Hooray the 2016 Draft Thread!
My goodness there are some good names out there for our pick, likely Top-10. Can't wait to see who distinguishes themselves from the pack but some names to keep in mind for the upcoming season:
Jakob Chychrun - Ekblad-like defenseman even further along in his development, but has an almost glass shoulder. Will he be healthy enough to help lead Sarnia?
Jesse Puljujarvi - It looks like he's added a little weight since last season and will have to adjust his skating to it, but the Ovechkin/Hossa style winger from Finland who has been playing in the highest level since he was 16. Heavy shot, heavy heavy shot. Great scorer, underrated playmaker, needs to work on his creativity more with the puck.
Patrik Laine - A monster of a winger 6'4" 210lbs, Laine is a remarkable combination of pure offensive firepower but has really worked on his skating and two-way play so far. (He's been great for Tappara - from the highest Finnish league - in the Champions League so far...and is starting off the season higher ranked than Puljujarvi...we will see how that turns out. Give them both time to hash it out)
Matthew Tkachuk - the scrappy American playmaker....just seems to me like a solid overall player. Can beat you a variety of ways in the offensive zone and is responsible in his own end...can also beat you a variety of ways with his fists.
Clayton Keller - small, but incredibly high-skilled forward with an unpredictable release on his wrist shot. He might not be in our draft range (might be mid-first pick or so) but he seems extremely promising, just needs to work on his defensive zone commitment
Austin Matthews - THE premier talent in the entire draft. Playing for Zurich in the Swiss NLA this year, it will be interesting to see how that affects his development. Putting up better numbers than Eichel, but playing a different style game, I can't wait to see what happens.
Jordan Kyrou - The quick stickhandler from Sarnia. Needs to add more muscle to his frame, but is very good one on one. Will have to lead Sarnia offensively (and not from the blueline like Chychrun) if Zacha ends up staying in the big club.
Michael McCleod - In my opinion one of the potential breakout forwards of the OHL this year, especially helpful considering it's his draft eligible year, but he's got incredible skating and an elite wrist shot above all else. Just one hell of a toolset.
Max Jones - Not writing too much about Jones. He's the Lawson Crouse of this draft. Still very skilled but a wrecking ball and a true sense of the power forward.
Dmitry Sokolov - Prototypical Russian powerforward playing for Sudbury of the OHL. If his skills can transfer from the larger ice onto the smaller ice, I think we're in for a real treat. Shot-producing machine and he has the opportunity to really move up in the draft.
Logan Brown - HUGE center, 6'6" 225lbs, but has all the makings of a high-powered scoring center. Great skating and shot too.
Mainly talking about forwards here but there are some good defensemen too. Overall this draft features a good amount of high-end American and Finnish talent. This was all off the top of my head, but I'm so excited to talk about the upcoming draft with those who want to discuss it.