2022 NHL Entry Draft 9

[1000eeer]

continue.... 2022 NHL Entry Draft 8


If the teams want to control risk, then Wright, Cooley, Nemec and Jiricek are the first picks off the board.

I'm pretty sure Gorton and Hughes are dreaming of Cooley right now.

If we have the chance to draft him, I would be quite surprised if we go for someone else.

Jiricek and Cooley for me as we speak.

I really like slafkovsky too. But we just can't afford to miss with that pick.

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[Runner77]

Now that we’re assured of a top 4 pick, who makes your top 4 in order vs. how do you think they’ll go and why, in a few words.

A lot more fun now knowing we have a real shot at someone from a very short list.

 

[Goldenhands]

Now that we’re assured of a top 4 pick, who makes your top 4 in order vs. how do you think they’ll go and why, in a few words.

A lot more fun now knowing we have a real shot at someone from a very short list.

My top 4 on potential alone, who I think will impact the game the most:

1-Jiricek
2-Slafkovsky
3-Kemell
4-Nemec

How it will fall on draft day, no one know, it depends of the draft order first and I think most teams potentially have different lists. This year is wide open IMO, Wright hasnt done nearly enough to consolidate his 1st OV status and Cooley remains an undersized center who isnt an exceptional talent like Connor Bedard for example.

 

[RationalExpectations]

My top 4 on potential alone, who I think will impact the game the most:

1-Jiricek
2-Slafkovsky
3-Kemell
4-Nemec

How it will fall on draft day, no one know, it depends of the draft order first and I think most teams potentially have different lists. This year is wide open IMO.

Interesting that s basically if they fulfil what you see as their best potential. Nice rankings, I d say though that Wright may still have the best potential of all of them if you consider how high he was in his D-2, I believe that covid, being overexposed and starting the season slow have biased our view if his great potential. He is no Bedard though.

 

[BergevinBurner]

Now that we’re assured of a top 4 pick, who makes your top 4 in order vs. how do you think they’ll go and why, in a few words.

A lot more fun now knowing we have a real shot at someone from a very short list.

I'd go Wright-Cooley for the top 2 without a doubt, but the more I look at scouting reports the less certain I am about who's going 3rd. I've seen Slaf, Nemec, Jiricek, Nazar and Savoie all in the top 3.

 

[Hins77]

If the teams want to control risk, than Wright, Cooley, Nemec and Jiricek are the first picks off the board.

I'm pretty sure Gorton and Hughes are dreaming of Cooley right now.

If we have the chance to draft him, I would be quite surprised if we go for someone else.

Jiricek and Cooley for me as we speak.

I really like slafkovsky too. But we just can't afford to miss with that pick.

At this point slaf is a hit or miss. He has every tools to be an elite powerforward, but he has worse stats than guys like KK, pulju, ranta in liiga and by far…. There is many guys wich they are producing on good pace in liiga and finally bust in the NHL, but the opposite, there is no many guys with average production in liiga become top elite talent in the NHL. And olympic, I mean… probably the level of play in liiga were quite comparable to the olympics. And probably Slaf is an nhler, i mean, he has high ceiling, but to me drafting at first or second and claim a guy like josh anderson, don’t think this is a good pick

 

[Goldenhands]

Interesting that s basically if they fulfil what you see as their best potential. Nice rankings, I d say though that Wright may still have the best potential of all of them if you consider how high he was in his D-2, I believe that covid, being overexposed and starting the season slow have biased our view if his great potential. He is no Bedard though.

He might, but there is less certainty about it for me right now. Ive watched him alot and outside a 4-5 games stretch near the end of the season where he was funnier to watch, cant say Ive been impressed much with the motor and consistency. There is the broken foot and all, so perharps it affected his game, but right now, from what Ive seen, Its just impossible for me to project him as a dominant top line center... But season hasnt ended yet, playoffs could change my mind a bit.

 

[Jack Skellington]

At this point slaf is a hit or miss. He has every tools to be an elite powerforward, but he has worse stats than guys like KK, pulju, ranta in liiga and by far…. There is many guys wich they are producing on good pace in liiga and finally bust in the NHL, but the opposite, there is no many guys with average production in liiga become top elite talent in the NHL. And olympic, I mean… probably the level of play in liiga were quite comparable to the olympics. And probably Slaf is an nhler, i mean, he has high ceiling, but to me drafting at first or second and claim a guy like josh anderson, don’t think this is a good pick

Almost every 1st rounder from Liiga has been somewhere between .5 and .75 ppg. The only guy I can see that was around Slafs production was Aho and he was a 2nd rounder who shot up to PPG in his next season. It's really not that hard of a league to produce in. Slafs equivalent production if you compare to the CHL is probably something like .75ppg. He has big potential and some nice tools but the odds of him reaching them are a little lower than the rest of the top 5 IMO so I would take the chance on him only if he fell to me with the 5th or 6th pick.

 

[1000eeer]

Almost every 1st rounder from Liiga has been somewhere between .5 and .75 ppg. The only guy I can see that was around Slafs production was Aho and he was a 2nd rounder who shot up to PPG in his next season. It's really not that hard of a league to produce in. Slafs equivalent production if you compare to the CHL is probably something like .75ppg. He has big potential and some nice tools but the odds of him reaching them are a little lower than the rest of the top 5 IMO so I would take the chance on him only if he fell to me with the 5th or 6th pick.

I'm afraid I must agree with both of you guys.

For me, Jiricek Cooley Wright and Nemec are the targets.

2 C, 2 RHD. Could be worst.

 

[Redux91]

I love Slaf but I just know that if he doesn't work out for us we will say "what the hell were we thinking, his production was already bad and he's not working out" whereas guys like Cooley and Jiricek are a lot safer quality picks.

Cooley and Jiricek are the only 2 guys I want to be honest..they have "it" imo
..and maaaaybe Wright, you know, if we're 1st I guess lol

 

[McGees]

I hope CGY tanks it in the playoffs so we can pair their pick with one of our 2nds to move up and grab another stud in the 1st.

 

[Goldenhands]

Almost every 1st rounder from Liiga has been somewhere between .5 and .75 ppg. The only guy I can see that was around Slafs production was Aho and he was a 2nd rounder who shot up to PPG in his next season. It's really not that hard of a league to produce in. Slafs equivalent production if you compare to the CHL is probably something like .75ppg. He has big potential and some nice tools but the odds of him reaching them are a little lower than the rest of the top 5 IMO so I would take the chance on him only if he fell to me with the 5th or 6th pick.

How many 17 yrs old players did you ever see dominate a such level of competition as the Olympics??

You know very little about Liiga, thats a low scoring, defensive minded league with very little room for creativity. Slaf stood out as one of the best players his age group at the Hlinka at the begining of the year and a big factor why Slovakia made it to the finale. He was dominant against the top ranked players of this draft and there is no reason to think he wouldnt have crushed a junior league like the CHL. You cant convert his Liiga numbers to CHL ones, thats not the way it works. As a prime example, Brad Lambert was crushing it at the WJC last winter and take a look at his Liiga stats.

Then, you have to factor that Slafkovsky is a big boy, 6"4 220 lbs frame and that such big kids usually take longer to develop to their full potential, that he is playing on bigger ice in Liiga and that his production rate exploded in the 2nd half.

He helped Slovakia to win silver at the Hlinka and was the only reason why Slovakia won a first medal ever at the Olympics, their stanley cup. (MVP award BTW).

 

[Vachon23]

How many 17 yrs old players did you ever see dominate a such level of competition as the Olympics??

You know very little about Liiga, thats a low scoring, defensive minded league with very little room for creativity. Slaf stood out as one of the best players his age group at the Hlinka at the begining of the year and a big factor why Slovakia won the gold. He was dominant against the top ranked players of this draft and there is no reason to think he wouldnt have crushed a junior league like the CHL. You cant convert his Liiga numbers to CHL ones, thats not the way it works. As a prime example, Brad Lambert was crushing it at the WJC last winter and take a look at his Liiga stats.

Then, you have to factor that Slafkovsky is a big boy, 6"4 220 lbs frame and that such big kids usually take longer to develop to their full potential, that he is playing on bigger ice in Liiga and that his production rate exploded in the 2nd half.

He helped Slovakia to win gold at the Hlinka and was the only reason why Slovakia won a first medal ever at the Olympics, their stanley cup. (MVP award BTW).

Hard to say because usually NHL player are there. This year, the level of play was not really high (Even the WC will be stronger).

For the Liiga, Kemell have more goals then Slaf have pts and every other top 20 Liiga players that have been drafted have been more productive then him.

Elite Prospects - Liiga Stats All-time season

All-time/historical regular season stats and leaders per season for Liiga, including top goal scorers, most games played, PPG leaders and more.

www.eliteprospects.com

I'm usually not a stats guys when where talking about scouting but his offensive numbers is something that scare me a little bit.

 

[Blame the referee]

Three game remaining against three big team. With 3 L we finish last. Hope we finish last and pick at worst 3

 

[BergevinBurner]

Slaf could end up being great, but if that one week of Olympic hockey never happened I feel like he wouldn't even be cracking the top 10 in most rankings. I'd rather we play it safe and pick someone safer.

 

[Vachon23]

Slaf could end up being great, but if that one week of Olympic hockey never happened I feel like he wouldn't even be cracking the top 10 in most rankings. I'd rather we play it safe and pick someone safer.

He would have been in the top 10 no doubt about that, he still got really interesting tools. But he's probably not in the discussion for the top 5 yes.

 

[Goldenhands]

Hard to say because usually NHL player are there. This year, the level of play was not really high (Even the WC will be stronger).

For the Liiga, Kemell have more goals then Slaf have pts and every other top 20 Liiga players that have been drafted have been more productive then him.

Elite Prospects - Liiga Stats All-time season

All-time/historical regular season stats and leaders per season for Liiga, including top goal scorers, most games played, PPG leaders and more.

www.eliteprospects.com

I'm usually not a stats guys when where talking about scouting but his offensive numbers is something that scare me a little bit.

I dont think you can use Liiga stats to make a fair projection about Slafkovsky, he has been dominant against kids and was stuck on a third line in Liiga for the most part of the season. Big kids like him take a bit longer to develop and reach their prime, so some inconsistency as a 17 yrs old kid, in a top men league isnt unusual or worrysome here.

One of my favorites prospects, Danila Yurov, who is an amazing talent, played below the 5 mins mark per game in KHL. Those arent developmental leagues and not easy for kids.

 

[Vachon23]

I dont think you can use Liiga stats to make a fair projection about Slafkovsky, he has been dominant against kids and was stuck on a third line in Liiga for the most part of the season. Big kids like him take a bit longer to develop reach their prime, so some inconsistency as a 17 yrs old kid, in a top men league isnt unusual or worrysome here.

They are a lot of big boys on that list though, even KK have way better number then him. I still really like his tools and I think he will be a really useful player, but with a top 3 pick on a team that doesn't have a lot of offensive dynamo, I'm not sure I want to go with someone who I'm questioning his offensive abilities.

 

[Goldenhands]

They are a lot of big boys on that list though, even KK have way better number then him. I still really like his tools and I think he will be a really useful player, but with a top 3 pick on a team that doesn't have a lot of offensive dynamo, I'm not sure I want to go with someone who I'm questioning his offensive abilities.

I think he would be a perfect fit on the Suzuki Caufield line and wont be there only for figuration. He has legit PPG potential, he is a great talent, not just a big boy. But what could I say more, I mean I understand your concerns about his lack of offensive production in Liiga, what is IMO purely circonstantial and attributable to his physical growth. Olympics were a higher level than Liiga, was played on N.A sized rinks and kid ended up MVP of the tournament. Here comes the end of my arguments. Personally, I feel pretty safe about my projection.

 

[Vachon23]

I think he would be a perfect fit on the Suzuki Caufield line and wont be there only for figuration. He has legit PPG potential, he is a great talent, not just a big boy. But what could I say more, I mean I understand your concerns about his offensive production in Liiga, what is IMO purely circonstantial. Olympics were a higher level than Liiga, was played on N.A sized rinks and kid ended up MVP of the tournament. Here comes the end of my arguments. Personally, I feel pretty safe about my projection.

Not sure the OG was that much a better level then the Liiga to be honest and that's part of my concern, most of the teams where just awful and even Canada/USA where not that good.

I agree that Slaf would be a great fit with Suzuki Caufield but I don't want someone to complete the Caufield-Suzuki line with my top 3 pick, I want someone that will carry an other line and will oblige other team to use there good defensive lines not only against the Suzuki line.

 

[Playmaker09]

Wright
Nemec
Jiricek/Nazar

4 is where my top tier cuts off. These are the only players who IMO can be a #1/#2 forward or #1 D.

Slaf, Cooley and Savoie come in next as players who should be your 3rd/4th best forwards on a team. Lambert, if you're high on him, as well.

The rest are either complimentary top-6 forwards or 2nd pair D if they pan out. Although, I've barely paid any attention to the LHD at the top of this class, so if anyone wants to argue for Mintyukov/Mateychuk to be graded higher, be my guest.

 

[Goldenhands]

Not sure the OG was that much a better level then the Liiga to be honest and that's part of my concern, most of the teams where just awful and even Canada/USA where not that good.

I agree that Slaf would be a great fit with Suzuki Caufield but I don't want someone to complete the Caufield-Suzuki line with my top 3 pick, I want someone that will carry an other line and will oblige other team to use there good defensive lines not only against the Suzuki line.

You rely on our other 2022 picks + next drafts 1st to build your other top line? You could also use Slaf with another center, like Bedard, no?

Those were the best KHLers, SHLers ect., thats a higher level than liiga, no doubt.

 

[Hins77]

Almost every 1st rounder from Liiga has been somewhere between .5 and .75 ppg. The only guy I can see that was around Slafs production was Aho and he was a 2nd rounder who shot up to PPG in his next season. It's really not that hard of a league to produce in. Slafs equivalent production if you compare to the CHL is probably something like .75ppg. He has big potential and some nice tools but the odds of him reaching them are a little lower than the rest of the top 5 IMO so I would take the chance on him only if he fell to me with the 5th or 6th pick.

Exactly. The guy is around to be 5/6th pick for sure, but like with caufield, in his draft, you have to take it, even with his risk. In his case, I suspect cooley, wright, nemec, jiricek took before. And after. There is few « ? ». Somes posters say sometimes, « producing isnt telling everything ». Yeah okay, but what do you expect in the NHL. A grinder? I mean, i know this isnt everything. Especially on big guys wich take more time to developp, but there is a minimum to reach

 

[Vachon23]

You rely on our other 2022 picks + next drafts 1st to build your other top line? You could also use Slaf with another center, like Bedard, no?

Those were the best KHLers, SHLers ect., thats a higher level than liiga, no doubt.

I prefer to use those others pick to find someone to play with Suzuki-Caufield and use our top 3 pick on someone who can carry a line and I don't see that potential in Slaf (someone who can carry a line)

You can't draft a player this year with the idea that we will get Bedard next year. The chance that we draft him next year are slim

 

[Apoplectic Habs Fan]

On my limited viewings and readings. By no means a draft guru like some are seeming to claim they are

Wright
Cooley
Jiricek
Slafkovsky

They all are impact players if they reach their potentials