Speculation: 2020 NHL Entry Draft (June 26th-27th, 2020)

[ps241]

Can’t wait to see it. Not sure how you don’t like the top 2. Laf is elite elite talent. Byfield will be a beast, heck I have Stuztle right up there too.

To me Laf is fine but he’s on that Taylor Hall tier IMO and he’s a winger which is tough to burn a first on. Byfield leaves me wanting. I think he is a decent #2 but something is holding me back from feeling As good as I should (spider senses).

The next wave of 5-7 or so is very interesting. In no particular order you have

Stutzle, Drysdale, Raymond, Rossi, Perfetti, then probably Holtz and Askarov.

That is a group I think will go in the top 9 but there will be one or two fallers the question is who if any make it to #12?

The guys I overvalue in this cluster are Stutzle, Drysdale, and possibly Perfetti. I would also be thrilled in the highly unlikely event Raymond (my pick) or Rossi fell to us. Holtz and Askarov are just ok as fallers. I love Askarov but not for us this high.

Top wildcard risers to break into the top 9 are Sanderson and Quinn IMO.

 

[surixon]

Lundell has more offense than all the players mentioned above. Which is where I see him separate from guys you mentioned. We have a lot of good defensive centres but not a defensive centre that can score which is what I think he is. I really like his shot, I think he can finish. Selke trophy example aside, that’s what I see him becoming, we don’t have that, Little was closest thing to that here maybe in his prime.

Very possible as I said I wouldn't be unhappy with him, just like a couple other players more.

 

[Whileee]

To me Laf is fine but he’s on that Taylor Hall tier IMO and he’s a winger which is tough to burn a first on. Byfield leaves me wanting. I think he is a decent #2 but something is holding me back from feeling As good as I should (spider senses).

The next wave of 5-7 or so is very interesting. In no particular order you have

Stutzle, Drysdale, Raymond, Rossi, Perfetti, then probably Holtz and Askarov.

That is a group I think will go in the top 9 but there will be one or two fallers the question is who if any make it to #12?

The guys I overvalue in this cluster are Stutzle, Drysdale, and possibly Perfetti. I would also be thrilled in the highly unlikely event Raymond (my pick) or Rossi fell to us. Holtz and Askarov are just ok as fallers. I love Askarov but not for us this high.

Top wildcard risers to break into the top 9 are Sanderson and Quinn IMO.

I think Lafreniere is really a top prospect. His vision and playmaking are at an elite level.

 

[surixon]

I think Lafreniere is really a top prospect. His vision and playmaking are at an elite level.

I agree, he sees the ice at a much higher level then Hall which is why I put him in a tier ahead of him.

 

[ps241]

I think Lafreniere is really a top prospect. His vision and playmaking are at an elite level.

I agree, he sees the ice at a much higher level then Hall which is why I put him in a tier ahead of him.

To clarify my point for debate.

I put Laf below the tier of Elite prospects (at the time of their draft) like Matthews, Crosby, Ovi, Malkin, McDavid, MacKinnon, Tavares, and Eichel to a lesser degree. Stamkos I honestly can’t remember his hype level.

Going into draft day I put Laf in that next tier. He’s going to be a beauty but he isn’t In that grouping of centres you build a franchise around (or the future all time leading goal scorer).

A prime Taylor Hall was a hell of an 18 year old. Not as a good vision wise as Laf but a more dynamic skater who could drive a line from an early age in the NHL. He may have partied too much and may have been beaten down by being alone on an island on a crap team but he was a very highly touted prospect.

 

[ps241]

Carrying on I would say Laf is a tier higher on draft day hype than guys like Nolan Patrick, Hischier, Hopkins, Kane (on draft day), Hughes, Ekblad, Yakapov, and Dahlin (although he had hype).

 

[Adam da bomb]

Carrying on I would say Laf is a tier higher on draft day hype than guys like Nolan Patrick, Hischier, Hopkins, Kane (on draft day), Hughes, Ekblad, Yakapov, and Dahlin (although he had hype).

Who is Hopkins? Oh you mean RNH.

 

[Whileee]

Interesting and very positive analysis of Mysak in this article from Wheeler.

He's not on many radars in the top 15, but he's an intriguing prospect that's a bit hard to get a good handle on.

Wheeler: Why Jan Mysak is one of the 2020 NHL Draft's top...

 

[puck stoppa]

Is it just me or is the game changing for the better when it comes to picking talent over a player’s height? This years first round has a ton of players listed 6’0 or less. Is it just a year with smaller top talent or are we finally over the oh he’s 6’3 so let’s take him even if he’s worse motto?

 

[Whileee]

Is it just me or is the game changing for the better when it comes to picking talent over a player’s height? This years first round has a ton of players listed 6’0 or less. Is it just a year with smaller top talent or are we finally over the oh he’s 6’3 so let’s take him even if he’s worse motto?

I think it's a bit of both.

 

[ps241]

Interesting and very positive analysis of Mysak in this article from Wheeler.

He's not on many radars in the top 15, but he's an intriguing prospect that's a bit hard to get a good handle on.

Wheeler: Why Jan Mysak is one of the 2020 NHL Draft's top...

Highlights always tend to make a player look good but this kids looks great. Can’t say I had him on my radar but WOW!!!

 

[surixon]

Good posts boys

I am a Mercer fan too. I know Dax has his reservations about Dawson’s ability to drive play and how he might have struggled with his transition to Chicoutimi but I less worried.

I think he has all the tools offensively, I love his compete, and also how he reads the game defensively.

Going into draft day I am going to create my top 12 and break it into the buckets I see with my “fave fallers” I am hoping for. After I get my Black a book I will probably create my wish list for our pick in the 2nd round. Last time I was hugely passionate about the 2nd round pre-draft was for a raw high school kid named Dylan Samberg I had my eye on.

I think the Chicoutimi stuff is overblown. He scored points in 11 of the 16 games he played for them and was starting to find his grove in his new team when the season got called. Went from 1 ppg in his first 6 games to 1.2 ppg in his next 10 games. He also went from 2 shots on goal per game to 3 shots on go per game. He also went from collecting points in 60% of games to 70% of games. If he was able to play the remainder of games I would have expected to see a continual uptick in level of play and points. We see deadline acquisitions take time to acclimatize all the time. Not surprising to see something similar happen to a junior aged player who has been traded for the first time.

One thing I liked when looking at his stat sheet is his consistency with regards to the games he collects at least a points in 33 of 42 games for 79%. He also took a lot of faceoffs (786) and won 52% of them.

 

[ps241]

This is my happy thread. The process of analyzing prospects and then waiting for Christmas to see what gift we get is uplifting. It symbolizes hope and the future. I really miss it on the years we trade our 1st. last season we added a 1st right before the draft so that was nice but I didn’t get the time to savour the process. This year with COVID I might have too much time to dig in

 

[puck stoppa]

Is anyone interested in doing a mock for our board? Using PPG standings. We could probably start at 2 with Laf going one. It would be great to see who we have left at 12 for HF Jets consensus and then see who the board likes most. Polls could be a day only too.

 

[Whileee]

I think the Chicoutimi stuff is overblown. He scored points in 11 of the 16 games he played for them and was starting to find his grove in his new team when the season got called. Went from 1 ppg in his first 6 games to 1.2 ppg in his next 10 games. He also went from 2 shots on goal per game to 3 shots on go per game. He also went from collecting points in 60% of games to 70% of games. If he was able to play the remainder of games I would have expected to see a continual uptick in level of play and points. We see deadline acquisitions take time to acclimatize all the time. Not surprising to see something similar happen to a junior aged player who has been traded for the first time.

One thing I liked when looking at his stat sheet is his consistency with regards to the games he collects at least a points in 33 of 42 games for 79%. He also took a lot of faceoffs (786) and won 52% of them.

I agree. Also, Chicoutimi has an Olympic size rink, I believe, and generally has lower scoring teams as a result. Lapierre has produced less than a point per game in Chicoutimi in last season and this season, as an example.

Mercer is a highly skilled player that plays with some intensity. I'd put him in the category as Zary as a hard-nosed forward with good skill. He has very good hands and a nice shot. Zary might be the more natural C. Mercer might be the better finisher, when all is said and done.

 

[puck stoppa]

I think with three picks in the top 20 one of NJ or OTT takes Lapierre with their third pick if he’s there.
Those teams should get three nice players for the rebuild.

 

[puck stoppa]

I agree. Also, Chicoutimi has an Olympic size rink, I believe, and generally has lower scoring teams as a result. Lapierre has produced less than a point per game in Chicoutimi in last season and this season, as an example.

Mercer is a highly skilled player that plays with some intensity. I'd put him in the category as Zary as a hard-nosed forward with good skill. He has very good hands and a nice shot. Zary might be the more natural C. Mercer might be the better finisher, when all is said and done.

I still see Mercer as a third line centre ceiling wise, I don’t see him as a second line centre of the future, but if we draft him I’d love to be proven wrong. He seems like a safe pick but I like others better.

 

[Whileee]

I still see Mercer as a third line centre ceiling wise, I don’t see him as a second line centre of the future, but if we draft him I’d love to be proven wrong. He seems like a safe pick but I like others better.

I still think it's hard to assess ceilings on 18 year old prospects. So much depends on their work ethic and commitment to improvement, along with a good development pathway via their NHL team. I think Mercer has the basic skillsets (very good hands and puck skills, good hockey sense, etc.) to develop. What's harder to assess is how hard he'll work to develop his game. That's true of a lot of the prospects available in the 10-20 range... they have enough basic talent and hockey sense, but they all need to develop well to be top 6 NHL forwards.

 

[puck stoppa]

I still think it's hard to assess ceilings on 18 year old prospects. So much depends on their work ethic and commitment to improvement, along with a good development pathway via their NHL team. I think Mercer has the basic skillsets (very good hands and puck skills, good hockey sense, etc.) to develop. What's harder to assess is how hard he'll work to develop his game. That's true of a lot of the prospects available in the 10-20 range... they have enough basic talent and hockey sense, but they all need to develop well to be top 6 NHL forwards.

I’ve been right 100% of the time as I only post on here when I’m right and never when I’m wrong
He does have a good work ethic for sure but sometimes that only goes so far, I don’t see high end skill which is why I see him as a bottom six. We’re all guessing based on what we watch and read which makes this thread so much fun.

 

[GaryPoppins]

Interesting and very positive analysis of Mysak in this article from Wheeler.

He's not on many radars in the top 15, but he's an intriguing prospect that's a bit hard to get a good handle on.

Wheeler: Why Jan Mysak is one of the 2020 NHL Draft's top...

More a fan of his brother Lik.

 

[nobody imp0rtant]

More a fan of his brother Lik.

 

[ps241]

I’ve been right 100% of the time as I only post on here when I’m right and never when I’m wrong
He does have a good work ethic for sure but sometimes that only goes so far, I don’t see high end skill which is why I see him as a bottom six. We’re all guessing based on what we watch and read which makes this thread so much fun.

Funny how we are polar opposites on Lundell and Mercer. I see Lundell on the 3rd line and Mercer on the 2nd line for the same but reasons (opposite guy).

I look forward to seeing if one of us is right or if we are both dump it in the bush. The last time we had this debate I liked Chabot and you liked Zbroil.

Yes I am cherry picking my only win to stir it up !! Throwing you a bone though you have never wavered on Helle as others have been on and off the Bandwagon. I will say you have been the most ardent, stanch, spokesperson for his greatness.....not good......great!

 

[puck stoppa]

Funny how we are polar opposites on Lundell and Mercer. I see Lundell on the 3rd line and Mercer on the 2nd line for the same but reasons (opposite guy).

I look forward to seeing if one of us is right or if we are both dump it in the bush. The last time we had this debate I liked Chabot and you liked Zbroil.

Yes I am cherry picking my only win to stir it up !! Throwing you a bone though you have never wavered on Helle as others have been on and off the Bandwagon. I will say you have been the most ardent, stanch, spokesperson for his greatness.....not good......great!

Just be patient, Zboril will be hitting his prime soon
Okay you got me on that one! I liked Zboril a lot his draft year, one of my many mistakes over the years! I didn’t mind the Stanley pick a few years ago and then last year I advocated for Heinola and was thrilled when we got him. Win some lose some. I enjoy the debates so much and have been on both sides, like I said earlier I wonder if they ever move the draft to 19 years of age as it it’s so hard to assess such important future assets when they’re so young.
As for Helly, love his game and never waivered, but only thing I wish is that he would’ve played lights out like this late last year and going into the playoffs, Jets could be Cup Champions.
But back on topic, am I the only one here that sees pure snipe in Lundells shot? I really think the kid will score more than others think. I see third line as his floor.
Ps to ps - can’t believe you remembered that Chabot debate. That’s awesome!

 

[Dan10900]

Just be patient, Zboril will be hitting his prime soon
Okay you got me on that one! I liked Zboril a lot his draft year, one of my many mistakes over the years! I didn’t mind the Stanley pick a few years ago and then last year I advocated for Heinola and was thrilled when we got him. Win some lose some. I enjoy the debates so much and have been on both sides, like I said earlier I wonder if they ever move the draft to 19 years of age as it it’s so hard to assess such important future assets when they’re so young.
As for Helly, love his game and never waivered, but only thing I wish is that he would’ve played lights out like this late last year and going into the playoffs, Jets could be Cup Champions.
But back on topic, am I the only one here that sees pure snipe in Lundells shot? I really think the kid will score more than others think. I see third line as his floor.
Ps to ps - can’t believe you remembered that Chabot debate. That’s awesome!

Totally agree, about the first part at least (and the fact that Helle is elite) if you have enough hot takes you're gonna get burned on some, but others are gonna make you look like a genius, that's the fun in it, all the debates and whatnot (also I really wanted Heinola to fall one more pick to PIT, and a jets fan I was talking to on draft night wanted Suzuki I think it was at 20)

 

[Whileee]

Just be patient, Zboril will be hitting his prime soon
Okay you got me on that one! I liked Zboril a lot his draft year, one of my many mistakes over the years! I didn’t mind the Stanley pick a few years ago and then last year I advocated for Heinola and was thrilled when we got him. Win some lose some. I enjoy the debates so much and have been on both sides, like I said earlier I wonder if they ever move the draft to 19 years of age as it it’s so hard to assess such important future assets when they’re so young.
As for Helly, love his game and never waivered, but only thing I wish is that he would’ve played lights out like this late last year and going into the playoffs, Jets could be Cup Champions.
But back on topic, am I the only one here that sees pure snipe in Lundells shot? I really think the kid will score more than others think. I see third line as his floor.
Ps to ps - can’t believe you remembered that Chabot debate. That’s awesome!

I think Lundell has a really good shot and release. I think he's a bit underrated in terms of potential. It won't surprise me at all if he becomes a solid 50 point 2C that can shut down opponents.