2021 NHL Entry Draft Part 3 (Draft is 7/23 and 7/24, Sabres have #1 pick)

[m0pe]

I mean it would be the most Buffalo thing ever not to take the best player on the board at 1.

Again, not everyone has to agree he is the best player on the board.

This isn't a McDavid draft with a generational guy pretty well guaranteed to be the best

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[BananaSquad]

Again, not everyone has to agree he is the best player on the board.

This isn't a McDavid draft with a generational guy pretty well guaranteed to be the best

Okay, but this is a draft where basically every trusted Scout has Power number 1.

 

[OkimLom]

Okay, but this is a draft where basically every trusted Scout has Power number 1.

That's not a guarantee that he will become the best player from the draft. It's just that he has the highest chance of doing so. And when you are an organization that has trouble developing players to their full potential, I think worrying about them developing a useful player is more of a concern than if he's the best player in the draft at this point.

 

[BananaSquad]

That's not a guarantee that he will become the best player from the draft. It's just that he has the highest chance of doing so. And when you are an organization that has trouble developing players to their full potential, I think worrying about them developing a useful player is more of a concern than if he's the best player in the draft at this point.

So you basically want to pass on the best player in the draft cuz Ralph Krueger couldn’t develop anyone? Amazing .

 

[OkimLom]

So you basically want to pass on the best player in the draft cuz Ralph Krueger couldn’t develop anyone? Amazing .

Where did I say I would want pass on Power in my post? And if you think we've developed players well in this organization outside of Krueger, then...Amazing.

 

[BananaSquad]

Where did I say I would want pass on Power in my post? And if you think we've developed players well in this organization outside of Krueger, then...Amazing.

Lol you basically said this team can’t develop so go with the safe pick (I’m assuming you mean Berniers) . I mean the entire talk of this offseason is the new core which actually looked good under Granato (ya well they didn’t win enough! ) no one is winning with a Tokarski/ Houser tandem.

 

[jc17]

Wasn't beniers the consensus a few months ago? TWC’s 2021 Consolidated NHL Draft Rankings

Not saying the tournament was meaningless but it seems like a large amount of the "consensus 1OA" is coming from the tournament alone

 

[Fjordy]

Wasn't beniers the consensus a few months ago? TWC’s 2021 Consolidated NHL Draft Rankings

Not saying the tournament was meaningless but it seems like a large amount of the "consensus 1OA" is coming from the tournament alone

In most rankings, Power was #1 even before the WC. Also, 10 out of 10 scouts interviewed by McKenzie also put him in first place and that was before the tournament.

 

[OkimLom]

Lol you basically said this team can’t develop so go with the safe pick (I’m assuming you mean Berniers) . I mean the entire talk of this offseason is the new core which actually looked good under Granato (ya well they didn’t win enough! ) no one is winning with a Tokarski/ Houser tandem.

No, I was talking about having the priorities in place of what is important for this organization. What is important is having a player that turns out as an impactful player for the organization, not necessarily having the best player from the draft. The reality of the situation is that the team doesn't develop well. We most likely won't develop whomever it is we pick, to their fullest potential, so I doubt we would pick the best player anyways, even if the pick was Power. But the important part, is that we at least develop a player that is a good player. I don't care who that is.

The team didn't look GOOD under Granato, they looked entertaining and BETTER than they were under Ralph, which doesn't necessarily mean they were good. It was a step in the right direction. The goaltending had no direct impact on players losing their guys, not supporting one another for transitions, or their ability to pass a puck greater than 5 feet.

As I've said in other posts, I would take Beniers over Power despite Power being the better talent, and it had to do with the character attributes and other traits of Beniers that don't need to be developed or coached up, being more impactful on a team in succeeding than what Power has shown. I like Power, I would have no reservations about taking him #1, but we need to focus on working on what makes good to great hockey players. Having a potential 1-2 punch of a center spine of Cozens and Beniers with their non-stop motor would give teams matchup fits.

At the same time, I understand the quality of a player like Power is. With a team like Buffalo having so many holes, I don't think they can go wrong with any of the talents available to them. But there is a good chance that another team will draft, what will end up being the best player of the draft, and that may be due to the environment, the coaching, and other circumstances that Buffalo can't provide.

 

[The Blunder Years]

The debate between Power/Beniers I have been having in my head is the difference between shoring up the top 4 in the future or the top 6. Even with Eichel in the system, we don't have anyone like Beniers. Cozens maybe, but I think Beniers is as natural of a center as they come. He would make our D much better with his puck support and passing abilities. Putting him with Skinner would be fun too as Beniers would feed him pucks and they would be a pain in the ass to play against.

Power is more of a luxury piece to have behind Dahlin but is still the consensus. Watching his play though he is very passive when incoming forwards are inclosing and he often looks to use his stick instead of his body to engage. I think he would get turnstiled if he played next year. He is REALLY good with the puck on his stick and aggressive in the O-zone but I am skeptical of big bodied defenseman who play a passive game in the D-zone.

 

[SnuggaRUDE]

Uh oh the board is overthinking everything again. Pick Owen Power lol. He’s literally number 1 everywhere. Once Bob’s final rankings list comes out and all his scouts have Power as the unanimous number 1, hopefully people will stop overthinking it.

He's literally not https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/504240/owen-power

 

[TheMistyStranger]

He's literally not Owen Power at eliteprospects.com

2/3rds are 1st overall, for those who don't click on the link.

 

[Zman5778]

2/3rds are 1st overall, for those who don't click on the link.

So not literally everywhere, but enough to be called "consensus".

 

[jc17]

Merriam Webster:

Definition of consensus
1a: general agreement : UNANIMITY

From the may 12 consensus with Beniers at 1OA:

"Of the three, Beniers appears in the top five on every board, while Powers drops as far as ninth"

A 9th ranking for power probably hurts the average and maybe kicks him out if first. Even if that wasn't there, I still dont think power is as consensus to the point that some are saying this pick shouldn't even be a discussion

 

[SnuggaRUDE]

2/3rds are 1st overall, for those who don't click on the link.

My count is 7/12 1OA. That's as close to 50% as 66%. "Consolidated Ranking" is an amalgamation of the other rankings; it isn't a unique scoring of prospects.

If 7/12 is consensus so be it. The bar for that word is somewhere over 50% but who knows when exactly.

 

[TheMistyStranger]

My count is 7/12 1OA. That's as close to 50% as 66%. "Consolidated Ranking" is an amalgamation of the other rankings; it isn't a unique scoring of prospects.

If 7/12 is consensus so be it. The bar for that word is somewhere over 50% but who knows when exactly.

Oops. I was counting the consolidated ranking as well. Interesting to see that Clarke and Eklund are both ahead of Beniers in the consolidated one.

 

[SnuggaRUDE]

Oops. I was counting the consolidated ranking as well. Interesting to see that Clarke and Eklund are both ahead of Beniers in the consolidated one.

I could see it. They had nice seasons. Eklund looks interesting, but I don't know how to evaluate draft year SHL seasons. I pulled out Bernier as it's easier to compare him to other recent NCAA freshmen forwards. If anyone has comparables for Eklund that would contribute a lot.

 

[joshjull]

I could see it. They had nice seasons. Eklund looks interesting, but I don't know how to evaluate draft year SHL seasons. I pulled out Bernier as it's easier to compare him to other recent NCAA freshmen forwards. If anyone has comparables for Eklund that would contribute a lot.

 

[BananaSquad]

Eklund > Beniers.

 

[Club]

 

[Fjordy]

Eklund is great

 

[missingmika]

After being tired of everyone arguing forward or D, Adams steps up and drafts Wallstedt.

 

[Jim Bob]

NHL Mock Draft 2021: From the Sabres through the Cup winner, Corey Pronman picks the entire first round

1. Buffalo Sabres: Owen Power, LHD, Michigan-Big Ten
I would be more surprised than stunned if this was anyone other than Power. I won’t rule out one of the other top prospects for No. 1 here but after the IIHF World Championship that Power had with Team Canada, I think this one has become fairly locked in.

2. Seattle Kraken: Matthew Beniers, C, Michigan-Big Ten
Seattle will take their best player available, as anyone would at No. 2, but a part of me suspects that org will want their first-ever pick to be a center or defenseman. If they like Beniers, you can argue it’s a reasonable selection on talent too. Premium centers will be the toughest to acquire via the expansion draft as well.

3. Anaheim Ducks: Dylan Guenther, RW, Edmonton-WHL
Guenther is a highly talented goal-scorer and there isn’t a ton of that in the Ducks’ pipeline right now. You can envision a future PP1 with him on the left flank, Trevor Zegras on the right and Jamie Drysdale manning the point. The organization could use another premium center, so teams around the league think Mason McTavish or Beniers, if he gets to No. 3, could be possibilities here as well.

 

[Buffaloed]

I am still on the Eklund Express. It wouldn't bother me at all if the Sabres took him first overall.

 

[Doug Prishpreed]

I am still on the Eklund Express. It wouldn't bother me at all if the Sabres took him first overall.

I'd say that about all of the top 3 guys -- any one of them are worthy of 1OA in this draft. If we can get two, that would be really great.