But if Lapierre is there at 21 isn't it worth the risk to get an arguable top 5 talent there?
I;d take him in a heartbeat if the medical reports are clear.
I'd rather avoid him completely. Not only did he have the neck issue last year, which every one thought was concussion, but he actually had a concussion the previous year.
When I made my first list in the Spring I didn't have Lapierre as a first round guy because he was just so obviously injured all last year and three concussions is probably game over.
Then I heard that his doctors said it wasn't concussions last year, it was a neck fracture. So I gave him an asterisk. Obviously no one takes him high if they think he had three concussions, but if you do your intel and you believe his doctors then I think you take him high. Guys get over neck fractures, that part isn't the concern.
This is all of Lapierre's shifts from his first game of 2020-21. Lapierre looks stronger than ever. Very assertive and comfortable, something that he hasn't shown since this time a year ago. Lapierre is #92 in Blue, Mercer is his linemate, #19.
I too am very high on Seth Jarvis. I was looking at players who could potentially be available to us at 21, and was hoping he'd be in that mold. But no, he's going to go really high. I don't now about 3, but he'll be in the top 10 I think.
Guys on my short list of interest at 21: Quinn (my #1), Barron, Grans, Perrault, Wallinder, Khusnutdinov, Mercer.
I like Lapierre but his injury history is very scary to me. I'm also nervous about it with Barron as well, but I think Barron's upside is really high (even though last season didn't go very well for him all around).
I think it's very unlikely Quinn makes it close to #21, he's the most well-rounded goal scorer in the draft.
Barron I suppose is like Lapierre in that you can say that his whole last season was ruined. But I haven't heard any intel to suggest that he's fixed now, in fact he's currently on the shelf after another procedure.
Grans I like as a rangy middle pair guy, good passer. Nothing special offensively or defensively.
If Perreault makes it to #21 we'd have to give it some serious thought. He has the best shot in the draft (better than Holtz), great skater and playmaker too. He'd be the most naturally talented forward in the organization. But what do you do with a guy that is not naturally driven? That's usually not something that can be fixed.
From the video of Wallinder I gathered that he's all skating at this point. He doesn't process quickly and doesn't pass well. For me, D that skate the puck beautifully but lack passing skill are not worth very much.
Khusnutdinov I don't know much about. He's very exciting to watch, and I know Will Scouch loves him. But he also mentioned that Khusnutdinov was less effective playing against the better MHL teams. That is the first thing you'd want to know about an energetic small player in juniors - how does it scale up?
