StevenToddIves
Registered User
2020 Devils-Centric Mock Draft, August Edition
Ives top prospects not taken in my mock first round (in no order): Greig, Hirvonen, Robins, Neighbours, Savoie, Colangelo, Tullio, Chromiak, Wiesblatt, Sourdif, Evangelista, Niemela, Faber, Andrae.
- NY Rangers: LW Alex Lafreniere — from a pure speculative standpoint, there was no more intriguing team who could win the top pick than the Rangers. Which is to say, they have Panarin and Kreider locked up at LW for pretty much the next century and are desperate at center. Will the Kings come knocking with a huge offer to flip the #1 and #2 picks?
- LA Kings: C Quinton Byfield — I sincerely believe that the Kings, with perhaps the best prospect pool in the NHL right now, will make a big offer to move into the #1 overall slot. If not, they will get an unbelievably skilled top-line center who showcases the best mix of size and speed we’ve seen at the center position in decades.
- Ottawa: C/LW Tim Stutzle — the Senators are building a fearsome prospect pool, but they lack a top line center going forward. With the best mix of skating/hands/vision in the 2020 draft class, Stutzle would fill this gap.
- Detroit: LD Jake Sanderson — Wings’ GM Steve Yzerman does not care what the consensus says, he knows what an NHL team needs to win. Sanderson is the best all-around D in the class of 2020 and the Wings’ system is barren at the LD position.
- Ottawa: RD Jamie Drysdale — the Senators have the makings of a very nice future blueline, but they lack an electrifying offensive defender like Drysdale, who is eerily and brilliantly reminiscent of a younger Cale Makar.
- Anaheim: RW Alexander Holtz — the Ducks are desperate on D, but in this scenario they miss out on the two top D in Sanderson/Drysdale (which they surely covet the most). Holtz is the best pure goal-scorer in the draft and could make a devastating future first-line pairing with prodigal passer Trevor Zegras.
- New Jersey Devils: C Marco Rossi — like the Ducks, the Devils are likely hoping a top D falls to them. But they would be equivalently thrilled to find a player they are quite familiar with in Marco Rossi — the best two-way center in the 2020 class and a player who mixes a ferocious compete level with dynamic offensive skills. Rossi has franchise-type upside and would likely be in the running for the #3 overall pick if he were three inches taller.
- Buffalo: LW/RW Lucas Raymond — the Sabres seek future scoring help for Jack Eichel (and Dylan Cozens) in their future top 6, and Raymond’s electrifying combination of elite skating, hands and vision is only rivaled by Stutzle in the 2020 class.
- Minnesota: C Anton Lundell — there has not been a true #1 center skating in the NHL for Minnesota since Mike Modano moved to Dallas with the North Stars. Lundell is a two-way beast who also adds unheralded passing ability and a very heavy shot.
- Winnipeg: LW/C Cole Perfetti — though the Jets are stocked with outstanding scoring wingers at the NHL level (Wheeler, Laine, Connor, Ehlers) they lack such luxuries in their prospect pipeline. Perfetti combines an extraordinary hockey IQ with a surgical scoring touch.
- Nashville: G Yaroslav Askarov — with Pekka Rinne at 37 and Juuse Saros exposed in a first-round playoff loss, the need is clear. Predators’ GM David Poile likes to build from the defense out, and is a gutsy, old-school GM who would not be afraid to draft a netminder this early. Most importantly, Askarov is considered the best goaltending prospect since a fellow named Carey Price.
- Florida: C Connor Zary — though loaded with scoring wingers, the Panthers have pressing organizational needs at defense and center. Zary is a very safe pick — comparable to Bo Horvat at a similar age — but also has more offensive upside than he is often credited for.
- Carolina: RW Jack Quinn — the up-and-coming team of the Eastern Conference right now, the Hurricanes find themselves in the enviable position to add another franchise cornerstone. Quinn is an outstanding two-way forward (a la Mark Stone) whose goal-scoring prowess is not far behind top RW Holtz.
- Edmonton: RW/C Dawson Mercer — the Oilers’ organizational need is simple; high-end scoring wingers to surround their historic center duo of McDavid and Draisaitl. Mercer is a multi-faceted two-way power winger who also adds outstanding scoring skills and a dynamic set of hands to the mix.
- Pittsburgh: LW Rodion Amirov — as they did last year with Poulin and Legare, the Penguins are a strong candidate to use their early picks on big, scoring wings to surround Crosby and Malkin before their cup window begins to close. Amirov would immediately become the most talented winger in the organization -- he combines sick hands and shooting with a strong and complete game.
- Montreal: RD Braden Schneider — the Canadiens are very likely to fortify the blueline with their top pick, as their only future top-four candidate is LD Alexander Romanov. Schneider is the best shut-down RD in the 2020 class by a long shot, and he also adds extreme physicality and excellent skating ability.
- Chicago: LD Kaiden Guhle — the Blackhawks have a couple of sublimely gifted offensive RD coming up in Boqvist and Mitchell, but they lack a more defensive-oriented LD prospect to pair them with. Guhle combines outstanding skates, a booming point shot and extreme physicality.
- New Jersey Devils: RW/C Seth Jarvis — a best-case scenario for the Devils, as they nab a gifted, future top-line scoring RW in Jarvis, whose ridiculous combination of skating, hands and vision compares quite well to more heralded prospects Stutzle and Raymond.
- Calgary: RW Noel Gunler — the Flames can boast a tremendous top four at F with Monahan, Gaudreau, Tkachuk and Lindholm, but they lack scoring depth behind them both at the pro and prospect levels. Gunler needs to answer some character/consistency questions but there is no doubt whatsoever about his tremendous skating and scoring abilities, which are the quality of a top 10 overall pick.
- New Jersey Devils: LW/C Dylan Holloway — continuing to make the eyes of Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes light up, the Devils nab the best big, physical, power forward in the draft to crash creases, dominate along the boards and score from the dirty areas. Holloway is a coaches dream with the ability to play all three forward positions; with the requisite skill to play on a scoring line and the intelligence and compete level to protect a late lead or a star linemate with merciless ferocity.
- Columbus: RW/C Mavrik Bourque — the Blue Jackets need goalscorers at every level, and this is what Bourque does best. With an arsenal of shots and a preternatural gift at getting open, Bourque is a pure scorer who also adds terrific vision and a silky set of mitts.
- Ottawa: C Hendrix Lapierre — perhaps the wild card of the 2020 draft, Lapierre has the superstar talent usually reserved for top-7 overall picks. However, a litany of major injuries make him an almost visceral risk. With three picks in the first round and an organizational need up the middle, Ottawa is clearly the team which could foreseeably take this risk.
- Dallas: LW JJ Peterka — with their top scoring wingers on the other side of 30, the Stars will likely reach into the bag of talented scoring forwards available in a deep 2020 class. Peterka is a crease-crasher and offensive beast who also adds an elite set of hands, especially in close.
- NY Rangers: C Marat Khusnutdinov — with the ostensible addition of prodigal winger Alex Lafreniere, the Rangers have everything… excepting any center depth in the organization behind Mika Zibanajad. Khusnutdinov offers everything but size; he’s a two-way player with extraordinary compete level, but really what makes him a potential top-6 center is his dazzling mix of skating, stickhandling and precision passing/shooting.
- Philadelphia: RW Jacob Perreault — with a ridiculously deep pool of prospects, the Flyers can afford to take a chance on the enormous gifts of Perreault. His mix of skating, shooting and vision are tops among all RWs in the draft — even Holtz, Quinn and Gunler. If he answers questions about his compete level and improves his two-way play, Perreault has the potential to be the Pastrnak of the 2020 draft; a kid taken in the 20s who blossoms into an absolute superstar scorer at the NHL level.
- San Jose: LW/RW Lukas Reichel — the Sharks have organizational needs pretty much everywhere, so pinpointing their pick is a challenge. However, no one has drafted out of central Europe in the past decade-plus with the frequency of San Jose GM Doug Wilson. Reichel rounds out an historic group of German top prospects for the 2020 class with Stutzle and Peterka — he is incredibly smart and his balanced mix of abilities and versatility make him a force in either a scoring or checking role.
- Colorado: LD Ryan O’Rourke — blessed with two prodigal young offensive defensemen in Cale Makar and Bowen Byram, the Avs look for their perfect pairs and hit jackpot with O’Rourke, who features a beautiful juxtaposition of intelligence and compete level. O’Rourke is a rare all-situations defender, offering high-level shut-down ability and physicality; balancing this with a very good offensive game.
- Vegas: C/LW Jan Mysak — you can never have too much scoring, and Mysak is a potential top-line, 40+ goal scorer who is somehow flying a bit under the radar. Blessed with a tremendous shot and great speed, Mysak is also a very good penalty killer. He really impressed in the Czech elite league, before moving to Hamilton of the OHL. After a slow start, Mysak figured out the North American game very quickly and tore it up the rest of the way.
- Washington: RW/C Tyson Foerster — the Caps prefer to ice a big, heavy team and Foerster certainly fits that bill. But he also is one of the best snipers in the draft and plays a very smart, complete game. If he can improve his skating, you might be dealing with a Jamie Benn-lite down the line.
- St. Louis: RD Justin Barron — like with Hendrix Lapierre, an injury-marred draft-eligible season dropped Barron from his top-15 pre-season rankings. But there’s no denying this kid’s tool-box — he’s a big kid with great skates, intriguing offensive instincts and the ability to shut it down in his own end.
- Anaheim: LD William Wallinder — if the Ducks take a forward at #6, you can bet the house on them taking a defender with the pick they acquired from Boston. Here, I have them rolling the dice on Wallinder, a tantalizing mix of size and skating at 6’4 with the ability to move like vintage Erik Karlsson — but also a kid who is well-below average for a 7th round pick in defensive play and instinct for the game.
Ives top prospects not taken in my mock first round (in no order): Greig, Hirvonen, Robins, Neighbours, Savoie, Colangelo, Tullio, Chromiak, Wiesblatt, Sourdif, Evangelista, Niemela, Faber, Andrae.
What would be something realistic that the kings can offer up for the #1 spot?
