The Habs biggest need on the depth chart isn’t necessarily defense but it just so happens that there are bunch of really good defensemen ranked around when Montreal picks at 9. This gives you the classic draft day conundrum, do I select the best player available regardless of position or draft the best player available at the position I need?
There is however some need considering all the injuries the Habs suffered last year on defense. It proved that you could never have enough quality defensemen in your organization. Also, Andrei Markov is entering the last year of his contract at 37 years old, this could be his last season in Montreal.