ATD2018 - Draft Thread 1

[BenchBrawl]

There he goes!

 

[ImporterExporter]

Well, it's fitting the Bankers would end up with the biggest money (figuratively and literally) player of all time.

Pittsburgh Bankers are excited to select!

"The Great One" Wayne Gretzky

 

[BenchBrawl]

Standard.Curious to see the team you will build around Gretzky.

 

[ImporterExporter]

Had a different path in mind after I found out I was picking 3, but then again I thought Gretzky would have been gone 1 or 2. Stoked to have Wayne though. Such a dominant regular and postseason player.

Gotta adapt in life and fantasy drafts!

I pm'd 29GH as well.

 

[GlitchMarner]

The Beavers select this guy...

Mario Lemieux!

 

[BenchBrawl]

Good one.Nice opportunity to build your first team around Lemieux.The Top 4 are out.The fun can begin

 

[ImporterExporter]

Hard for me, a Penguins diehard, who got into hockey because of 66, to pass on him. He's a great, great player. IMO the most naturally gifted player ever, certainly that I ever saw in person. If not for injuries and cancer he probably matches or even breaks some of Gretzky's records.

 

[Leaf Lander]

thanks for making my pick

that orr guy is great cross era player

 

[BenchBrawl]

I doubt Lemieux would have broken Gretzky's records.Not enough natural will to win compared to Gretz.

 

[ImporterExporter]

I doubt Lemieux would have broken Gretzky's records.Not enough natural will to win compared to Gretz.

Probably right. You make a great point regarding Gretzky's will to win. Probably one of the more overlooked strengths of his.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Probably right. You make a great point regarding Gretzky's will to win. Probably one of the more overlooked strengths of his.

It's psychologically hard to maintain Gretzky's pace for so long.His prime is nonestop domination.Many would slow down the pedal.

 

[VanIslander]

The Ottawa Senators will open this draft by picking their franchise player: ... Gordie Howe, RW, ... finishing top 5 in league scoring for 20 consecutive years... led in NHL playoff scoring 5 times, and won six Hart Trophies as the Most Valuable Player.

Let that set in.

A widely-respected HHOF coach thought he was"a complete player", the greatest player and - I quote him - "it wasn't even close". I'll gladly provide the reference once the coach is selected (200th to 400th+ overall traditionally).

Bobby Orr on Gordie Howe:

"I sit and look at Gordie's stats and I laugh," he said. "I actually giggle when I look at his stats. Twenty-two consecutive (NHL) seasons of 20 or more goals? That's outrageous. … His numbers are unbelievable, and he played in an era that was pretty tough."
Orr rolled his eyes and laughed as those words spilled from him.
"He was the guy, so you know they were going after him. You couldn't invent Gordie today. If he was playing with today's rules he might not be able to do anything at first. But he would adapt to the rules and guys wouldn't take liberties with him. The way he played, he'd do real well.

"Watch him on the ice and then meet him off it, he was a different guy altogether. Gordie was a sweetheart off the ice. He was kind, and kind to everybody, whether it was a child or a grandmother. At All-Star Games he was the first one I'd want to bring to talk to my father and his friends."
Orr laughed at the mention of the legendary Gordie Howe hat trick: A goal, an assist and a fight in a single game.
"I might have had a couple," Orr said, grinning. "But Gordie wasn't that kind of player. When he started he didn't go looking for it. He'd finesse you, he'd use his speed. He had a great shot. He could play any way you wanted to.
"He was tough, no doubt about it. If you messed around with him he might respond. But that's not how he played. He played the game and he was a pure player. He was a tough son of a gun and guys started respecting that. He wasn't going to take any guff from you."

Orr: 'There will never be another Gordie Howe'

 

[Pominville Knows]

Hard for me, a Penguins diehard, who got into hockey because of 66, to pass on him. He's a great, great player. IMO the most naturally gifted player ever, certainly that I ever saw in person. If not for injuries and cancer he probably matches or even breaks some of Gretzky's records.

Metoo. But i probably would have done the same thing if i could not trade down. This is the All Time Draft after all, not the Pittsburgh Penguins All Time Draft.
But i guess a homer pick would perhaps not have been too damaging.

 

[TheDevilMadeMe]

Really respect the tough choice that ImporterExporter made in drafting Gretzky over Lemieux. Picking the slightly better player over your favorite player, when picking your favorite player wouldn't have been totally crazy is not easy. But it's the right thing to do if you want to have a better shot at winning this thing.

I've barely missed out on my favorite real Devils for the same reason.

In other news, Dreakmur is joining the NJ Swamp Devils as co-GM. This has been in the works for awhile. I'll be our team lead for any trading inquiries.

 

[Iceman]

Fascinating that Lander got Orr in back to back years.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Gretzky over Lemieux is a no-brainer, but I don't think it affects your chances of winning a lot, unless you end up facing Gretzky with Lemieux.

One thing about Gretzky is that it's tempting to replicate the Oilers, which raises the level of difficulty in building your team, if you choose to do so.

 

[Theokritos]

So Gretzky could realistically have ended up 4th overall this year?

 

[BenchBrawl]

So Gretzky could realistically have ended up 4th overall this year?

Lemieux went 8th overall one year.Everyone took a defenseman as trading was not allowed IIRC.

 

[ImporterExporter]

Really respect the tough choice that ImporterExporter made in drafting Gretzky over Lemieux. Picking the slightly better player over your favorite player, when picking your favorite player wouldn't have been totally crazy is not easy. But it's the right thing to do if you want to have a better shot at winning this thing.

I've barely missed out on my favorite real Devils for the same reason.

In other news, Dreakmur is joining the NJ Swamp Devils as co-GM. This has been in the works for awhile. I'll be our team lead for any trading inquiries.

Thanks TDMM. Appreciate that, coming from you.

I didn't hesitate at all in picking Gretzky. He only played less than 73 games once before the 92-93 season (aged 32), so he was actually pretty damn durable. And his offensive genius, regular and postseason dominance is just impossible to pass on at 3. Had Mario not had so many ailments things might have been different there.

My original plan was to take Howe at 3, given the smaller draft size but kudos to OP for bucking the trend and getting a hellova player to build around. Actually thought for a second Orr might fall to 3 since LL picked him last year!

 

[GlitchMarner]

So Gretzky could realistically have ended up 4th overall this year?

I would've taken Hoglund if Lemieux was off the board.

 

[Johnny Engine]

UNDRAFTED PLAYER ALERT

 

[Sprague Cleghorn]

Has Voight been pmed?

 

[BenchBrawl]

@Voight you're up.Just a heads up in case you weren't pm'ed.

 

[ResilientBeast]

He hasn't been on for over 24 hours now...not that I was keeping track

 

[BenchBrawl]

He hasn't been on for over 24 hours now...not that I was keeping track

So how was your party last night