MONTREAL - The Montreal Canadiens have had a very talented hockey man in their midst for decades, but Minnesota Wild director of player personnel Blair Mackasey has not worked a day for the local team.

Recently, he was in the running for the job as general manager of the Habs.

"I was thrilled to have the opportunity. Not every day you get to be interviewed to be general manager of the Montreal Canadiens," said Mackasay "It was a great opportunity. I enjoyed it."

The job went to Marc Bergevin.

With grace, Mackasey praised the Habs' eventual choice.

"He's a good man. Qualified. Good person. It doesn't surprise me that he would bring (Maple Leafs' director of player personnel) Rick Dudley with him. They're both very tight," he said.

Mackasey assessed Bergevin's initial decisions.

One of his first big moves is who to draft with the third choice. Alex Galchenyuk is a U.S. raised Russian, while Mikhail Grigorenko

was raised in Russia and has a reputation as a floater.

"I saw Grigorenko play the World Juniors and I would agree that assessment that he's a floater," he said.

"There is something to be said for a Russian kid who grew up in the States and played all his hockey here. Yes, that would definitely be a factor."

Mackasay gave great insight Monday into what a scout is looking for in a player.

"One is the compete level, and the other is the hockey sense. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you don't compete and you don't think the game, you're going to have a tough time being an effective player," he explained.