Although most of the attention today is focused on the Impact’s decision to draft Brian Ching in yesterday’s expansion draft, Montreal did pick up 11 other players. A review and rating of those selected:
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]1 – Brian Ching – Putting aside the controversy, Ching is an overpaid, oft-injured forward that will never play for the Impact. He’s only worth what trade value he might bring and the only team that would touch him at his salary is the team that didn’t protect him in the draft. The unspoken in all this is that maybe Houston didn’t want him back and didn’t want to be the bad guy that released the fan favourite. If that’s the case, Montreal just wasted one of its 10 picks on the 2012 Houston Dynamo Special Director of Community Relations. Grade – D
2 - Zarek Valentin – A 20-year-old former Generation adidas star that came out of the University of Akron powerhouse program...why the hell was he available? Oh yeah. Chivas. A no brainer pick, but still the steal of the draft. Grade – A+
3 - Justin Mapp – A MLS lifer with lots of experience. Mapp is never going to be a star, but at 27 he probably has a few years left as a solid contributor. The mistake Vancouver made last year was not bringing in enough solid if not spectacular MLS guys – guys like Mapp. Grade - B-
4 - Bobby Burling – A big body and a fan favourite in San Jose, Burling also fills the role of Solid MLS lifer. He’s a former teammate of Jesse March, so his pick was not much of a surprise. San Jose fans are upset to lose a likeable player, but the more rational ones realize that he’s just kind of a guy. Grade – C+
5 - Jeb Brovsky – A mediocre midfielder that is young-ish, but probably never going to be much more than he already is. When you draft a guy that the worst team in the league was willing to let go you get what you get. Grade – C-
6 - Collen Warner – A 23-year-old that was buried deep down a very talented RSL depth chart. Most Salt Lake fans seem to think that he’s going to be player, but not one that will ever make them burn with regret for losing him. Montreal obviously hopes he’ll be more than that. Time will tell, but he’ll likely get a shot at starting in 2012. Grade – B+
7 - Josh Gardner –Gardner is a good D2 player that had never relly made a mark at a D1 level until this past season. A fullback with some offensive skill, the Impact would have played against him a great deal over the years. Maybe they saw something others have missed? At 29, he doesn’t have much longer to make a mark. Grade – C+
8 - Sanna Nyassi – Picked in the expansion draft for the second straight year, Nyassi is the type of player that can look great at times and be maddeningly inconsistent at others. An athletic forward, he will likely play a lot of minutes for the Impact, score a few goals and frustrate supporters to no end with Chad Barrett-like miscues. Grade – B+
9 - Justin Braun (part of James Riley trade) – A target forward with a one goal per four game strike rate through almost 100 career MLS games. He didn’t fit Chivas system and became available via trade to the Impact. Lucky Montreal. Grade – A-
10 - Gerson Mayen (part of James Riley trade) – Mayen is essentially a throw in to the Braun deal. He’s still young-ish, but Montreal fans shouldn’t expect much. Grade – C-
11 - Seth Sinovic – A bit of a cold pick since the poor guy is from Kansas City. That aside, Sinovic is a journeyman pro that did manage to find some success for the former Wizards last year. Don’t expect much from him – at 24 his development phase is long past – and you won’t be disappointed. He’ll likely be a bubble starter next year. Grade – C+
12 - Tyson Wahl (acquired for allocation) – It’s a broken record, but Wahl is another is-what-he-is player. There will be nothing flashy here, but he is a MLS quality player. Grade – C+
Overall, Montreal took a much more conservative and different approach than either Toronto or Vancouver. Considering how both those clubs did, that’s probably a better approach. Actually, the Impact’s strategy most closely resembles that of Portland’s and Impact fans should hope for an expansion season as good as the Timbers.
You can’t put the foundation to a championship team together in the expansion draft, but a team that is competitive and challenges for a playoff spot is possible. Montreal may have done just that. And, if they can get something close to a full allocation for Ching (that they then use well) then this could have been a very good day indeed for Canada’s third MLS side.
There is a lot of work yet – and who knows if some of these players might have been drafted to be then traded – but so far, so good for the Impact.
*I promise that was the first and last Impact pun**
**today