But value wise, Peterka has the value of ~10th overall pick if he were being shopped.
If a team, like Minnesota for example, were trading Fiala, they would likely value Peterka and the 7th very similarly.
I just dont know how you can say that so confidently.
I almost promise that if you asked Minnesota fans in a poll what they would prefer - Peterka or the 7th OV pick - the results would be staggering in favor of the pick.
Like we saw with Batherson - his road to stardom in the NHL was anything but a sure thing even after his incredible play down in the minors.
Even if the value is most likely close in reality - I just cant see any team passing on the 7th in favor or Peterka under any circumstances.
Say what you will about the strength of the draft, but you really should have enough faith in your amateur scouting to draft a very solid NHLer when your picking at number 7. Its a great spot to be picking at in reality, and you dont have to go far back in history to see that its a great zone to hit a homerun. Lucky number 7 is a real thing.
People get carried away with pre draft narratives anyways imo, and seriously underestimate just how talented the kids coming up are.. This isnt the 90s or even the 2000s anymore where it was laughably thin some years. The US program has changed the quality of the talent pool in a big way. Shout out to the Swiss and Germans becoming a very real factor as well.
This is not the NBA with the crazy level of star player movement each off season.. And the 7th pick is still by far the best chance to get a top level player under control for the better part of a decade in this case.