HockeyProspect.com 2018 NHL Draft Black Book and Final Rankings

Mark Edwards

@MarkEdwardsHP
Feb 14, 2008
1,061
1,288
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@Mark Edwards

Great book, just purchased it again yesterday and can't wait until it comes in. I used it all year using the 2018 previews.

Some questions:

- McIsaac. Do you see him putting it all together as he gets older, or using his skating, power, skill to transition to a more defensive oriented player in the NHL? I see the latter.
- Drury. I think he rounds into a utility player who can slot anywhere you need him, a lot like his dad and uncle. Thoughts?
- What do you think of McBain?

Thanks!

Defensive oriented, don't think he's a dumb player but I don't think hockey sense is one of his big strengths either.

Drury is tough to predict. He's done it all on sheer determination. Scouts loved his interview (and I think that helps him) but some I spoke to were still a long ways from being sold on him. A mixed bag on him. I think you have a decent take on him though.

McBain - great kid, liked him a lot when I interviewed him in Truro. Skating has improved a ton since AAA but still needs to keep progressing. Not sure he'll ever be a big scorer in the NHL but he is smart and competes pretty hard. I know two scouts who still had him at the bottom of the first round on sheer size and potential alone. The rest I spoke to had dropped him on their lists quite a bit as the season progressed. Not surprisingly, U18 didn't help him based on my feedback from scouts. Much like Veleno, for me he's winger not a centre. If memory serves I think we have a bunch of quotes with his profile. There are a few players this year in that boat. :thumbu:

Edit to say thanks for purchasing.
 
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WeThreeKings

Habs cup - its in the BAG
Sep 19, 2006
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@Mark Edwards

Incredible work as usual, lots of content.

I'm noticing two names so far that didn't make it in.. Brendan Budy and Carl Wassenius, is that because you don't have any views and no quotables on either prospects?

Budy is a tough one for me to see omitted since he played with Crookshank, and in the BCHL, also wore team Canada colors.
 

Der Jaeger

Generational EBUG
Feb 14, 2009
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Defensive oriented, don't think he's a dumb player but I don't think hockey sense is one of his big strengths either.

Drury is tough to predict. He's done it all on sheer determination. Scouts loved his interview (and I think that helps him) but some I spoke to were still a long ways from being sold on him. A mixed bag on him. I think you have a decent take on him though.

McBain - great kid, liked him a lot when I interviewed him in Truro. Skating has improved a ton since AAA but still needs to keep progressing. Not sure he'll ever be a big scorer in the NHL but he is smart and competes pretty hard. I know two scouts who still had him at the bottom of the first round on sheer size and potential alone. The rest I spoke to had dropped him on their lists quite a bit as the season progressed. Not surprisingly, U18 didn't help him based on my feedback from scouts. Much like Veleno, for me he's winger not a centre. If memory serves I think we have a bunch of quotes with his profile. There are a few players this year in that boat. :thumbu:

Edit to say thanks for purchasing.

Thank you!
 
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Mark Edwards

@MarkEdwardsHP
Feb 14, 2008
1,061
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Toronto
www.HockeyProspect.com
@Mark Edwards

Incredible work as usual, lots of content.

I'm noticing two names so far that didn't make it in.. Brendan Budy and Carl Wassenius, is that because you don't have any views and no quotables on either prospects?

Budy is a tough one for me to see omitted since he played with Crookshank, and in the BCHL, also wore team Canada colors.

Saw Budy but I didn't have enough notes and our West guys didn't send in info either...thus he was not included. We're not going to just randomly drop him into the ranking. That is pretty much the same story whenever we leave out some draft worthy players.

We'll also leave out some players we have seen a lot, but we are just choosing not to include them, we need to draw a line somewhere or we'd need another 2 weeks to finish the book.
 
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Runner77

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Jun 24, 2012
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I got the draft guide in PDF form and because of the Canadian/US currency translation, it was only $27, I remember last time I got the draft guide, prospects' write-ups were in ranking order, but now they're in alphabetical order, same as the Black Book. (I preferred them in ranking order, which made the draft guide easier to navigate, but at least the draft guide is back).

Other than the consensus top 9, many prospects are all over the place for other ranking services, so I spent up for this guide because I felt this guide employs more scouting resources and reflects the latest information (Combine results and late trends like Boqvist slipping). (Some in the top 9 sometimes slip to 10 or 11 when prospects like Kotkaniemi, Farabee, Veleno, Smith, and now Kravtsov sneak in, but anyone outside of the to 9 (starting with Ty Smith) can slip 10 or more spots depending on the guide)

Two questions:

Black Book or Draft Guide? Which do you guys prefer and why.

Also, paper or PDF?

Thanks in advance.
 

Menwithouthat tricks

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Dec 25, 2002
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Two questions:

Black Book or Draft Guide? Which do you guys prefer and why.

Also, paper or PDF?

Thanks in advance.
The draft guide seems to be the same as the Black Book but without the scouting reports and without the 2019 preview. As a casual scouting fan, the draft guide and its cheaper price is fine for me. The PDF is also cheaper for US purchasers because of the Canadian-->US currency differential.
 
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mike14

Rampage Sherpa
Jun 22, 2006
17,685
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Always been a fan of the Black Book as a draft guide.
Any particular reason why there's no ability to select 'Australia' in the checkout section for the pdf version this year?
 
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thefeebster

Registered User
Mar 13, 2009
7,183
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Great work as usual.

My only minor minor annoyance is sort of the height measurements, how .25 and 0.75 of an inch gets rounded to 0.3 and 0.8. Sort of throws me off a little. I thought it might be a spacing thing, but then Eriksson and others have the full 0.25/0.75.

My one question is Oscar Back vs David Gustafsson. You and others have shown to rank them fairly wide apart and often Gustafsson lower, why? They are very similar players and potential, but Gustafsson IMO has outplayed Back, to my eye and based on production at every level. Both have skating issues, as mentioned in both write ups. But I feel Gustafsson has been more effective, despite of it and any discrepancy between their skating abilities.

Two questions:

Black Book or Draft Guide? Which do you guys prefer and why.

Also, paper or PDF?

Thanks in advance.
Never got the draft guide since it’s new. Stayed with the BB like in years past. For me, I use it like an encyclopedia. This year and past years, I would always look at the previous year’s BB and look up what they wrote about the current draft eligibles, see if they improved upon their flaws. So having the 2019/2020s write ups are a nice value add for me. And from what I saw, the draft guide did not include the game scouting reports, which are also nice to have. But it’s up to you to see if it’s worth the extra money.

PDF because I’ll be at work or away from home and get an urge to read about a player, it’s nice to just slap the BB into my google drive or Dropbox and access it there. And the search function!
 
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Mark Edwards

@MarkEdwardsHP
Feb 14, 2008
1,061
1,288
Toronto
www.HockeyProspect.com
Always been a fan of the Black Book as a draft guide.
Any particular reason why there's no ability to select 'Australia' in the checkout section for the pdf version this year?

Fixed!!

Great work as usual.

My only minor minor annoyance is sort of the height measurements, how .25 and 0.75 of an inch gets rounded to 0.3 and 0.8. Sort of throws me off a little. I thought it might be a spacing thing, but then Eriksson and others have the full 0.25/0.75.

My one question is Oscar Back vs David Gustafsson. You and others have shown to rank them fairly wide apart and often Gustafsson lower, why? They are very similar players and potential, but Gustafsson IMO has outplayed Back, to my eye and based on production at every level. Both have skating issues, as mentioned in both write ups. But I feel Gustafsson has been more effective, despite of it and any discrepancy between their skating abilities.

Never got the draft guide since it’s new. Stayed with the BB like in years past. For me, I use it like an encyclopedia. This year and past years, I would always look at the previous year’s BB and look up what they wrote about the current draft eligibles, see if they improved upon their flaws. So having the 2019/2020s write ups are a nice value add for me. And from what I saw, the draft guide did not include the game scouting reports, which are also nice to have. But it’s up to you to see if it’s worth the extra money.

PDF because I’ll be at work or away from home and get an urge to read about a player, it’s nice to just slap the BB into my google drive or Dropbox and access it there. And the search function!

Nice timing on this. I was talking to one of our guys the other day. We had a discussion about "who is a player that we might regret his ranking?' Gustafsson was one of the first players mentioned. Quick answer is Skating was biggest factor.

Heights .8 - We just wanted to give the exact converted measurement rather than round down.

Seconded.
@Mark Edwards I would also like to get the pdf but can't select Australia.

Fixed!!
 

Maverick41

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Nov 9, 2005
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Since I am getting it for the first time this year I have one question for @Mark Edwards or anyone who is familiar with the Black Book.
Does the preview for 2019/2020 have the stronger focus on North American prospects? In other words how extensive has the scouting been for Europeans in those previews?
 

Zaddy

Registered User
Feb 8, 2013
13,058
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By the way, what's the reason behind dropping Mattias Samuelsson to the 2nd round? IIRC you had him top15 or even top12 at one point.
 

Mark Edwards

@MarkEdwardsHP
Feb 14, 2008
1,061
1,288
Toronto
www.HockeyProspect.com
Since I am getting it for the first time this year I have one question for @Mark Edwards or anyone who is familiar with the Black Book.
Does the preview for 2019/2020 have the stronger focus on North American prospects? In other words how extensive has the scouting been for Europeans in those previews?

Short answer - 2019 Europe yes. 2020 Europe no

By the way, what's the reason behind dropping Mattias Samuelsson to the 2nd round? IIRC you had him top15 or even top12 at one point.

Coles Notes: I dropped him a bit myself and then two of our main guys pushed hard to drop him even more. - #1 reason was offensive upside projection. Also, other players were elevated which naturally bumped him down. Still like him but yes, he was a faller for us.

Really appreciate the time and effort you guys put into these rankings.

Thanks. I truly appreciate the kind words. We've had amazing feedback in past years but this year seems to be approaching another level. It's so gratifying to see so many people pleased with their purchase and enjoying all the efforts from our guys this season. Those of you who have purchased the Black Book can probably imagine the large task it is to put the book together so quickly. You mention rankings...it never ceases to amaze me how many hours we put into the final ranking.

Many thanks Mark.
Looks like another quality publication! Also looks like I won't be getting much work done this week :laugh:

Thanks a lot and sorry bud. :thumbu:
 

ProspectsFanatic

Registered User
Nov 13, 2012
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Curious to know your thoughts on Nils Lundkvist, what made you believe he is the best of the rest in terms of defensemen (first after the consensus top5 D)?
 

steveat

Registered User
Jun 4, 2011
12,057
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Hey Mark...what is Samuelsson's speed like. It's been bugging me because people rate him fairly high, but his size doesn't seem like he has a lot of speed...then again..Serron Noel is pretty fast. Thoughts?
 

NotProkofievian

Registered User
Nov 29, 2011
24,476
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Nice timing on this. I was talking to one of our guys the other day. We had a discussion about "who is a player that we might regret his ranking?' Gustafsson was one of the first players mentioned. Quick answer is Skating was biggest factor.

Again Mark, great work with the guide, and I have to say thanks for taking the time to answer questions and criticisms.

I've been driving the Gustafsson hype express over on the habs board this year based on what I saw of his season in Jönköping. However, even I have been questioning my ranking of him recently. Maybe it's just the case that junior centers often look underwhelming, so the ones who don't underwhelm look amazing by comparison. If I were to pick a center on my team from this draft other than Kotkaniemi to play a game tomorrow, it would be David Gustafsson. However, real talk, he's just not as skilled as any of Hayton, Olofsson, O'Brien, Dellandrea, Veleno, and we could go on for a while. Not close either. I actually think Linus Karlsson has a higher skill level.

He's an interesting player in that he has essentially one high-level asset: hockey IQ. The question is: just how far can hockey IQ alone take a player in today's NHL? I don't know the answer to that question. I'm interested to get your thoughts on it.
 

VictorLustig

Registered User
Feb 8, 2012
8,846
2,883
Again Mark, great work with the guide, and I have to say thanks for taking the time to answer questions and criticisms.

I've been driving the Gustafsson hype express over on the habs board this year based on what I saw of his season in Jönköping. However, even I have been questioning my ranking of him recently. Maybe it's just the case that junior centers often look underwhelming, so the ones who don't underwhelm look amazing by comparison. If I were to pick a center on my team from this draft other than Kotkaniemi to play a game tomorrow, it would be David Gustafsson. However, real talk, he's just not as skilled as any of Hayton, Olofsson, O'Brien, Dellandrea, Veleno, and we could go on for a while. Not close either. I actually think Linus Karlsson has a higher skill level.

He's an interesting player in that he has essentially one high-level asset: hockey IQ. The question is: just how far can hockey IQ alone take a player in today's NHL? I don't know the answer to that question. I'm interested to get your thoughts on it.

Gustafsson would easily be my top Swedish forward this year if it wasn't for his skating. Not only is it not very good right now but I also don't see it improving very much. Bad mechanics. It's a shame really.
 
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NotProkofievian

Registered User
Nov 29, 2011
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Gustafsson would easily be my top Swedish forward this year if it wasn't for his skating. Not only is it not very good right now but I also don't see it improving very much. Bad mechanics. It's a shame really.

That would be Berggren for me. Who's yours?
 

Mark Edwards

@MarkEdwardsHP
Feb 14, 2008
1,061
1,288
Toronto
www.HockeyProspect.com
Again Mark, great work with the guide, and I have to say thanks for taking the time to answer questions and criticisms.

I've been driving the Gustafsson hype express over on the habs board this year based on what I saw of his season in Jönköping. However, even I have been questioning my ranking of him recently. Maybe it's just the case that junior centers often look underwhelming, so the ones who don't underwhelm look amazing by comparison. If I were to pick a center on my team from this draft other than Kotkaniemi to play a game tomorrow, it would be David Gustafsson. However, real talk, he's just not as skilled as any of Hayton, Olofsson, O'Brien, Dellandrea, Veleno, and we could go on for a while. Not close either. I actually think Linus Karlsson has a higher skill level.

He's an interesting player in that he has essentially one high-level asset: hockey IQ. The question is: just how far can hockey IQ alone take a player in today's NHL? I don't know the answer to that question. I'm interested to get your thoughts on it.

To me hockey IQ is extremely important. When I coached it really put the spotlight on it and became even more important to me. I had the opportunity to coach some players who oozed hockey sense (Ryan O'Reilly and Alex Pietrangelo come to mind) That said it's one facet and you still need skill and compete to name just two more facets I feel are important. O'Reilly had average feet but was very smart, skilled and competed hard. Plus he had great intangibles, desire to be great etc...

Early in the season when I see players I look for 'stoppers'. Horrible skating is an example of something that may put a quick 'no draft' grade on a player for me.
 
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AmericanDream

Thank you Elon!
Oct 24, 2005
36,959
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Chicago Manitoba
@Mark Edwards

I know you are a busy man, and not wanting to get in the habit of specific players to just talk about, but there really is one kid that is beyond intriguing for me and that is Slava Demin - LD- Wenatchee Wild - BCHL. Kid is almost 6'3 200lbs and actually moves very well out there in much of what I have seen from him the past 16 plus months. Gauging talent in the BCHL has never been my strong point as I thought Beau Bennett would be a 30-30 NHLer by now, but this kid is heading to a factory producer of talent in Denver, and I was wondering your thoughts on him?? He has to be one of the real wild cards in this draft and a player that if you can factor in the BCHL and how to judge it properly, can this guy make a case for a 35-50 range pick?? I am very high on him, he generates little talk, figured maybe you can chime in when you get a chance..

Thanks as always for the time and effort!
 

Mark Edwards

@MarkEdwardsHP
Feb 14, 2008
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Toronto
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@Mark Edwards

I know you are a busy man, and not wanting to get in the habit of specific players to just talk about, but there really is one kid that is beyond intriguing for me and that is Slava Demin - LD- Wenatchee Wild - BCHL. Kid is almost 6'3 200lbs and actually moves very well out there in much of what I have seen from him the past 16 plus months. Gauging talent in the BCHL has never been my strong point as I thought Beau Bennett would be a 30-30 NHLer by now, but this kid is heading to a factory producer of talent in Denver, and I was wondering your thoughts on him?? He has to be one of the real wild cards in this draft and a player that if you can factor in the BCHL and how to judge it properly, can this guy make a case for a 35-50 range pick?? I am very high on him, he generates little talk, figured maybe you can chime in when you get a chance..

Thanks as always for the time and effort!

Not quite as busy these days. :thumbu:

Don't want to say too much here but the more I saw the less I liked. As one scout said to me, "watch him in warmup and he looks like a first rounder, in the games it's a different story."

The tools are good, his compete not so much when I saw him.

If he flicks a switch with that compete level he could turn out to be really good.
 
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