Prospect Info: 2020-2021 Minnesota Wild Prospect Rankings #4

[Dr Jan Itor]

Granlund turned out to be disappointing, but he's not anywhere close to being one of the biggest of the decade.

 

[HotDish]

He said nope to what he bolded.

"makes him one of the biggest draft disappointments (and prospect disappointments) in the past decade."

That take is so bad, it hurts.

 

[Minnesnota]

That take is so bad, it hurts.

Yea I mean, Granlund was drafted 9th overall not 1st 2nd or 3rd lol. Any expectations of being more than what he was were misplaced.

 

[ThatGuy22]

That take is so bad, it hurts.

He's literally not one of the top 5 draft disappointments in Minnesota the last decade...

 

[MuckOG]

Granlund was seen as an elite talent, a franchise savior similar to Kaprizov, but I think even more so. I think some were thinking Granlund would be putting up PPG numbers in his prime. The fact that Granlund not only put up 69 points and couldn't squeeze out 30 goals makes him one of the biggest draft disappointments (and prospect disappointments) in the past decade.

Given his age and KHL experience, I think Kaprizov comes into the NHL better prepared than Granlund was.

 

[Yeolo]

if it wasn't for Zuccarello I'd probably be for bringing Granlund back actually.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

Yea I mean, Granlund was drafted 9th overall not 1st 2nd or 3rd lol. Any expectations of being more than what he was were misplaced.

I think you can expect more than 2.5 seasons of top 6 production from a top 10 pick. You can also expect those seasons to be at the position he was drafted at.

 

[Minnesnota]

I think you can expect more than 2.5 seasons of top 6 production from a top 10 pick. You can also expect those seasons to be at the position he was drafted at.

It was more like 3.5 seasons but I get the point you're making. It's my own personal bias but I've never liked the Granlund pick and I've never thought he would've amounted more than what he ended up being for Minnesota. I wanted Schwartz or Bennett so what do I know.

 

[thestonedkoala]

He's literally not one of the top 5 draft disappointments in Minnesota the last decade...

I'd say he was; I don't think most fans were calling him the Finnish Baby Jesus as sort of a mockery or even tongue in cheek. The fact that he was supposed to help fix Minnesota's woes at the center spot is one of the biggest reasons why he was such a disappointment. Not only that, but he was supposed to usher in a new era for Finnish hockey. They even have him on a stamp!

I can't think of another pick that Minnesota made in the past 10 years that had the hype that Granlund had that turned out to be such a disappointment? Dumba and Brodin? Not even close. Phillips? Ha!

At best, Granlund was seen as a transformative talent like Gaborik and many believed he would be the next generational talent for the Wild.

Someone mentioned that his expectations were around Elias Petterson level and I don't think that's wrong.

 

[2Pair]

I'd say he was; I don't think most fans were calling him the Finnish Baby Jesus as sort of a mockery or even tongue in cheek. The fact that he was supposed to help fix Minnesota's woes at the center spot is one of the biggest reasons why he was such a disappointment. Not only that, but he was supposed to usher in a new era for Finnish hockey. They even have him on a stamp!

I can't think of another pick that Minnesota made in the past 10 years that had the hype that Granlund had that turned out to be a bust? Dumba and Brodin? Not even close. Phillips? Ha!

At best, Granlund was seen as a transformative talent like Gaborik and many believed he would be the next generational talent for the Wild.

Someone mentioned that his expectations were around Elias Petterson level and I don't think that's wrong.

Of course it was.

 

[BagHead]

He said nope to what he bolded.

"makes him one of the biggest draft disappointments (and prospect disappointments) in the past decade."

Ah, I did not see the bold print. My mistake.

 

[GuerinUp]

Granlund turned out to be disappointing, but he's not anywhere close to being one of the biggest of the decade.

Ya, that award probably goes to nail yak

 

[TaLoN]

So... yeah... Minnesota prospect #4?

 

[ThatGuy22]

I'd say he was; I don't think most fans were calling him the Finnish Baby Jesus as sort of a mockery or even tongue in cheek. The fact that he was supposed to help fix Minnesota's woes at the center spot is one of the biggest reasons why he was such a disappointment. Not only that, but he was supposed to usher in a new era for Finnish hockey. They even have him on a stamp!

I can't think of another pick that Minnesota made in the past 10 years that had the hype that Granlund had that turned out to be such a disappointment? Dumba and Brodin? Not even close. Phillips? Ha!

At best, Granlund was seen as a transformative talent like Gaborik and many believed he would be the next generational talent for the Wild.

Someone mentioned that his expectations were around Elias Petterson level and I don't think that's wrong.

Phillips was a first round pick, had a ton of hype (especially when he was carrying a very good St. Johns team while Huberdeau was injured), and was shipped out for nothing on his ELC before even sniffing the NHL. He's currently playing in the Polish league.... Poland... Literally did like a quarter of a point per game in the ECHL last year.

 

[guitarhunterdude]

Johan Larsson; but we've had a prospect class this deep. THN had an entire article on Minnesota's prospects back in 2012 that started with, "You take one look at the Minnesota Wild's list of prospects, and after you put your jaw back in place..."

Mikael Granlund was considered the 2nd best prospect in the World ranked by THN. Jonas Brodin was 12th, Charlie Coyle 14th, Matt Hackett 35th, Johan Larsson 38th.

In. The. World.

People were salivating over Minnesota's prospect list in 2012 and one of the reasons why Parise and Suter decided to sign with them. Minnesota had one of the best prospects in the world in Granlund, and then had a deep pool, which didn't include Dumba (not drafted yet), Zucker (still in college and a dark horse), Bulmer (hasn't busted yet), Haula (still in college, no one knew about him). AND this is after they traded Leddy.

You can understand why some Wild fans are skeptical this time around. We've seen this before.

Granlund was seen as an elite talent, a franchise savior similar to Kaprizov, but I think even more so. I think some were thinking Granlund would be putting up PPG numbers in his prime. The fact that Granlund not only put up 69 points and couldn't squeeze out 30 goals makes him one of the biggest draft disappointments (and prospect disappointments) in the past decade.

I fully support the skepticism but would contend that Granlund was a disappointment because he didn't become a possession-driving, franchise level 1C, not so much because he didn't put up enough points. We were hoping for Giroux and ended up with better PMB, which is certainly also not one of the biggest draft disappointments of the past decade. That'd be Yakupov or Puljujarvi off the top of my head.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

I fully support the skepticism but would contend that Granlund was a disappointment because he didn't become a possession-driving, franchise level 1C, not so much because he didn't put up enough points. We were hoping for Giroux and ended up with better PMB, which is certainly also not one of the biggest draft disappointments of the past decade. That'd be Yakupov or Puljujarvi off the top of my head.

Honestly, I was just hoping for Krecji.

 

[thestonedkoala]

Phillips was a first round pick, had a ton of hype (especially when he was carrying a very good St. Johns team while Huberdeau was injured), and was shipped out for nothing on his ELC before even sniffing the NHL. He's currently playing in the Polish league.... Poland... Literally did like a quarter of a point per game in the ECHL last year.

Phillips didn't have the hype Granlund did, and I remember a lot of fans were skeptical of pro-hockey due to his skating issues. He was a huge boom or bust prospect, but no one was thinking he was going to be a generational talent or even a top 6 center. He had skills, but a LOT of weaknesses that if he busted (which he did) no one would be surprised.

That'd be Yakupov or Puljujarvi off the top of my head.

Yakupov or Puljujarvi are disappointments, but that is more on the team than the players. Yak never had the hype that Granlund did either and was concerned one of the weaker 1st overall picks. Puljujarvi is a disappointment, but most are blaming the Oilers than Puljuvarvi.

 

[2Pair]

Phillips didn't have the hype Granlund did, and I remember a lot of fans were skeptical of pro-hockey due to his skating issues. He was a huge boom or bust prospect, but no one was thinking he was going to be a generational talent or even a top 6 center. He had skills, but a LOT of weaknesses that if he busted (which he did) no one would be surprised.



Yakupov or Puljujarvi are disappointments, but that is more on the team than the players. Yak never had the hype that Granlund did either and was concerned one of the weaker 1st overall picks. Puljujarvi is a disappointment, but most are blaming the Oilers than Puljuvarvi.

What the hell are you talking about?

 

[AKL]

Phillips didn't have the hype Granlund did, and I remember a lot of fans were skeptical of pro-hockey due to his skating issues. He was a huge boom or bust prospect, but no one was thinking he was going to be a generational talent or even a top 6 center. He had skills, but a LOT of weaknesses that if he busted (which he did) no one would be surprised.



Yakupov or Puljujarvi are disappointments, but that is more on the team than the players. Yak never had the hype that Granlund did either and was concerned one of the weaker 1st overall picks. Puljujarvi is a disappointment, but most are blaming the Oilers than Puljuvarvi.

https://thehockeywriters.com/nail-yakupov-profile/

Risk-Reward Analysis:
Risk = 0.5/5 Reward = 5/5

NHL Potential:
Franchise Right-winger

The feisty, dynamic, explosive right-winger who possesses a heat-seeking one-timer (1:00 mark of video) is simply electrifying with the ability to cause a jaw-dropping reaction to all those watching his super array of skills. He is destined to become one of the true must-see players around the league. Fans in hockey cities everywhere will be circling the dates when Yakupov comes to town when he is inevitably donning NHL battle colours.

Nail Yakupov

Fantasy Outlook: A+
Ideal blue-chip fantasy prospect, capable of producing elite totals in a variety of offensive categories.

Nail Yakupov | Nail Yakupov Profile | Nail Yakupov Scouting Report 2012

An extremely skilled winger, Yakupov is the hottest thing to come out of Russia since Alex Ovechkin and is already drawing comparisons to the superstar.

We can agree to disagree

 

[Yeolo]

Well anyways getting back to Granlund

 

[57special]

#28 picks taken on either side of Phillips are Niskanen, Foligno, Skjei, and Coyle, but also Petrecki, Klimchuk, Ho-Sang, Olsen, and Tikhonov. #28 picks are not sure thing NHL'ers , by any means. It's about 50/50 that they even play in the NHL any appreciable time.