2008 NHL Entry Draft: Carolina Hurricanes

[DaveG]

The other two games he was absolutely DOMINANT in though. Mind you, both Tokarski and Murphy gave up quite a few goals. But factor out both the Kitchener and Spokane games and his numbers are even better. I'm not saying he sucked in the Spokane game, he outplayed Tokarski, his defense just did nothing to help against the Chiefs transition game. But that one definitely messed with his numbers. He has a sub 3.0 with a .933 save percentage the other two games.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

I was the only canes fan at the draft. When they made their first round pick it went dead silent, no one booed and no one was cheering. Then I started yelling and everyone was looking at me haha Got a lot of funny looks this weekend

Our 7th round pick was actually in attendance, I couldn't believe it. He had a hard time finding his way out of the stands and onto the floor haha

The first round took forever, I think we were there until 11 with all the trades. There were some pretty funny moments. When John Carlson went up on the stage he accidentally handed his jacket to Bettman hahaha Bettman just looked around like "I don't want your coat, kid" and hung it on the handrail. At another point they showed Cliff Fletcher on the big screen and everyone started booing. He looks up to see who they're booing and see's himself. Made a comment about being happy to be there, too.

As for our picks, I think we can be satisfied with another great draft. Two first round talents, a decent defenseman, a steal in the 6th with Mike Murphy and I can't honestly say I know anything about Morneau.

All in all a great weekend. Was a whole lot of fun.

 

[JustJoe2k5]

Really like the potential of the Mike Murphy pick. Worst-case scenario, he should be a solid AHL goaltender for the River Rats. Best-case scenario, he is the next Tim Thomas which isn't too bad for a sixth-round draft pick. He appears to have great instincts on the ice for where the puck will be. However, he also takes himself out of the play in a style similar to Grahame's.

 

[HughJass*]

Best-case scenario, he is the next Tim Thomas which isn't too bad for a sixth-round draft pick.

What, land a starting gig in the NHL because the guy pencilled as the starter gets injured? 14 years after being drafted, no less?

If you are going with the "diamond in the rough" angle, Thomas is a poor choice. His tempermant, dedication, and the grace of God has him where he is now. That all can go away quickly as I still think he's a glorified AHL goalie.

Our 7th round pick was actually in attendance, I couldn't believe it. He had a hard time finding his way out of the stands and onto the floor haha.

haha

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

I have to say, I love the fact that cardiac and myself get to dish out a nice dosage of "told you so" to prettymuch 75% of the people that made mock drafts this year. Can't say it to Gare though, cause Teubert went before us, but he's a good enough guy that I wouldn't do that anyway.

How sweet it is Pretty much all the guys people had us drafting like Sbisa and Robak went much later.

Here's an interesting question. Dalpe was drafted by the Plymouth Whalers but already is comitted to Ohio State. Does JR try to push him back towards the Whalers or will he just let him be and go to OSU?

As far as his commitment to Ohio, I've heard it's just verbal. Your word should count for a lot but it's not like it's a sealed deal. The fact that he has a scholarship there might do it, though. Plymouth had said before they were going to push hard to sign him, he's been to their camps before but was like 5'3" at the time so there was no way he was playing. Now that we've drafted him I think there's a better chance of him staying but it all comes down to how bad he wants that education, I guess. I won't be disappointed if he goes to Ohio. It'll be a little harder for me to catch his games but he'll be in a good program.

These Sauve boys are cousins of Phillipe Sauve?

Maxime Sauve is Phillipe's cousin, Yann is unrelated.

 

[teddygmr]

darn..I was really hoping they would trade Babchuk's rights to get another pick...
Not that Babchuk couldnt help the team (a lot, actually) I just can't see him signing to play under Laviolette again

 

[SeaBasstian]

I see the Grahame resemblance in the Mike Murphy video as well. Just hope he can clean it up a bit.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

darn..I was really hoping they would trade Babchuk's rights to get another pick...
Not that Babchuk couldnt help the team (a lot, actually) I just can't see him signing to play under Laviolette again

Well, his agent did approach JR about signing a deal and he would obviously be acting on Anton's behalf so you might be wrong on that last count.

I see the Grahame resemblance in the Mike Murphy video as well. Just hope he can clean it up a bit.

Murphy is considerably smaller than Grahame, who's a pretty big guy. Not to say he's undersized, just that he can be and is far more acrobatic. Maybe it won't pan out, but to me this is a really exciting pick. I was hoping we'd get Hutchinson but knew he'd never fall to us. I totally forgot about Murphy and when they called his name I yelled "good pick Jimmy!" as loud as I could haha

 

[Vagrant]

Mike Murphy needs to work on that rebound control. He makes some incredible saves though.

He's going to be spending a lot of time with Barrasso in the immediate future.

 

[SeaBasstian]

Murphy is considerably smaller than Grahame, who's a pretty big guy. Not to say he's undersized, just that he can be and is far more acrobatic. Maybe it won't pan out, but to me this is a really exciting pick. I was hoping we'd get Hutchinson but knew he'd never fall to us. I totally forgot about Murphy and when they called his name I yelled "good pick Jimmy!" as loud as I could haha

oh no its not like I am not happy with this pick. I love it! all i was saying was i see what a few people said about the resemblance to Grahame with the flopping.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

oh no its not like I am not happy with this pick. I love it! all i was saying was i see what a few people said about the resemblance to Grahame with the flopping.

Yup, just trying to make it seem better by adding a bit since Grahame...leaves a little bit to be desired? Like was said Murphy needs to work on his rebound control but another year in Belleville should help him immensely and I think his confidence will go up now that he's been drafted finally.

 

[Vagrant]

Overall Draft Rank: B

Zach Boychuk: B+ - I really like Boychuk the player but the organizational prospect weakness wasn't addressed with this selection. Boychuk really has a chance to make an impact in the near future with this team. I think he's a lot closer to NHL ready than some people give him credit for and he's going to be one of the last guys they send back to the CHL because he's going to really impress. However, it's tough that Teubert wasn't available and I would have liked to have seen Carolina get a little aggressive and try to move up a slot or two and gotten him. With the players that were left on the board at this selection it didn't make sense to take anybody else.... but perhaps they should have entertained the thought of going down in the first round and taking another skilled player and an additionally 2nd to pick up Colby Robak. I think that would have made our organization that much deeper.

Zac Dalpe: A- - I really love this selection. Zac Dalpe was probably the best player available once again and Carolina jumped all over him. It was good to see them not so committed to "their guy", that they dropped a potential steal off the boards to get their man. I have a feeling they were strongly after either Robak or Staal with this selection but it's great that Dalpe was there for them. He is going to open a lot of eyes for Team Canada in the WJC's next season. That will likely the first chance we have to see him play against the best of the best. I have been seeing the same things in regard to Dalpe being a Sakic type player... of course you never want to pile those attributes on to a 2nd round pick but regardless he's a nice prospect.

Michal Jordan: C+ - I really continue to hate that Carolina only scouts in depth in their own system in Plymouth. Every now and again they come across a legit prospect but more often than not it ends up not working out. Michal Jordan sounds quite a bit like Frantisek Kaberle to me with a more physical edge. I'll wait and see if he can produce more offense at the Junior level before we give him that distinction but there is a chance he could end up being a bottom pairing player for us. I just think there were better choices on the board at the defense position. Not really a fan of this pick at all and it wouldn't shock me if this was another one of those Aaron Dawson and Matej Trojovsky type picks that we never really hear from again.

Mike Murphy: A+ - This was a perfect selection here. JR has resisted his instinct to take a goaltender per draft the past few years and his welcome party back to the goaltending ranks has yielded fruit this time. Murphy is perhaps the most naturally skilled goaltender available in the draft with the exception of Markstrom. What you look for when you're picking this deep in the draft are players that could explode for you and become dominant players. With coaching it is very likely that Murphy could at the very least provide us solid backup goaltending for Cam Ward a few years down the line. I like the fact that Murphy is a bit older as well and closer to being ready than other goaltending prospects. He is going to need structure and good coaching... both of which Carolina can provide.

Sam Morneau - Never heard of him.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

Zach Boychuk: B+ - I really like Boychuk the player but the organizational prospect weakness wasn't addressed with this selection.

We didn't address a weakness? What about our lack of forward prospects who project to be top 6 players? Sutter is iffy because we're not sure if he'll put up the numbers to be a second line center so Bowman is the closest we have and that's not a sure thing at all. We managed to add two guys who project to be top 6 forwards and scouts have said Dalpe's downside is that of a third liner at the worst. We did pretty damn good. Didn't get a defenseman but at the times we drafted the forwards available were better than the defense. I'd have liked Goloubef in the second but he was gone and if I'd known Dalpe would still be around I'd likely have wanted him instead.

Zac Dalpe: I have a feeling they were strongly after either Robak or Staal with this selection but it's great that Dalpe was there for them. He is going to open a lot of eyes for Team Canada in the WJC's next season.

Ya think?

From Luke:

The Hurricanes had a player in mind for their second-round pick when they went to bed Friday night. And they were right: That player — figure Jared Staal — was available when the 45th overall slot came around.

But so was Zac Dalpe, who was on the Hurricanes' list if they had traded down in the first round. They couldn't believe their good fortune.

"Where we were, we didn’t think we had a shot at him at all," Carolina amateur scouting director Tony MacDonald said. "We’re delighted he got through to us."

This will easily be the best world juniors tournament for this organization ever. Boychuk will play for Canada, Terry is a strong candidate and Dalpe should get a good look. If Sutter is sent back to junior he's on the team. Jordan will play for the Czech's again and Bowman had better be on team USA this time around.

Sam Morneau - Never heard of him.

Also from Luke:

"He's missed some hockey the last couple years with injuries and stuff, but he's a high-energy kid who plays the game hard," MacDonald said. "He's a two-way kid who competes. Our Quebec league people really like him. They think he's been overlooked and is a dark-horse type of player."

 

[AcidQueen]

Tampa drafted David Carle. I sure hope they knew he's not going to ever lace 'em up again before they made that pick but I have a hard time thinking they'd make a pick just to make a "goodwill" gesture.

Guess again:

Lightning give David Carle a gift -- NHL.com

Can you imagine how much some of our fans would have screamed and *****ed and whined if WE had done that? Very classy move by (and kudos to) the Lightning.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

Guess again:

Lightning give David Carle a gift -- NHL.com

Can you imagine how much some of our fans would have screamed and *****ed and whined if WE had done that? Very classy move by (and kudos to) the Lightning.

I'd like to think we have a classier fanbase than that. Maybe some of the newer fans who don't understand what the draft means to these kids wouldn't have got it but this was one of the classiest moves I've seen in a while. Their were a few internet bloggers in my section who speculated the reason behind the pick at the time it was made so we did our best to get some applause going. I think a lot of people there hadn't heard about his decision to retire since they were away from computers for the weekend.

 

[AcidQueen]

I'd like to think we have a classier fanbase than that.

I agree that, in the main, we're the complete opposite of (for example) the SlugThugs that love to invade the RBC Center and assault/vandalize/generally make morons of themselves. But sadly we do have our share of rather loud and clue-free huckleberries among our number--so yeah, unfortunately we'd have a few people pitching a wobbly over us "wasting" a pick that way even after being told why the pick was made.

 

[HughJass*]

Guess again:

Lightning give David Carle a gift -- NHL.com

Can you imagine how much some of our fans would have screamed and *****ed and whined if WE had done that? Very classy move by (and kudos to) the Lightning.

I know what you are getting at, and this has already been discussed elsewhere:

http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=526785&page=2

One thing, however, is that fact that blog entry was edited. Earlier, it also stated that they (Kroules) didn't believe his condition was worse than it seemed. It was basically saying they were drafting him with the slight chance that he may be able to play. That's what brought on Oiler's Chick and my comments. The first post on page 3 mentions the fact the blog entry was edited.

edit: wow, that blog entry was much longer last time I saw it.

 

[AcidQueen]

I know what you are getting at

Uhh...huh?

 

[HughJass*]

Uhh...huh?

The "warm and fuzzy" over the gesture. I don't know.....I feel rotten discussing it. The original blog entry left a bad taste in my mouth for awhile and now that I see that they edited it makes it seem so much weirder. It was indeed a hockey move originally, now they've put the P.R. spin on it.

I'm not going to lose sleep over it.....I just don't know what to make of it at the moment.

 

[AcidQueen]

Eh, don't worry about it. I mean, Oren Koules is a toolbox who knows dinky-doo about the market whose team he just bought (and who makes crappy movies, to boot)--but I think it's best to give the Lightning the benefit of the doubt on this one, just say "That was very nice/classy of them to do that", golfclap, and let it go.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

Here are the official fancy-pants draft photos of some of our guys:

Zach Boychuk

Zac Dalpe

Samuel Morneau

Haven't found one of Murphy and Jordan wasn't in attendance.

 

[chaosrevolver]

Murphy gives up too many rebounds and needs to work on his positioning a little better. He can get away with his scrambling steal in the O but not sure about the NHL.

However, his instincts are as good as they come. He's the goalie that will end up on the highlight reel every night. He can down right rob teams of games with his incredible and acrobatical saves. Hes also great on shootouts to boot.

People criticize his glove hand but it is actually pretty strong. Hes pretty good at handling the puck too. Not Turco or Brodeur, but hes solid.

Another great thing is that he is the ultimate team leader. He took sole responsibility for the 9-0 loss to Kitchener even though he had no defense AND was one of the main reasons his team was even in the memorial cup. He doesn't blame losses on others and will instead put the heavy shoulder load on his shoulders.

I hope he turns out great for you guys and like I said, I will definetly keep everyone updated throughout the Bulls 08-09 season.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

Murphy gives up too many rebounds and needs to work on his positioning a little better. He can get away with his scrambling steal in the O but not sure about the NHL.

However, his instincts are as good as they come. He's the goalie that will end up on the highlight reel every night. He can down right rob teams of games with his incredible and acrobatical saves. Hes also great on shootouts to boot.

People criticize his glove hand but it is actually pretty strong. Hes pretty good at handling the puck too. Not Turco or Brodeur, but hes solid.

Another great thing is that he is the ultimate team leader. He took sole responsibility for the 9-0 loss to Kitchener even though he had no defense AND was one of the main reasons his team was even in the memorial cup. He doesn't blame losses on others and will instead put the heavy shoulder load on his shoulders.

I hope he turns out great for you guys and like I said, I will definetly keep everyone updated throughout the Bulls 08-09 season.

Thanks for the scouting report and the offer to keep us updated on him. Really excited about this pick and to see what he can do this upcoming season, hopefully with team Canada even.

Do you happen to know if he was in attendance at the draft? I don't believe he was as there was no movement anywhere when his name was called and I didn't see him at the Carolina table. Just wondering why he wouldn't attend and hoping he's not too down on himself from that Memorial Cup game.

 

[ratsgirl]

I highly doubt that Dalpe would make that move. He seems to be very commited to Ohio St. because a lot of these CHL teams snubbed him in the past for his lack of size.

However, you never really know with JR and company. If they convince him it's his best chance to get to the NHL....

I doubt they push him that way though. I think you let the player go where he's comfortable.

It's an interesting little subplot for sure.

http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten...es22.ART_ART_06-22-08_C6_PDAIBQB.html?sid=101

Dalpe, who sat at the draft yesterday with OSU assistant coach Casey Jones, was asked if Ohio State coach John Markell should be nervous.

"He might be a little bit," Dalpe said. "But I gave coach Markell my word.

"I think I want to go to school. There's a lot of speculation, but I'm a pretty loyal guy."

Plymouth coach Greg Stefan hinted that a sales job was forthcoming.

"We think it's in Zac's best interest to play with us," he said. "But I respect his family.

"I have a lot of respect for college hockey. But you hear a lot of things (about Ohio State), that it's not going that well there."

Markell, reached yesterday in California, seems to be expecting the worst.

"They're already on it, already trying to talk him out of going to Ohio State," Markell said. "It's going to be tough on Zac.

 

[HughJass*]

The kid gave his word. Unless Markell releases him from his word, he should keep his word and go to Ohio State. The "what's better for his development" doesn't even apply in this matter, to me.