Montreal Canadiens legends and Hall of Fame defencemen Serge Savard and Larry Robinson are big believers in young star Lane Hutson, with Savard even putting him in the same breath as the great Guy LaFleur.

The two spoke about the young phenom's potential during Savard's annual golf tournament in Terrebonne, Que., on Tuesday and they both expect big things out of Hutson.

"Time will tell, but he's probably the most talented player the Canadiens have had since Guy Lafleur," said Savard, per NHL.com. "Ever since I saw him, from the very beginning, I said he was the Canadiens' best player. I was convinced early on that he would be a big star in the National Hockey League."

With the help of Hutson's record-setting rookie year, the Canadiens took a giant leap forward last season in their quest to become Stanley Cup contenders.

Montreal made the playoffs for the first time since the 2021 shortened COVID season when they last reached the Stanley Cup Final. They finished with a 40-31-11 record, claiming the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The jump in the standings was significant, improving by 15 points and leap frogging perennial playoff teams like the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers.

Hutson recorded six goals last season and led all rookies with 60 assists and 66 points while averaging 22:44 of ice time en route to winning the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year. The Holland, Mich., native added five assists in five playoff games before they were eliminated by the Washington Capitals in the first round.

Standing at 5-foot-9, one of the concerns for Hutson entering the NHL was his lack of size. However, Robinson feels that the concern was overblown and he should have no problems in today's league.

"The first thing everyone said about Hutson was that he was so small he was going to get killed," Robinson told the French-language Journal de Montreal. "It reminds me a lot of what people used to say in Wayne Gretzky's day. They said he wasn't big enough and that he was going to get hurt. Look at what he's done, it's not so bad. It's exciting for the city of Montreal to have a player like Hutson."

Savard and Robinson both know a thing about winning in Montreal as the two have combined for 14 Stanley Cups and two Conn Smythe Trophies while Robinson also has two Norris Trophies to his name. Both players were named as part of NHL's 100 Greatest Players in the league's centennial anniversary in 2017.

Savard believes that Hutson's athletic ability and agility is what helps set him apart and will also protect him from injury.

"The things he can do, not many people can do that," said Savard. Naturally, you're always scared when a 6-foot-4 guy comes from his blind side at 100 miles an hour, but he's so agile and always finds a way to get out of the way. He's not afraid to play when a game is very intense."