A final top 60 (plus)

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Hiishawk

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For what it's worth, here's my final version of who I think SHOULD be the top 60 in the upcoming draft. This is not a prediction. I've commented only on those players who are ranked somewhat differently than elsewhere.
As usual, I've combined my own viewings with those of trsuted, respected sources. I also admit that my knowledge of NCAA, USHS, and US Jr. leagues is largely restricted to second-hand info.

1. Crosby
2. Johnson
3. Pouliot
4. Brule
5. Ryan
6. Price
7. Kopitar
8. McArdle- Simply put, I don't see any weaknesses in his game. The Pouliot (read: surprise with big, fat upside) of the WHL
9. O' Marra
10. Bourdon
11. Hanzal
12. Staal
13. Bourret
14. Rask
15. Zagrapan
16. (error- move all players below this up one slot)
17. Karpov- He will go later due to underexposure and reluctance to draft Rusians under new agreement (or lack thereof)
18. Setoguchi
19. Latendresse
20. Niskanen- Totally on hearsay on this one
21. Bergfors
22. Mikkelson- Love the skating!
23. Pavelec
24. Mikus- One of the top offensive threats of this draft.
25. Parent
26. Skille- I don't see it yet- up 'n down pro, ok. Star? Hmmm.
27. Stoa
28. Istomin- Will go later due to Russian situation- BUT has star potential.
29. Vojta- Big upside, big risk
30. Lee

31. Lashoff
32. Starkov- Another very underexposed player with a big upside.
33. Bertram
34. Downie- He will not allow himself to NOT be a meaningful NHLer.
35. Cogliano- I question his type of play at the NHL level.
36. Smolenak
37. Sauer- Without the injuries a 1st round selection would have been warranted
38. Abeldaker- 2nd hand info only
39. Kindl- An even bigger risk than Vojta IMO
40. Durand- What happened to the scoring touch?
41. Trukhno
42. Vincent
43. Roy- A real battler and leader- underrated
44. Jackson
45. Dupont- I'll bet $$ that he becomes a 3rd line character guy and steady playoff performer in the big leagues.
46. Lehtonen- Another Euro who could go either way.
47. McQuaid
48. Finley
49. Korhonen
50. M. Hellstrom- The best of the non-1st time eligibles for this draft.
51. Frazee
52. Neal
53. Buravchikov
54. Svobotka- His spunk and passion c/w talent will get him to the show.
55. Ryder
56. Kudelka
57. Plante
58. Bailey
60. Mielonen

30 more (not in order) for the 3rd round:
Zubarev, Anikeenko, Belov, Mihalik, Lindgren, Hjalmarsson, Kohn, Fritsche, Pokulok, Stastny, Pospisil, Lavalee, Blunden, Levassuer, Kalus (new #60), Skorykh, Zubov, P. Davis, Macias, Bartulis, Hensick, McNeill, Pyatt, Dahlberg, May, Jones, Fraser, Pelech, Aubin, Gragnani.

And to make it a nice round 100 who I think could play some in the NHL add:
Lelkes, Shirokov, Ritola, Krysanov, Brophy, Yandle, Bumagin, Bartanus, Kosistsyn, Raymond, Denny.

So, there's your day one picks IF I was doing the picking.
I could be way off on the NCAA and USHS/JR guys. Names like Kanus, N. Davis and Bishop exist only on paper for me. Injured players like Sundstrom and Gauthier could end up being factors too, especially the former. So could small guys like Petterson, Letang, Russell, Gerbe. As a smallish guy myself I hope they end up making this list.

And I know that Zubov and Laakso are absent from this list. I'm not a fan.
 
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Hiishawk

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Lindgren is Perttu Lindgren.

Thanks for the note on Pavelec. I have him right behind Mikkelson in my ratings (but physically underneath Zagrapan's name on my notesheet) so erase the #16 position and move everyone below that up one slot. Pavelc thus ends up at #22.
Sorry.

Now I can add one more name to the overall '1st day list'. Make it Chad Denny.
 

LetsGOJackets!!

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Mar 23, 2004
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? for SteBlik

Where do you see a guy like Tom Fritshe, Danny's little brother going? How about TJ Hensick of Michigan? I don't see any Canadian Jr's, and the world Jr's don't make Cbus tv, but get some exposure to College players.

Where do you have the highest guy from Denver or N. Dakota?
 

Gwyddbwyll

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What would you have considered Karpov's "natural" position if it wasnt for the Russian federation? Does that mean you consider him borderline top 10 then? Quite a compliment.. does he have that much potential?
 

Slats432

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An impressive piece of work. Nice gutsy pick with McCardle, hard to say, because most scouts don't have him near that high....but I can see what there is to like.

Skille is the one I don't like. To me, he is a power forward, he can blow by you, he can power by you, great hands, very good shot, works his ass off every shift....

And I am still not sold on Hanzal.
 

czechhockeyfan

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steblick said:
For what it's worth, here's my final version of who I think SHOULD be the top 60 in the upcoming draft. This is not a prediction. I've commented only on those players who are ranked somewhat differently than elsewhere.
As usual, I've combined my own viewings with those of trsuted, respected sources. I also admit that my knowledge of NCAA, USHS, and US Jr. leagues is largely restricted to second-hand info.

1. Crosby
2. Johnson
3. Pouliot
4. Brule
5. Ryan
6. Price
7. Kopitar
8. McArdle- Simply put, I don't see any weaknesses in his game. The Pouliot (read: surprise with big, fat upside) of the WHL
9. O' Marra
10. Bourdon
11. Hanzal
12. Staal
13. Bourret
14. Rask
15. Zagrapan
16. (error- move all players below this up one slot)
17. Karpov- He will go later due to underexposure and reluctance to draft Rusians under new agreement (or lack thereof)
18. Setoguchi
19. Latendresse
20. Niskanen- Totally on hearsay on this one
21. Bergfors
22. Mikkelson- Love the skating!
23. Pavelec
24. Mikus- One of the top offensive threats of this draft.
25. Parent
26. Skille- I don't see it yet- up 'n down pro, ok. Star? Hmmm.
27. Stoa
28. Istomin- Will go later due to Russian situation- BUT has star potential.
29. Vojta- Big upside, big risk
30. Lee

31. Lashoff
32. Starkov- Another very underexposed player with a big upside.
33. Bertram
34. Downie- He will not allow himself to NOT be a meaningful NHLer.
35. Cogliano- I question his type of play at the NHL level.
36. Smolenak
37. Sauer- Without the injuries a 1st round selection would have been warranted
38. Abeldaker- 2nd hand info only
39. Kindl- An even bigger risk than Vojta IMO
40. Durand- What happened to the scoring touch?
41. Trukhno
42. Vincent
43. Roy- A real battler and leader- underrated
44. Jackson
45. Dupont- I'll bet $$ that he becomes a 3rd line character guy and steady playoff performer in the big leagues.
46. Lehtonen- Another Euro who could go either way.
47. McQuaid
48. Finley
49. Korhonen
50. M. Hellstrom- The best of the non-1st time eligibles for this draft.
51. Frazee
52. Neal
53. Buravchikov
54. Svobotka- His spunk and passion c/w talent will get him to the show.
55. Ryder
56. Kudelka
57. Plante
58. Bailey
60. Mielonen

30 more (not in order) for the 3rd round:
Zubarev, Anikeenko, Belov, Mihalik, Lindgren, Hjalmarsson, Kohn, Fritsche, Pokulok, Stastny, Pospisil, Lavalee, Blunden, Levassuer, Kalus (new #60), Skorykh, Zubov, P. Davis, Macias, Bartulis, Hensick, McNeill, Pyatt, Dahlberg, May, Jones, Fraser, Pelech, Aubin, Gragnani.

And to make it a nice round 100 who I think could play some in the NHL add:
Lelkes, Shirokov, Ritola, Krysanov, Brophy, Yandle, Bumagin, Bartanus, Kosistsyn, Raymond, Denny.

So, there's your day one picks IF I was doing the picking.
I could be way off on the NCAA and USHS/JR guys. Names like Kanus, N. Davis and Bishop exist only on paper for me. Injured players like Sundstrom and Gauthier could end up being factors too, especially the former. So could small guys like Petterson, Letang, Russell, Gerbe. As a smallish guy myself I hope they end up making this list.

And I know that Zubov and Laakso are absent from this list. I'm not a fan.

One player I ´m really missing here is German winger Gogulla.
I see Bumagin and Pospisil as later round pick, they serve for Europe better.
Kindl bigger risk than Vojta? Kindl is big risk but in my eyes not bigger than Vojta.
 

Chief

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Love the list. Not because I agree with all the projections but because I'm sure it represents some of the actual differences of opinion that will come to light on draft day.

I'm with you on McArdle. I just don't see what there is to **NOT** like about this guy.

Email me when you get a chance at [email protected].
 

Upside

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Chief said:
Love the list. Not because I agree with all the projections but because I'm sure it represents some of the actual differences of opinion that will come to light on draft day.

I'm with you on McArdle. I just don't see what there is to **NOT** like about this guy.

Email me when you get a chance at [email protected].

To me anyone who projects McArdle to be any more than a 3rd liner hasn't seen enough of him because this kid doesn't have the upside that projects to be more than that. He put up a ton of points this year because he was all they had until Jones got traded over. Moose Jaw was a 1 line team for most of the year and played it a ton.
His is a good skater but his agility is only average and while he does handle the puck nicely at high speed he doesn't have natural finishing skills. He should play due to effort and solid hockey sense but while some team will jump at him late in the 1st he'll be a guy who goes to early if he goes before 40. He is the Smith kid vancouver took years ago all over again.
 

Hiishawk

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Some responses:

This list is NOT a prediction. So I do agree that Skille will go earlier than I rank him- probably top 15.
With Karpov 15-20 is where I rank him as a prospect- independently of the Russian Hockey Fed. business. BUT with the Russian confusion in mind I actually expect him to go about mid-late 2nd round.

I have seen McArdle 5 times this year- for what that's worth. His rate of improvement has been outstanding and I expect to see him jump again in 05-06. It's true that his finishing skills are not Brule-ish, Ryan-ish, or Kopitar-ish but how many in this class are? His skating, on-ice awareness, two-way effort and playmaking are all top-class though. Hockey people that I know speak very highly of him.

I see Fritsche going 2nd or 3rd round but, as I said, I'm not on top of NCAA hockey. I make that prognosis only because a great majority of other knowledgable hockey people have him ranked around there so no great insights on this guy- sorry. Hensick worries me a bit- I wonder how his game will translate to the pros. I see a high-scoring career minor-leaguer sometimes here but that is based on his WJC play. I hope I'm wrong (as I do with any player who I have doubts about). I'd guess he's a 3rd rounder though.

Gogulla seems like a mid-rounder to me. I actually like the DF Ondruschka (spelling?) better, from German players. Does anyone know if Gawlik is opting in?
 

turnbuckle*

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I love your ranking for Downie, Steblick - I'm hoping that the Habs can somehow get him with a second round pick. I have to agree with Upside on McArdle, however.

Let me start by saying I only saw McArdle play twice last season, so I honestly can't say definitively where I think he should be picked, but I can assure you that I have discussed McArdle on more than one occasion during the past six months with two highly respected scouts, and he is not someone they would pick in their top 20. They don't see his game translating well to the NHL. Im guessing he'll go somewhere between 15 and 25.

We don't have long to wait before we see who's right, do we? Two weekends away.
 

Hossa

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Great work steblick. There are things I disagree with, like Kindl in the 40s, but I know it's not out of ignorance, but personal opinion. I understand why some would have Kindl at that spot, even if I'd probably have him about 20 spots higher. Thanks for putting that together.
 

Hiishawk

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In the first post at the bottom I said that I do not see Laakso as a first-day pick.

Actually, this opinion does not seem to be too far out of place in draft circles right now as Laakso seems to have fallen further than just about any other prospect this season.. Also, if you look on the Redline DF thread you can see my reasons why I wouldn't take Laakso until, maybe, te 4th round.
 

czechhockeyfan

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steblick said:
Some responses:

This list is NOT a prediction. So I do agree that Skille will go earlier than I rank him- probably top 15.
With Karpov 15-20 is where I rank him as a prospect- independently of the Russian Hockey Fed. business. BUT with the Russian confusion in mind I actually expect him to go about mid-late 2nd round.

I have seen McArdle 5 times this year- for what that's worth. His rate of improvement has been outstanding and I expect to see him jump again in 05-06. It's true that his finishing skills are not Brule-ish, Ryan-ish, or Kopitar-ish but how many in this class are? His skating, on-ice awareness, two-way effort and playmaking are all top-class though. Hockey people that I know speak very highly of him.

I see Fritsche going 2nd or 3rd round but, as I said, I'm not on top of NCAA hockey. I make that prognosis only because a great majority of other knowledgable hockey people have him ranked around there so no great insights on this guy- sorry. Hensick worries me a bit- I wonder how his game will translate to the pros. I see a high-scoring career minor-leaguer sometimes here but that is based on his WJC play. I hope I'm wrong (as I do with any player who I have doubts about). I'd guess he's a 3rd rounder though.

Gogulla seems like a mid-rounder to me. I actually like the DF Ondruschka (spelling?) better, from German players. Does anyone know if Gawlik is opting in?

I love Ondruschka, I´m very high on him but still I would take Gogulla earlier.
In my eyes Ondruschka is sleeper. Nobody will agree with me but I like Ondruschka more than Kudelka(I´m not a big fan).
 

Ego

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Hi Steblick,
good job.
I just want to ask you why isn't Richard Lelkes on your list. Some people are high on him, but some are not. What is your reason?
 

ZombieMatt

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A few things that I noticed.

1)Mcardle...gutsy call, but with Central Scouting also ranking him pretty high that may be the kiss of death ;)

2)I like where you put Kindle, although I agree with Hossa that someone is going to take him higher.

3)A little disappointed on where Latendresse ended up, but I wouldn't be surprised if you're more right than I am.

4)To people in general, when will you learn your lesson and stop making ridiculous absolute statements?
 

MaV

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steblick said:
In the first post at the bottom I said that I do not see Laakso as a first-day pick.

Actually, this opinion does not seem to be too far out of place in draft circles right now as Laakso seems to have fallen further than just about any other prospect this season.. Also, if you look on the Redline DF thread you can see my reasons why I wouldn't take Laakso until, maybe, te 4th round.

I don't know. You've seen the the wrong games! I predict that he gets picked by some team with strong (strong influence) scouting staff in Finland. This is by far where he played his best games, not on the international scene.
 

linkki

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I'm not sure about Laakso. He has looked average in the games that I have seen. Besides, he seems to be injured all the time. Laakso might be a good 4th rounder but very risky 1st rounder.
 

czechhockeyfan

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30 more (not in order) for the 3rd round:
Zubarev, Anikeenko, Belov, Mihalik, Lindgren, Hjalmarsson, Kohn, Fritsche, Pokulok, Stastny, Pospisil, Lavalee, Blunden, Levassuer, Kalus (new #60), Skorykh, Zubov, P. Davis, Macias, Bartulis, Hensick, McNeill, Pyatt, Dahlberg, May, Jones, Fraser, Pelech, Aubin, Gragnani.

And to make it a nice round 100 who I think could play some in the NHL add:
Lelkes, Shirokov, Ritola, Krysanov, Brophy, Yandle, Bumagin, Bartanus, Kosistsyn, Raymond, Denny.

I forgot to mention one other name I´m missing here. I consider Danish forward Morten Madsen as better prospect than many above mentioned prospects. Despite of having a bit dissapointment season. Personally I see him as early third round pick.
Opinions?
I like to see Johan Dahlberg on your list. Nobody on this board talks about him but he is an interesting player.
 
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