2018 NHL Entry Draft Discussion

[Ziggy Stardust]

It sounds like if someone with the talents of Bokk is still around at 20, they may take him. That is unless Bokk goes higher or someone surprisingly falls to their laps, like what happened last year with Vilardi.

 

[King'sPawn]

Yeah wouldn't shock me to see Smith drafted by the Kings in the least bit.

I have a feeling both Smith and Hayton are pretty high on the Kings' radar. I don't have any inside sources, they just seem to be the "right fit".

 

[kingsboy11]

I have a feeling some players who are in the 8-15 range may drop. I'm hoping maybe a guy like Farabee could be one of those guys. I also like Joe Veleno who I can definitely see dropping into the 20s

 

[Peter James Bond II]

In Yanetti's interview, he talks a lot about speed and forwards...and was asked about #20 and he says good talent will still be there and talked about Boesser falling to 23, Kempe 29, and talking about Vilardi falling...he seems to have forward on the brain. Not saying that's not a clear statement in saying 'we're looking at a forward at 20', but he's throwing out talent that fell past 20 and he mentions
Boesser and Kempe. I think they want a talented forward at 20, unless a highly rated defenseman were to fall at 20. If Ty Smith is there at 20? I would say, ANOTHER smallish, LHD is
a reach...in seemingly losing Folin, RHD, the Kings have less and less RHD by the year. The 2 best incoming D are Clague and Brickley, both LHD. I am sure they like Ty Smith and the Nachbaur
connection...and Smith was +44 (20 more than anyone else on Spokane) and is a standout. At 5'10 and 177 lbs...and LH? I think if a talented forward is there they like at 20, that will be the pick.

The top 5 prospects are pretty much: Vilardi, Anderson-Dolan, Clague, Brickley and Cal Petersen. 2 F, 2 D, and 1 G. If anything, the Kings need speed, high skill and scoring. So thinking forward at 20 and bet a RHD is in the 2nd or 3rd round. Interesting a mock has Swedish RHD Lundkvist at #51. Played last yr in SEL at 17.

Nils Lundkvist at eliteprospects.com

 

[Basilisk]

In Yanetti's interview, he talks a lot about speed and forwards...and was asked about #20 and he says good talent will still be there and talked about Boesser falling to 23, Kempe 29, and talking about Vilardi falling...he seems to have forward on the brain. Not saying that's not a clear statement in saying 'we're looking at a forward at 20', but he's throwing out talent that fell past 20 and he mentions
Boesser and Kempe. I think they want a talented forward at 20, unless a highly rated defenseman were to fall at 20. If Ty Smith is there at 20? I would say, ANOTHER smallish, LHD is
a reach...in seemingly losing Folin, RHD, the Kings have less and less RHD by the year. The 2 best incoming D are Clague and Brickley, both LHD. I am sure they like Ty Smith and the Nachbaur
connection...and Smith was +44 (20 more than anyone else on Spokane) and is a standout. At 5'10 and 177 lbs...and LH? I think if a talented forward is there they like at 20, that will be the pick.

The top 5 prospects are pretty much: Vilardi, Anderson-Dolan, Clague, Brickley and Cal Petersen. 2 F, 2 D, and 1 G. If anything, the Kings need speed, high skill and scoring. So thinking forward at 20 and bet a RHD is in the 2nd or 3rd round. Interesting a mock has Swedish RHD Lundkvist at #51. Played last yr in SEL at 17.

Nils Lundkvist at eliteprospects.com

Did we lose Folin already?

 

[Noonan61]

I think it comes down to either Serron Noel, Barrett Hayton, Ty Smith, or Dominik Bokk and I'm pretty fine with any of those selections.

 

[Peter James Bond II]

Did we lose Folin already?

No, but he's not signed as of now and an un UFA. I'm not sure the Kings have the money for him, as he should double what he made last year. The Kings need RHD. Really only Doughty and Ladue, pretty much. Voynov is RHD. hmm.

 

[KingCanadain1976]

i;m not sure i've seen it anywhere when exactly is the draft Thanks for the reply in advance

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

i;m not sure i've seen it anywhere when exactly is the draft Thanks for the reply in advance

2018 NHL Draft

Friday, June 22 is round one.
Saturday, June 23 is round two through seven.

 

[KingCanadain1976]

Thanks Ziggy

 

[King'sPawn]

I don't know if any of you have any draft guides, but I really like Future Considerations and Hockey Prospects' Black Book.

Black Book alone is 600+ pages. Profiles on hundreds of 2018 draft eligibles, a sneak peek at 2019 and 2020 prospects, and game logs/reports. Very comprehensive.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

 

[King'sPawn]

What I like most about his rankings is they are ranked collectively on scouts's individual rankings who have a diverse collection of individual interests.

It's not as comprehensive as the individual scouting services, but it paints a pretty good picture of the expected first rounders.

 

[Maverick41]

I am not sure if this has been mentioned here but in early June there was a development camp held in Berlin with LA Kings coaches. Mike O’Connell, Nelson Emerson, Mike Donnelly, Glen Murray and Bill Ranford were there to work with 27 skaters and 6 goalies from 22 different clubs and from 6 different countries.

The reason I post this here is that among the skaters in this camp was Albin Eriksson. I don't know if there were anyy other draft elgible players in this camp, I only have an incomplete list of mostly German players who were there.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

The ISS mock draft has the Kings selecting Bode Wilde.

 

[KingCanadain1976]

20. Los Angeles Kings--C, Rasmus Kupari. Had this been the 2014 LA Kings, they may have bemoaned missing out on a powerforward like Noel, but this is 2018 and GM Rob Blake is moving his team more towards speed. The traditional western conference "heavies" the Kings had heading into the playoffs with last month were overtaken by the hornet's nest that was the Vegas Golden Knights. Although the Knights didn't have a lot of top-end talent they buzzed around the Kings and disposed of them in a four-game sweep which included a 56-shot onslaught in Game-2. LA gets lucky here as Kupari, an explosive skater with pure offensive skills, drops to them at No. 20 where they snatch him up. Kupari , who played in Finland's top professional league as a 17/18 yr. old last season, should eventually compliment their highly skilled (and highly paid) beast of a center in captain Anze Kopitar.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

I’d be happy with Kupari.

 

[King'sPawn]

I would be happy with Kupari as well. There are a few on my short list I would be happy with the Kings getting. He's on it.

I wouldn't mind Wilde, but I have others (including Kupari) I would be happier with them taking

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Craig Button had Kupari ranked 27th, and McKeen's has him at 21.

Others have him higher, with ISS at 15 and FC has him at 16.

According to his profile on Elite Prospects, his skills have been compared to Sebastian Aho.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

The official list of Kings draft picks...

20th
51st
82nd
113th
144th
165th (from Islanders, who obtained LA's pick, 165th overall, in 2017)
175th

The Kings 7th round selection, 206 overall, was sent to Tampa Bay in exchange for Bokondji Imama.

 

[King'sPawn]

Craig Button had Kupari ranked 27th, and McKeen's has him at 21.

Others have him higher, with ISS at 15 and FC has him at 16.

According to his profile on Elite Prospects, his skills have been compared to Sebastian Aho.

Black Book (my favorite scouting resource) has him at 19. They say he has one of the highest ceilings of any forward in the draft.

 

[KingCanadain1976]

Craig Button had Kupari ranked 27th, and McKeen's has him at 21.

Others have him higher, with ISS at 15 and FC has him at 16.

According to his profile on Elite Prospects, his skills have been compared to Sebastian Aho.

ty ziggy for the hilites Kids got some sweet hands in close i like him more now if thats possible

 

[kingsboy11]

I don't think either Kupari or Wilde will be there by 20. Would very much love either, preferably Kupari, but I think we would consider our selves very lucky if Kupari dropped to us.

 

[Herby]

I don't think Wilde falls to the Kings, the all around game, with his ceiling and being a RH shot I don't think he falls to #20.

And as much as I'd love to see the Kings draft him, I have to think that we are going forward here. Not only are the forwards at the NHL level pretty poor, so are the forwards in the system. Really need to draft a top 6 forward here.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Yeah, I'd be pleasantly surprised if Kupari drops to 20 as well. Hopefully that does happen. I really like his persistence in going after the puck in some of the highlights in here. He has speed, great hands, terrific vision and playmaking abilities, and he's not a floater. The only knock on him is his size, but I don't think it's that much of a deterrence.