HFNHL Canadiens
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1.27 (NHL - 1.23) Joe Morrow (D)
- He was the 14th guy on our list and did not expect him to reach our pick. Realistically, we planned on taking Rattie or Noesen. Exceptional mobility, booming shot, great puck mover, solid hockey sense, impressive strength and appears to have a great head on his shoulders. He was a point per game player for Portland in 2011 and saved his best for the playoffs. The one negative thing I read about him was that he needs to work on his play in the defensive zone, but that is a given for most players his type. All in all, we are very happy with this pick.
3.90 (NHL 2010 - 5.131) John Klingberg (D)
- We traded the rights to Saku Koivu and Tim Brent for this pick, and once again we were able to snag a player that we had rated way higher on our list. We were really impressed with him at the WJCs, and he absolutely dominated the SuperElit. Like Morrow, he is very mobile and an excellent puck-mover, he needs to get a lot stronger though, like most Swedish kids do. He is going to play for Jarmo Kekelainen's team, Jokerit in Finland where he is expected to get a lot more icetime then he did with Frolunda.
4.111 (NHL- 4.96) Jean-Gabriel Pageau (C/W)
- 2nd on our day 2 list, he was a player we expected to get with this pick, as he wasn't really rated highly anywhere, and wasn't even ranked by CSS. Dominant in the playoffs for Gatineau, where he got his team to the finals. Small player at 5'9, but literally does it all for Gatineau, plays and excels in every situation, and brought his game to a new level when it mattered most, which is always a good sign. Reminiscent of Paul Byron, another player we took in the 4th rnd that played for Gatineau. Byron is developing quite nicely, and we think Pageau is more talented.
5.128 (NHL - 7.198) Colin Sullivan (D)
- High school kid who is considered one of the best skaters in the entire draft. He has a great work ethic, and decent size, handles the puck well and plays a pretty good defensive game. His offensive production was underwhelming for a high school league, and he will likely return to high school in the fall, committed to Yale in 2012. The fact that he won't be playing against tougher competition next season likely hurt his draft stock, much like our Patrick McNally pick last draft.
5.147 (NHL 2010 - 4.118) Jimmy Mullin (RW)
- One of the most talented players in the USHL last season. Exceptional skater and puck skills, undersized at 5'10 but is going to University of Miami-Ohio next season where he is expected to be one of the better freshmens in the league. Scored 6 goals in 4 games for team USA at the World Junior A challenge.
6.165 (NHL - undrafted) Brent Benson (C)
- Surprised he didn't get picked, especially after his impressive performance in the playoffs for the Saskatoon Blades. Did not get a whole lot of icetime this season on the powerhouse Blades, but excelled in a checking line role for them. He showed that he was pretty good defensive forward this season, and was a dominant minor hockey player. We are hoping that due to his larger offensive role next season, that he will break out offensively, and possibly get drafted next season. Classic case of not being big, nor very fast = not picked.
6.168 (NHL - 5.133) Michael Ferland (RW)
- Big, tough winger who was a point per game player for Brandon last season in the WHL. He might have some powerforward upside, since he does have a nice set of hands, but at the very least we see him as a 3rd/4th line grinder due to his physical play, size and work ethic. A pretty underrated prospect.
6.177 (NHL - 3.91) Kyle Rau (C)
- Undersized high school player was the winner of the Mr. Hockey Award, awarded to the top high school player in the state of Minnesota. Absolutely dominated the high school league as well as lead the USHL playoffs in scoring. He has some pretty dynamic offensive skills and never takes a shift off. Apparently his character and work ethic levels are off the charts, which was likely why he was taken so high in the actual draft. Headed to University of Minnesota next season where he can hopefully improve the schools faltering reputation.
- All in all we are very happy with this draft, we are fortunate to only have one player go undrafted since this year seemed to have more highly rated players go drafted then any other year that I can remember. The common theme for us in this draft was exceptional playoff performances. Morrow, Klingberg, Pageau, Benson, Ferland and Rau all played their best hockey in the playoffs, and we feel that is a pretty good indicator on the passion levels of these players.
- In addition to drafting these players, we also added 2 more prospects to the group through trade. We dealt A.Kostitsyn and A.Greene in separate deals to acquire Danny Kristo and Andre Petersson. Both of these players were very impressive at the WJCs 2 years back and we feel they both have a pretty good shot at becoming top 6 forwards for us down the line.
- He was the 14th guy on our list and did not expect him to reach our pick. Realistically, we planned on taking Rattie or Noesen. Exceptional mobility, booming shot, great puck mover, solid hockey sense, impressive strength and appears to have a great head on his shoulders. He was a point per game player for Portland in 2011 and saved his best for the playoffs. The one negative thing I read about him was that he needs to work on his play in the defensive zone, but that is a given for most players his type. All in all, we are very happy with this pick.
3.90 (NHL 2010 - 5.131) John Klingberg (D)
- We traded the rights to Saku Koivu and Tim Brent for this pick, and once again we were able to snag a player that we had rated way higher on our list. We were really impressed with him at the WJCs, and he absolutely dominated the SuperElit. Like Morrow, he is very mobile and an excellent puck-mover, he needs to get a lot stronger though, like most Swedish kids do. He is going to play for Jarmo Kekelainen's team, Jokerit in Finland where he is expected to get a lot more icetime then he did with Frolunda.
4.111 (NHL- 4.96) Jean-Gabriel Pageau (C/W)
- 2nd on our day 2 list, he was a player we expected to get with this pick, as he wasn't really rated highly anywhere, and wasn't even ranked by CSS. Dominant in the playoffs for Gatineau, where he got his team to the finals. Small player at 5'9, but literally does it all for Gatineau, plays and excels in every situation, and brought his game to a new level when it mattered most, which is always a good sign. Reminiscent of Paul Byron, another player we took in the 4th rnd that played for Gatineau. Byron is developing quite nicely, and we think Pageau is more talented.
5.128 (NHL - 7.198) Colin Sullivan (D)
- High school kid who is considered one of the best skaters in the entire draft. He has a great work ethic, and decent size, handles the puck well and plays a pretty good defensive game. His offensive production was underwhelming for a high school league, and he will likely return to high school in the fall, committed to Yale in 2012. The fact that he won't be playing against tougher competition next season likely hurt his draft stock, much like our Patrick McNally pick last draft.
5.147 (NHL 2010 - 4.118) Jimmy Mullin (RW)
- One of the most talented players in the USHL last season. Exceptional skater and puck skills, undersized at 5'10 but is going to University of Miami-Ohio next season where he is expected to be one of the better freshmens in the league. Scored 6 goals in 4 games for team USA at the World Junior A challenge.
6.165 (NHL - undrafted) Brent Benson (C)
- Surprised he didn't get picked, especially after his impressive performance in the playoffs for the Saskatoon Blades. Did not get a whole lot of icetime this season on the powerhouse Blades, but excelled in a checking line role for them. He showed that he was pretty good defensive forward this season, and was a dominant minor hockey player. We are hoping that due to his larger offensive role next season, that he will break out offensively, and possibly get drafted next season. Classic case of not being big, nor very fast = not picked.
6.168 (NHL - 5.133) Michael Ferland (RW)
- Big, tough winger who was a point per game player for Brandon last season in the WHL. He might have some powerforward upside, since he does have a nice set of hands, but at the very least we see him as a 3rd/4th line grinder due to his physical play, size and work ethic. A pretty underrated prospect.
6.177 (NHL - 3.91) Kyle Rau (C)
- Undersized high school player was the winner of the Mr. Hockey Award, awarded to the top high school player in the state of Minnesota. Absolutely dominated the high school league as well as lead the USHL playoffs in scoring. He has some pretty dynamic offensive skills and never takes a shift off. Apparently his character and work ethic levels are off the charts, which was likely why he was taken so high in the actual draft. Headed to University of Minnesota next season where he can hopefully improve the schools faltering reputation.
- All in all we are very happy with this draft, we are fortunate to only have one player go undrafted since this year seemed to have more highly rated players go drafted then any other year that I can remember. The common theme for us in this draft was exceptional playoff performances. Morrow, Klingberg, Pageau, Benson, Ferland and Rau all played their best hockey in the playoffs, and we feel that is a pretty good indicator on the passion levels of these players.
- In addition to drafting these players, we also added 2 more prospects to the group through trade. We dealt A.Kostitsyn and A.Greene in separate deals to acquire Danny Kristo and Andre Petersson. Both of these players were very impressive at the WJCs 2 years back and we feel they both have a pretty good shot at becoming top 6 forwards for us down the line.
