2006 Top: looking for bios

[borro]

1. Obviously Kessel
2. Frolik

Not sure after that
Little, Maxwell, Vasyunov, Joenessuu, and a few others....

Anyone have the latest?

Click to read more...

 

[BigAl]

Here is the latest:

Kessel 1a
Toews 1b

Frolik 2

Many will disagree.....but in the end they will be 1-2. I could see Frolik dropping to 4 or 5 to be honest.

 

[AnThGrt]

Frolik will be #1

 

[PanthersRule96]

Frolik will be #1

I agree. Kessel is hyped and rightfully so, I was amazed by him at the last WJC, but people underrate Frolik, this guy is amazing. Remember how Spezza was hyped a few years before his draft and we didn't hear much about Kovalchuk? Well I think it will be like this with Frolik and Kessel, that Kessel will get more hype (as he has) but Frolik will end up going #1.

 

[AnThGrt]

Kessel has been being said to end up maybe being the best American player ever thats only reason he'd go first advertisement reason. Frolik right now is being compared to Jagr that being said i'd take Jagr before most anyone to ever play hockey

 

[Hunter Gathers]

Kessel has been being said to end up maybe being the best American player ever thats only reason he'd go first advertisement reason. Frolik right now is being compared to Jagr that being said i'd take Jagr before most anyone to ever play hockey

Kessel pretty much looked better at the WJCs. So it's not the only reason.

I'd take Toews over Frolik as well.

 

[Epsilon]

I can't see how Toews has done anything to rank ahead of Frolik at this point. And while Frolik and Kessel are dominating the WJCs he will probably be lucky to even be there.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

I can't see how Toews has done anything to rank ahead of Frolik at this point. And while Frolik and Kessel are dominating the WJCs he will probably be lucky to even be there.

The same could be said about Staal verses Zherdev and Michalek during the 2003 season. Both Zherdev and Michalek can strut their stuff at the WJC while Staal is left home due to Canada's depth at the international level. If Towes has anywhere close to Parise's rookie season in the NCAA then he should go 1st or 2nd WJC or no WJC.

 

[ktownhockey]

The same could be said about Staal verses Zherdev and Michalek during the 2003 season. Both Zherdev and Michalek can strut their stuff at the WJC while Staal is left home due to Canada's depth at the international level. If Towes has anywhere close to Parise's rookie season in the NCAA then he should go 1st or 2nd WJC or no WJC.

Excellent point Jason. Many draft eligible Canadians don;t get into the internation spotlight because of the depth of Hockey Canada especially at the junior level. That being said I hope Toews goes 1st but I see him as a 3rd overall pick at this point in time. Im sure things will change if he does well as a 17 year old in the NCAA.

 

[MN_Gopher]

Having watched Kessel play in person against the gophers last. He was the best player on the ice. He slipped checks and buried shots. Made some nice passes as well. He just flew. If you think that his stats were against a good number of college teams. He could have very well played NCAA last year and been solid if not dominant.

Not that Toews or Frolik and such are bad or anything. But even guys like Heatley, Parise and Vanek could not go #1 with a great year. Zajac and Chucko just had good years and they were both high picks.

Kessel is coming into a perfect situatuon. Minny returning their top 7 scorers. Great puck moving d men and big ice. For Toews, NoDak just lost Murray, Greene and a few more key guys. And having Smaby and Finley, great for a team not good if u want a sweet pass from a d man.

Kessel could average 2 points a game. He had 10 more points than Mueller did in 8 less games. And many think Mueller could go #1. IMO opinion the thing that will hurt Toews the most is NoDak with Hakstol will be a d minded team and with their team being young i see them playing it safe to start until they jell. If he goes number 1 he will have a had a better year than Parise ever did.

Who ever goes number if it is a clear cut choice by next year. That player will have had to have a special year, not just a good one. I see Frolik and Kessel as the top candidates for a special year.

 

[turnbuckle*]

Having watched Kessel play in person against the gophers last. He was the best player on the ice. He slipped checks and buried shots. Made some nice passes as well. He just flew. If you think that his stats were against a good number of college teams. He could have very well played NCAA last year and been solid if not dominant. Not that Toews or Frolik and such are bad or anything. But even guys like Heatley, Parise and Vanek could not go #1 with a great year. Zajac and Chucko had good years and they were both high picks. Kessel is coming into a perfect situatuon too. Minny returning their top 7 scorers. Great puck moving d men and big ice. NoDak just lost Murray, Greene and a few more key guys. And having Smaby and Finley, great for a team not good if u want a sweet pass from a d man. Kessel could average 2 points a game. He had 10 more points than Mueller did in 8 less games. And many think Mueller could go #1. IMO opinion the thing that will hurt Toews the most is NoDak with Hakstol will be a d minded team and with their team being young i see them playing it safe to start until they jell. If he goes number 1 he will have a had a better year than Parise ever did. Who ever goes number if it is a clear cut choice by next year. That player will have had to have a special year, not just a good one. I see Frolik and Kessel as the top candidates for a special year.

Man; that's hard on the eyes.. Do you attend U of Minnesota? If so, are they the only school on this continent that discourages the use of paragraphs?

I know I know; If I don't like it don't read it. That's exactly what happened. I got about six "sentences" into it and had already lost track twice; that was enough for me.

Anyway - I agree with Jason. Pouliot and Brule were picked ahead of Skille, yet they didn't make the Canadian WJC team and Skille made the US team.

 

[Epsilon]

Anyway - I agree with Jason. Pouliot and Brule were picked ahead of Skille, yet they didn't make the Canadian WJC team and Skille made the US team.

There's a big difference between just making the team and being one of the dominant players. Fleury was pushed into the top 3 and eventually to #1 overall. If guys like Kessel and Frolik are the top players at the WJC (i.e. among the top scorers, maybe MVP candidates) they will significantly elevate their profile over guys who are sitting at home. For instance in the 2003 WJC, Nikolai Zherdev didn't do much and wasn't that impressive on a stacked Russian team, and so it didn't help his draft position. On the other hand, Alexander Ovechkin wowed people, and would have certainly been the #1 overall pick had he been eligible.

 

[slumpy43]

Possibly the best "Frolik vs Kessel" thread I've read. Congrats guys

 

[Hunter Gathers]

I can see Frolik EASILY dropping to even #4 if Mueller has a monster year. Plus, Erik Johnson can easily rocket up into the top 5 if he has a solid year, much like Jack Johnson (who was outside the top 5 before the season started, IIRC).

 

[Hunter Gathers]

BTW, I think Frolik is a fair bit overrated at this point. He didn't really impress me with his WJC play all that much...

 

[Rabid Ranger]

Kessel has been being said to end up maybe being the best American player ever thats only reason he'd go first advertisement reason. Frolik right now is being compared to Jagr that being said i'd take Jagr before most anyone to ever play hockey

Kessel is being tabbed as the number one overall in 2006 because of several more factors than he being widely viewed as the best American forward prospect since Mike Modano. He has all the tools, including a fantastic shot, speed to burn, and exceptional stickhandling. He also played very well at the U20 WJC's last year and DOMINATED the U18's this year, something Frolik didn't do. I'm not saying Frolik isn't a great prospect, but he's going to have to do something extraordinary to unseat Kessel this year, and I'm not the only one who thinks so. Shoot, if Pierre McGuire is to be believed, the split amongst NHL G.M's when it came to Kessel or Crosby was 17-13 in Crosby's favor, so that shows you how well liked Kessel is.

 

[Form and Substance]

Man; that's hard on the eyes.. Do you attend U of Minnesota? If so, are they the only school on this continent that discourages the use of paragraphs?

I know I know; If I don't like it don't read it. That's exactly what happened. I got about six "sentences" into it and had already lost track twice; that was enough for me.

Anyway - I agree with Jason. Pouliot and Brule were picked ahead of Skille, yet they didn't make the Canadian WJC team and Skille made the US team.

Actually Skille didnt make the WJC squad, it was that lowlife Lee who made it. But if youère talking about the U-18s, then Brule was injured and did not opt in (otherwise he would have centered the first line) and Pouliot was too old. But you can bet your *** that they will both be in the WJC lineup next year.

 

[borro]

Great conversation. I was looking for more about 3-15 though. Any help on that? What arte the latest rankings?

 

[X-SHARKIE]

My budy Fedz did a good little list.

http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=130504

No scouting reports but stats, heigh,weight, nationality ect.

I really like the 2006 group at the moment.

Toews has excellent skill, hands speed, and is one of the smartest players i've seen and has great vision, he could be special.

Staal is the wildcard of the bunch, if he stays healthy and progresses he could be one of the best powerforward prospects we've seen in a long time. Rivaling such players as Nash and Horton, or he could struggle or be injured and be a Latendresse and slip.

Mueller could push for a top 2 selection.

It will be pretty tough to knock Kessel off of that #1 spot.

The Czechs have an excellent crop of prospects next year, and USA does as well, especially on defense.

 

[borro]

My budy Fedz did a good little list.

http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=130504

No scouting reports but stats, heigh,weight, nationality ect.

I really like the 2006 group at the moment.

Toews has excellent skill, hands speed, and is one of the smartest players i've seen and has great vision, he could be special.

Staal is the wildcard of the bunch, if he stays healthy and progresses he could be one of the best powerforward prospects we've seen in a long time. Rivaling such players as Nash and Horton, or he could struggle or be injured and be a Latendresse and slip.

I would be content with Kessel, Mueller, or Toews or even Little or Maxwell for the Caps. I would love to get Joenesuu too! We will be bad but if AO and Semin explode, we might pass a FEW like the Rags and Canes.

Mueller could push for a top 2 selection.

It will be pretty tough to knock Kessel off of that #1 spot.

The Czechs have an excellent crop of prospects next year, and USA does as well, especially on defense.

Do you think foreign players will be devalued because of only a 2 year window?

Thanks X, this was exactly what I was looking for. There had been a Top15 with only 1 dman on it.

Why was your man Korhonen taken so late? Why did Latendresse fall by so many? Ditto Levasseur? Thanks!