2018 NHL Draft Prospects

[JK2K]

It looks like Future Considerations has him ranked 15th overall in the 2018 preliminary draft list they just released. I believe that's a credible source.

 

[JK2K]

McBain I was referring to. Also I was surprised to see Allan McShane in the 40's. I think that is low.

 

[NA Hockey]

Big center with a balanced offensive game. He's not talked about much because his draft is a year away and he plays in Jr. A. He also hasn't played much in high-profile events yet. He's currently listed at 6'3, with a big wingspan and needs to fill out. 6'3 centers with high hockey-IQ will always be in demand, regardless of what league they play in. He needs to fill out and improve his skating.

He was invited to the U-18 tryouts and is on the Hlinka try-out roster (would be a massive shock if he doesn't make it). He can get his name in the top 3 discussions with strong international appearances and a dominant Jr. A. season. He could also stagnate and have his stock implode.

Most guys who get hype tend to play in marquee events or on major teams. I doubt many people here are streaming Jr. A games for a prospect not eligible for the draft until next year. Compare that to Ryan Merkley, who most OHL observers were able to watch either live, through a cable package or an easily accessible stream.

Agree that the reason why he is not as talked about as much is simply where he plays at this point. If he had gone to Barrie he would be talked about a lot more. Has the tools and the IQ to move up. A natural athlete who is taking a slow patient approach to improving.

 

[louie57]

Ramsus Dahlin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMig8EbUFx8

 

[hawksfan50]

No...2018 supposed to be better than 2017 crop but no way is it exceptional in the class of expectation for 2019 2020 and 2021 which Pierre McGuire keeps telling us are so very deep and so very chock full of top talents ..These 3 drafts are where you do NOT want to have less than a full compliment of picks ...Vegas already has more than that for 2019...wuth 3 stockpiled for round 2 in addition to their own first ..McPhee knew when to load up ...Teams that give away picks for tge 19 20 and 21 drafts ...especialky top 3 rounds will be comitted g suicide ...McGuire has never raved about drafts to the extent he keeps pumping up the excitement about tge exceptional it and depth in these 3 drafts.2018 will not be as goid as any of the great 3 coming but it will be better than a very iffy of (overall) 2017 draft of not deep first round talent and average to below average depth..There will always of course be surprises who do better than their draft position indicates tgey would ...late bloomers etc. ..but on average tge expectation by most of the consensus was that 2017 was at best merely average but coukd be worse than average ...that 2018 will be better than average ..but that 2019 20 and 21 are alk going to provide exceptionally deep picking opportunities and lots of really impact pkayer's who will star in the NHL..

 

[Bonin21]

That's a long "sentence".

 

[VictorLustig]

No...2018 supposed to be better than 2017 crop but no way is it exceptional in the class of expectation for 2019 2020 and 2021 which Pierre McGuire keeps telling us are so very deep and so very chock full of top talents ..These 3 drafts are where you do NOT want to have less than a full compliment of picks ...Vegas already has more than that for 2019...wuth 3 stockpiled for round 2 in addition to their own first ..McPhee knew when to load up ...Teams that give away picks for tge 19 20 and 21 drafts ...especialky top 3 rounds will be comitted g suicide ...McGuire has never raved about drafts to the extent he keeps pumping up the excitement about tge exceptional it and depth in these 3 drafts.2018 will not be as goid as any of the great 3 coming but it will be better than a very iffy of (overall) 2017 draft of not deep first round talent and average to below average depth..There will always of course be surprises who do better than their draft position indicates tgey would ...late bloomers etc. ..but on average tge expectation by most of the consensus was that 2017 was at best merely average but coukd be worse than average ...that 2018 will be better than average ..but that 2019 20 and 21 are alk going to provide exceptionally deep picking opportunities and lots of really impact pkayer's who will star in the NHL..

Link?

Anyone posting a top 10 ranking of the 2019, 2020 and 2021 draft will be way off. Everyone is clueless about those drafts at this point.

 

[93LEAFS]

Link?

Anyone posting a top 10 ranking of the 2019, 2020 and 2021 draft will be way off. Everyone is clueless about those drafts at this point.

Yea, I mean, the only relatively big-name prospect for 2019 who played a full season in the CHL this year was Nolan Foote. Some of the younger WHL guys we got glimpses of such as Krebs and Dach. But, trying to predict the depth of those classes right now is just insanity. In regards to NA prospects, I basically just ignore the hype until I see them in the CHL or USHL/USNTDP in regards to expectations for the NHL. Yes, there are stories of guys like McDavid, Crosby, Mackinnon, and Tavares who were highly hyped at 14/15 but there are also a bunch of John MacFarland, Alex Forsberg, Patrick McNeil, Steven Anthony, etc. Other guys who were hailed as prodigies turned into decent players and may turn into decent players like Hawlyruk, and Sean Day.

Most of the promising Euro guys for these drafts I would assume are still not in their respective U-20 leagues such as J-20's.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

yeah it's waaaay too early to be talking about the depth of the 2019, 2020 and even 2021 drafts. What we do know is the 2018 draft is a good looking draft and definitely deeper than 2017, but to talk about how deep 2019-2021 drafts are at this point is nuts. It'll be fun to keep track of, though.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

2019 rankings can start coming out later this year, 2018 should be already coming out. Anything beyond that is really just an uninformed guess.

 

[93LEAFS]

2019 rankings can start coming out later this year, 2018 should be already coming out. Anything beyond that is really just an uninformed guess.

We should be able to have a rough idea of who are tracking to be high picks on 2019 mid-way through the upcoming season with the U-17 challenge and players entering the CHL and USNTDP/USHL. Guys like Foote, Krebs, and Dach look really promising out west, but there aren't many high-end late birthdays that emerged this year. I'm interested in how Hughes, Beecher, and Turcotte look at the USNTDP. There are a bunch of promising guys, but midget/rep hockey up to Major Junior level is always a huge test.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

We should be able to have a rough idea of who are tracking to be high picks on 2019 mid-way through the upcoming season with the U-17 challenge and players entering the CHL and USNTDP/USHL. Guys like Foote, Krebs, and Dach look really promising out west, but there aren't many high-end late birthdays that emerged this year. I'm interested in how Hughes, Beecher, and Turcotte look at the USNTDP. There are a bunch of promising guys, but midget/rep hockey up to Major Junior level is always a huge test.

Warren, Knyazev, Kokkonen, Okhotyuk, Byram, I think it could be a pretty good year for defensemen.

 

[polarbearcub]

Kid to watch out for in 2018.

Matt Leduc on the Spokane chiefs. Huge kid. 6"5... d man .

 

[Frk It]

Thanks, I don't know enough of the class to really give a top 31. I have sources I trust, I'm pretty sure HockeyProspect.com's list from the Black Book will soon become public.


Yeah, I could do a rough top 10 at best. I'd probably have something along these lines. Outside of the NHL, I primarily watch the OHL, and in my opinion, the OHL crop is pretty suspect this year at least in regards to who played in it this year. Svechnikov coming over is big though. The kids in the 2018 draft at the top were fairly spread out. From everyone listed including the HM, you have 2 guys in the QMJHL, 2 in Sweden (with one mostly playing J-20), 1 in the USHL, 1 U-18 USNTDP, 3 in U-17 USNTDP, 2 in the WHL, 1 in the Czech Republic, and 1 in the OJHL.

1: Dahlin
2: Svechnikov
3: Tkachuk
4: Veleno
5: Zadina
6: Ty Smith
7: McIssac
8: Jet Woo
9: Farabee
10: Mattias Samuelsson

HM: Boqvist, Wilde, McBain, and Wahlstrom.

There is a big drop-off after the top 2 who are both franchise changing level talents. It will be interesting to see how things play out after the Hlinka, where a bunch of top players outside of the USNTDP and the overagers should be at.

What do you think keeps (or could keep) Wahlstrom from being a top 10 or top 5 guy? I thought he was really good for USA at the WJC.

 

[Apotheosis]

Thanks, I don't know enough of the class to really give a top 31. I have sources I trust, I'm pretty sure HockeyProspect.com's list from the Black Book will soon become public.


Yeah, I could do a rough top 10 at best. I'd probably have something along these lines. Outside of the NHL, I primarily watch the OHL, and in my opinion, the OHL crop is pretty suspect this year at least in regards to who played in it this year. Svechnikov coming over is big though. The kids in the 2018 draft at the top were fairly spread out. From everyone listed including the HM, you have 2 guys in the QMJHL, 2 in Sweden (with one mostly playing J-20), 1 in the USHL, 1 U-18 USNTDP, 3 in U-17 USNTDP, 2 in the WHL, 1 in the Czech Republic, and 1 in the OJHL.

1: Dahlin
2: Svechnikov
3: Tkachuk
4: Veleno
5: Zadina
6: Ty Smith
7: McIssac
8: Jet Woo
9: Farabee
10: Mattias Samuelsson

HM: Boqvist, Wilde, McBain, and Wahlstrom.

There is a big drop-off after the top 2 who are both franchise changing level talents. It will be interesting to see how things play out after the Hlinka, where a bunch of top players outside of the USNTDP and the overagers should be at.

The Murphy comparisons really have affected your opinion on Merkley.

 

[93LEAFS]

What do you think keeps (or could keep) Wahlstrom from being a top 10 or top 5 guy? I thought he was really good for USA at the WJC.

I think he needs to round out his game (better defence and show more compete) and play less of a perimiter game. The talent is there to go high.

The Murphy comparisons really have affected your opinion on Merkley.

It's more his lackluster effort at time. It's frustrating enough when wingers give up on plays, let alone defenders after a rush.

 

[AmericanDream]

That's a long "sentence".

welcome to our hell on the Hawks board

 

[AmericanDream]

Thanks, I don't know enough of the class to really give a top 31. I have sources I trust, I'm pretty sure HockeyProspect.com's list from the Black Book will soon become public.


Yeah, I could do a rough top 10 at best. I'd probably have something along these lines. Outside of the NHL, I primarily watch the OHL, and in my opinion, the OHL crop is pretty suspect this year at least in regards to who played in it this year. Svechnikov coming over is big though. The kids in the 2018 draft at the top were fairly spread out. From everyone listed including the HM, you have 2 guys in the QMJHL, 2 in Sweden (with one mostly playing J-20), 1 in the USHL, 1 U-18 USNTDP, 3 in U-17 USNTDP, 2 in the WHL, 1 in the Czech Republic, and 1 in the OJHL.

1: Dahlin
2: Svechnikov
3: Tkachuk
4: Veleno
5: Zadina
6: Ty Smith
7: McIssac
8: Jet Woo
9: Farabee
10: Mattias Samuelsson

HM: Boqvist, Wilde, McBain, and Wahlstrom.

There is a big drop-off after the top 2 who are both franchise changing level talents. It will be interesting to see how things play out after the Hlinka, where a bunch of top players outside of the USNTDP and the overagers should be at.

Farabee seems criminally underrated by some people on here who barely have him in the top 25 - he looks like a top 10 talent to me, not sure what the concerns could be with him.

Also Tkachuk shouldn't go much lower than his brother did draft wise, not sure people realize how good this kid is and maybe are just assuming he isn't as good as his brother Matthew was - not sure.

Good year for the US, need some more kids to step up but we should have a few top 10 talents, possibly 3, and a few more sneaking into the top 15...definitely better than last year overall with solid depth.

 

[93LEAFS]

Farabee seems criminally underrated by some people on here who barely have him in the top 25 - he looks like a top 10 talent to me, not sure what the concerns could be with him.

Also Tkachuk shouldn't go much lower than his brother did draft wise, not sure people realize how good this kid is and maybe are just assuming he isn't as good as his brother Matthew was - not sure.

Good year for the US, need some more kids to step up but we should have a few top 10 talents, possibly 3, and a few more sneaking into the top 15...definitely better than last year overall with solid depth.

I think Brady Tkachuk who is more likely a very high-end complimentary piece (in the sense you don't want either to really be the driving force of an NHL first line/primary puck carrier) similar to his brother. This gets him knocked down by stat-watchers when comparing the two. They forget his brother was playing with Matthews and had another great linemate in Roslovic forming a dominant line at USNTDP and later in London with Marner and Dvorak, while Brady played with guys like Scott Reedy, Josh Norris, and Pastujov while being asked to be his team's best offensive player.

He may not hold onto his 3rd or so spot, but I don't see him slipping out of the top 10, let alone top 20.

Farabee's concern is size, but he has everything else. Highly skilled, smart and great skating. Could be this drafts Keller.

 

[Daximus]

I think he needs to round out his game (better defence and show more compete) and play less of a perimiter game. The talent is there to go high.

It's more his lackluster effort at time. It's frustrating enough when wingers give up on plays, let alone defenders after a rush.

How did you feel about Makar in this draft?

 

[93LEAFS]

How did you feel about Makar in this draft?

He competes a hell of a lot harder than Merkley. I wouldn't have taken him top 5 but had him at 7. But was more worried about his competition level and transition up from there than actual effort. Makar also possesses a more sturdy frame, Merkley isn't only short but is also slightly built for a defender.

Merkley plays a very me-first game, Guelph is a mess so it's hard to tell how much fault lies with him. With their new coach, they will also be ultra-defensive, it will be interesting to see how Merkley adapts. If he doesn't buy in, he will ride the pine.

 

[Daximus]

He competes a hell of a lot harder than Merkley. I wouldn't have taken him top 5 but had him at 7. But was more worried about his competition level and transition up from there than actual effort. Makar also possesses a more sturdy frame, Merkley isn't only short but is also slightly built for a defender.

Merkley plays a very me-first game, Guelph is a mess so it's hard to tell how much fault lies with him. With their new coach, they will also be ultra-defensive, it will be interesting to see how Merkley adapts. If he doesn't buy in, he will ride the pine.

I'm not sure I agree. I watched quite a few games of the Bandits last season and he floats more that most wingers I've seen. I've never seen anything like it. Pucks in the corner and his partner is fighting for it and he's up at the blueline waiting for the breakout pass. Not to mention some of the times I saw him completely give up on defensive plays or changing after a rush with an odd man rush going back the other way. Obviously it worked for the Bandits and they were stacked so he could get away with it. But I see a lot more in Merkley than I ever saw in Makar defensively. Not to mention he's probably already a better skater while being much younger which is crazy when you think about what Makar can do skating wise. I see similar offensive potential but if he can round out his game in his draft year he should be very coveted.

 

[Daximus]

My current rankings as of July 7th. They will change as I continue to watch older video when I can find it.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Here's my initial rankings for the 2018 draft going into this season. I'll leave it at 45.

1. Rasmus Dahlin
2. Andrei Svechnikov
3. Adam Boqvist
4. Bode Wilde
5. Joe Veleno
6. Jared McIsaac
7. Alex Khovanov
8. Jett Woo
9. Filip Zadina
10. Ryan Merkley
11. Joel Farabee
12. Ty Smith
13. Jake Wise
14. Jesperi Kotkaniemi
15. Anderson MacDonald
16. K'Andre Miller
17. Ryan McLeod
18. Quinn Hughes
19. Isac Lundestrom
20. Evan Bouchard
21. Brady Tkachuk
22. Jacob Olofsson
23. Grigori Denisenko
24. Mattias Samuelsson
25. Vitaly Kravtsov
26. Philipp Kurashev
27. Benoit Olivier Grouix
28. Jesse Ylonen
29. Dominik Bokk
30. Oliver Wahlstrom
31. Danila Galenyuk
32. Jakub Skarek
33. Nando Eggenberger
34. Ty Emberson
35. Adam Ginning
36. Akil Thomas
37. Rasmus Kupari
38. Allan McShane
39. Nico Gross
40. Ty Dellandrea
41. Jakub Lauko
42. Keegan Karki
43. Jack McBain
44. David Gustafsson
45. Jacob Ingham

1, 2 is obvious. Outside of 1, 2, Boqvist is my favorite player in this draft. He legitimately might be the next Erik Karlsson. I know thats said a lot about many players, but the skill-set is so similar. Big fan of McIsaac. I think he's one of the few that could break up 1-2, if he has a great season. Awesome two way potential. Merkley is fun to watch. I have him a little lower than some might have him, but he easily could be top 5 if he cleans up his defense. Kotkaniemi is probably the lone really good Finn in a weak draft for Finland. Miller is Brady Skjei size, skating, athleticism starter kit. He's not that good right now, but very projectable. I think Kravtsov could move further up this list with a big season in the KHL. Skarek is the top goalie in this draft. I'm not sure he's as good as any of the top few goalies in the 2017 draft, but he has shown very well. McBain played off the radar this year. Some really like his game, he could be a big riser.

 

[wings5]

Here's my initial rankings for the 2018 draft going into this season. I'll leave it at 45.

1. Rasmus Dahlin
2. Andrei Svechnikov
3. Adam Boqvist
4. Bode Wilde
5. Joe Veleno
.

Interesting how you have Veleno still as the second best forward whereas he has dropped in many peoples eyes including my own. Will be interesting to see what he can do next year though. Looks pretty good as its a very hard draft to predict at this point, I do strongly feel Tkachuk goes higher though.