Kessel #2 Pick in 2005 Draft

[therealdeal]

And yet he lead the WJC's in scoring..... Yeah, "the move" is getting old, but that's not all he brings to the table.

He leads in points, not goal scoring, how many goals did he end up with? 3?

 

[Epsilon]

Kessel falling/getting doubted this year is pretty much like Matt Leinart in the NFL draft. Last year Leinart would have been the easy number 1 overall, this year he might drop as low as 3rd. It's a combination of getting overexposed and having other players step up their games. Same thing applies to Kessel.

 

[sensens]

Like RR said. He lead the WJC in points. Getting 10 assist. Is second on the gophers in assists. Everyone is right his 1:1 stuff is not working but still putting up those numbers, something is working.

I wouldn't get too excited about stats that were substantially padded with a blowout win over Norway, but I don't agree with the notion that Kessel dropped considerably in the rankings because of his play. He was one of a several prominent American players who didn't elevate their game at the WJC when it mattered, and from what I saw it was primarily because the Americans stopped playing as a unit when the chips were down and were trying to force the issue individually. Give him some maturity and NHL-level coaching and I'm pretty sure he'll shine. At the end of the day, he remains the safest bet for a top-line scoring forward in the draft.

That said, I personally think that Erik Johnson really distinguished himself at the WJC this year. If I was drafting #1 overall it would be a hard decision, as Johnson really looked like a future top-pairing defenceman out there. But speed kills in the 'new-NHL', and I'm almost certain you'll see Kessel go #1 - someone will make a move to trade up for him if the team with the #1 pick isn't sold on his long-term potential. Johnson at #2 wouldn't surprise me in the least, especially since nobody else really stepped up in that manner... though he could get caught up in a dogfight among Frolik, Toews, Backstrom, Joensuu, etc. If I'm the GM with the #2 pick, though, I think I go with Johnson without too much second-guessing.

 

[UserName]

You said USA is guerenteed to win gold... they didn't.

You said USA is guerenteed to beat Canada... they didn't.

You said USA is guerenteed to beat Russia... they didn't.

You said Russia is guerenteed to curb stomp Canada... they didn't.

You said Pogge would get lite up like a Christmas tree against Russia... they didn't.

You said USA would curb stomp Finland... they didn't.

You said USA would light up Rask... they didn't.

So, I guess that almost guerentees that Towes will go No 1!

lol rush5 "PWNED"

 

[Daily Special]

lol rush5 "PWNED"

Yeah I got pwned by someone that can't spell guaranteed, and who's reasoning is that if someone’s calls about the WJC went south, that must mean their unanimously popular and rather obvious calls about drafts #1 will do the same.

Good thinking.

You must be brains of the outfit.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

Kind of needless to even bring something like that up.

Kessel is either 1 or 2 in this draft. If a GM takes Toews over Kessel, he is an idiot. And that is my honest opinion.

Yea, your right, why would someone take a player who could project better over a flashy player like Kessel....Staal Zherdev anyone?

 

[shveik]

Right now I would take Johnson 1st overall. He looks NHL ready, which for Dman is much harder to be at 18 than for a forward. But I'd take Kessel right after that. Not because he is that great, but because I do not see anyone challenging him for a 2nd overall. 1-2 of Johnson/Kessel (Kessel *could* go 1st overall still if some GM likes him enough). But I do not see it as such a blasphemy if somebody takes a well rounded player like Toews 2nd overall, even if I would pick him quite a bit later. Sure, there were well rounded players that went early (Daniel Tkaczuk?) that teams later have regretted drafting. But other well rounded players that did not appear to have a "trump" skill prospered: Iginla, Brad Richards, Zetterberg come to mind right away, I am sure there are plenty others.

 

[Z-Diddy]

Yeah I got pwned by someone that can't spell guaranteed, and who's reasoning is that if someone’s calls about the WJC went south, that must mean their unanimously popular and rather obvious calls about drafts #1 will do the same.

Good thinking.

You must be brains of the outfit.

now now boys and girls...

apples and oranges


P.S. Staal will be #1

 

[fatsunny]

Erik Johnson will go #1. He has a complete game and is huge. He will be a top two defender for years to come in the NHL. He has speed and quick feet too, for a big guy.

After that, it will be Mueller, Kessel or Toews. The team that picks will determine the type of player they want and will pick the player that fits, cause really, all three are top notch, for different reasons. Taking an offensively gifted player, that needs to learn more aspects of the game is more risky, but could reap rewards, so if a GM is a risk taker and needs scoring Kessel will be number 2. If the GM wants a more well rounded player, I give the nod to Mueller, as he has proven he also has nice offensive skills as well as being a physical player.

The Matt Leinart example is perfect parallel for this draft. Leinart will go 3rd behind Young and Bush (if Bush declares) while he would have been # 1 last year.

Should be fun to see what happens.

 

[reidy]

Yea, your right, why would someone take a player who could project better over a flashy player like Kessel....Staal Zherdev anyone?

Did you just compare Jonathan Toews to Eric Staal?

 

[Korpido]

Erik Johnson will go #1. He has a complete game and is huge. He will be a top two defender for years to come in the NHL. He has speed and quick feet too, for a big guy.

After that, it will be Mueller, Kessel or Toews. The team that picks will determine the type of player they want and will pick the player that fits, cause really, all three are top notch, for different reasons. Taking an offensively gifted player, that needs to learn more aspects of the game is more risky, but could reap rewards, so if a GM is a risk taker and needs scoring Kessel will be number 2. If the GM wants a more well rounded player, I give the nod to Mueller, as he has proven he also has nice offensive skills as well as being a physical player.

The Matt Leinart example is perfect parallel for this draft. Leinart will go 3rd behind Young and Bush (if Bush declares) while he would have been # 1 last year.

Should be fun to see what happens.

Well said...

Although, ANY team that drafts Young infront of Leinart as a QB is making a huge mistake. Vince Young's Jessica Simpson esque arm is not gonna go far in the NFL. The guy can be a HOF quality Wide Reciever though.

But I digress

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I think that he'll be #2 this year as well, Johnson looks like a stud franchise D-man. I like his potential as a Franchise D more than Kessel's as a Franchise forward. Kessel still has a lot of learning and growing up to do IMO. Johnson has an NHL body now and he plays smart and effective. Kessel needs to learn to be part of a team and not try and do everything himself and constantly go 1 on 3 or 1 on 5. If he learns to use his teammates better he could be great if not he could be a huge disappointment IMO.

 

[Attica]

Yeah I got pwned by someone that can't spell guaranteed, and who's reasoning is that if someone’s calls about the WJC went south, that must mean their unanimously popular and rather obvious calls about drafts #1 will do the same.

Good thinking.

You must be brains of the outfit.

And the "I can't detect humor or sarcasm" Cheese Helmet goes to.....

rush5 " Good Thinking" Collapse5

 

[Attica]

The way I see it, Toews has a chance to go #1, but it's a slim one. I think he'll be a very good pro, and could very well be a much better NHLer than Kessel. Toews has to severely outperform Kessel to get the nod for first forward draft pick, but I think Johnson will most likely overtake Kessel.

Kessel is not the player most think he is, if he were playing in the CHL, he would not be leading any league in scoring. Toews has a different game. I happen to like his game a lt, even enough to say I personally would take hm at #2. However, I think Toews draft position is going to be determined by 2 people. Kessel and Johnson, depending on their performance.




And just for the record, the WJCs were not a fluke. The US team was beaten sorely, more than once, and Canada dominated.

Canada >>>>>Russia>>>>>USA>>>>>Finland

 

[FINNtastic]

Canada >>>>>Russia>>>>>USA>>>>>Finland

Shouldn't that be CAN>RUS>FIN>USA?

 

[Rabid Ranger]

Kessel falling/getting doubted this year is pretty much like Matt Leinart in the NFL draft. Last year Leinart would have been the easy number 1 overall, this year he might drop as low as 3rd. It's a combination of getting overexposed and having other players step up their games. Same thing applies to Kessel.

I totally agree. Bob McKenzie has said the WJC's don't tend to do much for draft position, but I don't know if that applies in Kessel's case. His performance has clearly affected people's opinion of his game. It will be interesting to see where he stand in June.

 

[Epsilon]

One thing I will say about Kessel: for a guy who has as many offensive weapons as he does (shot, skating, etc.), he really needs to come up with more than one deke. That simply isn't going to pass against the better, smarter defensemen of the NHL.

Also, whoever made the Brendl comparison couldn't be more wrong. IF Kessel ends up being a bust, he's more likely to be Rico Fata than Pavel Brendl.

 

[jaydub*]

Either Kessel or Johnson will go #1. Almost certainly Kessel IMO. Toews does not project better than Kessel. Toews will never be a better skater or have a better shot than Kessel. Maybe he will be "grittier" or better defensively, but those are attributes you want in a 3rd line player, not a #1 overall pick. Here is a report of what happened when the two faced off.
http://mckeenshockey.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=490925

 

[Gopher_Nut]

Either Kessel or Johnson will go #1. Almost certainly Kessel IMO. Toews does not project better than Kessel. Toews will never be a better skater or have a better shot than Kessel. Maybe he will be "grittier" or better defensively, but those are attributes you want in a 3rd line player, not a #1 overall pick. Here is a report of what happened when the two faced off.
http://mckeenshockey.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=490925

Kessel vs Towes round two (three if you count WJC) tomorrow and Satrurday..CAN"T WAIT!!!

Go Gophs!!

 

[Daily Special]

And the "I can't detect humor or sarcasm" Cheese Helmet goes to

You're stretching now. The guy probably doesn't even know what sarcasm means.

Back to the drawing board you go..

 

[therealdeal]

Yeah I got pwned by someone that can't spell guaranteed, and who's reasoning is that if someone’s calls about the WJC went south, that must mean their unanimously popular and rather obvious calls about drafts #1 will do the same.

Good thinking.

You must be brains of the outfit.

So he spelled it wrong, big deal, all of your predictions were completely wrong, proving you don't know what the hell you're talking about.

 

[Gutchecktime]

Don't the recent ISS rankings have these prospects ranked 1) Johnson 2) Toews 3) Kessel 4) Mueller 5) Staal ?

So it's not that far of a stretch that Toews could be picked above Kessel. Not at all. People have different feelings about players. Different scouts see different things. I think it's closer than all of you think. The draft order will have a lot to do with it. If Pittsburgh drafts first, definitely E. Johnson. Could you imagine Johnson, Malkin, Crosby, Fleury? Incredible. If the Blues are drafting first, well, I'm not entirely certain but I could definitely see them drafting Kessel, who is very flashy and exciting and would probably give you more of an instant return on your pick. Developing great defensemen takes a little more time; you don't want to rush young d-men.

People that are laughing at the thought of Toews going before Kessel... well you may be proven wrong. Besides, even if Kessel and Johnson DO go before Toews, its no guarantee that they will be the better players. Once upon a time Aki Berg and Chad Kilger were picked 3rd and 4th overall.

 

[fatsunny]

Toews could go ahead of Kessel, but it's unlikely if they are picked based on current performance as most would agree that Kessel is out-performing Toews in college and in int'l tourneys.

For future potential, Toews could prove to be a better NHL player than Kessel if Kessel doesn't develop a more well rounded game and if he doesn't put up numbers. IMO, Kessel's speed and shot are too good to not produce at least above average results in the NHL, although if he gets stuck with the wrong coach or team, it could delay his progress.

 

[sbtatter]

Based solely on the WJ's

Johnson would go #1 now, and it's a toss up between Towes, Kessel and Mueller. As others have said, it depends on what the GM wants. Kessel was a huge disapointment though in the games where it counted, against Canada and the Russians. He must have more than 1 move in his bag of tricks, if he doesn't then he'll go #3 or #4. It's interesting how the other players appear to be catching him up in the scouts ratings, 2 months ago he would nearly have been a unanimous #1 pick. Maybe he's peaked already???
Going to make for an interesting draft anyway!

 

[Daily Special]

So he spelled it wrong, big deal, all of your predictions were completely wrong, proving you don't know what the hell you're talking about.

All of my predictions? lol.. I called some WJC games after their pulled goalie loss vs Team Canada. There is no "all".

If "all" of my predictions were as bad as you said, I wouldn't be in 3rd place in my fantasy rotisserie league of 12 teams, in a tug of war for 1st all season.