From Hockey Canada to the Habs: Meet the Canadiens' newest scout

MONTREAL - The Canadiens' newest amateur scout knows what it takes to win; it's all he's done throughout his hockey career.

After a playing career that saw him capture a Memorial Cup, a pair of CIS National Championships, and the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, Ben Shutron hung up the skates and made his move to the international scene with Hockey Canada, where he most recently served as the team manager during the 2021 World Juniors.

His time with Hockey Canada helped shape his scouting style, his approach to the game - and life - and what he values in a prospect.
"I'll never forget the first thing [Hockey Canada VP of operations] Scott Salmond told me when he hired me. He said, 'Just make sure you're the hardest worker in the room,'" shared Shutron, who previously served as a part-time amateur scout for the Canadiens before coming on board in a full-time role covering Western Canada. "On the national team side, it's much like the National Hockey League where you're working long hours, you're going above and beyond the job description, and you're doing whatever it takes to win gold medals and provide a world class hockey experience for all your participants. The other thing he stressed was to treat everyone how you wish to be treated; treat everyone with respect.
"You're very competitive and very driven and there will be some ups and downs, but one thing I learned from Scott was just the importance of the way you treat people. They'll never forget it," he continued. "I believe that's what makes Hockey Canada so special. It's a world class organization with tremendous people. There are a lot of parallels between Hockey Canada and the Montreal Canadiens: work ethic, character and how you treat people. It's more than hockey."

The 32-year-old has had a chance to be part of a number of elite teams, including the 2019 Spengler Cup winning squad, and the 2021 World Junior silver medalists, where he had a front-row seat to watch one of the Canadiens' brightest young prospects.
"I've been fortunate enough to follow Kaiden Guhle since he went through the Under-17 program and the first thing that stands out to me about Kaiden is that he's an incredible person," shared Shutron of the team's 2020 first rounder. "He has maturity and professionalism beyond his years. He does everything right: he's prepared, he goes through the right routines, he takes care of his body, and he's a true professional. And the best part is, he's only 18 years old.
"He's still growing, he's still improving as a player, he's extremely coachable," he continued. "He's very low maintenance - if any maintenance - and he's just a tremendous person you love to have in your locker room and love to have as a part of your organization."
Shutron added that there's also plenty to like about Guhle's game beyond the intangibles.
"When we were able to select him on Draft day, we were fist pumping behind the scenes because we know his potential, we know what he's capable of, and we know he's only going to get better," explained the former blue-liner-turned-scout. "He's an incredible skater, a great athlete, he has great lower body power, plus his skating stride, his glide, his posterior chain, his strength, his competitiveness...and I believe that there's some untapped offensive potential. He's an incredible player, but more importantly, he's an incredible person and we all believe he's going to fit in tremendously to the Montreal Canadiens organization."

Drafted in the fourth round by the Blackhawks in 2006, Shutron admits he's evolved in terms of the attributes he values most when evaluating players.
"I was a big proponent of skating and that you had to be fast in order to play fast, but I think over the years I've learned that hockey sense, character, and compete are probably the three top traits for a prospect and a player," he confirmed. "If you can't think the game, and if you're not going to compete, and if you're not a good person with the right character, you're not going to be able to play in the NHL.
"Hockey sense translates into decision making: making the right decisions at the right time, being a team player, and ultimately doing what it takes in order to win," he elaborated. "If you go into an arena to look at hockey sense, you want to see how a player handles the puck. You want to see what decisions he's making in the defensive zone -- is he tracking back? Is he picking up a man? Is he positionally sound? Can he play within a system and within a structure? Can he take instructions from his coaches and adjust? It comes down to that and just having a real strong feel for the game, but I also feel that stems from a love of the game and it's something that's developed at a young age."
Shutron's values on and off the ice have been heavily influenced by the Hockey Canada mindset, but he also had a chance to develop within another Canadian company with a strong culture and deep-rooted values during his playing days. His new role with the Habs will serve as a homecoming of sorts for the Orleans native.
"When I was in university, I worked as a student rep for Molson Coors in the Ottawa area. It was a great way to not only learn the 'Molson way' but to learn how to treat people. I got to see how the Molson family operates and how they treat people and the values you need to learn in order to succeed," said Shutron. "Everything has come back full circle for me, I guess. When you're around the Montreal Canadiens' family and you're around that organization, you definitely understand why it's one of the most successful organizations in sports, and why Molson is one of the most successful brands in the world. That's how I got my first taste I guess, no pun intended."