NHL Entry Draft 2024 NHL Draft Talk

[Sens of Anarchy]

I watched one shift by shift. I THINK it’s the only one available on YouTube. Clearly more skilled than his counterparts so to me he’s very lackadaisical but that could be because he doesn’t need rev up a gear.

You have to watch him a bit to get an appreciation, He looks very non chalant... but he isn't Its just his style. He appears to nonchalantly zip passes on the tape from anywhere on the ice and seemingly nonchalantly create space and deception to make plays. He also ups his game at critcal times.. If Saginaw is blowing a team out he kind of just plays without kicking it into high gear. His mind processes better than any prospect I have watched among the available D. His decision making and passing is elite. His shot is not a weapon on its own but he is very accurate and uses it to produce offense around the net. Defensively his game has improved... In one of the later regular season games he was defending a one on one with speed and used his skating to just play the man and shut him right down. He is not physical but he is smart , quick and has a very good stick. Offensively he's a dynamo. A pleasure to watch in transition and in the Ozone and he drives play. I am not saying he is Erik Karlsson but he processes and approaches the game very similarly. Buium is comparable .. but looks smoother and his mechanics look good .. in my view they are at the same place defensively and approach it similarly , but offensively Parekh is a notch above even though Buium is very good. He turned 18 in February.,.. so what he did at U17 and as a 17 y/o in the OHL is very impressive.. Not many have done what he has done over the decades.

Projecting Parekh ; He will be a high end offensive defenseman that will QB your PP and that will be criticized for his defense much like Karlsson.. He doesn't have Karlsson's top end speed but he isn't slow. His value will come from his offense and making other players around him better.

There are other D I would probably pick ahead of Parekh for their defense but that could prove to be the wrong decision when it all works out in the wash.
Every team can get better at every facet of every position including the Senators.

 

[Burrowsaurus]

You have to watch him a bit to get an appreciation, He looks very non chalant... but he isn't Its just his style. He appears to nonchalantly zip passes on the tape from anywhere on the ice and seemingly nonchalantly create space and deception to make plays. He also ups his game at critcal times.. If Saginaw is blowing a team out he kind of just plays without kicking it into high gear. His mind processes better than any prospect I have watched among the available D. His decision making and passing is elite. His shot is not a weapon on its own but he is very accurate and uses it to produce offense around the net. Defensively his game has improved... In one of the later regular season games he was defending a one on one with speed and used his skating to just play the man and shut him right down. He is not physical but he is smart , quick and has a very good stick. Offensively he's a dynamo. A pleasure to watch in transition and in the Ozone and he drives play. I am not saying he is Erik Karlsson but he processes and approaches the game very similarly. Buium is comparable .. but looks smoother and his mechanics look good .. in my view they are at the same place defensively and approach it similarly , but offensively Parekh is a notch above even though Buium is very good. He turned 18 in February.,.. so what he did at U17 and as a 17 y/o in the OHL is very impressive.. Not many have done what he has done over the decades.

Projecting Parekh ; He will be a high end offensive defenseman that will QB your PP and that will be criticized for his defense much like Karlsson.. He doesn't have Karlsson's top end speed but he isn't slow. His value will come from his offense and making other players around him better.

There are other D I would probably pick ahead of Parekh for their defense but that could prove to be the wrong decision when it all works out in the wash.
Every team can get better at every facet of every position including the Senators.

Would like to see him deal with heavier more aggressive forechecks. Not much of that in the OHL. At least I haven’t seen them in the videos I watched

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

Mock Draft talk show

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

MIchigan State with the goalie pulled tie it 4-4 with less than a minute in regulation on a nice setup by Levshunov. He had a pretty uneventful game going ... but he definitely made up for it. Going to OT. Michigan state wins it.. in OT after being down 4-2 in the 3rd. They move on and will play the winner of UND and Michigan coming up tonight.

 

[Wallet Inspector]

What do you guys think of Helenius?

 

[BoardsofCanada]

I am 100% on the Yakemchuk train. He's a right shot Chychrun. I think he would be a fantastic add to our group.

 

[Agent Zub]

it's so wide open right now that if we picked 5th but picked the wrong guy it would hurt pretty bad.

but with this late season surge we'll just be forced with whoever is left and they should still have potential to be the best or one of the best in this draft class. so no buyers remorse i guess?

only positive of these meaningless wins lol.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

I would like to see them draft a RD that is really solid defensively. All the RD in the top of the draft are there most extensively because of the impressions they have made offensively and all of them have a lot of work to do defensively and maybe that just isn't their game.. you'd draft them for their strength and to me that is offense and you hope to develop their games based on their tools on the defensive side of the puck. At the bottom of the 1st or early 2nd in a couple cases.. there are a few RD that could fit the bill wrt having strengths defensively and have the mobility and sufficient skill to effectively move the puck on zone exits. To me if you value the offense and that is the attraction you pick the best offensive d man that you can look to run your PP and that will help through his offense more than he hurts defensively. Not including projections that may be hopes,; there are few solid 2 way guys available and few defense first guys available in the top 10 ish range.

I have not watched these guys much so I am going off available scouting reports they are in no particular order but they generally fit the profile

Charlie Elick
EJ Emery
Colton Roberts
Dominik Badinka
Spencer Gill

 

[bert]

I am 100% on the Yakemchuk train. He's a right shot Chychrun. I think he would be a fantastic add to our group.

Id be pretty dissapointed if he was as soft at Chychrun. He has a mean streak and he uses it from what I have seen. Id be very happy if the sens end up with Yakemchuk.

 

[Wallet Inspector]

Yakemchuk wouldn't be a bad pick, but I feel like his upside is lower than a lot of other guys that could be available at pick 6-10.

 

[Alf Silfversson]

Yakemchuk wouldn't be a bad pick, but I feel like his upside is lower than a lot of other guys that could be available at pick 6-10.

Agreed. If a guy like Lindstrom is available and we take Yakemchuk I'll be disappointed.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

Buium had a pretty good game today and was involved throughout. Saw some good things defensively that I had not seem in other games and was leaned on through the game and played a lot. Only a couple mistakes and misplays that ended up not being costly. Denver advances to the Frozen 4 beating Cornell 2-1. Denver scored the go ahead goal with 4 seconds left in the 2nd on the PP; Buium QB'ed and got an assist on the goal and that held up.

 

[RAFI BOMB]

Why is Yegor Surin not getting more hype around here? He seems like a great option for the Sens 2nd first round pick and yet I don't see his name mentioned much. What am I not seeing? Or why aren't other people more enthusiastic about him?

He is an August birthday so he is one of the younger players in the draft. He has very good MHL stats and is actually outproducing Ivan Demidov in the MHL playoffs. He hits like a truck and he showcases impressive passing, shooting, vision and skating.

Why aren't more people on here advocating for targeting him in the draft?

Surin Sure In Good Company

 

[Senator Stanley]

So... who do we like in the 12 to 15 range...?

 

[Wallet Inspector]

On one hand, winning a bunch at the end of the season is annoying, but on the other hand, our roster on paper is definitely better than a bunch of the teams in the bottom 10, so I'm not sure how upset I should be.

 

[Burrowsaurus]

On one hand, winning a bunch at the end of the season is annoying, but on the other hand, our roster on paper is definitely better than a bunch of the teams in the bottom 10, so I'm not sure how upset I should be.

We’re better than like the 7 teams ahead of us in the east.

 

[jake1]

We don't know if the new regime would still value something like the UND connection on defense, but if they did, then they could go for something like Emery as their second or third pick to fill the defensive RD need, and go for BPA with their first pick.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

I'm sorry I missed my chances to watch full games of Yakemchuk after looking at the clips in this scouting report.


Pretty much an exclusively positive report that doesn't identify and display any weaknesses.

 

[LiseL]

The holes in the roster that need to be filled immediately very very likely cannot be filled from this draft. We need a NHL top 4 RD now . We have to look at UFA or a Trade to fill that need to help now.. not in 2-3 years how ever long it takes for that player to be ready to fill that role without any kind of sheltering.

Realistically this team has a few holes and looking down the line our immediate needs will change , that can be at any position including where we are perceived to have a strength right now. We will want to improve at every position. I agree you pick the player you think will have the biggest impact , you project to be the best player ; as evaluated and ordered on your draft board.

The Sens are in a shitty spot wrt high impact prospects because of the big name chasing and trying to rush the rebuild coupled with a poor vision of roster construction... We now have to begin replenishing the prospect pool and when those players are ready to take a spot regardless of where in the lineup that spot is you make room and make your team better.

If you evaluate 2 players equally you tip the scales the way you see fit. The top 10-11 beyond #1 seem close but the Sens will have a list ordered on how they evaluate them , whether we agree or not, and they won't view them all equally.

I really hope they give more weight to players with high hockey IQ and mentally strong when facing adversity. We seem to have a lot of issues in those areas.

 

[Butchy Dakkar]

We have two games coming up against Florida. We need Florida to win the division (ie Boston not win the division) to improve our second first round pick. Right now Boston is in front. So we need Florida to beat us for two reasons, and do well otherwise (better than Boston)

Assuming Boston does not win the conference finals.

Based on explanation at NHL Entry Draft - Wikipedia

 

[bert]

Agreed. If a guy like Lindstrom is available and we take Yakemchuk I'll be disappointed.

No one has scored as many goals on d in their draft year as Yakemchuk in the WHL for 19 years. He is also a big body who has a mean streak. I don't see how his potential isn't sky high.

Tbh if I were to bed I'd say the sens pick 7th. The 3 forwards and the 3 rd are likely to get picked. Then it should just be BPA. To me and a few scouts I've talked to there's a legit top 6 guys that likely go.

 

[BondraTime]

I'm personally, in a best case scenario, hoping to come out with one of:
Celebrini
Demidov
Buium
Saliyev
Levshunov

After that, I'd be very happy with:
Catton
Dickenson
Lindstrom

Then the guys I'd be fine with taking, but not my ideal choices:
Iginla
Connolly - Would be Lindstrom tier without taking character into account, still wouldn't be too upset with him
Brandsegg-Nygard
Parekh
Yakemchuk
Helenius

 

[Alf Silfversson]

No one has scored as many goals on d in their draft year as Yakemchuk in the WHL for 19 years. He is also a big body who has a mean streak. I don't see how his potential isn't sky high.

Tbh if I were to bed I'd say the sens pick 7th. The 3 forwards and the 3 rd are likely to get picked. Then it should just be BPA. To me and a few scouts I've talked to there's a legit top 6 guys that likely go.

I've watched the Hitmen a few times this year and while I like Yakemchuk I see some things that could hold him back (from being a star) at the NHL level. They aren't insurmountable, but they are definitely there.

He is poor defensively. People see a big D who racks up PIM they tend to think he plays defense well. Yak does not.

He has decent top speed but, IMO, his stride is choppy and his lateral mobility/edge work is not very good.

Finally his offensive stats are, also IMO, inflated by the fact that Calgary had no other offensive D options outside of 16 year old Reese Hamilton.

All that being said I think he'll be a really good NHL player. Most of his flaws can be worked on with training and/or coaching. I'd be happy to have him on my team, no matter what. But I'm not convinced he'll be a star player and if he is it might not be for quite a while.

I just think that if somehow a guy like Lindstrom falls to us he'd be a huge pick up. I could see this player being a cross between Malkin and Kopitar. A fast, skilled, huge, sometimes mean C who competes hard in all three zones. Sign me up.

 

[bert]

I've watched the Hitmen a few times this year and while I like Yakemchuk I see some things that could hold him back (from being a star) at the NHL level. They aren't insurmountable, but they are definitely there.

He is poor defensively. People see a big D who racks up PIM they tend to think he plays defense well. Yak does not.

He has decent top speed but, IMO, his stride is choppy and his lateral mobility/edge work is not very good.

Finally his offensive stats are, also IMO, inflated by the fact that Calgary had no other offensive D options outside of 16 year old Reese Hamilton.

All that being said I think he'll be a really good NHL player. Most of his flaws can be worked on with training and/or coaching. I'd be happy to have him on my team, no matter what. But I'm not convinced he'll be a star player and if he is it might not be for quite a while.

I just think that if somehow a guy like Lindstrom falls to us he'd be a huge pick up. I could see this player being a cross between Malkin and Kopitar. A fast, skilled, huge, sometimes mean C who competes hard in all three zones. Sign me up.

6'3 D men have far longer development curves than any other player outside of goaltenders. His raw tools are incredibly unique. His skating isnt close to done developing, he is going to get quicker and stronger. His top speed is good and so are his edges, the rest is all about reps and growing into his body. I dont know how you can say a players offensive stats are inflated when he doesnt have much around him. Especially when you see how he produces, these arent situational plays he is creative and has a rocket of a shot and great hands. Seems like you're looking to cherry pick something that is subjective. He also has a good first pass. While his defensive game is raw he isnt scared to engage physically and he competes. Thats what matters more than anything. Something that worries me about Dickinson. The type of player Yakemchuk looks to develop into is unicorn levels in the league. Big D win champsionships.

I think Lindstrom is going to get picked ahead of any chance Ottawa gets to draft him yes if he is there its hard to pass up. I dont see the creativity and skill of either Malkin or Kopitar but I do see a beast of an offensive centerman that will lean on the other team. If Ottawa moves up to 2 they have some really hard decisions to make. Picking 7th I think most of them will already be made for them.

My point was that I dont agree that Yakemchuk doesnt have high end upside. When he is a finished product I see a guy that honestly doesnt currently exist in the league. Not as big and physical as Weber but maybe a modern version of him with more skill. When I see people talking about players not being ready fast enough I dont really understand it. Its about sustainable success not burning it to the ground every 6 years. They have been in a rebuild for 7 years and most of the core players are 24 and under outside of like Batherson. Its very strange to me this mindset. I dont really care which guy gets there fastest this team isnt close to winning anything right now. I want the best player in the most valuable position.

 

[Hale The Villain]

Yakemchuk has good all-around potential but his offense gets overrated.

His goal scoring isn't as translatable to the next level as people think. Feet aren't quick enough to open shooting lanes and his dangles to the front of the net won't work at the NHL level.

His skating is fine when he gets going but the first couple steps aren't pretty, and that's what matters most when you're a defenseman trying to generate offense from the blueline.

I don't love his hockey IQ but he has fantastic hands and passes the puck well. He's also mean and looks really big and imposing on the ice. Even if his defensive game is inconsistent at the WHL level I could see him rounding things out and being a solid 2nd pairing all-around RD.

There should be better options if we finish in the top 8, but given how much weight we've put on toughness in recent years I could see him being our pick.