All-Time Draft #11, Part 1

[The Mighty Duck Man]

Well, guess I'm gonna go ahead and eat this hat, then.

 

[pappyline]

i've agonized over this pick - three names have been floating around in my head.

that said, i'm going to pick the exact same player i picked in this spot last draft and, for the exact same position.

kenora, please welcome your second-line centre...

marcel dionne (C)

Great player & a steal but I would never pick him in an ATD because so many critize his playoff performance. Same reasoning goes for Hall (my fav goalie) & XXXXXXX.

 

[The Mighty Duck Man]

Great player & a steal but I would never pick him in an ATD because so many critize his playoff performance. Same reasoning goes for Hall (my fav goalie) & XXXX XXXX.

I'm thinking you should edit that one.

 

[nik jr]

kenora has overwhelming firepower, but kenora is also in the goalie division, with hasek, roy, hall, plante and brodeur.


should be very interesting.

 

[pappyline]

I'm thinking you should edit that one.

Thank you & done . How careless of me.

 

[papershoes]

Well, guess I'm gonna go ahead and eat this hat, then.

would be interested in hearing who you thought i would pick (by pm)

 

[Kyle McMahon]

My next pick could come up tomorrow when I'm at work, anyone want to take a list?

 

[arrbez]

"Cowboy" Bill Cowley went on to retire in 1947 as the NHL's all-time scoring leader and third behind Gretzky and Lemieux in points per game over a season (1.97).

Technically speaking Joe Malone (twice), Newsy Lalonde, and two other players of that era have higher points-per-game in a season . But Cowley is 3rd of the "modern" era (post-1930), albeit in a shortened campaign.

 

[pitseleh]

I can take lists for tomorrow for anyone who needs to send one.

 

[pappyline]

The Kimberley Dynamiters tale what we feel is a bit of steal here:

LW Johnny Bucyk

I like Bucyk but really think he is over-rated. A decent career & then put up some big numbers on a post expansion offensive team, There are at least 3 LWers out there that I would pick ahead of him.

 

[Nalyd Psycho]

Great player & a steal but I would never pick him in an ATD because so many critize his playoff performance. Same reasoning goes for Hall (my fav goalie) & XXXXXXX.

In a situation like he's in here where he isn't the offensive leader, he's great.

 

[papershoes]

In a situation like he's in here where he isn't the offensive leader, he's great.

he also has two players who have captained teams to titles taking the brunt of the first-line / playoff pressure

 

[God Bless Canada]

paper's following the same route that he followed in the last draft - a high-flying, high-scoring team that need to score four or five goals to win. He was on the right track, too, except for one blunder. We'll see if he makes the same mistake again.

I wasn't expecting him to pick Dionne - I think Leo and I had him down for the same player - but I'm not overly surprised he picked Dionne, either. I'm guessing this means that Messier will play LW.

Dionne tops the list of guys I'll never pick. It's not just the playoff record and the lack of big-game mentality. I've met the guy. I've spent time with the guy. Out of the big-name hockey people I've met, he's easily the biggest jackass of them all. And I've met Gary Bettman. I'm not the only one who's had a pretty negative experience with Dionne, either.

I have Toska's list. So we're just waiting for the Speaker or sturm to announce their pick.

 

[arrbez]

And I've met Gary Bettman.

What's Count Chocula like in person?

 

[Kyle McMahon]

I can take lists for tomorrow for anyone who needs to send one.

List sent to ya, pits.

 

[God Bless Canada]

What's Count Chocula like in person?

Every bit the smug, smarmy, arrogant SOB that he comes across as on TV. Which isn't a surprise. He's not just a commissioner, he's also a wannabe politician, and not the finest example of a people person I've ever met.

We had him here for a function a couple years ago. First time he's ever been in Saskatchewan. Very rare to get him for a public speaking event, because of the demands of his job and his commitment to his family. He's actually really passionate about the game, and really knowledgeable about its history.

As a banquet speaker, he's surprisingly subpar, and not overly entertaining. Kind of dry, actually. We had Brian Burke that same year (Burkie's an absolute riot, and a fun guy to talk to), and we've had Michael Landsberg and Ray Scapinello since then, and both guys were absolutely awesome to work with, have lunch with, and get to know a little bit.

 

[Spitfire11]

Great player & a steal but I would never pick him in an ATD because so many critize his playoff performance. Same reasoning goes for Hall (my fav goalie) & XXXXXXX.

Yeah, why does Bathgate get excused for his playoff numbers and Dionne doesn't? Dionne is a great pick at this point, his playoff numbers are not even that bad. I was starting to wonder if he would fall all the way to my pick at 125 this time.

 

[VanIslander]

Dionne is like 46th or 48th on the HOH List but some talk here like he should be outside the top-100 picks in the ATD. Is the difference that grand?

He's small but feisty, plays through traffic.

His shortcoming was being a L.A. King.

 

[pitseleh]

I agree. I'd have picked Dionne at 100 without hesitating. The guy is a top-30 forward in terms of offensive talent. A poor playoff record doesn't erase his entire body of work.

 

[God Bless Canada]

Dionne is like 46th or 48th on the HOH List but some talk here like he should be outside the top-100 picks in the ATD. Is the difference that grand?

He's small but feisty, plays through traffic.

His shortcoming was being a L.A. King.

I'd pick Dionne in the 75-100 range, without question, if he wasn't such a jackass.

As for Dionne's playoff record vs. Bathgate's playoff record, Dionne played post-expansion, while Bathgate played pre-expansion. Expansion made such a difference in terms of production. When I look at Bathgate's playoff record, I see five playoff births during his magnificent eight-year run. Twice he played against the best team ever assembled, the late 50s Habs. Once he played against possibly the best defensive team ever assembled - the early 60s Leafs. The one time his Rangers played against a team at their level, in 1958 against the Boston Bruins, Bathgate had eight points in six games. He did have nine points in 14 games for the Leafs in 64, and that one is a concern, but that's the one playoff during Bathgate's prime in which I would say he legitimately struggled.

Now, you could argue that Dionne had to go against great teams in his playoffs, and that's true. But keep in mind how much the game opened up because of expansion and the onset of the offensive defenceman. And keep in mind that Dionne was facing a team like Edmonton, which, as great as they were, they were a team that you could definitely put up points against. Nobody will ever confuse the Oilers for the 62 Leafs.

 

[God Bless Canada]

I'm going to bed in an hour. I have Toska's list, and I'd have our list. Is there someone I can send these to if Speaker or sturm (highly unlikely for the latter) aren't around before I crash?

 

[EagleBelfour]

I'll be around another two hours, and then connect a 7:00AMET.

 

[God Bless Canada]

I have forwarded Toska's list to EB, and sent our list to him as well.

Good night, gents. Good job this afternoon. 19 picks in about seven hours. Keep up the good work.

 

[Sturminator]

The Boston Bruins are very pleased to select C/LW Alex Delvecchio.

 

[Sturminator]

One thing about Delvecchio that I really value is what a solid all-around player he was. I'm not a guy who thinks that every O6 era forward was a super backchecker, but in Delvecchio's case, he was specifically known as a strong two-way player. Here's a little snippet I found from a Toronto Star article (Jim Proudfoot) with team capsules for the upcoming season: August 7, 1968:

Not even the incomparable Gordie Howe made as impressive a debut in big league hockey as Alex Delvecchio did. He cracked the Detroit lineup in his very first professional season and got 15 goals. Seventeen years later and Delvecchio now has 350 goals. His strong point: versatility.

Much of his career has been spent as Gordie Howe's playmaking centre. He's been a standout on the left wing, and he's regarded as an excellent prospect for defense if it ever develops that he's not fast enough for the attack. Though he is only 36, he is gray, in keeping with his quiet personality.

First, I find it interesting that, as late as 1968, the idea that an older defensive-minded forward who was slowing down could be rotated to defense full-time was still in circulation. I assumed that this was basically a pre-war practice (with one notable postwar exception). Second, it is, of course, telling that Fats was regarded as a strong candidate for just this switch should he ever lose his wheels.

Those of you who know my drafting tendencies know that I like to use my first unit players for as long as is realistically possible, and in all game situations. We still have yet to draft a #2 defenseman, but I feel that we now have the nucleus of a first unit that will be dominant on both ends of the ice.