2021 NHL Draft (new season tank edition)

[PacificOceanPotion]

That would be a horrible return for Meier.

Ok

 

[Hodge]

Ok

I know Meier was disappointing this year but cmon man you can't trade him for a ~25th overall pick. The odds are against that pick even playing in the NHL.

 

[Kcoyote3]

Would take Beniers and not look back. Then let Bordeleau and Beniers develop together for a year and bring them both up in a year

 

[Pinkfloyd]

Would take Beniers and not look back. Then let Bordeleau and Beniers develop together for a year and bring them both up in a year

I don't think you could go wrong with either Beniers or Power as the #1 pick for this team. I'd probably take the chance on Beniers as well given the Sharks need all the help they can get down the middle moving forward.

 

[Sharksrule04]

I don't think you could go wrong with either Beniers or Power as the #1 pick for this team. I'd probably take the chance on Beniers as well given the Sharks need all the help they can get down the middle moving forward.

I really think I’d go with the D-men. I get the allure of Beniers and I would absolutely not complain about getting him but with Merkley not really developing I think the Sharks could use a top Dman prospect and this is a strong draft for d-men. Adding a guy like Hughes/Power/Brandt to a future that has Ferraro and Knyzhov suddenly looks not too bad. Factor in Kniazev, Hatakka and Merkley and I think you have a promising versatile group of d-men to build around.

 

[Juxtaposer]

I really think I’d go with the D-men. I get the allure of Beniers and I would absolutely not complain about getting him but with Merkley not really developing I think the Sharks could use a top Dman prospect and this is a strong draft for d-men. Adding a guy like Hughes/Power/Brandt to a future that has Ferraro and Knyzhov suddenly looks not too bad. Factor in Kniazev, Hatakka and Merkley and I think you have a promising versatile group of d-men to build around.

Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I think I’d take Clarke first overall. Ferraro-Clarke seems like a pretty ideal pairing.

I’ll be watching Beniers and Power at the WC. Obviously I don’t expect them to dominate, but it’s not exactly a great group of players this year, so they should have strong showings. If Beniers shows he can score against professionals, I’d reconsider him at 1st overall. Hypothetically, obviously.

 

[Juxtaposer]

Just doing some thinking about who each team in the top-10 would take if they won the 1st overall pick, for fun:

Buffalo: Beniers (need centers once Eichel/Reinhart are moved)
Anaheim: Power (to pair with Drysdale) or Beniers (in case Zegras is a winger)
Seattle: Beniers (you can’t get young top-6 centers except at the top of the draft)
New Jersey: Clarke (desperate need for RHD)
Columbus: Beniers (center is an obvious need for them)
Detroit: Power, or an outside chance at Hughes (need a LHD for Seider)
Vancouver: BPA. Probably Power, but could be Clarke. If any team took Eklund or Guenther 1st I think it would be them.
Sharks: BPA, who I think is Clarke but for the Sharks would probably be Power

The thing about Beniers is that if he were a winger, I’d be questioning if he would even go top-10. Not that I don’t like him or wouldn’t be happy picking him, but he’s being overrated because he’s the only center in the top-10.

 

[themelkman]

Just doing some thinking about who each team in the top-10 would take if they won the 1st overall pick, for fun:

Buffalo: Beniers (need centers once Eichel/Reinhart are moved)
Anaheim: Power (to pair with Drysdale) or Beniers (in case Zegras is a winger)
Seattle: Beniers (you can’t get young top-6 centers except at the top of the draft)
New Jersey: Clarke (desperate need for RHD)
Columbus: Beniers (center is an obvious need for them)
Detroit: Power, or an outside chance at Hughes (need a LHD for Seider)
Vancouver: BPA. Probably Power, but could be Clarke. If any team took Eklund or Guenther 1st I think it would be them.
Sharks: BPA, who I think is Clarke but for the Sharks would probably be Power

The thing about Beniers is that if he were a winger, I’d be questioning if he would even go top-10. Not that I don’t like him or wouldn’t be happy picking him, but he’s being overrated because he’s the only center in the top-10.

Beniers is not your typical number one, but neither is anyone this year. Power is seriously overhyped imo. Beniers is a safe pick, hes not going to be an all star, but everyone would like him on your supporting cast.

 

[Juxtaposer]

Beniers is not your typical number one, but neither is anyone this year. Power is seriously overhyped imo. Beniers is a safe pick, hes not going to be an all star, but everyone would like him on your supporting cast.

Power is if anything under-hyped. His thread on HF is full of naysayers. Beniers is the one that’s overhyped. Of course anyone would like him on their team. Doesn’t mean you want to pick him 1st overall.

Again, not saying I wouldn’t consider Beniers at #1, but it’s only because he’s a center. If he were a winger I wouldn’t be even a little interested that high.

 

[themelkman]

Power is if anything under-hyped. His thread on HF is full of naysayers. Beniers is the one that’s overhyped. Of course anyone would like him on their team. Doesn’t mean you want to pick him 1st overall.

Again, not saying I wouldn’t consider Beniers at #1, but it’s only because he’s a center. If he were a winger I wouldn’t be even a little interested that high.

Power is a guy who the fans are questioning, but the pros are going to draft him first overall. Bob Mckenzie set him at 1 and hes very accurate in his rankings. Its a media/ pros disconnect. I would not be happy drafting him at 1 personally.

 

[Juxtaposer]

Power is a guy who the fans are questioning, but the pros are going to draft him first overall. Bob Mckenzie set him at 1 and hes very accurate in his rankings. Its a media/ pros disconnect. I would not be happy drafting him at 1 personally.

Neither would I, but I just don’t think that “overhyped” is the word to describe him.

Canucks only need two points in their last three games to pass us.

 

[stator]

Sharks have the #1 defense in the league*, 3 Norris trophies between them, and one of their recent draft picks was a #1 as well. So why would they draft another defensemen and not a center if they win the lottery?







* hight paid defense in the league.

 

[stator]

I know Meier was disappointing this year but cmon man you can't trade him for a ~25th overall pick. The odds are against that pick even playing in the NHL.

Particularly in this draft. Meier would have to return a decent prospect, a #1, and a #2 for me to start becoming interested.

 

[STL Shark]

Need Vancouver to pick up 2 more points over the final 3 games after their win at Edmonton yesterday. Would move us up to the 7th pick (assuming someone behind us does not win the lottery). Assuming he isn't snatched up ahead of us, I fully expect Kent Johnson to be the pick there as the skating, offensive creativity, and needing to add some weight are all hallmarks of a DWjr selection. Would be a very nice fit with the current group of guys we have that are much more straight line players that are shoot first (assuming they're still around by the time Johnson would be ready in 2023).

 

[seroes]

Sharks have the #1 defense in the league*, 3 Norris trophies between them, and one of their recent draft picks was a #1 as well. So why would they draft another defensemen and not a center if they win the lottery?







* hight paid defense in the league.

While I am on the Beneirs train myself, from the Sharks perspective their 3 highest paid defenseman are all declining. Vlassic is already just a bottom pairing defenseman and Burns and Karlsson are probably not even #2s anymore. Ferraro is our best defensemen and thats just sad. Overall it isn't just our center depth that needs improvement.

 

[Hodge]

Sharks have the #1 defense in the league*, 3 Norris trophies between them, and one of their recent draft picks was a #1 as well. So why would they draft another defensemen and not a center if they win the lottery?







* hight paid defense in the league.

Or just a forward in general if there are no centers available. I agree. It's not just about the defensemen we already have in our system but the overall track record of defensemen taken high in the draft compared to forwards taken high. Obviously there are exceptions but it seems like NHL scouts as a whole are much better at identifying future impact forwards when they are 18 years old than defensemen and goalies at the same age.

If we're drafting 7th overall one of Beniers, Guenther, Eklund or Johnson should be available to us. I hope we draft whoever that ends up being (unless DWJR is really high on a different forward like Lysell or McTavish in which case I trust him).

 

[themelkman]

I would pick a forward. An interesting thing I saw on twitter the other day was people discussing just how forwards have so much more impact on your team than defense do analytically.

 

[Fistfullofbeer]

My hope for the Sharks spot at 7-8 would be:

1. Eklund
2. Johnson
3. Guenther

If they end up with any of those players I'd be happy.

I am genuinely curious if any of these guys would be ready to help us in the coming season itself. Trying to figure out which of the picks in the 1-10 range are the closest to being NHL ready.

 

[Juxtaposer]

I would pick a forward. An interesting thing I saw on twitter the other day was people discussing just how forwards have so much more impact on your team than defense do analytically.

Here’s my opinion on defensemen: there’s star defensemen and there’s everyone else. What I mean is that the classic Bruins defense (Chara and then a bunch of solid middle pairing defenseman) is actually the ideal. Pay whatever you have to for your star, Norris-contending defensemen. Then fill the rest of your corps with solid #4 guys who can move the puck decently. Nobody but the very best defenseman actually has that much of an impact, although a truly awful bottom pairing defenseman can sink you (think Roman Polak). Think about how impactful Burns was in his Norris-winning season. Now compare that to any other season from any other Sharks’ defensemen in the past fifteen years. Even Boyle wasn’t even close. My ideal defense would look like this:

#4 ($4M) - #1 ($10M)
#4 ($3.5M) - #3 ($4.5M)
#5 ($2M) - #4 ($3M)

If you can get that star #1D, then just fill out the rest of your D with solid but unremarkable types. There are obviously other blueprints that work but this is the one that I think is the most successful. Pretty much every Cup winner has had a Norris contender. I fully believe this is why the Boyle Sharks never made the Finals, why the Canucks never won a Cup, why some truly awful Karlsson-led Sens teams won playoff series, and why it took Washington until Carlson’s peak to win it all. You need a Lidstrom, Keith, Chara, Doughty, Letang, Pietrangelo, Carlson, or Hedman.

I am genuinely curious if any of these guys would be ready to help us in the coming season itself. Trying to figure out which of the picks in the 1-10 range are the closest to being NHL ready.

None of the picks should play in the NHL next season. Some idiot will probably play Power and Beniers in the NHL next season.

 

[STL Shark]

Here’s my opinion on defensemen: there’s star defensemen and there’s everyone else. What I mean is that the classic Bruins defense (Chara and then a bunch of solid middle pairing defenseman) is actually the ideal. Pay whatever you have to for your star, Norris-contending defensemen. Then fill the rest of your corps with solid #4 guys who can move the puck decently. Nobody but the very best defenseman actually has that much of an impact, although a truly awful bottom pairing defenseman can sink you (think Roman Polak). Think about how impactful Burns was in his Norris-winning season. Now compare that to any other season from any other Sharks’ defensemen in the past fifteen years. Even Boyle wasn’t even close. My ideal defense would look like this:

#4 ($4M) - #1 ($10M)
#4 ($3.5M) - #3 ($4.5M)
#5 ($2M) - #4 ($3M)

If you can get that star #1D, then just fill out the rest of your D with solid but unremarkable types. There are obviously other blueprints that work but this is the one that I think is the most successful. Pretty much every Cup winner has had a Norris contender. I fully believe this is why the Boyle Sharks never made the Finals, why the Canucks never won a Cup, why some truly awful Karlsson-led Sens teams won playoff series, and why it took Washington until Carlson’s peak to win it all. You need a Lidstrom, Keith, Chara, Doughty, Letang, Pietrangelo, Carlson, or Hedman.



None of the picks should play in the NHL next season. Some idiot will probably play Power and Beniers in the NHL next season.

Correct on the readiness of the guys in this class. For one, they’ve mostly all lost out on a year of development given the CHL seasons and shutdowns. Two, there is not the heralded top of the draft star player like there often times is. And three, when drafting a player you should never use the readiness to play in their draft year season as a criteria for selection because this is an investment for the next 7-10 years rather than the immediate future.

 

[hohosaregood]

I'm willing to bet the guy who should've been 1OA was some kid that should have played in the OHL this year who didn't get a chance to have his breakout year.

 

[Quid Pro Clowe]

Canucks need to win just 1 of these last 3 of just have them cancelled lol.

 

[mogambomoroo]

I'm willing to bet the guy who should've been 1OA was some kid that should have played in the OHL this year who didn't get a chance to have his breakout year.

Hope Sharks pick him up in 3rd round.

 

[themelkman]

I'm willing to bet the guy who should've been 1OA was some kid that should have played in the OHL this year who didn't get a chance to have his breakout year.

Brandt Clarke is the highest rated OHLer, but he played in slovakia this year so might not apply

 

[Le Rosbeef]

Need Vancouver to pick up 2 more points over the final 3 games after their win at Edmonton yesterday. Would move us up to the 7th pick (assuming someone behind us does not win the lottery).

This would be magnificent.

Even if we were jumped, I really like a lot of players in that top 8. Hopefully we don't leap too far off the board if we get the opportunity...