PITTSBURGH -- Marc Bergevin didnt seem like a rookie during his first NHL draft as the Montreal Canadiens general manager. While drafts take years to properly evaluate, the Canadiens couldnt help but hide their pleasure Saturday following a draft in which they repeatedly wound up with players who, by ranking, shouldnt have fallen into their hands. First-round centre Alex Galchenyuk went as projected at No. 3 on Friday -- the Canadiens insist they had him ranked as the top player in the draft. But their next three picks -- right wing Sebastian Collberg, defenceman Dalton Thrower and left wing Tim Bozon -- werent expected to be available when they picked. Multiple draft analysts were proclaiming the Canadiens as the winner of the two-day draft at Consol Energy Center, and Bergevin and player development director Trevor Timmins couldnt hide their pleasure at how the weekend played out. "Well tell you in five years, but we added a lot of talent, a lot of scoring upside, some toughness," Timmins said Saturday. "Some physicality as well. Right now, were very happy. Its like Christmas day and Santa Claus arrives. Now weve opened our gifts and its time to get to work." Collberg starred on Swedens gold medal-winning team in the world junior championships and, despite being ranked No. 3 overall among European skaters by NHL Central Scouting, was on the board when the Canadiens made the third pick of the second round Saturday morning. "Some of the guys we got, Im surprised they were there," Timmins said. Later in the second round, they added no-nonsense defenceman Dalton Thrower, who had 18 goals and 54 points with the Saskatoon Blades. Thrower especially impressed Bergevin during the Prospects Game when he willingly took on tough guy Tom Wilson, who went No. 16 overall to Washington and was considered to be the most physical player in the draft. Thrower, at five-foot-11 and 200 pounds, was giving up three inches and 25 pounds to Wilson. "I remember saying, who is this kid?" said Bergevin, the long-time NHL defenceman who was hired to rebuild the Canadiens following their disappointing 31-win season. "We got talent and character and, to me, those are the most important things." Thrower was ranked 26th by Central Scouting but lasted until the 51st overall pick. Bozon had 36 goals and 35 assists with the Kamloops Blazers and adds yet more high-end offensive skill to a team that apparently picked up plenty of it during a seemingly productive two days. Six of their seven picks are forwards. "For the most part, all of our guys were there," Bergevin said. In the later rounds, Montreal picked up Windsor Spitfires centre Brady Vail on the fourth round, Chicoutimi Sagueneens left wing Charles Hudon on the fifth and Swedish juniors forward Erik Nystrom on the sixth round. Vail appears to be another value pick -- he was ranked 38th in the final Central Scouting ratings yet wasnt picked until No. 94. On Friday, the Canadiens ignored Galchenyuks recent injury problems and chose the 18-year-old centre only two picks after Russian prospect Nail Yakupov, his Sarnia Sting teammate, went No. 1 to Edmonton. Only a year ago, there was some speculation that the son of former Belarus national team member Alexander Galchenyuk might be the No. 1 pick himself, after he piled up 31 goals and 52 assists in 68 games during the 2010-11 OHL season. But he was limited by an anterior cruciate ligament injury to two regular season games this past season, although he had two goals and two assists in six playoff games. His elite-level production pushed the six-foot-one, 197-pound Galchenyuk into the top three, even if he didnt have a recent body of work to validate such a high selection. "I knew what kind of skill I have, what kind of player I am," Galchenyuk said. "Im just going to keep working hard. I played a couple of games at the end of the year and showed what I am capable of doing, I went to the (NHL prospects) combine and showed them my knee is no concern and there are going to be no issues." Not with the language, either. He grew up in Wisconsin and already speaks English and Russian, but he now realizes the necessity of being trilingual. "Oh, yes, French lessons start in a couple of days," Galchenyuk said. The Canadiens badly need forward depth and size as they lack scoring outside of the top line of Max Pacioretty, David Desharnais and Erik Cole, and Galchenyuk might not be that far removed from providing it. No Canadiens player reached even the 70-point mark last season. NFL Jerseys Cheap . Michael Arnold, lead negotiator for the NFL Referees Association, says the union remains "willing to negotiate with the NFL in order to reach a fair agreement." But Arnold says "no additional meetings are scheduled at this time. 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EDMONTON -- Edmonton Oilers first-round pick Nail Yakupov welcomed the chance to get back to competitive hockey at the recent Canada-Russia Hockey Challenge. He hopes he wont have to wait too long to do it again. Yakupov arrived in Edmonton to prepare for training camp ahead of a season in jeopardy of a possible lockout as NHL labour talks continue in Toronto. Yakupov, who has signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Oilers, admits hes given some thought to what he might do if the season is delayed by a lockout. But he doesnt want to talk about his Plan B. "I think every player has a Plan B," he told reporters. "I just want to play. I dont want a lockout. "For now, Im just thinking about the Edmonton Oilers and the NHL and thats it." Yakupov relished the opportunity to play for his country in the Canada-Russia Challenge, which was a four-game series between junior players from the two hockey powerhouses. The series had another level of emotion. The first two games were played in Yaroslavl, Russia, as a tribute to Kontinental Hockey League team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.dddddddddddd The club was involved in a horrific plane crash last September that killed 44 players and coaches. "The first game in the (series) we played against Canada and it was something crazy," said Yakupov, who scored in the series opener that Canada won 3-2. "It was fun -- we played for the fans." The 19-year-old forward said hes focusing on working out with his new teammates and hasnt given much thought to how hell fit in a squad that already boasts young talents such as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Taylor Hall. "Well see what the lines are going to be and what the coach says," he said. "I just want to play and play well and help the team win and have fun." Yakupov is also busy settling into his new home and waiting for the rest of his family to join him. "Mom, dad, sister, dog. And me," he said. ' ' '