2018 NHL Draft Discussion

[Heldig]

It is still early and things usually shake out a bit differently by years end but this draft is loaded with D. An interesting name that is starting to rise in the rankings...Kotkaniemi.

 

[PhoPhan]

Svechnikov is the sort of player you make room for.

 

[rt]

Svechnikov is the sort of player you make room for.

Agreed. Let's walk into the lottery with the 12th pick and walk out with the 2nd.

 

[Grimes]

Some pre-season reading here about the draft.
http://www.tsn.ca/the-year-of-swedish-defencemen-1.852963

 

[Heldig]

Ah, this would be quite the year to make marked improvements in the standings (not quite to the playoffs) and then WIN the lottery after missing out on franchise players in previous seasons (no offense to Strome).

 

[rt]

I'd easily take Dahlin or Svechnikov ahead of Hischier or Patrick. No hesitation. Boqvist, Tkachuk and Merkley would be strong contenders for 1st overall in the last draft, IMO. Merkley is taking some heat right now for still being physically weak and only caring about offense. I think he'd be forgiven both of these things if he'd have been on the radar for a shorter period of time. Scouts have been so eager for so long to see him grow physically and improve defensively. I don't think it's fair for a 17 year old, and it's only because he stood out so much, so eary. If he came out of nowhere like Makar, people wouldn't be ******** on him. The sooner folks start to keep in mind that Tkachuk is so old for his draft year, the sooner they'll start to discredit his accomplishments. I still think at the end of the day, both will go top five, and if they don't, someone has made a mistake.

 

[rt]

Jett Woo putting up big numbers in the Dub early. The only worry with this kid was whether or not he could put up big numbers. Very encouraging. Ryan Merkley on the other hand, is not doing himself any favors in the reputation department. More tantrums. Could fall like a rock.

 

[rt]

If any of you Western Canada guys get to see Jett Woo, I'd love a report. Seems like a potentially great fit for us in terms of Chayka's character and skating bias. With the points coming, I'm left searching for holes.

 

[RABBIT]

lol bruh you chose the GDT for this past draft

 

[rt]

And I'm the one who bumped it last month to begin with. Haha.

 

[Mosby]

A few days old but another reminder to not draft goalies in Round 1:

 

[hbk]

I love Brady Tkachuk. Bull in a China shop presence.

 

[Mosby]

I love Brady Tkachuk. Bull in a China shop presence.

He makes Matthew look like a Lady Byng candidate.

 

[tucknroll]

Tkachuk is a treat, i thoroughly enjoy his game.
Watched Svechnikov, Nizhnikov, Douglas and Dineen on Thursday. Then saw Mcbain and Kellenberger last night

Svechnikov is a beast, his stride is so powerfull. He played both ends of the ice, made good passes and his shot is insane. He scored a hat-trick (almost had it in the first period) with the first two of his goals being one-on-ones with Dineen. I wouldn't fully blame Dineen though because any decent goalie probably would have had them (goalie got pulled after the first 2). Was the only Barrie player to have a consistently great game.

Nizhnikov was unremarkable, in 2 viewings i've been left very unimpressed. I only even noticed him on the ice 2 times without looking for him this game and never really made anything happen.

Douglas is a 6' 8" winger and he's actually been pretty good in my 2 viewings. He's got alright skill for a guy his size and seems to get himself in good position. Might really be worth looking into if he falls to the last 3 or 4 rounds of the draft

Dineen had a good game, other than having Svechnikov make him look silly with an incredibly quick release shot. He always made crisp accurate passes, was great on the breakout and was QB'ing the PP while getting time on the PK as well. He could easily have had a point or two. Dineen and Justin Brazeau were NB's best players . I hope Brazeau gets a rookie camp invite next year, A 6' 5" 220 pound RW that can skate like the wind and had a nice shot when he got it off, He also played both PP and PK.

 

[tucknroll]

McBain is a really good player, His passing ability and shot are both top notch. He's a good skater and is great at using his stop and starts against defenders. He carried his teams offence most of the time, Only problem i had with him was that he only ever used his size to protect the puck (which he did very well) but never really through it around. I did hear rumour that the kids a head case though and not in a way i can see Chayka being ok with allowing on his team.

Kellenberger should have been drafted last year (he was ranked in top 100 of NA skaters by Central Scouting). I was explained to why he likely wasn't and the story is just sad for the kid, He plays a great two-way game for a D, makes good smart passes and is very good at skating with the puck. He is unreal at faking left and going right, i saw him do it 3 times in one rush. I was also told about his off ice dedication and this kid wants to make it far. Was always matched against McBain

Going to watch Guelph play Kitchener tonight so i'll be seeing Merkley, Hugg, Hillis, Damiani and hopefully someone will stand out

 

[Matias Maccete]

Thanks for all the info. It would be a great year to narrowly miss the playoffs after an exciting year and finally have our lottery luck swing around. Even if not this seems like a deep draft, especially when it comes to dmen.

 

[hbk]

Athletic has a article on how good Rasmussen looked this preseason and how the analytical scouts may have read too much into the numbers and not enough on what their eyes were telling them.

 

[rt]

At this point I'll just listen to hbk and Pho and disregard all anlystics and eyetests. Haha.

 

[PhoPhan]

At this point I'll just listen to hbk and Pho and disregard all anlystics and eyetests. Haha.

I can't think of a player hbk and I have disagreed on more than Rasmussen. Only part of it was the talent assessment, though. The other part is the value we place on a player of his type. Ultimately, I just don't think he'll make nearly the impact as a lot of the guys drafted after him.

 

[hbk]

I think it depends on your thoughts of that draft class. If you saw a bunch of 2nd/3rd liners then Rasmussen peaked your interests. If you saw the other comparable as 1st/2nd liners you ranked Rasmussen further down the list.

 

[PhoPhan]

I think it depends on your thoughts of that draft class. If you saw a bunch of 2nd/3rd liners then Rasmussen peaked your interests. If you saw the other comparable as 1st/2nd liners you ranked Rasmussen further down the list.

I saw mostly 2nd and 3rd liners ahead of Rasmussen, but I still see him as a 3rd liner at best and more likely a 4th liner. Sort of in the Brian Boyle mold. Why spend a top 10 pick on a player and try to develop him in the hopes that he could be a 3rd liner when you can trade a 2nd or 3rd rounder for a guy who is farther along in his development toward that sort of player (and then use your top 10 pick to swing for the fences)?

 

[hbk]

I saw mostly 2nd and 3rd liners ahead of Rasmussen, but I still see him as a 3rd liner at best and more likely a 4th liner. Sort of in the Brian Boyle mold. Why spend a top 10 pick on a player and try to develop him in the hopes that he could be a 3rd liner when you can trade a 2nd or 3rd rounder for a guy who is farther along in his development toward that sort of player (and then use your top 10 pick to swing for the fences)?

I saw a 2/3 who I think can play in the NHL in a variety of capacities. Other names were more scorers and needed to be in a scoring situation to play in the show. I viewed Rasmussen's path as having more options (especially as a net front presence on PP) which made him the safer play as we moved into names that I wasn't as comfortable with their upside. The crapshoot nature of the draft was the main reason I was alright with moving 7OV.

 

[tucknroll]

That's how i view Rasmussen as well, i think there's a chance he could become a 2nd liner but i wouldn't have gambled a top pick on it and like you said, bottom 6 guys come much cheaper than high draft picks.

 

[tucknroll]

The Guelph- Kitchener game was alright. walked away pretty impressed by a few players but overall the game was a bit sloppy

I was a big Adam Mascherin fan in his draft year and nothing has changed. His shot is very good, very hard and he is capable at getting it off when he wants to.
I'm still not sure how Logan Stanley got drafted in the first round, he can't skate very well. He is a good top 4 guy in the OHL but i cannot see his game translating well at the next level.
Schnarr was very close to a hat-trick (2 goals and one crossbar) and had a very solid game, but i still wish they hadn't jumped on him in the third and aimed for someone like Ruzicka if they wanted a big two-way defensive centre.

Ryan Merkley, this kids talent is undeniable. He has wheels and loves to carry the puck. Has an ability to find lanes for getting the puck to the net. Good on the breakout and jumped into the play consistently adding the extra forward. That being said, he is a horrible defender. He played forward just as much as he did defence and lost battles due to size. He's very capable of getting his shot to the net but it's still fairly weak (will get better with age obviously). He also tended to hold onto the puck too long, he was clearly trying way to hard to make something happen at times and it would lead to late passes and turnovers. I currently look at him the same way i do DeAngelo, a 6/7 D that instantly makes you're team much better on the PP, but has limited minutes on even strength.

Riley Damiani was a good player, I liked his speed and ability to stay on the puck. Also was able to make plays. Could be a solid sleeper pick if he doesn't climb in the rankings.


I was amazed when i found out Mark Woolley is only 15, that kid had a decent game and one of the best hits i've seen in a while catching McHugh on Kitchener with his head down. Woolley made some good breakout passes and was overall impressive for his age.

 

[rt]

Joseph Veleno is boring. Not tall but not short. Not powerful but not weak. Pretty good shot. Pretty good passer. Pretty good two way player. Pretty good work ethic. Granted exceptional status into the CHL with the likes of Crosby, Tavares, McKinnon, and McDavid but only has 22g and 35a in his last 72gp (including playoffs).

He's Josh Bailey.