Botchford was making pure assumptions too, none of his information today is concrete.
Botchford rarely ever has concrete information anymore. He does a great job at taking the little information he does get and blow it up into a bigger story than it is.
Canucks are going to ask what it would take to get the #1 pick... OMG THE CANUCKS ARE MAKING A BIG PUSH FOR THE 1ST OVERALL!!!
Canucks want to prioritize speed in the draft. CAUFIELD AND BOLDY ARE OFF THE BOARD.
Sometimes it's not even Botchford that actually blows it out of proportion, it's the fans and media that take his comments for gospel when they are pure utter speculation or just throwing ideas out there as what he would do (and usually these are just ridiculously out to lunch on what's realistic).
Prioritizing speed doesn't/shouldn't mean prioritizing fast skating players. Players that think the game quicker and play the game quicker with smart decisions are WAY MORE effective than speedsters. The top players today are both.