phantompenguin's first 2004 Mock Draft

[Big McLargehuge]

HBW's first 2004 Mock Draft

1. Washington Capitals - Alexander Ovechkin, LW- I'm not fond of the word, but I'll use it here anyways. Duh. Ovechkin is the real deal. A swift skating, playmaking, sniper, power forward.
2. Pittsburgh Penguins - Evgeni Malkin, C- Malkin has been considered a top pick in this draft for a long time, but I don't think anyone's stock has risen more this year than Malkin's. Malkin is one of the youngest players in the draft class, almost a full year younger than Ovechkin, but that hasn't stopped Malkin from being a force in Russia. Many scouts actually prefer Malkin to Ovechkin, and while I'm not going to say I agree with it, the gap has definitely closed. The big playmaking center that the Penguins have been looking for for years.
3. Chicago Blackhawks - Cameron Barker, D- Quite a drop-off from #2, Chicago is forced to settle with the offensive defenseman from Medicine Hat. IMO Barker is the fourth defenseman selected in either of the past two drafts, but in this one goes third overall. Still a damn good defenseman though.
4. Columbus Blue Jackets - Rostislav Olesz, C- With guys like Nash and Svitov Olesz should fit just in. Olesz is a two-way forward with a high ceiling. Injuries set him back a bit this year though.
5. Phoenix Coyotes - Marek Schwarz, G- It's a known fact that Phoenix is looking at a goalie in the draft, the only problem is they're looking at the wrong one(Montoya). Hopefully they wisen up and take the superior Czech goaltender.
6. NY Rangers - Andrew Ladd, LW- The top rated North American won't, or at least shouldn't, last past this pick. The Rangers were eying Olesz but Columbus takes him two picks earlier.
7. Florida - Lauri Tukonen, W- Tukonen is one of many wild cards in the draft, he could go in the top 5, he could fall out of the top 10. Personally I feel he is well worth the seventh pick.
8. Carolina - Wojtek Wolski, LW- Like Tukonen he is a wild card, but I feel Wolski is worth as much as the third pick in the draft. The Hurricanes don't dissapoint the hometown fans.
9. Anaheim - Boris Valabik, D- Sooner or later some GM is going to look at his stats and his size and jump on him. Valabik definitely has an impressive resume, 6'7" crushing defenseman with 278 PIMs with Kitchner...but we seem to see one of these guys every draft. A big physical defenseman who is inconsistant as all get out, and Valabik is this year's. Anaheim is very weak in depth defensively as far as youth goes and they gobble up what they hope will be their savior on D.
10. Atlanta - Alexander Radulov, RW- Call it a reach if you must, Radulov is the 9th rated European, but there is no questioning Radulov's skill. On the same team as Alexander Ovechkin, Radulov actually had 8 more points, and is pretty physical to go along with it all. The only question here is his attitude. Regardless of him being a reach, he may be a steal.
11. Los Angeles - Alvaro Montoya, G- The first rated North American goaltender falls to the goalie hungry Kings. Without even thinking they snatch him up. Besides Ovechkin going first and Malkin going second, this is about the only other guarantee of the draft, Los Angeles will take a goalie. If they don't something is seriously wrong or both are off the board.
12. Minnesota - Alexandre Picard, LW- Fits into Minnesota's system like a glove.
13. Buffalo - Andrej Meszaros, D- The offensively gifted Slovak goes in a very tough choice by the Sabres. Meszaros has the potential to be the best offensive defenseman in the draft.
14. Edmonton - Robbie Schremp, C- A potential steal, Edmonton takes a chance at the characterly challenged, highly skilled Schremp.
15. Nashville - Kyle Chipchura, C- Like Minnesota with Picard Chipchura fits Nashville like a glove. A two-way forward that excells defensively. His offensive potential isn't as high as Picard's though.
16. NY Islanders - A.J. Thelen, D- Another wild card who very well could go in the Top 10. Solid on both sides of the ice.
17. St. Louis - Ladislav Smid, D- Picture the Blues defense if this guy falls to them. Unfair. Smid is another guy who could find himself on either side of the Top 10. The fourth rated European Smid is a safe two-way defenseman.
18. Montreal - Bruce Graham, C- A big, strong, two-way forward. Graham may be a reach at this point, he's the fourteenth rated North American.
19. Calgary - Viktor Alexandrov, F- Alexandrov is a high risk, high reward player, a real potential home run pick.
20. Dallas - Enver Lisen, W- The fastest player in the draft falls to the Stars. Lisen may be a top 15 player, he may fall out of the first round, he's a real wild card. He's fast and skill but has baggage.
21. Colorado- Mike Green, D- Lacking any real good defensive prospects...hell, who am I kidding, lacking any real prospects, Colorado snaps up a smaller Rob Blake.
22. New Jersey - Petteri Nokelainen, C- The Devils, known for taking guys out of the blue, take a possible reach, but regardless safe pick. Average skills all around on offense but above average defense. A great penalty killer.
23. Ottawa - Lauri Korpikoski, LW- The second Finn to go in a row, Korpikowski is a highly skilled, speedy player. Needs help on defense and attitude though.
24. NY Rangers - Wes O'Neill, D- A big, mobile defenseman who has skills to be a top 10 pick but has one major flaw. His hockey sense is questionable, and that may be the hardest thing to fix.
25.Edmonton - Jakub Sindel, C- Excellent skater with tons of playmaking ability. A high risk/high reward pick.
26. Vancouver - Devan Dubnyk, G- Let's not kid ourselves, goaltending is not Vancouver's strong point. Dubnyk has taken a step back this year but at this time last year was considered the best goalie this draft had to offer.
27. Washington - Jeff Schultz, D- The defensively hurting Capitals snap up the smooth 6'6" Schultz. Don't let the size fool you though, in 72 games he only had 33 PIMs.
28. San Jose - Lukas Kaspar, RW- A solid skater with good hands and a good frame. Kaspar may be a hidden gem.
29. Washington - Adam Pineault, RW- A huge reach here, but Washington is more interested in the fact that Pineault was thought of a top 10 pick this time last year than by the fact in 29 games at Boston College he only scored 8 points. Washington is looking for boom or bust players more than they are safe bets, and Pineault is definitely a boom or bust player.
30. Tampa Bay - Kirill Lyamin, D- A personal favorite of mine. Lyamin, a big Russian defenseman, plays a game very similar to Darius Kasparaitis.

Flame away!

Click to read more...

 

[The Mighty Duck Man]

Anaheim will/should take Thelen is he's available. Other than that, I don't see many problems, except for those first two picks

 

[Captain Conservative]

If Alexandrov goes before Lisin, Green and Korpikoski, i'll cut my thumbs off. Thats only one out of 10 or so gripes I have with this awful mock draft. I also dislike the clearly biased language in favor of malkin and against Barker and Ovechkin. Many scouts favor Malkin over Ovechkin??? If I could get a source on that word "Many", it'd be appreciated. Maybe a few do, but i don't see it. Even if Malkin and Ovechkin are considered equal prospects by someone, that heavy(and it was heavy, I remember worrying about it in March thinking the caps might fall in the #2 slot) concussion he suffered would definitely be a deciding factor.

 

[BlueAndWhite]

I try not to be overtly critical of a person's mock draft, because after all it is their personal opinion.

However, when the opinion is this uninformed....

Captain Conservative summed up your mock pretty well and pointed out some glaring problems.

I guess in all your Malkin hyping, you forgot about Drew Stafford who apparently won't be going in the first round.

 

[The Mighty Duck Man]

I try not to be overtly critical of a person's mock draft, because after all it is their personal opinion.

However, when the opinion is this uninformed....

Captain Conservative summed up your mock pretty well and pointed out some glaring problems.

I guess in all your Malkin hyping, you forgot about Drew Stafford who apparently won't be going in the first round.

Malkin did make more of a jump than anyone. Last year, THN ranked the top prospects for this years draft. Olesz, Ovechkin, Barker, Dubnyk, Pineault, they were all there, but Malkin was considered one.

But yeah, even I overlooked Stafford. He definetely should be there. But, I assume he forgot about him, as I forgot about Wojtek Wolski when I did a mockdraft.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

ACK, I thought I had Stafford in there

This isn't who I feel is the best 30 players in the draft at all, just how I felt it would go. I feel Alexandrov is a better fit for Calgary than a guy like Lisen. There are picks in there that are purposefully a little weird. There are good players who slip and players who go earlier than they should in every draft, and that's what I went for. I never said Malkin was better than Ovechkin, just that some scouts said so. Redline and The Hockey News have been saying this for a while.

Every time I do a mock draft theres one guy I forget, Stafford is this year's. I could have sworn I put him in around 10th...blah. Wasn't the only mistake I made...I went by my old screenname in the title.

 

[Ghost of jas]

As a Ranger fan, I'd be happy with your picks. And, despite protestations by PhoPhan, all signs point to Phoenix being hot for a goalie. However, while you may think Schwarz should be the pick, the whispers are in fact that they love Montoya. I don't see Valabik going ahead of either Thelen or Smid. (Carolina is especially primed to take Thelen.) Otherwise, nice job. Now, how about the 2nd round?

 

[Big McLargehuge]

I sincerely hope Valabik doesn't go before either, but I feel some GM will look at his stats and then his size and just take him. I'm not high on him at all.

I know they love Montoya, but I feel it would be a mistake. IMO at least Schwarz is the better goalie. Montoya has been fairly overrated this past year.

 

[KH1]

If AJ Thelen fell to the Isles Milbury would have a heart attack.

 

[craig1]

I also dislike the clearly biased language in favor of malkin and against Barker and Ovechkin.

Biased? Because he didn't bow down at the Alter of Ovechkin?.........Who's the biased one?

Many scouts favor Malkin over Ovechkin??? If I could get a source on that word "Many", it'd be appreciated.

He's referring to scouts and pro-personnel that were quoted in Redline and The Hockey News.....Why are you so defensive over what scouts are saying?

 

[Seachd]

If Alexandrov goes before Lisin, Green and Korpikoski, i'll cut my thumbs off. Thats only one out of 10 or so gripes I have with this awful mock draft.

I'd like to hear the rest of your gripes. I thought it was very well done.

 

[EroCaps]

1. Washington Capitals - Alexander Ovechkin, LW- I'm not fond of the word, but I'll use it here anyways. Duh. Ovechkin is the real deal. A swift skating, playmaking, sniper, power forward.
2. Pittsburgh Penguins - Evgeni Malkin, C- Malkin has been considered a top pick in this draft for a long time, but I don't think anyone's stock has risen more this year than Malkin's. Malkin is one of the youngest players in the draft class, almost a full year younger than Ovechkin, but that hasn't stopped Malkin from being a force in Russia. Many scouts actually prefer Malkin to Ovechkin, and while I'm not going to say I agree with it, the gap has definitely closed. The big playmaking center that the Penguins have been looking for for years.
3. Chicago Blackhawks - Cameron Barker, D- Quite a drop-off from #2, Chicago is forced to settle with the offensive defenseman from Medicine Hat. IMO Barker is the fourth defenseman selected in either of the past two drafts, but in this one goes third overall. Still a damn good defenseman though.
4. Columbus Blue Jackets - Rostislav Olesz, C- With guys like Nash and Svitov Olesz should fit just in. Olesz is a two-way forward with a high ceiling. Injuries set him back a bit this year though.
5. Phoenix Coyotes - Marek Schwarz, G- It's a known fact that Phoenix is looking at a goalie in the draft, the only problem is they're looking at the wrong one(Montoya). Hopefully they wisen up and take the superior Czech goaltender.
6. NY Rangers - Andrew Ladd, LW- The top rated North American won't, or at least shouldn't, last past this pick. The Rangers were eying Olesz but Columbus takes him two picks earlier.
7. Florida - Lauri Tukonen, W- Tukonen is one of many wild cards in the draft, he could go in the top 5, he could fall out of the top 10. Personally I feel he is well worth the seventh pick.
8. Carolina - Wojtek Wolski, LW- Like Tukonen he is a wild card, but I feel Wolski is worth as much as the third pick in the draft. The Hurricanes don't dissapoint the hometown fans.
9. Anaheim - Boris Valabik, D- Sooner or later some GM is going to look at his stats and his size and jump on him. Valabik definitely has an impressive resume, 6'7" crushing defenseman with 278 PIMs with Kitchner...but we seem to see one of these guys every draft. A big physical defenseman who is inconsistant as all get out, and Valabik is this year's. Anaheim is very weak in depth defensively as far as youth goes and they gobble up what they hope will be their savior on D.
10. Atlanta - Alexander Radulov, RW- Call it a reach if you must, Radulov is the 9th rated European, but there is no questioning Radulov's skill. On the same team as Alexander Ovechkin, Radulov actually had 8 more points, and is pretty physical to go along with it all. The only question here is his attitude. Regardless of him being a reach, he may be a steal.
11. Los Angeles - Alvaro Montoya, G- The first rated North American goaltender falls to the goalie hungry Kings. Without even thinking they snatch him up. Besides Ovechkin going first and Malkin going second, this is about the only other guarantee of the draft, Los Angeles will take a goalie. If they don't something is seriously wrong or both are off the board.
12. Minnesota - Alexandre Picard, LW- Fits into Minnesota's system like a glove.
13. Buffalo - Andrej Meszaros, D- The offensively gifted Slovak goes in a very tough choice by the Sabres. Meszaros has the potential to be the best offensive defenseman in the draft.
14. Edmonton - Robbie Schremp, C- A potential steal, Edmonton takes a chance at the characterly challenged, highly skilled Schremp.
15. Nashville - Kyle Chipchura, C- Like Minnesota with Picard Chipchura fits Nashville like a glove. A two-way forward that excells defensively. His offensive potential isn't as high as Picard's though.
16. NY Islanders - A.J. Thelen, D- Another wild card who very well could go in the Top 10. Solid on both sides of the ice.
17. St. Louis - Ladislav Smid, D- Picture the Blues defense if this guy falls to them. Unfair. Smid is another guy who could find himself on either side of the Top 10. The fourth rated European Smid is a safe two-way defenseman.
18. Montreal - Bruce Graham, C- A big, strong, two-way forward. Graham may be a reach at this point, he's the fourteenth rated North American.
19. Calgary - Viktor Alexandrov, F- Alexandrov is a high risk, high reward player, a real potential home run pick.
20. Dallas - Enver Lisen, W- The fastest player in the draft falls to the Stars. Lisen may be a top 15 player, he may fall out of the first round, he's a real wild card. He's fast and skill but has baggage.
21. Colorado- Mike Green, D- Lacking any real good defensive prospects...hell, who am I kidding, lacking any real prospects, Colorado snaps up a smaller Rob Blake.
22. New Jersey - Petteri Nokelainen, C- The Devils, known for taking guys out of the blue, take a possible reach, but regardless safe pick. Average skills all around on offense but above average defense. A great penalty killer.
23. Ottawa - Lauri Korpikoski, LW- The second Finn to go in a row, Korpikowski is a highly skilled, speedy player. Needs help on defense and attitude though.
24. NY Rangers - Wes O'Neill, D- A big, mobile defenseman who has skills to be a top 10 pick but has one major flaw. His hockey sense is questionable, and that may be the hardest thing to fix.
25.Edmonton - Jakub Sindel, C- Excellent skater with tons of playmaking ability. A high risk/high reward pick.
26. Vancouver - Devan Dubnyk, G- Let's not kid ourselves, goaltending is not Vancouver's strong point. Dubnyk has taken a step back this year but at this time last year was considered the best goalie this draft had to offer.
27. Washington - Jeff Schultz, D- The defensively hurting Capitals snap up the smooth 6'6" Schultz. Don't let the size fool you though, in 72 games he only had 33 PIMs.
28. San Jose - Lukas Kaspar, RW- A solid skater with good hands and a good frame. Kaspar may be a hidden gem.
29. Washington - Adam Pineault, RW- A huge reach here, but Washington is more interested in the fact that Pineault was thought of a top 10 pick this time last year than by the fact in 29 games at Boston College he only scored 8 points. Washington is looking for boom or bust players more than they are safe bets, and Pineault is definitely a boom or bust player.
30. Tampa Bay - Kirill Lyamin, D- A personal favorite of mine. Lyamin, a big Russian defenseman, plays a game very similar to Darius Kasparaitis.

Flame away!

The Ovechkin/Malkin "thing" aside, good mock! Shultz is a guy I could see the Caps taking, but I'm not sure that Pineault couldn't be had at 33 overall. Overall It's a fair enough gauge.

Though, I was under the impression that Radulov played for Dynamo's Junior squad, and wasn't an RSL player.

 

[Starsdude]

I personally would hope the stars take Green over Lisin since Polak was taken last year and would fill a similar role

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Though, I was under the impression that Radulov played for Dynamo's Junior squad, and wasn't an RSL player.

Looks like you're right

I've always just seen Dynamo(Russia) next to him, nothing saying he was in the lower leagues. Well that explains his stats a little better...

 

[PhoPhan]

As a Ranger fan, I'd be happy with your picks. And, despite protestations by PhoPhan, all signs point to Phoenix being hot for a goalie. However, while you may think Schwarz should be the pick, the whispers are in fact that they love Montoya.

Will someone tell me why the Coyotes would take Montoya when their best prospect is already a goalie?

 

[Ghost of jas]

Will someone tell me why the Coyotes would take Montoya when their best prospect is already a goalie?

If you believe in the BPA theory, and you feel that Montoya is a player who can be a All-Star and is the BPA, you take him. The idea is to build quality depth.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

The Penguins were apparently set in goal with Caron, Geopfert, Duba, Lehto, etc. in the system before last year. Caron was coming of an all rookie team performance.

Situation is close to the same in Phoenix, but Montoya isn't Fleury.

 

[PhoPhan]

Montoya isn't Fleury.

That's my point.

Also, in my opinion, LeNeveu is a much better prospect than any of those Penguins. I personally think he is only a notch below Lehtonen and Fleury.

 

[X0ssbar]

I know you didn't include trades in your draft but if Barker does indeed go 3rd to Chicago look for the CBJ to trade down - probably with the Rangers who are eyeing Olesz - we then take Ladd w/ the 6th pick.