The final piece of the Lewiston Maineiacs’ pre-season puzzle is about to come together.

Coaches and general managers of all 56 Canadian Hockey League teams are gathered in Montreal this week for the annual European Player’s Draft, and the Maineiacs are looking to shore up their lineup with two picks in the two-round draft.

“I have been on the phone with agents in the last two days,” Lewiston coach and general manager Clement Jodoin said. “This draft is very different because you are only allowed to have two on your team, so it is important that you pick the right players.”

In the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, a team is allowed to protect three European players and dress two in any game. Last year, Richard Stehlik and Vladislav Balaz, both elite Slovakian players, played in almost every game for the team. With Stehlik all but assured a place in the AHL, and with Balaz still questionable after a late-season knee injury, the European Draft will be especially important this season.

“As far as what was here last year, now it doesn’t matter,” Jodoin said. “The important thing is to get the best players, whether they are Czech, Russian, Slovakian or whatever. The big thing is to draft two kids, and then go from there.”

Jodoin said on Tuesday that he had been in contact with a particular player and his agent, and that things sounded like they were going smoothly, but things would have to wait until the picks became official on Wednesday.

“You have to develop a relationship with some of the agents that the players have,” Jodoin said. “You have to be able to trust them. It gets tricky with European players because a lot of the teams there want to be paid if their players leave to come here. Some organizations don’t want to let their players go.”

Jodoin said that he was “almost certain” about the team’s first pick, provided that player fell to the Maineiacs, who have the 24th overall pick in the two-round draft. Their second pick is the 80th overall selection.

“I will be on the phone all day (Tuesday) and again tomorrow morning, making sure we have a backup plan, too,” Jodoin said. “We have to be ready.”

The Maineiacs will open their training camp up at the Colisee on August 12.