StevenToddIves
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Taylor Hall has done it again. The MVP/Lottery Specialist has somehow managed to get the Devils their second lottery win in three years. But the first pick is not the only crucial element in the Devils rebuild -- the Devils have 6 more picks in the top 100 in a very talented 2019 draft class. So, how will the first two rounds shake out?
1 New Jersey C Jack Hughes Hughes' skating is simply sublime, his vision and puck handling are pure artistry. His ability to seemingly slow down the game while playing at speeds the opposition struggles to keep pace with is jaw-dropping. He is the best player in the draft now, and he is not even close to his talent ceiling. Hughes' upside is year after year of 100+ point seasons, and he will make an immediate impact, likely on the second line in 2019-20.
2 NY Rangers W Kappo Kakko the Rangers also kick-start their own rebuild with an incredibly skilled and well-rounded, franchise-type winger. Kakko reset the standards for a draft-eligible forward in the Finnish elite league, and has elite to borderline-elite skills across the board except for his good-but-not-great skating. A prototypical power forward who is already physically developed, Kakko could start 2019-20 on the top line at MSG with Zibanajad and Kreider.
3 Chicago LD Bowen Byram the Blackhawks' descent from the NHL penthouse to the draft lottery was largely caused by a collapse of their blueline. Keith and Seabrook are not the dominant forces of yore, Hjalmarsson is gone. Though Chicago has some terrific defense prospects on the way in Boqvist, Jokiharju, Beaudin and Mitchell, none of them match the two-way dominance and physicality of the lightning-fast Byram -- a true gamer who is often compared to Drew Doughty.
4 Colorado C Kirby Dach Though rightfully upset that they lost another lottery to the Devils, the Avs can at least be happy that their incredibly one-sided trade with Ottawa has landed them the #4 pick in a draft with a very strong 3-9. Dach is a huge pivot with exceptional vision, who plays an astoundingly smart and, if necessary, physical two-way game. Colorado has longed for secondary scoring behind McKinnon/Landeskog/Rantanen for a couple years now, and Dach is a player with top-notch 1C talent who will seriously impact the game in a 2C role.
5 Los Angeles W Vasili Podkolzin the Kings have never been able to surround star C Anze Kopitar with the top-tier talent he deserves, but that could change with Podkolzin. The Russian power F plays a heady and extremely intense two-way game, and with his puck-handling, strength and deadly shot can be impossible to stop down low. The question is, can the Kings convince him to come to North America and play in the NHL in the next three seasons? Though Podkolzin is considered by many to be the #3 prospect in the class of 2019, this question could drop him down on draft day.
6 Detroit C Alex Turcotte the Red Wings went into the lottery desperate for a marquee superstar (Hughes) or #1D (Byram) -- unfortunately for them, a drop-down to the 6th slot should take them out of the running for both. In this scenario, I have them going "best available player" with Turcotte, an offensively gifted and blazingly fast pivot with perhaps the best mix of compete level/two-way acumen we've seen with any draft-eligible center in the past decade.
7 Buffalo C Trevor Zegras like Devils GM Ray Shero, Sabres GM Jason Botterill comes from the Pittsburgh Penguins organization which built back-to-back champs on a fast, attacking style. Zegras is very comparable to Mathew Barzal or Elias Pettersson in this respect, just a dazzling stickhandler/skater, who can become the Sabres #2 C behind Jack Eichel or slide to Eichel's wing, as he often did with Jack Hughes or Alex Turcotte on the US-NTDP.
8 Edmonton C/RW Dylan Cozens plain and simple, the Oilers need weapons to put on the wings around elite C combo McDavid/Draisaitl. Cozens is big, fast, physical, plays two-ways, has a rocket of a shot and no discernible weakness. Plain and simple, he's exactly what they need in Edmonton.
9 Anaheim LW Matthew Boldy though it seems unlikely that the Ducks would use their top pick on a LW for the third time in four years, Boldy is just a silky-smooth winger with size who can play the Ducks' big, physical style while pumping in points. I think that, like Detroit, Anaheim would like a defenseman here -- but the next-best D is generally considered to be Victor Soderstrom, who lacks the size GM Bob Murray prefers with his blueliners.
10 Vancouver LW Peyton Krebs if there was one team which desperately wanted to win the #3 lottery pick (Byram), I believe it was the Canucks. They are loaded with talented young forwards, but lack high-end young D beyond Jack Hughes' brother Quinton. Still, any team would be thrilled to get Krebs -- his mix of ultra-intense compete level, high-end skill and jersey flapping speed are difficult to come by. Krebs is sure to be a fan favorite and coaches dream wherever he lands.
11 Philadelphia RD Victor Soderstrom while the Flyers are loaded with young talent at LD with Provorov, Sanheim and Gostisbehere, they are far from as strong on the right side. Soderstrom might be the best this draft has to offer at that position -- he's a terrific skater with a high hockey IQ and a tantalizing skill-set. Though he's just listed at 5'11-180, he plays a very heady, effective and responsible game in his own zone.
12 Minnesota LD Philip Broberg last season, Wild GM Paul Fenton absolutely baffled me by taking a Swedish LD with third-pairing upside in the first round with Filip Johansson. Here, I have him taking a Swedish LD with second-pairing upside. Broberg has a rare mix of size (6'3-200) and high-end skating, but several other aspects of his game have come under scrutiny.
13 Florida LD Cam York the Panthers are loaded with young forwards, but their downfall in 2018-19 was caused largely by an inability to keep pucks out of their own nets. York may lack top-end speed and size, but he plays an incredibly smart game in all three zones and is an ace at handling and moving the puck.
14 Arizona C Alex Newhook after mishandling and then trading Dylan Strome, the Coyotes lack high-end centers. 2018 first-rounder Barrett Hayton is going to be a terrific player, but he lacks dynamic offensive skill. Enter Newhook -- one of the top skaters in the draft behind Hughes, and an extremely skilled player with the puck.
15 Montreal LD Matthew Robertson after addressing an organizational dearth at center the past two drafts with Ryan Poehling and Jesperi Kotkaniemi, the Habs need to fortify the future of the defense corps. Robertson is one of my favorite players in this draft, a mobile and whip-smart physical shut-down D with solid offensive abilities, in the mold of a young Vlasic or Seabrook.
16 Colorado W Arthur Kaliyev with two first round picks, Colorado can afford to take a chance on the biggest wild-card in the 2019 draft. In the offensive zone, Kaliyev is absolutely dominant -- he used his elite shooting skill to pump in 51 goals for the Hamilton Bulldogs in the OHL. In the opposing zone, the Staten Island native is an absolute beast, but his 200-foot game has been scrutinized and criticized to an extreme degree. Due to this, many see Kaliyev as a boom/bust prospect, a kid who can knock on the door of the top 10 or drop to the end of the first round. Personally, I think his natural scoring ability is too rare to pass up on in the mid-first round.
17 Las Vegas LD Thomas Harley after exchanging top D prospect Erik Brannstrom in the Mark Stone trade, I expect GM George McPhee to put an emphasis on the blueline in the 2019 draft. Harley offers a tantalizing juxtaposition of size (6'3-190), high-end skating skills and offensive ability (58 points in 68 OHL games). He is certainly raw and needs a great deal of development, but he's one of the youngest players available in the 2019 draft and could pay huge dividends down the line.
18 Dallas C Ryan Suzuki this hypothetical sees the Stars taking an OHL center for the second consecutive draft (Ty Dellandrea, 2018). The Barrie Colts star combines speed, skill and smarts and can also slot to the LW, and it's just a couple years until he joins his brother Nick (Montreal) in the NHL.
19 Ottawa C Connor McMichael outside of New Jersey, no one was happier to see the Devils win the lottery than the front office of the Ottawa Senators. Can you imagine the Canadian media if Colorado got Jack Hughes with their pick? Meanwhile, McMichael is very hard not to love as a player. The London Knights center combines plus-skating with excellent hockey IQ and compete level. He won't dazzle, but he has excellent skills across the board and projects to a high-end 2C at the NHL level.
20 Anaheim RD Moritz Seider as I often say, they like 'em big in Anaheim. Seider is the prototypical big (6'4-200), physical mobile defenseman. Though he does not have any particular dazzling skill, the German blueliner is very good in all aspects, almost without weakness, and plays a mature and smart game. He might be the most NHL-ready D prospect in the 2019 draft.
21 Carolina G Spencer Knight what? A goaltender in the first-round in 2019? Well, consider this: Carolina has suffered atrocious play between the pipes for pretty much the entire decade, and Knight is the highest-rated netminding prospect since Carey Price, whom he is most-often compared to. Knight is a bit of a unicorn in that he is a goalie who it would be difficult to envision slipping out of the first round -- the Kings, Islanders and Flames would all certainly consider him if he slipped past the early 20s.
22 NY Rangers LD Tobias Bjornfot after taking Kakko with the #2 overall pick, I expect the Rangers to be thinking D with #22. Bjornfot is is a fast, smart D with a very good shot and hockey IQ. He has no weakness in his game whatsoever, and I'm puzzled why he's routinely ranked below fellow Swedish LD Philip Broberg despite a similar skill set and a great deal less risk.
23 Pittsburgh RW Cole Caufield the Penguins have only drafted in the first round once since 2012, and that pick (Kasperi Kapanen) is no longer with the team after having been dealt to Toronto. They are on a never-ending search for scoring wings to pair with superstar centers Crosby and Malkin, and would be over the moon to find Caufield available. The US-NTDP scoring star has pure shooting/scoring ability matched only by Arthur Kaliyev in this draft, but could conceivably slip a bit in the rankings due to his stature (5'7-160) and lack of elite skating skill. And then he could just as conceivably make teams regret passing him in the draft, as did his closest comparable in Alex DeBrincat.
24 Nashville C Philip Tomasino Nashville drafts and develops prospects with the best of them, so they are a perfect landing spot for the kid I think might be the most underrated first-round candidate in 2019. Tomasino is an electrifying offensive talent with jersey-flapping speed who is a regular on the highlight reels for the Niagara Ice Dogs. It is my firm conviction that this exciting prospect has legit 1C NHL upside.
25 Los Angeles LD Alex Vlasic 6'6 defensemen with very good skating ability do not come around often. The Kings have to deal with very large teams in Anaheim and San Jose on a regular basis, and the US-NTDP giant would certainly help them counteract that.
26 Buffalo LD Ville Heinola after taking a high-end forward with the #7 overall pick, it is a near-certainty that the Sabres address the blueline with their second pick in the first round. Despite being slightly undersized (5'10-175) and not a blazing speedster, Heinola has utilized his high-end intelligence and poise to play a crucial role for Lukko Rauma in the Finnish elite league. He could one day form an outstanding tandem with wunderkind Rasmus Dahlin on the Sabres' top pairing.
27 NY Islanders C John Beecher after a stellar 2018 draft, the Islanders pipeline is loaded with high-upside wingers (Wahlstrom, Bellows, Iskhakov) and D (Dobson, Wilde). What they need is depth up the middle, and no 2019 draft prospect screams "Lou Lamoriello" more than US-NTDP power center John Beecher -- he's huge, physical, a beast in all three zones, and extremely reminiscent of a young David Backes or Ryan Kesler.
28 Washington RW Rafael Lavoie the Caps system is desperate for forwards at all three positions. Lavoie is the type of player who might have gone top 10 in 2000, but could slip to the bottom part of the first round in 2019 -- he's huge (6'4-200) and can score (32-41-73 for Halifax). He's very good across the board, but power forwards whose finest skills are strength and size are being found later and later in drafts in the modern-day NHL.
29 Boston RW Brett Leason speaking of big, power RWs, Leason is without a doubt the top-available overager in the class of 2019. The 6'5-210 beast is physical, smart and has decent skill to go with his much-improved skating ability. He might lack the upside of some of the other first-round wingers, but he is close to NHL ready and could make a mark as a punishing hitter who puts up 25-25-50 numbers in a middle-6 role.
30 Calgary W Albin Grewe the only knock on this physical tenacious competitor is a perceived lack of top-line skill. With a top line of Monahan-Gaudreau-Lindholm in place for the foreseeable future, the Flames need to address the middle-6, where Grewe would fit in perfectly. The young Swede is known for bone-crunching hits and getting under the skin of the opposition while also possessing the ability to compliment scoring line mates. The idea of him on a line with Matt Tkachuk probably already has NHL defensemen annoyed.
31 Tampa Bay LW Pavel Dorofeyev if the Lightning win the cup, this pick goes to the Rangers. Assuming Tampa keeps the pick, Dorofeyev would be a typically astute pick for them. Incredibly skilled across the board and a pretty complete player, Dorofeyev has dominated at the MHL level in Russia. With some more muscle on his 6'1-170 frame, Dorofeyev certainly possesses the upside of a first-line scoring winger in the NHL.
SECOND ROUND
32 Ottawa LW Samuel Poulin big (6'2-205) power F with high compete level put up big points for Sherbrooke
33 Los Angeles LW Jakob Pelletier undersized but ultra-competitive winger is a coaches dream and potted 89 points in Moncton.
34 New Jersey RD Lassi Thomson under-heralded Finnish D checks every box on the board: he's fast, skilled, smart, competitive, and will engage in physical battles. Should become an outstanding, 20+ minute, all-situations 2-way D -- the type of player every NHL team covets.
35 Detroit LD Vladislav Kolyachonok high-upside D from Belarus combines size, skating and skill, a diamond in the rough in the second round
36 Carolina RW Nathan Legare do-everything big power F is a coaches dream, 45 goals and 87 points for Baie-Comeau only tell part of the story of how good this kid is
37 NY Rangers C Ilya Nikolayev many believe the skilled Russian has top-line scoring upside
38 Edmonton LW Nolan Foote more wingers for McDavid/Draisaitl -- Adam's son is a big, smart power F with a good shot and knows how to get to scoring areas
39 Anaheim RW Simon Holmstrom big winger oozes skill but has struggled with injury/inconsistency, seen by many as potential home-run pick
40 Vancouver RD Kaeden Korczak Canucks have Quinton Hughes to put pucks in opposing nets from the D position, Korczak is big, physical shut-down guy to keep pucks out of their own net
41 Chicago LW Nicholas Robertson winger is undersized but has a sick scoring touch and plays with a relentless engine, top-line upside if he can improve his skating from good to very good
42 Minnesota LW/C Harrison Blaisdell second-best BCHL prospect after Newhook has big-time scoring chops
43 Ottawa LD Marshall Warren the one thing the Senators have done well under GM Pierre Dorion is draft (when not trading the picks), Warren is a smart, smooth-skating D who always makes the right play
44 Philadelphia RW Maxim Cajkovic Slovakian puck magician struggled a bit in the Q numbers-wise but it's highlight reel stuff when he gets it going
45 Arizona W Nils Hoglander despite 5'9 height, the skilled Swede is incredibly strong and plays a power forward-type game, were he 6'0 he'd be a first-rounder
46 Montreal LW Robert Mastrosimone a kid I've considered for every pick since the late first round, incredibly skilled sniper for Chicago Steel of USHL is evidence of depth of 2019 draft class
47 Colorado LD Ryan Johnson project offensive D from Sioux Falls of the USHL has great skates and smarts and could go even higher
48 Vegas C Yegor Spiridonov big, rangy center is rock-solid in all three zones and has offensive skill to project to prototypical NHL 2C
49 Dallas RD Billy Constantinou riverboat gambler offensive D with a terrific set of wheels
50 Montreal RW Bobby Brink terrific sniper will be an asset for any NHL PP, could go early as late first because of elite-level shot but needs to improve skating
51 St. Louis LD Artemi Knyazev Chicoutimi D rocketed up draft boards with impressive offensive output and improved defensive zone coverage
52 Carolina C/LW Yegor Afanasyev big (6'3-200) and skilled, the young Russian star dominated the USHL for Muskegon
53 Winnipeg RD Antti Tuomisto no one drafts better than GM Kevin Chevaldayoff and his Winnipeg Jets, Tuomisto is 6'3, physical, and shows flashes of high skill that hint he's a potential bluechip sleeper
54 Florida RD Drew Helleson just another mock draft which has an NHL team taking two players from the unbelievably talented 2018-19 US-NTDP in the first two rounds
55 New Jersey RW Michal Teply the Devils still have some need for right-shooting wingers in the pipeline, and the talented Czech product is skilled, can skate, and has an extremely projectable 6'3 frame to become a big, net-front presence
56 Toronto RW Ryder Donovan also a possibility to NJ at 55, Donovan is a project, but is 6'4-200, physical, skates extremely well and can downright wire the puck on net
57 Detroit RD Anttoni Honka with three picks in the second round, Detroit can take a chance on the boom/bust offensive D
58 Detroit G Mads Sogaard the Danish giant mixes 6'7 measurement with very good athleticism in net
59 Washington C Jamieson Rees were it not for injury-ravaged 2018-19, this slick passer and ultra-fast skater might have been a first round candidate
60 New Jersey RD Case McCarthy exactly what the Devils need on the blueline, a punishing hitter with the smarts and mobility to become a Dylan Samberg-like shutdown D and second-round steal
61 NY Islanders RW Shane Pinto big fast sniper is from Franklin Square, NY and headed to North Dakota in the fall -- has the tools to develop into an outstanding player
62 Tampa Bay C John Farinacci long-term project, but can skate and snipe and has big-time upside as 6'0-185 scoring second line C
1 New Jersey C Jack Hughes Hughes' skating is simply sublime, his vision and puck handling are pure artistry. His ability to seemingly slow down the game while playing at speeds the opposition struggles to keep pace with is jaw-dropping. He is the best player in the draft now, and he is not even close to his talent ceiling. Hughes' upside is year after year of 100+ point seasons, and he will make an immediate impact, likely on the second line in 2019-20.
2 NY Rangers W Kappo Kakko the Rangers also kick-start their own rebuild with an incredibly skilled and well-rounded, franchise-type winger. Kakko reset the standards for a draft-eligible forward in the Finnish elite league, and has elite to borderline-elite skills across the board except for his good-but-not-great skating. A prototypical power forward who is already physically developed, Kakko could start 2019-20 on the top line at MSG with Zibanajad and Kreider.
3 Chicago LD Bowen Byram the Blackhawks' descent from the NHL penthouse to the draft lottery was largely caused by a collapse of their blueline. Keith and Seabrook are not the dominant forces of yore, Hjalmarsson is gone. Though Chicago has some terrific defense prospects on the way in Boqvist, Jokiharju, Beaudin and Mitchell, none of them match the two-way dominance and physicality of the lightning-fast Byram -- a true gamer who is often compared to Drew Doughty.
4 Colorado C Kirby Dach Though rightfully upset that they lost another lottery to the Devils, the Avs can at least be happy that their incredibly one-sided trade with Ottawa has landed them the #4 pick in a draft with a very strong 3-9. Dach is a huge pivot with exceptional vision, who plays an astoundingly smart and, if necessary, physical two-way game. Colorado has longed for secondary scoring behind McKinnon/Landeskog/Rantanen for a couple years now, and Dach is a player with top-notch 1C talent who will seriously impact the game in a 2C role.
5 Los Angeles W Vasili Podkolzin the Kings have never been able to surround star C Anze Kopitar with the top-tier talent he deserves, but that could change with Podkolzin. The Russian power F plays a heady and extremely intense two-way game, and with his puck-handling, strength and deadly shot can be impossible to stop down low. The question is, can the Kings convince him to come to North America and play in the NHL in the next three seasons? Though Podkolzin is considered by many to be the #3 prospect in the class of 2019, this question could drop him down on draft day.
6 Detroit C Alex Turcotte the Red Wings went into the lottery desperate for a marquee superstar (Hughes) or #1D (Byram) -- unfortunately for them, a drop-down to the 6th slot should take them out of the running for both. In this scenario, I have them going "best available player" with Turcotte, an offensively gifted and blazingly fast pivot with perhaps the best mix of compete level/two-way acumen we've seen with any draft-eligible center in the past decade.
7 Buffalo C Trevor Zegras like Devils GM Ray Shero, Sabres GM Jason Botterill comes from the Pittsburgh Penguins organization which built back-to-back champs on a fast, attacking style. Zegras is very comparable to Mathew Barzal or Elias Pettersson in this respect, just a dazzling stickhandler/skater, who can become the Sabres #2 C behind Jack Eichel or slide to Eichel's wing, as he often did with Jack Hughes or Alex Turcotte on the US-NTDP.
8 Edmonton C/RW Dylan Cozens plain and simple, the Oilers need weapons to put on the wings around elite C combo McDavid/Draisaitl. Cozens is big, fast, physical, plays two-ways, has a rocket of a shot and no discernible weakness. Plain and simple, he's exactly what they need in Edmonton.
9 Anaheim LW Matthew Boldy though it seems unlikely that the Ducks would use their top pick on a LW for the third time in four years, Boldy is just a silky-smooth winger with size who can play the Ducks' big, physical style while pumping in points. I think that, like Detroit, Anaheim would like a defenseman here -- but the next-best D is generally considered to be Victor Soderstrom, who lacks the size GM Bob Murray prefers with his blueliners.
10 Vancouver LW Peyton Krebs if there was one team which desperately wanted to win the #3 lottery pick (Byram), I believe it was the Canucks. They are loaded with talented young forwards, but lack high-end young D beyond Jack Hughes' brother Quinton. Still, any team would be thrilled to get Krebs -- his mix of ultra-intense compete level, high-end skill and jersey flapping speed are difficult to come by. Krebs is sure to be a fan favorite and coaches dream wherever he lands.
11 Philadelphia RD Victor Soderstrom while the Flyers are loaded with young talent at LD with Provorov, Sanheim and Gostisbehere, they are far from as strong on the right side. Soderstrom might be the best this draft has to offer at that position -- he's a terrific skater with a high hockey IQ and a tantalizing skill-set. Though he's just listed at 5'11-180, he plays a very heady, effective and responsible game in his own zone.
12 Minnesota LD Philip Broberg last season, Wild GM Paul Fenton absolutely baffled me by taking a Swedish LD with third-pairing upside in the first round with Filip Johansson. Here, I have him taking a Swedish LD with second-pairing upside. Broberg has a rare mix of size (6'3-200) and high-end skating, but several other aspects of his game have come under scrutiny.
13 Florida LD Cam York the Panthers are loaded with young forwards, but their downfall in 2018-19 was caused largely by an inability to keep pucks out of their own nets. York may lack top-end speed and size, but he plays an incredibly smart game in all three zones and is an ace at handling and moving the puck.
14 Arizona C Alex Newhook after mishandling and then trading Dylan Strome, the Coyotes lack high-end centers. 2018 first-rounder Barrett Hayton is going to be a terrific player, but he lacks dynamic offensive skill. Enter Newhook -- one of the top skaters in the draft behind Hughes, and an extremely skilled player with the puck.
15 Montreal LD Matthew Robertson after addressing an organizational dearth at center the past two drafts with Ryan Poehling and Jesperi Kotkaniemi, the Habs need to fortify the future of the defense corps. Robertson is one of my favorite players in this draft, a mobile and whip-smart physical shut-down D with solid offensive abilities, in the mold of a young Vlasic or Seabrook.
16 Colorado W Arthur Kaliyev with two first round picks, Colorado can afford to take a chance on the biggest wild-card in the 2019 draft. In the offensive zone, Kaliyev is absolutely dominant -- he used his elite shooting skill to pump in 51 goals for the Hamilton Bulldogs in the OHL. In the opposing zone, the Staten Island native is an absolute beast, but his 200-foot game has been scrutinized and criticized to an extreme degree. Due to this, many see Kaliyev as a boom/bust prospect, a kid who can knock on the door of the top 10 or drop to the end of the first round. Personally, I think his natural scoring ability is too rare to pass up on in the mid-first round.
17 Las Vegas LD Thomas Harley after exchanging top D prospect Erik Brannstrom in the Mark Stone trade, I expect GM George McPhee to put an emphasis on the blueline in the 2019 draft. Harley offers a tantalizing juxtaposition of size (6'3-190), high-end skating skills and offensive ability (58 points in 68 OHL games). He is certainly raw and needs a great deal of development, but he's one of the youngest players available in the 2019 draft and could pay huge dividends down the line.
18 Dallas C Ryan Suzuki this hypothetical sees the Stars taking an OHL center for the second consecutive draft (Ty Dellandrea, 2018). The Barrie Colts star combines speed, skill and smarts and can also slot to the LW, and it's just a couple years until he joins his brother Nick (Montreal) in the NHL.
19 Ottawa C Connor McMichael outside of New Jersey, no one was happier to see the Devils win the lottery than the front office of the Ottawa Senators. Can you imagine the Canadian media if Colorado got Jack Hughes with their pick? Meanwhile, McMichael is very hard not to love as a player. The London Knights center combines plus-skating with excellent hockey IQ and compete level. He won't dazzle, but he has excellent skills across the board and projects to a high-end 2C at the NHL level.
20 Anaheim RD Moritz Seider as I often say, they like 'em big in Anaheim. Seider is the prototypical big (6'4-200), physical mobile defenseman. Though he does not have any particular dazzling skill, the German blueliner is very good in all aspects, almost without weakness, and plays a mature and smart game. He might be the most NHL-ready D prospect in the 2019 draft.
21 Carolina G Spencer Knight what? A goaltender in the first-round in 2019? Well, consider this: Carolina has suffered atrocious play between the pipes for pretty much the entire decade, and Knight is the highest-rated netminding prospect since Carey Price, whom he is most-often compared to. Knight is a bit of a unicorn in that he is a goalie who it would be difficult to envision slipping out of the first round -- the Kings, Islanders and Flames would all certainly consider him if he slipped past the early 20s.
22 NY Rangers LD Tobias Bjornfot after taking Kakko with the #2 overall pick, I expect the Rangers to be thinking D with #22. Bjornfot is is a fast, smart D with a very good shot and hockey IQ. He has no weakness in his game whatsoever, and I'm puzzled why he's routinely ranked below fellow Swedish LD Philip Broberg despite a similar skill set and a great deal less risk.
23 Pittsburgh RW Cole Caufield the Penguins have only drafted in the first round once since 2012, and that pick (Kasperi Kapanen) is no longer with the team after having been dealt to Toronto. They are on a never-ending search for scoring wings to pair with superstar centers Crosby and Malkin, and would be over the moon to find Caufield available. The US-NTDP scoring star has pure shooting/scoring ability matched only by Arthur Kaliyev in this draft, but could conceivably slip a bit in the rankings due to his stature (5'7-160) and lack of elite skating skill. And then he could just as conceivably make teams regret passing him in the draft, as did his closest comparable in Alex DeBrincat.
24 Nashville C Philip Tomasino Nashville drafts and develops prospects with the best of them, so they are a perfect landing spot for the kid I think might be the most underrated first-round candidate in 2019. Tomasino is an electrifying offensive talent with jersey-flapping speed who is a regular on the highlight reels for the Niagara Ice Dogs. It is my firm conviction that this exciting prospect has legit 1C NHL upside.
25 Los Angeles LD Alex Vlasic 6'6 defensemen with very good skating ability do not come around often. The Kings have to deal with very large teams in Anaheim and San Jose on a regular basis, and the US-NTDP giant would certainly help them counteract that.
26 Buffalo LD Ville Heinola after taking a high-end forward with the #7 overall pick, it is a near-certainty that the Sabres address the blueline with their second pick in the first round. Despite being slightly undersized (5'10-175) and not a blazing speedster, Heinola has utilized his high-end intelligence and poise to play a crucial role for Lukko Rauma in the Finnish elite league. He could one day form an outstanding tandem with wunderkind Rasmus Dahlin on the Sabres' top pairing.
27 NY Islanders C John Beecher after a stellar 2018 draft, the Islanders pipeline is loaded with high-upside wingers (Wahlstrom, Bellows, Iskhakov) and D (Dobson, Wilde). What they need is depth up the middle, and no 2019 draft prospect screams "Lou Lamoriello" more than US-NTDP power center John Beecher -- he's huge, physical, a beast in all three zones, and extremely reminiscent of a young David Backes or Ryan Kesler.
28 Washington RW Rafael Lavoie the Caps system is desperate for forwards at all three positions. Lavoie is the type of player who might have gone top 10 in 2000, but could slip to the bottom part of the first round in 2019 -- he's huge (6'4-200) and can score (32-41-73 for Halifax). He's very good across the board, but power forwards whose finest skills are strength and size are being found later and later in drafts in the modern-day NHL.
29 Boston RW Brett Leason speaking of big, power RWs, Leason is without a doubt the top-available overager in the class of 2019. The 6'5-210 beast is physical, smart and has decent skill to go with his much-improved skating ability. He might lack the upside of some of the other first-round wingers, but he is close to NHL ready and could make a mark as a punishing hitter who puts up 25-25-50 numbers in a middle-6 role.
30 Calgary W Albin Grewe the only knock on this physical tenacious competitor is a perceived lack of top-line skill. With a top line of Monahan-Gaudreau-Lindholm in place for the foreseeable future, the Flames need to address the middle-6, where Grewe would fit in perfectly. The young Swede is known for bone-crunching hits and getting under the skin of the opposition while also possessing the ability to compliment scoring line mates. The idea of him on a line with Matt Tkachuk probably already has NHL defensemen annoyed.
31 Tampa Bay LW Pavel Dorofeyev if the Lightning win the cup, this pick goes to the Rangers. Assuming Tampa keeps the pick, Dorofeyev would be a typically astute pick for them. Incredibly skilled across the board and a pretty complete player, Dorofeyev has dominated at the MHL level in Russia. With some more muscle on his 6'1-170 frame, Dorofeyev certainly possesses the upside of a first-line scoring winger in the NHL.
SECOND ROUND
32 Ottawa LW Samuel Poulin big (6'2-205) power F with high compete level put up big points for Sherbrooke
33 Los Angeles LW Jakob Pelletier undersized but ultra-competitive winger is a coaches dream and potted 89 points in Moncton.
34 New Jersey RD Lassi Thomson under-heralded Finnish D checks every box on the board: he's fast, skilled, smart, competitive, and will engage in physical battles. Should become an outstanding, 20+ minute, all-situations 2-way D -- the type of player every NHL team covets.
35 Detroit LD Vladislav Kolyachonok high-upside D from Belarus combines size, skating and skill, a diamond in the rough in the second round
36 Carolina RW Nathan Legare do-everything big power F is a coaches dream, 45 goals and 87 points for Baie-Comeau only tell part of the story of how good this kid is
37 NY Rangers C Ilya Nikolayev many believe the skilled Russian has top-line scoring upside
38 Edmonton LW Nolan Foote more wingers for McDavid/Draisaitl -- Adam's son is a big, smart power F with a good shot and knows how to get to scoring areas
39 Anaheim RW Simon Holmstrom big winger oozes skill but has struggled with injury/inconsistency, seen by many as potential home-run pick
40 Vancouver RD Kaeden Korczak Canucks have Quinton Hughes to put pucks in opposing nets from the D position, Korczak is big, physical shut-down guy to keep pucks out of their own net
41 Chicago LW Nicholas Robertson winger is undersized but has a sick scoring touch and plays with a relentless engine, top-line upside if he can improve his skating from good to very good
42 Minnesota LW/C Harrison Blaisdell second-best BCHL prospect after Newhook has big-time scoring chops
43 Ottawa LD Marshall Warren the one thing the Senators have done well under GM Pierre Dorion is draft (when not trading the picks), Warren is a smart, smooth-skating D who always makes the right play
44 Philadelphia RW Maxim Cajkovic Slovakian puck magician struggled a bit in the Q numbers-wise but it's highlight reel stuff when he gets it going
45 Arizona W Nils Hoglander despite 5'9 height, the skilled Swede is incredibly strong and plays a power forward-type game, were he 6'0 he'd be a first-rounder
46 Montreal LW Robert Mastrosimone a kid I've considered for every pick since the late first round, incredibly skilled sniper for Chicago Steel of USHL is evidence of depth of 2019 draft class
47 Colorado LD Ryan Johnson project offensive D from Sioux Falls of the USHL has great skates and smarts and could go even higher
48 Vegas C Yegor Spiridonov big, rangy center is rock-solid in all three zones and has offensive skill to project to prototypical NHL 2C
49 Dallas RD Billy Constantinou riverboat gambler offensive D with a terrific set of wheels
50 Montreal RW Bobby Brink terrific sniper will be an asset for any NHL PP, could go early as late first because of elite-level shot but needs to improve skating
51 St. Louis LD Artemi Knyazev Chicoutimi D rocketed up draft boards with impressive offensive output and improved defensive zone coverage
52 Carolina C/LW Yegor Afanasyev big (6'3-200) and skilled, the young Russian star dominated the USHL for Muskegon
53 Winnipeg RD Antti Tuomisto no one drafts better than GM Kevin Chevaldayoff and his Winnipeg Jets, Tuomisto is 6'3, physical, and shows flashes of high skill that hint he's a potential bluechip sleeper
54 Florida RD Drew Helleson just another mock draft which has an NHL team taking two players from the unbelievably talented 2018-19 US-NTDP in the first two rounds
55 New Jersey RW Michal Teply the Devils still have some need for right-shooting wingers in the pipeline, and the talented Czech product is skilled, can skate, and has an extremely projectable 6'3 frame to become a big, net-front presence
56 Toronto RW Ryder Donovan also a possibility to NJ at 55, Donovan is a project, but is 6'4-200, physical, skates extremely well and can downright wire the puck on net
57 Detroit RD Anttoni Honka with three picks in the second round, Detroit can take a chance on the boom/bust offensive D
58 Detroit G Mads Sogaard the Danish giant mixes 6'7 measurement with very good athleticism in net
59 Washington C Jamieson Rees were it not for injury-ravaged 2018-19, this slick passer and ultra-fast skater might have been a first round candidate
60 New Jersey RD Case McCarthy exactly what the Devils need on the blueline, a punishing hitter with the smarts and mobility to become a Dylan Samberg-like shutdown D and second-round steal
61 NY Islanders RW Shane Pinto big fast sniper is from Franklin Square, NY and headed to North Dakota in the fall -- has the tools to develop into an outstanding player
62 Tampa Bay C John Farinacci long-term project, but can skate and snipe and has big-time upside as 6'0-185 scoring second line C
