StevenToddIves
Registered User
1 New Jersey Devils
Highlights: Jack Hughes. He's a franchise-changing offensive talent, a future staple among the NHL scoring leaders, and just dynamic in every respect. The Devils draft would be top 10 in the NHL even if they did not have a single other pick, but they had 10 more, and for the most part, they knocked it out of the park. The Devils finally addressed a desperate need for some heavy, physical shut down D with the picks of Nikita Okhotyuk (61), Daniil Misyul (70), Michael Vukojevic (82) and Case McCarthy (118). Misyul and McCarthy were especially savvy selections, as they might have mid-to-top pairing potential. As usual, the Devils opened eyes with several late steals of high-upside scoring forwards like RW Graeme Clarke (80), LW Arsemi Gritsyuk (129) and LW Nikola Pasic (189). The seemingly annual 6th-round steal this year was RW Patrick Moynihan, who is universally considered the most underrated player on the mighty 2018-19 US-NTDP by other players and coaches on the US-NTDP.
Lowlights: Over-aged RW Tyce Thompson was a bit of a head-scratcher in the fourth round -- he's got some intriguing qualities, but the value is shady considering he likely would have been around in the 7th round.
The Skinny: Headlined by Hughes, this must be considered the best draft in the NHL. Factor in that the Devils #34 pick was a key cog in acquiring new #1 defenseman PK Subban, and this must be considered one of the best weeks in the history of the Devils franchise.
2 New York Rangers
Highlights: Riding a lottery win to the #2 pick and Kappo Kakko was a huge jump-start for the Rangers rebuild. The franchise winger is ready to make a huge impact in the NHL and immediately becomes the best forward on the team since prime-era Jaromir Jagr. The hits did not stop there -- LD Matthew Robertson could have been the steal of the draft in the second round. The best defensive, shut-down D available in the entire draft, Robertson combines elite 6'4 size with high-end skating skills, excellent puck-handling and an off-the-charts hockey IQ. Having Robertson and K'Andre Miller patrolling the left side of the Rangers blueline for years to come is an incredible scenario to imagine. Sixth-round F Leevi Aaltonen certainly has some elements to improve in his overall game, but is one of the speediest skaters in the entire class of 2019.
Lowlights: C Karl Hendriksson in the second round was an absolute head-scratcher. Sure he's a smart kid, but 5'9 pivots who don't offer appreciable skill and are average skaters at best do not often wind up in the NHL. Imagine if the Rangers lander Legare or Dorofeyev with that pick? Likewise, Adam Edstrom in the 6th round seemed like one of the two-to-three picks the Rangers make every year which make no sense but rather seem to be made in order to assuage their Swedish scouting department.
The Skinny: Just getting Kakko alone would have made this a top-10 draft, but when the Rangers stole Robertson in the second round? Well, you're talking a kid who would not have raised eyebrows if he were taken 14th overall by Philadelphia or 15th by Montreal. Despite some later hiccups, it was a tremendous weekend for the Rangers.
3 Carolina Hurricanes
Highlights: C Ryan Suzuki (28) was expected to go far higher -- he may be the best passer in the draft after only Hughes, Zegras and Dach. He could be the 2C the Canes are searching for, but if not they may have taken a kid with even more upside in C Jamieson Rees (44), an electrifying skater with an extraordinary compete level who may have been a top-15 pick were it not for an injury-marred draft-eligible season. C Blake Murray in the 6th round was likely the best pivot taken in the lower rounds by anyone, and also has NHL 2C upside. The hits kept coming at F with the absolute steal of high-scoring Finnish LW Patrick Puistola at #73; he was easily the best F for Finland at the U18 tourney and many scouts had him as a first-round value. Tuukka Tieksola at #121 was yet another huge hit; his skill level is simply enormous. 5th-round winger Kirill Slepets looked terrific in tournament play for Russia, while his countryman Pyotr Kotchetkov (36) was generally considered the second-best netminder in the draft after only Spencer Knight.
Lowlights: Sure LD Domenick Fensore (90) and RD Anttoni Honka (83) offer big-time offensive potential with elite skating ability -- but if they're both on your blueline at the same time, you're going to allow a ton of goals against. Taking a chance on one of these kids would make sense, but both? Fensore has a shot because of his smarts and effort in the defensive zone, but Honka plays like he absolutely does not care until the puck is on his stick -- he's essentially a fourth forward who poses as a defenseman.
The Skinny: The future is bright in Carolina -- they already feature one of the best bluelines in the NHL and a cache of talented young forwards which they added to with an outstanding haul in Vancouver.
4 Philadelphia Flyers
Highlights: After a few head-scratching off-season moves, GM Chuck Fletcher finally nailed one, when he traded drown from the #11 slot to #14 with Arizona, who took RD Victor Soderstrom. The Flyers took a D who is just as good in Cam York. The highlight of the draft, however, may have been landing RW Bobby Brink with the #34 overall pick -- the extremely skilled but undersized winger has high-scoring, first-line upside and should have been taken over a dozen picks earlier. The Flyers were far from finished after these three picks -- over-aged RD Ronnie Attard (72) combines great zone coverage, extreme physicality and an absolute bomb from the point. One of the best late values came late in the draft with another over-ager in RW Bryce Brodzinski (196), a power-winger with a great shot who can also develop into a middle-6 bull if he can improve his skating.
Lowlights: Philly enjoyed an excellent draft pretty much top to bottom -- the only item for Flyers fans to be unhappy about is that three division rivals added even more top-end talent.
The Skinny: The Flyers entered the draft with one of the top-5 prospect pools in the entire NHL, and their bumper 2019 crop was among the top dozen in the league, as well. It is a near certainty that the next generation of Philadelphia talent will usurp the previous one.
5 Pittsburgh Penguins
Highlights: On a perennial search for talented wingers to surround super-centers Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin with and only 5 picks, the Penguins knocked it out of the park with three of the pest power forwards in the class of 2019. LW Samuel Poulin (21) and RW Nathan Legare (74) are both huge physical specimens who dominate in the corners and creases; both have high hockey IQs and offer excellent two-way acumen. Most importantly, they both are elite shooters who can rocket pucks past netminders from anywhere in the offensive zone. The Pens nailed a huge steal in the 5th round with US-NTDP RW Judd Caulfield, the heaviest hitter of the three and also a kid who has the skill to be a middle-six banger at the NHL level.
Lowlights: With only five picks in the draft, every one was crucial. 7th rounders Valtteri Puustinen and Santeri Airola seemed more a capitulation to the Pens' Finnish scouts than an attempt to add depth to the prospect pool.
The Skinny: This draft must be considered a success -- Poulin was a wise pick which matched a deserving draft position with a team need, while Legare at #74 is likely going to go down as one of the steals of the draft -- if he can improve his skating and stick handling a notch, we're talking a kid who has first-line, impact upside at the NHL level.
6 Washington Capitals
Highlights: Connor McMichael (25) has speed for days, excellent all-around skill and could grow into the #2C behind Backstrom. RW Brett Leason was simply an incredible picks at #56 overall -- though he lacks top-end skill, he's a beast at 6'5 who plays a heady two-way game, bashes bodies with impunity, and could score 20-25 goals as a middle 6 power forward. C Aliaksei Protas is 6'5 as well, one of the most physical Cs in the class of 2019. Though he lacks the skating for a top-6 role, he could become a bottom-6 stalwart on a team which is going to be just incredibly physical for the foreseeable future. RD Martin Hugo Has is a long way from the NHL, but is also huge at 6'4.
Lowlights: The Caps had only 4 picks, and still lack any forwards in the pipeline with the talent to be a high-end offensive option.
The Skinny: The already-big and tough Washington Capitals just got even bigger and tougher.
7 New York Islanders
Highlights: LD Samuel Bolduc (57) is not just a great skater for a 6'4-210 beast -- he's a great skater, period. He also features a booming shot and some intriguing offensive instincts, as well as a willingness to play the body. To me, his closest comparable in this draft was #8 overall pick Phillip Broberg. In the fifth-round, the Isles nabbed a true gamer in C Reece Newkirk, who adds to his extraordinary compete level very good two-way play and some nifty passing skills -- he is a future middle-6 playmaker at the NHL level.
Lowlights: Needing a #2 center and with huge talents Tomasino, Beecher, Rees and McMichael just sitting there, the Isles went completely off the board with an injury-prone winger in Simon Holmstrom. Does Holmstrom have top-6 talent? Certainly, but at the very least they should have traded down 10 to 15 picks and added another second or third rounder. This pick, to me, showed a lack of vision.
The Skinny: There is no doubt in my mind that the Islanders were, along with Buffalo and Detroit, one of the three big winners of the 2018 draft. It is puzzling to me how quickly they dropped off in 2019.
8 Columbus Blue Jackets
Highlights: The only highlight I can think of is that, sometime early Saturday evening, the draft ended and the Blue Jackets did not have to sit there and watch other teams draft great prospects anymore.
Lowlights: With only three picks in the draft at 104, 114 and 212, the Blue Jackets went off the board with all three picks.
The Skinny: The worst draft not only in 2019, but probably in the entire century for any NHL team.
Highlights: Jack Hughes. He's a franchise-changing offensive talent, a future staple among the NHL scoring leaders, and just dynamic in every respect. The Devils draft would be top 10 in the NHL even if they did not have a single other pick, but they had 10 more, and for the most part, they knocked it out of the park. The Devils finally addressed a desperate need for some heavy, physical shut down D with the picks of Nikita Okhotyuk (61), Daniil Misyul (70), Michael Vukojevic (82) and Case McCarthy (118). Misyul and McCarthy were especially savvy selections, as they might have mid-to-top pairing potential. As usual, the Devils opened eyes with several late steals of high-upside scoring forwards like RW Graeme Clarke (80), LW Arsemi Gritsyuk (129) and LW Nikola Pasic (189). The seemingly annual 6th-round steal this year was RW Patrick Moynihan, who is universally considered the most underrated player on the mighty 2018-19 US-NTDP by other players and coaches on the US-NTDP.
Lowlights: Over-aged RW Tyce Thompson was a bit of a head-scratcher in the fourth round -- he's got some intriguing qualities, but the value is shady considering he likely would have been around in the 7th round.
The Skinny: Headlined by Hughes, this must be considered the best draft in the NHL. Factor in that the Devils #34 pick was a key cog in acquiring new #1 defenseman PK Subban, and this must be considered one of the best weeks in the history of the Devils franchise.
2 New York Rangers
Highlights: Riding a lottery win to the #2 pick and Kappo Kakko was a huge jump-start for the Rangers rebuild. The franchise winger is ready to make a huge impact in the NHL and immediately becomes the best forward on the team since prime-era Jaromir Jagr. The hits did not stop there -- LD Matthew Robertson could have been the steal of the draft in the second round. The best defensive, shut-down D available in the entire draft, Robertson combines elite 6'4 size with high-end skating skills, excellent puck-handling and an off-the-charts hockey IQ. Having Robertson and K'Andre Miller patrolling the left side of the Rangers blueline for years to come is an incredible scenario to imagine. Sixth-round F Leevi Aaltonen certainly has some elements to improve in his overall game, but is one of the speediest skaters in the entire class of 2019.
Lowlights: C Karl Hendriksson in the second round was an absolute head-scratcher. Sure he's a smart kid, but 5'9 pivots who don't offer appreciable skill and are average skaters at best do not often wind up in the NHL. Imagine if the Rangers lander Legare or Dorofeyev with that pick? Likewise, Adam Edstrom in the 6th round seemed like one of the two-to-three picks the Rangers make every year which make no sense but rather seem to be made in order to assuage their Swedish scouting department.
The Skinny: Just getting Kakko alone would have made this a top-10 draft, but when the Rangers stole Robertson in the second round? Well, you're talking a kid who would not have raised eyebrows if he were taken 14th overall by Philadelphia or 15th by Montreal. Despite some later hiccups, it was a tremendous weekend for the Rangers.
3 Carolina Hurricanes
Highlights: C Ryan Suzuki (28) was expected to go far higher -- he may be the best passer in the draft after only Hughes, Zegras and Dach. He could be the 2C the Canes are searching for, but if not they may have taken a kid with even more upside in C Jamieson Rees (44), an electrifying skater with an extraordinary compete level who may have been a top-15 pick were it not for an injury-marred draft-eligible season. C Blake Murray in the 6th round was likely the best pivot taken in the lower rounds by anyone, and also has NHL 2C upside. The hits kept coming at F with the absolute steal of high-scoring Finnish LW Patrick Puistola at #73; he was easily the best F for Finland at the U18 tourney and many scouts had him as a first-round value. Tuukka Tieksola at #121 was yet another huge hit; his skill level is simply enormous. 5th-round winger Kirill Slepets looked terrific in tournament play for Russia, while his countryman Pyotr Kotchetkov (36) was generally considered the second-best netminder in the draft after only Spencer Knight.
Lowlights: Sure LD Domenick Fensore (90) and RD Anttoni Honka (83) offer big-time offensive potential with elite skating ability -- but if they're both on your blueline at the same time, you're going to allow a ton of goals against. Taking a chance on one of these kids would make sense, but both? Fensore has a shot because of his smarts and effort in the defensive zone, but Honka plays like he absolutely does not care until the puck is on his stick -- he's essentially a fourth forward who poses as a defenseman.
The Skinny: The future is bright in Carolina -- they already feature one of the best bluelines in the NHL and a cache of talented young forwards which they added to with an outstanding haul in Vancouver.
4 Philadelphia Flyers
Highlights: After a few head-scratching off-season moves, GM Chuck Fletcher finally nailed one, when he traded drown from the #11 slot to #14 with Arizona, who took RD Victor Soderstrom. The Flyers took a D who is just as good in Cam York. The highlight of the draft, however, may have been landing RW Bobby Brink with the #34 overall pick -- the extremely skilled but undersized winger has high-scoring, first-line upside and should have been taken over a dozen picks earlier. The Flyers were far from finished after these three picks -- over-aged RD Ronnie Attard (72) combines great zone coverage, extreme physicality and an absolute bomb from the point. One of the best late values came late in the draft with another over-ager in RW Bryce Brodzinski (196), a power-winger with a great shot who can also develop into a middle-6 bull if he can improve his skating.
Lowlights: Philly enjoyed an excellent draft pretty much top to bottom -- the only item for Flyers fans to be unhappy about is that three division rivals added even more top-end talent.
The Skinny: The Flyers entered the draft with one of the top-5 prospect pools in the entire NHL, and their bumper 2019 crop was among the top dozen in the league, as well. It is a near certainty that the next generation of Philadelphia talent will usurp the previous one.
5 Pittsburgh Penguins
Highlights: On a perennial search for talented wingers to surround super-centers Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin with and only 5 picks, the Penguins knocked it out of the park with three of the pest power forwards in the class of 2019. LW Samuel Poulin (21) and RW Nathan Legare (74) are both huge physical specimens who dominate in the corners and creases; both have high hockey IQs and offer excellent two-way acumen. Most importantly, they both are elite shooters who can rocket pucks past netminders from anywhere in the offensive zone. The Pens nailed a huge steal in the 5th round with US-NTDP RW Judd Caulfield, the heaviest hitter of the three and also a kid who has the skill to be a middle-six banger at the NHL level.
Lowlights: With only five picks in the draft, every one was crucial. 7th rounders Valtteri Puustinen and Santeri Airola seemed more a capitulation to the Pens' Finnish scouts than an attempt to add depth to the prospect pool.
The Skinny: This draft must be considered a success -- Poulin was a wise pick which matched a deserving draft position with a team need, while Legare at #74 is likely going to go down as one of the steals of the draft -- if he can improve his skating and stick handling a notch, we're talking a kid who has first-line, impact upside at the NHL level.
6 Washington Capitals
Highlights: Connor McMichael (25) has speed for days, excellent all-around skill and could grow into the #2C behind Backstrom. RW Brett Leason was simply an incredible picks at #56 overall -- though he lacks top-end skill, he's a beast at 6'5 who plays a heady two-way game, bashes bodies with impunity, and could score 20-25 goals as a middle 6 power forward. C Aliaksei Protas is 6'5 as well, one of the most physical Cs in the class of 2019. Though he lacks the skating for a top-6 role, he could become a bottom-6 stalwart on a team which is going to be just incredibly physical for the foreseeable future. RD Martin Hugo Has is a long way from the NHL, but is also huge at 6'4.
Lowlights: The Caps had only 4 picks, and still lack any forwards in the pipeline with the talent to be a high-end offensive option.
The Skinny: The already-big and tough Washington Capitals just got even bigger and tougher.
7 New York Islanders
Highlights: LD Samuel Bolduc (57) is not just a great skater for a 6'4-210 beast -- he's a great skater, period. He also features a booming shot and some intriguing offensive instincts, as well as a willingness to play the body. To me, his closest comparable in this draft was #8 overall pick Phillip Broberg. In the fifth-round, the Isles nabbed a true gamer in C Reece Newkirk, who adds to his extraordinary compete level very good two-way play and some nifty passing skills -- he is a future middle-6 playmaker at the NHL level.
Lowlights: Needing a #2 center and with huge talents Tomasino, Beecher, Rees and McMichael just sitting there, the Isles went completely off the board with an injury-prone winger in Simon Holmstrom. Does Holmstrom have top-6 talent? Certainly, but at the very least they should have traded down 10 to 15 picks and added another second or third rounder. This pick, to me, showed a lack of vision.
The Skinny: There is no doubt in my mind that the Islanders were, along with Buffalo and Detroit, one of the three big winners of the 2018 draft. It is puzzling to me how quickly they dropped off in 2019.
8 Columbus Blue Jackets
Highlights: The only highlight I can think of is that, sometime early Saturday evening, the draft ended and the Blue Jackets did not have to sit there and watch other teams draft great prospects anymore.
Lowlights: With only three picks in the draft at 104, 114 and 212, the Blue Jackets went off the board with all three picks.
The Skinny: The worst draft not only in 2019, but probably in the entire century for any NHL team.
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