2013 NHL Draft

[caron14]

I think calgary could go with a defenseman in ristolainen... But if they go with a forward nichuskin make sense

 

Not sure about nashville on Barkov since the Radulov incident..

[Daniel]

I think calgary could go with a defenseman in ristolainen... But if they go with a forward nichuskin make sense Not sure about nashville on Barkov since the Radulov incident..

Barkov is Finnish, even though his parents are Russian, if that's what you're getting at.Also, Poile is too smart to get hung up on stuff like that.Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

How's this for a mini mock draft up until 9? Not sure where I'm going with this, so don't take it too seriously. 1. Colorado Avalanche - Seth Jones / He seems to be the highest regarded prospect by most.2. Florida Panthers - Nathan MacKinnon / I like Drouin more, but I think a Huberdeau/MacKinnon combo would be great for Florida.3. Tampa Bay Lightning - Jonathan Drouin / They had to sacrifice Conacher to help fix their goaltending problem from this season, but maybe Drouin could pick up where he left off even better.4. Nashville Predators - Alex Barkov / In desperate need of a franchise forward. Perfect pick for them.5. Carolina Panthers - Darnell Nurse / I think Nurse is really underrated in this draft class. Plus, Carolina is stacked with relatively young forward talent in their top 6. They saw what happened when Pitkanen got hurt. I think they need to draft defense, especially if they aren't going BPA.6. Calgary Flames - Valeri Nichushkin / Can't pass on him at 6. The Flames have not drafted well lately, but I see Nichushkin as one of the best players in this draft (top 2/3)7. Edmonton Oilers - Sean Monahan / Their GM basically came out and said that he's interested in Monahan at 7.8. Buffalo Sabres - Nikita Zadorov / Since Myers doesn't seem to be working out for them, here's another big defenseman who has the potential to be a #1D. I've heard he looks pretty dominant in the OHL.9. New Jersey Devils - Elias Lindholm / Best player available Basically what I'm trying to say is: it won't be too surprising if a guy like Lindholm or Monahan falls to the 9th spot. I do worry, though, that Buffalo takes that last player before the drop off in talent. That said, I wouldn't mind selecting Zadorov, Ristolainen, or Nurse at 9.

Re Carolina, Rutherford said something about taking the BPA and focused onNichuskin in particular.Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD Edited May 26, 2013 by Daniel

[DH26]

Barkov is Finnish, even though his parents are Russian, if that's what you're getting at. Also, Poile is too smart to get hung up on stuff like that. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD Re Carolina, Rutherford said something about taking the BPA and focused onNichuskin in particular. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

Rutherford probably has no problem w/ any Russian w/ his success w/ Semin and him feeling comfortable enough to lock him up for so long. Each player's an individual case though so who knows 

[SterioDesign]

The forwards are all so good that i cant see teams passing any of them, plus they mostly all need help "now" and as we know dmen takes longer to contribute.

[nessus]

lol Carolina Panthers. That's what I get for writing that up at 3 in the morning 

 

STUPID!

 

Thanks for not calling me out on that though haha

Edited May 27, 2013 by nessus

[thefiestygoat]

Future Considerations: Avalanche in for Great Debate with Top Pick

 

But after relieving Joe Sacco in favor of Patrick Roy, Colorado’s design on Jones became less of a sure thing.

Roy, who guided the QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts through their past eight seasons, has seen MacKinnon at every step of his evolution throughout his brief but impactful two-year major junior career in Halifax.

That, coupled with a standout performance that can only be described as one of the most clutch ever seen at the Memorial Cup may make the Avalanche second-guess their initial intentions on June 30th.

I feel like Roy will have a voice on who Colorado takes at #1 but I don't feel like it's going to be enough to change their plans if they were fairly set on Jones. Should be interesting to see what the Avs do but at this moment, I still think they'll go with Jones.

 

ISS released their new rankings and MacKinnon's extremely impressive Memorial Cup run moved him up over Jones.

1. C Nathan MacKinnon
2. RD Seth Jones
3. C Jonathan Drouin
4. F Valery Nichushkin
5. F Sasha Barkov
6. LD Darnell Nurse
7. C Elias Lindholm
8. LD Nikita Zadorov
9. C Sean Monahan
10. C Bo Horvat

ISS seems to go against the grain of a lot of the other rankings out there. Monahan is lower on their list than others. I bet they rank Horvat higher than some too but I think he deserves a top 10 spot. My 2 favorite draft publications, Hockey Prospect and Future Considerations should be out very soon and I am very interested in their final rankings and mocks.

[nessus]

Any reason you like Horvat so much? I don't know very much about him, but he doesn't seem to be much of a big points guy

Edited May 28, 2013 by nessus

[thefiestygoat]

Any reason you like Horvat so much? I don't know very much about him, but he doesn't seem to be much of a big points guy

I hadn't seen Horvat play till the Memorial Cup so I'm judging on a small sample size but I knew he had been rising due to his strong OHL playoffs where he was named MVP with 16 goals and 7 assists in 21 games. That came after a strong season where he was 17 for most of the time, not turning 18 till April 5, and was nearly a point-per-game player with 33 goals and 28 assists in 67 games. He was London's best player in the Memorial Cup and finished 4th in scoring amongst draft elgibles with 2 goals and 3 assists in 5 games.

He isn't a big numbers guy compared to a lot of other 1st round prospects and taking him as high as 9th may be considered a reach by some since his offensive potential isn't as high as some other players that could be available. What draws me to him is his strong 2 way game and the intangibles he possesses. I also get the vibe for what he lacks in high end potential he makes up in being a "safe" pick, likely to make the NHL and contribute. I think he could end up being a very strong 2nd line center eventually. He was the go to guy in all situations for London and was an alternate captain for Canada's gold medal team at the 2012 Ivan Hilanka tournament and captain for the bronze medal Ontario team at the 2012 World Hockey Challenge U-17 team. Listed at 6'0, 203 lbs. he should add more muscle to that frame which will help him be more of a prescence in front of the net.

 

Pre-draft guide profile Future Considerations probably written earlier in the season:

Horvat is an above average skater who shows very good mobility and ability. His acceleration is solid, though his first few steps need to continue to show improvement. He is very strong on the puck and is very difficult to knock off it. Horvat is not a natural goal scorer, but uses his hard work and hockey IQ to put him into good positions in the offensive zone. He has an accurate shot with a good release. He’s not afraid to go to the dirty areas, and creates offense by either driving the net or outmuscling an opponent. He anticipates the play well and makes good reads with the puck when passing. He’s not a traditional playmaker, but makes the quick reads and dishes crisp passes to his wingers to create chances.

 

As well as The Next Ones profile on him.

[Derlique]

I really hope we don't pick a dman or goalie till the 4th round. We have a chance to get two legit forward prospects. Guys who may be available in the second round like Justin Bailey, Jacob De La Rose, Morgan Klimchuk and Ryan Hartman are first rounders any other year. Shinkaruk, Klimchuk, Matteau, Boucher and Pietila is a very respectable prospect pool along with our strong young D

[Triumph]

Justin Bailey is only useful if you want to go after Mother Brain.  

 

I'm fine with a D past the 1st round.  NJ only took one guy last year and while he looks to be very good, there's no sure things and the D depth will have graduated to the NHL or busted out by the time this guy would be ready to make it there.  Also fiesty that article seems awfully linkbait-y by Future Considerations - I'd be shocked if it was anything besides Jones for the Avs.  They already have Duchene and O'Reilly down the middle anyway.

Edited May 28, 2013 by Triumph

[Derlique]

Justin Bailey is only useful if you want to go after Mother Brain.

I'm fine with a D past the 1st round. NJ only took one guy last year and while he looks to be very good, there's no sure things and the D depth will have graduated to the NHL or busted out by the time this guy would be ready to make it there. Also fiesty that article seems awfully linkbait-y by Future Considerations - I'd be shocked if it was anything besides Jones for the Avs. They already have Duchene and O'Reilly down the middle anyway.

Sorry, I'm not familiar with the term "mother brain".

Bailey is a guy who didn't get a lot of ice time and still put up decent numbers. Has great physical tools...sort of like Tom Wilson last year

[Triumph]

Sorry, I'm not familiar with the term "mother brain".

Bailey is a guy who didn't get a lot of ice time and still put up decent numbers. Has great physical tools...sort of like Tom Wilson last year

 

Haha, sorry, super-obscure reference, I was hoping it looked odd enough that it would just get passed over.  I don't know anything about Justin Bailey as a prospect.

[Daniel]

Haha, sorry, super-obscure reference, I was hoping it looked odd enough that it would just get passed over.  I don't know anything about Justin Bailey as a prospect.

 

I knew what Mother Brain was, but had to google the connection to Justin Bailey. 

 

Also, perhaps reading too much into things, but on the Nashville website, their chief scout previews the "Top 5" prospects... Jones, MacKinnon, Barkov, Drouin. most interestingly, Lindholm rather than Nischuskinan.

 

http://predators.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=670022&navid=DL|NSH|home

[sundstrom]

Haha, sorry, super-obscure reference, I was hoping it looked odd enough that it would just get passed over.  I don't know anything about Justin Bailey as a prospect.

 

i know the reference, just don't get the point.

 

got it. wow - that's off the charts obscure, even for you.

Edited May 28, 2013 by sundstrom

[thefiestygoat]

In Lou We Trust had a fantastic write up on LW Anthony Duclair yesterday. He seems to have offensive potential so he's someone I would hope the Devils would look into if he is still available at 39. Still just 17 and has 51 goals and 65 assists for 116 points in 118 QMJHL games. Montreal picks at 34 and 36 so perhaps there is a way the Devils move up in the 2nd round or find a way to add one of those picks.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

I would take carrier over duclair..

[thefiestygoat]

I would take carrier over duclair..

What makes you prefer Carrier and are you not a fan of Duclair's? From searching Future Considerations and Hockey Prospectus it seems Carrier has a size + power advantage and is better defensively. Just wondering what your personal opinion of these 2 guys is.

[SterioDesign]

I really hope we don't pick a dman or goalie till the 4th round. We have a chance to get two legit forward prospects. Guys who may be available in the second round like Justin Bailey, Jacob De La Rose, Morgan Klimchuk and Ryan Hartman are first rounders any other year. Shinkaruk, Klimchuk, Matteau, Boucher and Pietila is a very respectable prospect pool along with our strong young D

Well from our point of view it may be a respectable prospect pool but when you look around to what others teams have coming their way... Its really not much saddly. Of course you never know for sure but our prospect pool is surely not ranked too high compared to a good chunk of the league. Picking late and our first rounders not developping as wed like for so long is starting to hurt.

[Triumph]

Well from our point of view it may be a respectable prospect pool but when you look around to what others teams have coming their way... Its really not much saddly. Of course you never know for sure but our prospect pool is surely not ranked too high compared to a good chunk of the league. Picking late and our first rounders not developping as wed like for so long is starting to hurt.

 

Who cares about prospect pools?  Players drafted from 2008 on by NJ who have a good chance to be respectable NHLers:  Henrique, Loktionov, Josefson, Gelinas, Urbom, Merrill, Larsson, Matteau, Severson, and whoever NJ takes in this draft 9th overall (assuming that's where they end up).  Then you've got a host of other decent-ish guys.  Just because there's an arbitrary definition of prospect that silly sites adhere to and that NJ never ranks at the top, that doesn't concern me at all.  The Wings were constantly ranked near the bottom of prospect sites in the early 2000s, along with the Devils, and both teams haven't really slowed down.  Meanwhile teams like Florida are constantly near the top and never go anywhere.

 

NJ already made it through their roughest patch prospect-wise - between 2001 and 2007, the bona fide NHLers they drafted were:  Zach Parise, Travis Zajac, and Mark Fayne.  Two 1st line players and a solid D, but nothing else (I'll hear arguments for Bergfors, who I think had/has NHL talent but had other issues).  They augmented those with Clarkson, Greene, and Oduya, but it's still not a great haul.  These young players they have now look pretty darn good. 

Edited May 29, 2013 by Triumph

[Marshall]

I knew what Mother Brain was, but had to google the connection to Justin Bailey. 

 

Also, perhaps reading too much into things, but on the Nashville website, their chief scout previews the "Top 5" prospects... Jones, MacKinnon, Barkov, Drouin. most interestingly, Lindholm rather than Nischuskinan.

 

http://predators.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=670022&navid=DL|NSH|home

 

 

You'd be surprised yet you wouldn't be if Nashville steered clear of the highly touted Russian prospect.

[Daniel]

Well from our point of view it may be a respectable prospect pool but when you look around to what others teams have coming their way... Its really not much saddly. Of course you never know for sure but our prospect pool is surely not ranked too high compared to a good chunk of the league. Picking late and our first rounders not developping as wed like for so long is starting to hurt.

Who cares about prospect pools? Players drafted from 2008 on by NJ who have a good chance to be respectable NHLers: Henrique, Loktionov, Josefson, Gelinas, Urbom, Merrill, Larsson, Matteau, Severson, and whoever NJ takes in this draft 9th overall (assuming that's where they end up). Then you've got a host of other decent-ish guys. Just because there's an arbitrary definition of prospect that silly sites adhere to and that NJ never ranks at the top, that doesn't concern me at all. The Wings were constantly ranked near the bottom of prospect sites in the early 2000s, along with the Devils, and both teams haven't really slowed down. Meanwhile teams like Florida are constantly near the top and never go anywhere.

NJ already made it through their roughest patch prospect-wise - between 2001 and 2007, the bona fide NHLers they drafted were: Zach Parise, Travis Zajac, and Mark Fayne. Two 1st line players and a solid D, but nothing else (I'll hear arguments for Bergfors, who I think had/has NHL talent but had other issues). They augmented those with Clarkson, Greene, and Oduya, but it's still not a great haul. These young players they have now look pretty darn good.

Not to mention the prospects you end up being able to trade for bona fide NHLers.

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[sundstrom]

Who cares about prospect pools?  Players drafted from 2008 on by NJ who have a good chance to be respectable NHLers:  Henrique, Loktionov, Josefson, Gelinas, Urbom, Merrill, Larsson, Matteau, Severson, and whoever NJ takes in this draft 9th overall (assuming that's where they end up).  Then you've got a host of other decent-ish guys.  Just because there's an arbitrary definition of prospect that silly sites adhere to and that NJ never ranks at the top, that doesn't concern me at all.  The Wings were constantly ranked near the bottom of prospect sites in the early 2000s, along with the Devils, and both teams haven't really slowed down.  Meanwhile teams like Florida are constantly near the top and never go anywhere.

 

NJ already made it through their roughest patch prospect-wise - between 2001 and 2007, the bona fide NHLers they drafted were:  Zach Parise, Travis Zajac, and Mark Fayne.  Two 1st line players and a solid D, but nothing else (I'll hear arguments for Bergfors, who I think had/has NHL talent but had other issues).  They augmented those with Clarkson, Greene, and Oduya, but it's still not a great haul.  These young players they have now look pretty darn good. 

 

loktionov wasn't drafted by NJ. and i think you could possibly add boucher to that list also.

[Daniel]

loktionov wasn't drafted by NJ. and i think you could possibly add boucher to that list also.

Perhaps Scarlett also.

[Triumph]

loktionov wasn't drafted by NJ. and i think you could possibly add boucher to that list also.

 

I'm aware of that, but he's 22/23 and a good player.  Not willing to add Boucher to the list because I've seen too many of these guys flop at the NHL level (or because I plum forgot about him when I wrote the list, could be one or the other)

[Daniel]

On my ipad and can't post the link, but some pretty good tidbits from Lou on the draft from TG. Basically Lou said, it "doesn't take an Einstein" to figure out that the Devils want to draft young forwards. That and Lou admitting that the Devils don't really have the horses to trade into the top three. (They do have the horses to do it of course, Larsson, Merrill, etc, but aren't willing to do that).

I think the fear is that it'll get to 9 and the defenseman available are all rated significantly higher than the forwards that are there.

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