HFNHL Nashville Predators 2021 Entry Draft Review

[Fan.At]

F Cole Sillinger
HFNHL: 1st round, 13th overall
NHL: 1st round, 12th overall Columbus Blue Jackets (-1)
I expected Sillinger to be right where i picked him. I was hoping for one of the higher guys to fall, especially one of the goalies, but I am happy with how that turned out.

F Francesco Pinelli
HFNHL: 1st round, 18th overall
NHL: 2nd round, 42nd overall LA Kings (+ 24)
Somewhat unexpected fall for Pinelli and he is going to an extremely deep team. Which could be good cause he has time to develop or could be bad cause chances may be limited. Time will tell.

F Isak Rosen
HFNHL: 1st round, 25th overall
NHL: 1st round, 14th overall Buffalo Sabres (-11)
Supremely talented, physically underdeveloped, Rosen will need time. I can wait and i think this one could pay off big time.

F Matthew Knies
HFNHL: 1st round, 27th overall
NHL: 2nd round, 57th overall Toronto Maple Leafs (+30)
Also fell further than i expected. Consistency has to be upped, but the Leafs are not exactly a big team and thats where he will contribute. Has the skill and skating to go with his size.

D Aleksi Heimosalmi
HFNHL: 2nd round, 38th overall
NHL. 2nd round, 44th overall Carolina Hurricanes (+6)
Pure upside pick. If he hits, he might hit big-time. Has a lot of things to work on though, mostly on the defensive side of things.Goes to a team who knows how to draft and develop defensemen.

F Tyler Boucher
HFNHL: 2nd round, 45th overall
NHL: 1st round, 10th overall Ottawa Senators (-35)
Probably the biggest surprise in terms of risers of the entire draft. Ottawa seems to know what to do with USNTDP/NCAA kids and apparently they knew about teams who would have picked him very soon after 10 if he was still there.

G Arvid Söderblom
HFNHL: 4th round, 104th overall
NHL: undrafted (signed by Chicago)
Söderblom is already signed to an NHL contract by the Chicago Blackhawks. A big kid with an outstanding development curve in the last few years.

D Janis Moser
HFNHL: 4th round, 122nd overall
NHL: 2nd round, 60th overall Arizona Coyotes (-62)
Went surprisingly high in the NHL draft, but brings a lot of qualities and intangibles. Overager might get his try-out sooner rather than later.

D Kyle Masters
HFNHL: 7th round, 205th overall
NHL: 4th round, 118th overall Minnesota Wild (-87)
Talented defender, might be a victim of a short WHL season. Seems to be a good gamble in the 7th round.

D Joel Nyström
HFNHL: 7th round, 210th overall
NHL: 7th round, 219th overall Carolina Hurricanes (+9)
Nyström plays a projectable game, biggest question will be if he can overcome his size deficits to make the NHL.

Overall self-assessment:
I am happy with this draft. Lots of uncertainties, but every player i picked was drafted in the NHL. Pinelli was a rather big faller, as was Knies but in the end I have 3 players of the top 14 in the draft and 7 players of the top 60 as well as a goalie already on an NHL contract.

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[Hossa]

Amazing draft, Tony.

Pinelli and Knies were two of the most fascinating players in the draft to me, and both guys I looked closely into. I can see why NHL scouts were split on Pinelli, some seeing him as a legitimate late first and others more as a second rounder. The tools are average, he is not super athletic, and the competition he played against last year was not great, so it comes down to a bet on the pure skill and hockey sense. I like it, and still think he's a better hockey player than Boucher, but I'm not employed in the NHL for a reason, I suppose.

Knies was a guy who I became more sold on as time went along. He popped whenever I saw him last year, so it was concerning to see him struggle out of the gate this year. But he came around as the year progressed, and there is just a lot to like. The hands are great, the skating plays up because he has a wide base and I like how he drives the middle rather than the outside. I have been burned in the past by the drive-wide types like Zach Senyshyn and Adam Erne, so I like how Knies cuts to the inside instead.

I like the others too. I'm too much of a Sens fan to comment on Boucher right now, but I felt he was a fringe first when you drafted him, so there was good value there even before Ottawa reached. Heimosalmi was on my long list at 31 and a target if I traded down, and I like Moser a lot. If I didn't already have two other good young Swiss D in Geisser and Berni, I would have been more aggressive in going after him. I think the upside questions are valid, but he should play.

 

[MatthewFlames]

Pinelli was one of the two players who I would have considered above Koivunen at 24 - Knies was on my list as a Koivunen backup if I was able to trade down and someone took him before my next pick. Boucher and Heimosalmi are home run picks in my opinion -- both rated too low generally -- doesn't Heimosalmi remind you of Topi Niemela (not playing style/skillset, necessarily) but just how they were ranked too low due to their size? Niemela has really raised his stock and I think Heimosalmi will as well.

 

[Chris1989]

Tony, the Tiger: YOU'RE GREAT!!!!!