Cush
Registered User
Could be a good case for teams to move down unless they're married to Their Guy. That should make it particularly unpredictable. And fun.
I'd be kind of surprised if they outright targeted another defenseman in the first round. I could see the fit with Samuelsson, particularly if they're sold on his upside. I could also see it with Alexeyev in terms of his frame and upside but less so with those two smaller Swedes. Sandin comes across as too similar to Djoos in some respects and Lundkvist probably profiles as more of a two-way guy without a true standout strength. I'd also wonder if they did that what it might say about their thoughts on the AHL rookie seasons from Johansen & Siegenthaler, two players they already invested fairly high picks on.
After the top 20, I'd still tend to think that Lundestrom, Dellandrea, the three NTDP d-men and Sandin will be off the board prior to 31 at least. It kind of sucks that Denisenko & Bokk seem to be locks to go earlier but I do like Foudy, O'Brien, Berggren & Alexeyev. If they slip, there is some intrigue with McLeod (albeit as one of the older players available) and Thomas (even though as CHLers maybe they're less likely targets). So I'd mainly be narrowing it down to those four fringe first rounders unless it really does open up and someone slides (aside from Sandin).
Last 15 pics: 9 D / 5 F / 1 G