Pre-Game Talk: 2014 NHL Entry Draft - Part VI

[canuck4life16]

the countdown to the draft lottery begins! 44 hrs to go!

 

[Patchey*]

How high up does 2014 1st + 2014 2nd + 2015 2nd get us in the draft?

 

[Finnish Your Czechs]

I just don't feel good trading Kesler to Anaheim anymore. But if we meet them in first round of the playoffs next year? It could really backfire in our faces.

If we trade Kesler, do you still have playoff hopes?

 

[CAPiTA]

I'm a big fan of Nylander's, but his size is too much of a risk. To me, you can't ignore the skill of Ehlers. His speed and his ability to handle and shoot the puck at speed is exactly what the Canucks need.

 

[BenningHurtsMySoul]

How high up does 2014 1st + 2014 2nd + 2015 2nd get us in the draft?

Should get us into the top 3. Next year is deep and there aren't any franchise players in this draft.

 

[Wilch]

How high up does 2014 1st + 2014 2nd + 2015 2nd get us in the draft?

Bennett or Reinhart.

 

[Patchey*]

Bennett or Reinhart.

That's what I was thinking, I think Edmonton would bite. If not Florida might

 

[me2]

I think Snow will get rid of that pick and find immediate help. If he doesn't, I hope he reaches for Ehlers.

Calgary at 4th overall, you'd have to think they'll take Dal Colle with a small chance in Ritchie.

Looks like we may very well end up with Draisaitl.

I'd acquire Ottawa's pick and move that along with ours for the Oilers or Panther's pick.

Giving up a top 5 pick for nothing is crazy IMHO though arsmaster disagrees. If I was Snow my options would be

1. trade the pick for immediate help. It's not an amazing draft and the help would push the Islanders out of the top 5 next year and up to 10+.

2. trade UP, yes go all in this draft. Try and grab one of the big 3, it might cost a bit more but at least you've got something in the hand.

3. trade down, you just said up now you say down? If they can parlay this pick into a good player (to help with not finishing bottom 5) and still walk away quality pick (ie Nylander)

That team also has more cap space than it knows what to do with. They has 21 players signed and are still $27m under a $69m cap, $29m if the cap is as high as $71m. Even resigning their few RFAs they still might not make the floor. They could add some quality players or at the worst some good depth.

The Islanders need to start adding that salary with an NHL level starting goalie, given their goalies killed them this year: 905+.891+.896. Just adding a half decent starter (.915) and they are drafting 10+.

 

[Virtanen2Horvat]

the countdown to the draft lottery begins! 44 hrs to go!

Im dying here. It would be a miracle to get 1st overall. I would go Bennett since Horvat is our two way guy.

 

[Patchey*]

If a miracle were to occur and the Canucks got 1st overall we would take Reinhart for PR reasons

 

[me2]

Bennett or Reinhart.

I don't think so. The draft seems to have stratified and I can't see only of the top 3 teams downgrading from Bennett/Reinhart to Ritchie/Ehlers etc for just a couple of 2nds. Lets put it this way, if they canucks had a top 3 spot would you want Linden to give a top 3 spot for a couple of 2nds?

With Canuck luck if we did trade up for 3rd pick we'd probably get Ekblad after Bennett/Reinhart went 1 and 2.

 

[McHortton]

Im dying here. It would be a miracle to get 1st overall. I would go Bennett since Horvat is our two way guy.

I'd still go Reinhart , local kid and can't go wrong with another center. Reinhart + Horvat as 1-2 down the road would be sick.

 

[tc 23]

If a miracle were to occur and the Canucks got 1st overall we would take Reinhart for PR reasons

**** PR. Take the BPA. Colorado could have gone for PR with Jones, but went BPA.

 

[Virtanen2Horvat]

I'm a big fan of Nylander's, but his size is too much of a risk. To me, you can't ignore the skill of Ehlers. His speed and his ability to handle and shoot the puck at speed is exactly what the Canucks need.

That is probably what we will go with if our new GM and scouts are smart enough.

 

[Barney Gumble]

**** PR. Take the BPA.

Correct answer. We already have Linden as the PR guy.

 

[Patchey*]

**** PR. Take the BPA. Colorado could have gone for PR with Jones, but went BPA.

Bennett and Reinhart are both great players and you can't go wrong with either of them. I probably would choose Bennett (I'm a big fan of Bennett's grit) but no ****ing chance they skip on the local boy that is slated to go anywhere from 1st to 3rd Overall. The Aquilinis want to make money and Reinhart is an automatic jersey seller

 

[Ace101]

How about our 2nd round pick this year? Feels like it's been forever since we picked in the first half of the second round. Any avid scouters out there have a read on who might be available around our pick?

Having no idea about who or what kinds of players are going to be available at pick #36, I would love for us to use this pick on an offensive, power play QB defenseman if there is one around our pick.

Anthony DeAngelo might be available he could turn into an absolute steal or bust

 

[me2]

Bennett and Reinhart are both great players and you can't go wrong with either of them. I probably would choose Bennett (I'm a big fan of Bennett's grit) but no ****ing chance they skip on the local boy that is slated to go anywhere from 1st to 3rd Overall. The Aquilinis want to make money and Reinhart is an automatic jersey seller

Reinhart's playoffs have tipped him back in front of Bennett for meh but I could go either way (Bennett is so much young he's doing incredibly well). Reinhart is likely to be ready quicker which is another plus.

 

[Wilch]

I don't think so. The draft seems to have stratified and I can't see only of the top 3 teams downgrading from Bennett/Reinhart to Ritchie/Ehlers etc for just a couple of 2nds. Lets put it this way, if they canucks had a top 3 spot would you want Linden to give a top 3 spot for a couple of 2nds?

With Canuck luck if we did trade up for 3rd pick we'd probably get Ekblad after Bennett/Reinhart went 1 and 2.

The trade is triggered after Ekblad is taken at 1 or 2.

It's stratified from a fan's perspective. EDM was mentioned because they're supposedly high on Draisaitl. They've gone for BPA for the last 5 years spent in the lottery, what they need are guys who can make immediate impact, not another 6'0 offensive rookie who won't pan out until a few years later and will demand another long term $6mn contract.

You can't use the Canucks as an example, because this team lacks what the Oilers have in offensively gifted players. Of course we don't trade down, we don't have a single high end offensive prospect. Need to consider this on an ad hoc basis.

Florida is the exact same here. You look at both of these teams:

EDM - Hall, Nugent-Hopkins, Eberle, Yakupov and Perron
FLA - Huberdeau, Barkov, Bjugstad, Gudbransson

Neither of these teams are short on young blue chip talents, and still have several late firsts/early seconds waiting down the pipeline.

They can opt to take one blue chipper after another, but continue to lack the proper scaffolding in veterans to mentor their rookies and shelter them.

From a cap point of view, having a bunch of offensive stars won't help either. You need a diversified portfolio of players.

 

[canuck4life16]

Reinhart played with Horvat at the wjc would be great if they could be together again

 

[arsmaster*]

Giving up a top 5 pick for nothing is crazy IMHO though arsmaster disagrees. If I was Snow my options would be

1. trade the pick for immediate help. It's not an amazing draft and the help would push the Islanders out of the top 5 next year and up to 10+.

2. trade UP, yes go all in this draft. Try and grab one of the big 3, it might cost a bit more but at least you've got something in the hand.

3. trade down, you just said up now you say down? If they can parlay this pick into a good player (to help with not finishing bottom 5) and still walk away quality pick (ie Nylander)

That team also has more cap space than it knows what to do with. They has 21 players signed and are still $27m under a $69m cap, $29m if the cap is as high as $71m. Even resigning their few RFAs they still might not make the floor. They could add some quality players or at the worst some good depth.

The Islanders need to start adding that salary with an NHL level starting goalie, given their goalies killed them this year: 905+.891+.896. Just adding a half decent starter (.915) and they are drafting 10+.

And if those options fail like I expect they would, you're sitting at the draft in a years time having had a bottom 5 season (again) and will not have a chance at selecting a player most largely consider better than their very own franchise player.

What do you think looks better moving to Brooklyn the season after the 2015 draft. Michael Dal Colle or the chance to have the best prospect since Sid alongside John Tavares.

I would bank on the Isles stinking, and Wang is a cheap son of a *****. I'm sure he'll be glad to save not having to pay a top 5 picks ELC.

 

[Wilch]

And if those options fail like I expect they would, you're sitting at the draft in a years time having had a bottom 5 season (again) and will not have a chance at selecting a player most largely consider better than their very own franchise player.

What do you think looks better moving to Brooklyn the season after the 2015 draft. Michael Dal Colle or the chance to have the best prospect since Sid alongside John Tavares.

I would bank on the Isles stinking, and Wang is a cheap son of a *****. I'm sure he'll be glad to save not having to pay a top 5 picks ELC.

If Wang is cheap, then there's no way he'd forfeit 2015 without even a single game played. He's a businessmen, just like anyone else out there. If he sees this team is ready for contention, he'll drop the money. Money-poor teams like Nashville will wait for their team to have the right set of players (combination of discount contracts and ELC) before dropping money on big cap hits and UFAs.

Plus, what's going to cover his expenses if nobody shows up to Isles games? What happens when Tavares inevitably becomes infuriated playing for a team that's blatantly tanking? If this franchise isn't already burning a hole in his pocket, it will if he decides to tank yet another season.

 

[Burrows Bite]

I'm a big fan of Nylander's, but his size is too much of a risk. To me, you can't ignore the skill of Ehlers. His speed and his ability to handle and shoot the puck at speed is exactly what the Canucks need.

If you think Nylander's size is a risk, why would you you feel differently about Ehlers who is the exact same size.

 

[Sergei Shirokov]

What?? "Kassian is our power forward, we don't need Ritchie. No! Back off bad Ritchie!!"

Nick Ritchie projects as better than Kassian. Hell at this point I don't know that Kassian is anything more than a 3rd liner, meanwhile Ritchie could be a first liner.

Some probably thought Tom Wilson was better than Kassian too. (Wilson who I was never crazy about and never saw the upside in, still don't)

I like Ritchie, I think he's like Kassian, but he's a shooter, Kassian is a playmaker, better hands, better passing ability. Ritchie has the big shot which is where the majority of his offense comes from.

I would still lean towards Ehlers or Kapanen or someone with real high end skill though than Ritchie.

 

[Sergei Shirokov]

I am down for either Ritchie or Ehlers at 6. I think there's another dropoff after those two and Nylander.

Group A:
Reinhart
Ekblad
Bennett
Draisaitl
Dal Colle

Group B:

Ritchie
Ehlers
Nylander

Group C:

McCann
Fleury
Virtanen
Perlini

And then there's a significant drop off.

You seem to have completely forgotten about Kasperi Kapanen (who I would place in your group B)

And there is also an argument to be made for Ehlers in group A IMO.