StevenToddIves
Registered User
I know, I know. Tampa Bay has not won yet. But I wanted to be the first dude to put out my final mock so that I could accuse the rest of the draft-writers on earth of plagiarizing me when they make the revolutionary decision of listing Lafreniere as their top overall pick.
The Devils lack a second round pick, but I went there anyway because it's fun. Maybe the Devils will get John Hynes to offer Nashville's second-rounder for Kevin Rooney and the Devils can grab my favorite player in the draft, Tristen Robins. I mean I doubt it, but without dreams what do we really have left?
Please, keep in mind that this is a mock draft and not a ranking. My Top 100 Rankings can be found on these threads, as well. For the mock, I take all 31 organizational needs and draft tendencies into consideration. Personally, there is no way on earth I would personally let talents like Miettinen and Vierling drop out of the top 2 rounds of the draft, just as there is no way on earth I would take Nybeck as high as the third round, much less the second. So, this is essentially my subjective rendering of my objective observations, if you catch my drift.
[TBODY]
[/TBODY]
The Devils lack a second round pick, but I went there anyway because it's fun. Maybe the Devils will get John Hynes to offer Nashville's second-rounder for Kevin Rooney and the Devils can grab my favorite player in the draft, Tristen Robins. I mean I doubt it, but without dreams what do we really have left?
Please, keep in mind that this is a mock draft and not a ranking. My Top 100 Rankings can be found on these threads, as well. For the mock, I take all 31 organizational needs and draft tendencies into consideration. Personally, there is no way on earth I would personally let talents like Miettinen and Vierling drop out of the top 2 rounds of the draft, just as there is no way on earth I would take Nybeck as high as the third round, much less the second. So, this is essentially my subjective rendering of my objective observations, if you catch my drift.
The Team | The Player | The Skinny |
1) New York Rangers | LW Alex Lafreniere | Superstar market gets superstar player |
2) Los Angeles | C Quinton Byfield | Stocked prospect pool overflows with the unfathomable upside of this 6’5, blazingly fast scoring machine |
3) Ottawa | C/LW Tim Stutzle | Best combination of skating, hands and vision in the draft |
4) Detroit | LD Jake Sanderson | Wings need D and Sanderson is a rare two-way talent who compares favorably to Heiskanen at the same age |
5) Ottawa | RD Jamie Drysdale | Ottawa usually does not draft undersized D, but Drysdale is an electrifying offensive talent who can transform a blueline |
6) Anaheim | RW Alexander Holtz | If they miss out on the D they covet, the Ducks also need goal-scoring at RW and Holtz possesses the best shot in the entire 2020 class |
7) NEW JERSEY DEVILS | C Marco Rossi | Rossi is the best two-way center in the 2020 draft. His compete level and hockey IQ are as elite as it gets and his offensive skills are simply dazzling |
8) Buffalo | LW/RW Lucas Raymond | Sabres need wingers to compliment Eichel and Raymond is like a Gaudreau/Marner hybrid with incredible mix of skates/vision/skills |
9) Minnesota | C Anton Lundell | Wild have desperate need for top pivot and Lundell is a big body with NHL-ready two-way acumen and incredible intelligence |
10) Winnipeg | LW/C Cole Perfetti | Lack of elite skating mixed with lack of size drops Perfetti, but an absurd combo of skills/shot/hockey IQ give him stratospheric offensive potential |
11) Nashville | G Yaroslav Askarov | The Predators have nothing in net in the organization and Askarov has dominated the KHL as a teenager; called the best goalie prospect since Carey Price |
12) Florida | RW Jack Quinn | Maybe the draft’s best sniper after Holtz and a superior all-around game; Panthers need D but can’t pass on Quinn if he falls out of the top 10 |
13) Carolina | RW/C Seth Jarvis | No winger in the 2020 draft offers a better mix of skill and compete level, Jarvis could even sneak into top 10; Carolina has drafted very well recently and would not miss on Jarvis |
14) Edmonton | RW Jacob Perreault | GM Ken Holland has infused the Oilers with speed to surround legendary C duo McDavid and Draisaitl; Perreault offers the best combination of skating/shooting/vision of the entire 2020 draft but comes with a litany of questions which drop him out of the top dozen |
15) Toronto | RD Helge Grans | Leafs under GM Kyle Dubas have different scouting agenda than most of NHL and will be willing to overlook Grans’ defensive liability for his enormous offensive upside |
16) Montreal | LW Rodion Amirov | Habs seek scoring wingers and Amirov combines absurd skill, tremendous shot and terrific 200-foot effort |
17) Chicago | RD Braden Schneider | Best shut-down RD in draft is big, skates very well, and is a physical force on the blueline. Hawks desperately need all of these things. |
18) NEW JERSEY DEVILS | RW/C Dawson Mercer | The Devils continue to load up with skilled forwards with high hockey IQs and tremendous all-around games; Mercer is a dual-threat, fearless forechecker and also features some of the best hands in a gifted 2020 class |
19) Calgary | LD Kaiden Guhle | The Flames need to inject some youth and talent into an aging D-core, Guhle is big, fast, physical and can bomb the puck from the point |
20) NEW JERSEY DEVILS | RW Noel Gunler | NJ shoots for the moon with an incredible scoring talent in Gunler; compete questions dog him but this is a 40+ goal talent if he puts it all together |
21) Columbus | LW Dylan Holloway | Best power forward in the 2020 class oozes qualities which Blue Jackets’ coach John Tortorella covets more than anyone |
22) NY Rangers | C Hendrix Lapierre | After winning the lottery, Rangers can afford to roll the dice on Lapierre’s enormous abilities but injury-riddled past. Lafreniere is the best playmaker in the 2020 draft, but Lapierre is likely next in line. |
23) Philadelphia | LW/C Ridly Greig | No team values compete level more than the Flyers, and no 2020 draftee offers more than the sneaky-skilled Greig |
24) Colorado | C/LW Connor Zary | The rich get richer with this extremely skilled, two-way Swiss-army knife with nothing resembling a flaw in his polished and productive game |
25) Washington | LW/RW Lukas Reichel | Another do-it-all forward with no weakness, Reichel also offers an absurd mix of hockey IQ/compete level to compliment his under appreciated scoring skills |
26) St. Louis | LD Ryan O’Rourke | Whether or not the Blues lose best player Pietrangelo, they need new blood on D and O’Rourke is a high-floor, two-way stud who oozes character |
27) Anaheim | RD Justin Barron | If Ducks miss out on Drysdale/Sanderson, expect them to focus on D for remainder of draft. Barron is coming off rough year but has the mix of speed/size and skill Anaheim loves to draft for the blueline |
28) Ottawa | RW Tyson Foerster | Senators could jump to the top of NHL prospect rankings after 2020; Foerster’s shot ranks just below Holtz/Quinn/Perreault/Gunler but he needs to improve skating |
29) Las Vegas | LD Tyler Kleven | 6’4 shut-down monster skates extremely well and has more skill than often mentioned, a cannon-blast from the point |
30) Dallas | LW/C Jan Mysak | The best Czech in the draft is a bit of a wild card, could sneak into the top 15 or fall into the 2nd round. |
31) San Jose | LW JJ Peterka | No one drafts out of central Europe more than San Jose; Peterka is a pure scorer with some of the best hands you’ll see |
32) Detroit | C Marat Khusnutdinov | An Yzerman pick if there ever was one, Khusnutdinov would be mentioned in top 12 were he not 5’9 — offering an insane mix of skill, two-way acuity, speed and compete level |
33) Ottawa | LW Jake Neighbours | Power forwards this rugged and competitive don’t often come with Neighbours’ high-end vision |
34) San Jose | RW/C Mavrik Bourque | Bourque features a litany of shots which can all beat you from anywhere, just needs to improve skating and 200-foot game |
35) Los Angeles | RW Ozzy Wiesblatt | Perhaps the best forechecker in the draft, Wiesblatt’s motor never quits and he possesses the requisite scoring skills to compliment a top NHL scoring line |
36) Anaheim | LD William Wallinder | Desperate for D, Ducks take a chance on Wallinder’s historic combo of size and blazing speed despite his lack of discernible hockey acumen |
37) Nashville | RW Sam Colangelo | Longtime GM David Poile loves big, skilled power forwards like the raw but extremely talented Chicago Steel product |
38) Buffalo | C Ty Smilanic | Production has yet to reach the skill-set for this blazing skater with size and terrific skill |
39) Minnesota | LD Yan Kuznetsov | Wild need pretty much everything; Kuznetsov shined as a physical shut-down D for the University of Connecticut against much older competition |
40) Winnipeg | C Tristen Robins | The Jets draft extremely well and love WHL kids; outside of Jarvis the best draft-eligible out of the league over the last few months of 2019-20 was the ridiculously skilled and competitive Robins. Maybe the most under-rated player in the entire draft, Robins lacks only for size |
41) Carolina | LW/C Brendan Brisson | Perhaps the up and coming team in the entire Eastern Conference, the Hurricanes add the incredible offensive skill of this sublime Chicago Steel product |
42) Nashville | LW Daniel Torgersson | 6’3 forward with great skates who plays a competitive and responsible two-way game? Yes, please |
43) Florida | LD Jeremie Poirier | Maybe the wild card of all 2020 D, the electrifying Poirier is the best offensive defenseman available aside from Drysdale but his play in his own zone has been duly lambasted by critics |
44) Toronto | LW/RW Zion Nybeck | The young Swede’s skill is first-round caliber, but his skating needs a ton of work and his overall effort level and decision-making need even more work than that |
45) Detroit | RW/C Luke Evangelista | Another player with Yzerman written all over him, Evangelista has one of the highest IQs in the entire 2020 class and combines that with underrated offensive skills and a huge compete level |
46) Chicago | G Jan Bednar | The Hawks are needy between the pipes and the young Czech netminder is widely considered the best G available after Askarov |
47) Montreal | RW/C Jean-Luc Foudy | Foudy might be the fastest straight-line skater in the 2020 class and combines that with high-end playmaking |
48) Montreal | RD William Villeneuve | Villeneuve mixes all the size and tools NHL front offices covet in defensemen and has proven extremely productive in the QMJHL |
49) Calgary | RW Martin Chromiak | The Flames shoot for the moon with the best Slovak in the draft; Chromiak has elite shooting ability but just needs to improve his game around it |
50) Los Angeles | LD Shakir Mukhamadullin | With an absolutely loaded prospect pool, the Kings can afford to take a chance on the immense talents and huge shot of this huge but raw rearguard |
51) Ottawa | LD Joni Jurmo | With an absolutely loaded prospect pool, the Senators can afford to take a chance on the immense talents and swift skating of this huge but raw rearguard |
52) Carolina | C Vasily Ponomarev | A do-it-all center with outstanding playmaking ability and a high floor as a middle-6 stalwart |
53) Philadelphia | RD Topi Niemela | Best Finnish D in draft can fly and rush the puck, can be a steal with some refining and filling out in the weight room |
54) San Jose | RD Ian Moore | 6’2 right-shot defensemen with this type of high-end skating and offensive instincts do not make it out of the 2nd round of the NHL draft |
55) Detroit | RW Dmitry Rashevsky | The mystery of the 2020 class, Rashevsky is an overeager who was invisible in his first draft-eligible season of 2018-19 and exploded on the scene in his draft+1 campaign with an otherworldly mix of hands, playmaking and shooting which eclipses most top 10 overall picks; could be a guy we never hear of again or could be one of history’s great draft-day steals |
56) Montreal | LD Donovan Sebrango | All-around excellence is the best way to describe this unheralded, future mid-pairing stud |
57) Boston | RD Brock Faber | Boston did it before with a second-round steal of a disgustingly under-rated USA D with Carlo; Faber is perhaps the best shut-down D in the class behind only Sanderson and Schneider and could be 2020’s version of Jake Slavin |
58) Ottawa | LW Will Cuylle | I feel like Ottawa picks every three picks or something. Whatever, Cuylle is a big, power forward with a whole lot of mean, which the Seanators’ front office loves to see |
59) Los Angeles | C/LW Thomas Bordeleau | Bordeleau has a ridiculous shot and tremendous skill, but his smallish stature and questions concerning his 200-foot game drop him into major sleeper status |
60) Ottawa | RW Brendan Coe | I feel like Ottawa picks every three picks or something. Whatever, Coe is a big, power forward with a whole lot of speed, which the Senators front office loves to see |
61) Tampa Bay | C Jack Finley | 6’5 centers with mobile skating and high IQ/compete levels do not last very long on Day 2 of the NHL Draft, even if some question their scoring upside |
Last edited: