Prospect Info: The 2018 Draft Thread

[MessierII]

Zadina Sveshnikov or Tkachuk would all be great fits.

 

[MinimaMoralia]

If we can land Boqvist or Svechnikov, this season may be worth it.

 

[29292929]

I feel like we were meant to fall into this spot and land Adam Boqvist in 4-5-6 spot of we dony get dahlin. He is the offensive skating defencemen they need, with a unreal shot. Im still not sold on Bear.

"A dynamic offensive defenceman that can carry plays with the puck on his stick. A highly mobile and nimble skater that moves with fluidity, balance, and confidence. Utilizes an active stick and creates turnovers frequently. Could be more proactive in his own end, but has shown progression in understanding lanes and reading unfolding plays; most of his best defensive work comes through the neutral zone, as there is a lot less time and space to work with, and it is in those moments that Boqvist shines. Offensively, Boqvist is electric; he has the toolbox of a top line forward. Slick puckhandling ability paired with excellent vision and positional awareness makes him a dangerous threat every time he is on the ice. He also takes advantage of the attention and bodies he draws towards himself in creating space for teammates. All-in-all, Adam Boqvist is a complete offensive defenceman that knows how to get the puck from point A to the back of the net, and can make it happen all by himself.

Adam Boqvist

 

[Stud Muffin]

Why? Three left-handed forwards. I mean, Zadina and Svechnikov are very alluring but I don't really see what any of them would bring to the Oilers that they don't already have or have had. Tkachuk is probably a Lucic type/level player or slightly better, Zadina an Eberle type/level player and Svechnikov a Hall type/level player. These guys don't add any new dimension to the Oilers.

A skilled offensive RHD like Boqvist on the other hand does change the dynamic of the team, and I would argue the Oilers are at that point now where they're not rebuilding anymore which means they have their core in place already and have to look for guys to complement it, especially when they are drafting high like they most likely will be this year.

Boqvist could be the missing piece, I don't think any of the forwards will be that. Maybe Svechnikov since he's a pretty good goal-scorer, but as a few people already have noted in this thread, the Oilers strength in the pipeline is actually on the wings with Puljujärvi, Yamamoto, Benson, Maksimov, Safin.

Im just really not impressed with what Boqvist ha been able to do at the higher leagues in the SHL and Allsvenskan. I also think the wingers don't have as many questions marks around them and could also fill a huge hole that was left by the Hall trade and future Maroon trade/free agency.
Boqvist could be the biggest boom in the draft but I could see Zadina/Svechnikov being Draisaitl level players and Tkachuk being a mirror image of his brother or even better. Team speed and goal scoring is what I would like to address the most on this team.

 

[Zaddy]

Im just really not impressed with what Boqvist ha been able to do at the higher leagues in the SHL and Allsvenskan. I also think the wingers don't have as many questions marks around them and could also fill a huge hole that was left by the Hall trade and future Maroon trade/free agency.
Boqvist could be the biggest boom in the draft but I could see Zadina/Svechnikov being Draisaitl level players and Tkachuk being a mirror image of his brother or even better. Team speed and goal scoring is what I would like to address the most on this team.

Great, just wrote a long reply and managed to f*** it up before I could post it. Anyway the short version is that I don't think you can draw conclusions from him playing ~5 minutes per game in SHL, or a short 5-game loan in Allsvenskan. He was tremendous at the Ivan Hlinka against his own age group. Quite clearly the best player there in my eyes.

And comparing Boqvist to Tkachuk and Zadina is a bit unfair, those guys are much closer to being finished products than him. Both are 99's and Tkachuk is actually 11 months older than Boqvist. That's a lot. You can't look at where these guys are now, you have to project these guys 5 years down the road. Boqvist has a really bright future and he's the type of player that's worth waiting for.

And if you wanna adress speed and goalscoring, then Tkachuk is not your guy. He's not fast or a shoot-first type of guy. Zadina fits that description a bit better though.

 

[McDNicks17]

I haven't seen a ton of players this year, but I think Boqvist is pretty easily the most talented player in the draft after Dahlin.

 

[BoldNewLettuce]

How is hughes?

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I haven't seen a ton of players this year, but I think Boqvist is pretty easily the most talented player in the draft after Dahlin.

We have no one like him on the team or in the system. Almost every high end team has a guy that they can rely on for offense from the blueline. Guys like Letang, Keith, Klingberg, etc. Long term:

Nurse-Larsson (shutdown pairing with some offense)
Kelfbom-Boqvist (offensive pairing)
Davidson/Russell/Jones-Benning/Bear/Mantha

 

[Zaddy]

How is hughes?

Similar to Boqvist in many ways. Very skilled and incredible hockey sense, but he's smaller and a lefty. Don't think his shot is as good as Boqvist's but he's a faster skater.

 

[ElFossum]

I really don't think Hughes is that good. Very talented but I don't buy him being a top 4 at the NHL level. I'd rather Dobson/Smith/Boqvist and obviously Dahlin.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I just watched this video, not very impressive IMO. Reminds me of David Perron.

 

[McDNicks17]

A little OT, but speaking of Hughes, his brother, Jack, looks insane.

Only McDavid and Gagner have had more points in a season for the Toronto Marlboros in Midget and now he's more than doubling Eichel's production with the USNTDP U17 team as a 16 year old.

Watch for him in the 2019 draft.

 

[Zaddy]

I just watched this video, not very impressive IMO. Reminds me of David Perron.

Yeah he reminds me a bit of his brother in the sense that all the numbers are there, but when you look at him there's nothing that really blows you away. I know a lot of people have praised his skating but I really don't find it that spectacular or elite. In fact his stride looks a bit awkward. But he has a strong all around game, seems to think the game quite well, good shot, good hands, can play in traffic and goes to the net, so that should translate well to the NHL. Just not sure what his actual upside is.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

Yeah he reminds me a bit of his brother in the sense that all the numbers are there, but when you look at him there's nothing that really blows you away. I know a lot of people have praised his skating but I really don't find it that spectacular or elite. In fact his stride looks a bit awkward. But he has a strong all around game, seems to think the game quite well, good shot, good hands, can play in traffic and goes to the net, so that should translate well to the NHL. Just not sure what his actual upside is.

When I hear people talking about him being a replacement for Hall, he is nowhere near as dynamic. He reminds me of a bigger but slower Yakupov.

 

[Canovin]

When I hear people talking about him being a replacement for Hall, he is nowhere near as dynamic. He reminds me of a bigger but slower Yakupov.

If Yak had size he would dominate the league

 

[Joey Moss]

If Yak had size he would dominate the league

More like if Yak had any hockey sense at all.

 

[dustrock]

Kournianous, who I've always got time for, has Ty Smith at #5 and Boqvist at #6.

If you can pick one of the two, who do you go for?

My only "worry" about Boqvist, if you want to call it that, is that he has to be at least 2 years away, unlike Dahlin. And you know how the Oilers love to slow burn their prospects.


Is Bouchard fast enough for today's NHL? Or will he be Cody Franson.

 

[McDNicks17]

Kournianous, who I've always got time for, has Ty Smith at #5 and Boqvist at #6.

If you can pick one of the two, who do you go for?

My only "worry" about Boqvist, if you want to call it that, is that he has to be at least 2 years away, unlike Dahlin. And you know how the Oilers love to slow burn their prospects.


Is Bouchard fast enough for today's NHL? Or will he be Cody Franson.

I'd go with Boqvist just because he's a right-shot, has a higher offensive ceiling(IMO) and being slightly taller is a bonus.


As for Bouchard, I don't think you have to worry about that.

He's not a great skater, but he still a pretty good skater. Definitely not Franson bad.

 

[Zaddy]

Some Boqvist power play action. #97 in red.

 

[BudBundy]

What kind of frame does Boqvist have? I dont mind sub 6’ D if they have really + offense but I get nervous if they look like they cant project to 195+ lbs.

 

[CycloneSweep]

I don't even want to look at the top 5, I am expecting us to finish 5 worst and fall 3 spots to 8th. I think the team is probably looking at Bode Wilde or Evan Bouchard. Lately they seem to have a fetish with guys who aren't the greatest skaters. At least that seems to be the guys Chia has been bringing in.

 

[Canovin]

If Dahlin is the McDavid of defense then Boqvist is the Matthew Barzal of defense

One will make an impact right off the bat, the other will in 2 years time

 

[Aerrol]

If we somehow end up able to draft Boqvist and pass on him I'll be furious. He fits our teams biggest need by far and is insanely talented. The only reason he isn't getting way more hype IMO is because Dahlin is also Swedish and just insane.

 

[dustrock]

Looking like a good year for d-men.

 

[Hynh]

I don't even want to look at the top 5, I am expecting us to finish 5 worst and fall 3 spots to 8th. I think the team is probably looking at Bode Wilde or Evan Bouchard. Lately they seem to have a fetish with guys who aren't the greatest skaters. At least that seems to be the guys Chia has been bringing in.

Isn't Wilde supposed to be a pretty good skater?