite shot will make him an early Calder favorite for the 2021-2022 season. Pablo Ruiz

May 2021 – Caufield won the Hobey Baker award as the top player in NCAA men’s hockey. He spent the season dominating the NCAA with 30 goals in 31 games, as well as leading the league in point with 52. He started his professional career in the AHL with Laval where he put up three goals and four points in the two games he played before getting called up in the NHL.  Caufield played in the Canadiens’ last ten games of the season scoring four goals which included back-to-back overtime game-winners. After each game he played, he seemed to become more comfortable and more accustomed to the pace and timing of NHL games. The shoot-first winger finished the regular season with 30 shots on goal while earning himself a spot on the first power-play unit. Pablo Ruiz

March 2021 – Cole Caufield has signed his entry-level contract with the Montreal Canadiens and is expected to join the Laval Rockets of the AHL to begin his professional hockey career. Expect to see him get into at least few NHL games, especially if he proves to be ready for it during his AHL stint. Tony Ferrari 

March 2021 – Caufield has continued to dominate the NCAA and is on pace to lead the league in both goals and points. Marc Bergevin said in a recent interview that expects Caufield to sign his entry-level deal at the end of his season in Wisconsin. Pablo Ruiz

January 2020 – Caufield was a leader for Team USA in this year’s World Juniors in which he brought home a gold medal. His two goals and five points in seven games may seem pedestrian for a player of Caufield’s pedigree but they do not paint the full picture of his tournament. Caufield was one of the most electric player’s in the tournament and was dangerous every time he had the puck. His shot is often talked about as the focal point of his game which was displayed on both of his goals he scored. However, it was his speed and skill that really stood out. He was able to create scoring chances off the rush with his breakaway speed and was not shy to get creative when going in on a one-on-one situation against defenders. Pablo Ruiz

December 2020 – Caufield has started his sophomore year strong for Wisconsin with 12 points in 10 games. His skating was always average but it seems like he has worked on it to the point where he has more speed to create space for himself. Caufield was named to the USA World Juniors team and was made an assistant captain, he will be playing in a top-six role with first power-play time. Pablo Ruiz.

March 2020 – The 5’7 winger was a subject of controversy at last year’s draft when he fell to the Canadiens at 15th despite his historic scoring pace for U.S National Team. This year he continues to prove that what he lacks in size he more than makes up for with his lethal shot. He leads the Wisconsin Badgers in points as a freshman with 36 in 34 games. He is also finished 8th in the nation in goals and tied first amongst all freshman with 19 on the season. Despite the Badgers having a tough season and finishing last in the Big 10 conference, Caufield became the 2nd ever freshman to lead the Big 10 in scoring. The last being Kyle Connor for Michigan in 2015-16. In a recent interview with La Presse Montreal Canadiens general manager, Marc Bergevin said that Caufield is not ready to play a 200-foot game at the NHL level and suggests he stays in the NCAA to play another year. Pablo Ruiz

November 2019 – Scoring twice in each of his first three games for Wisconsin, Caufield has picked up from where he left off last year where he broke the goal scoring record in the US National Development Program. Caufield currently leads the NCAA in goals with eight in seven games played. Jesse Sherman

June 2019 – Caufield has been drafted 15th overall by the Canadiens.  Jokke Nevalainen

June 2019 – Caufield was officially measured at 5-foot-7.25 and 163 pounds at the NHL Draft Combine.  Jokke Nevalainen

April 2019 – When things are going right, the world is your oyster. Right now, Cole Caufield is out there shucking ’em and tossing them back at will. He can do no wrong. At the writing of this update, the 5’6 winger has already set a new goal-scoring record for American players at the World U18 tournament with 11 tallies through four games. For reference, the all-time mark is held by Alex Ovechkin when he recorded 14 goals in eight games as a 16-year-old. Caufield has now recorded 69 goals in 61 games this season and has more than solidified his spot as the most lethal finisher in the class. Once considered a likely pick for the back-half of the first round, his play has many talking about a seat at the top-10 table this June. If his skating was high-end, there’d be little reason to keep him out of the top-five conversation. Cam Robinson

March 2019 – The US National Team Development’s all-time leading goal scorer is also one of the more divisive prospects for the upcoming 2019 NHL Entry Draft. The 5’7 right-winger has made a habit of filling the net. His chemistry with Jack Hughes has propelled both players to extraordinary junior heights. This season, the Wisconsin-native has 52 goals in as many games while competing against USHL, NCAA and international opponents. He’s also committed to the University of Wisconsin next season where he should step right into a feature role. Due to his size and the lack of blazing speed, pundits will question his ability to get into the scoring areas at the NHL-level. Others see the best release in the crop and will point to Alex DenBrincat’s immediate success as reasons to gamble on the 18-year-old. This is a player with a top-10 skill set, if he falls due to size, there will be a lucky playoff-bound team waiting to pluck a gem. Let’s see if General Managers are beginning to learn their lesson and prioritize skill over measuring tape results. Cam Robinson