Default101
Guest
There seems to be a million of these, how bout i throw my hat into the circle...
#1 - CHICAGO - PATRICK KANE (London - OHL)
Reason: Chicago has drafted good defenseman the last few drafts, Kane would probably fit into their system better, Kane goes first overall in a very hard to call first pick.
#2 - PHILADELPHIA - ALEXEI CHEREPANOV (Omsk - RSL)
Reason: Philadelphia has always gone after the big power forwards HOWEVER with Clarke gone, and the need for big wingers is gone, Philly goes after who is probably the best player in the draft talent wise and take a chance (considering there is no agreement with Russia) and take talent over size.
#3 - PHOENIX - JAMES VAN RIEMSDYK (USA Under-18)
Reason: With Mueller, Wheeler and Hanzal (2/3 centres) combined with the fact that they are skill/speed over size James would be a logical addition to Phoenix, with the top 4 picks BPA isn’t really a factor as these players are close knit and the top winger prospects for Phoenix are Wheeler and Lisin, Phoenix is pretty crippled right now as far as top end winger prospects, that makes Van Riemsdyk a great choice for Phoenix.
#4 - LOS ANGELES - KYLE TURRIS (Burnaby - BCHL)
Reason: As much as I like Turris personally, I think he will drop because of the following 3 reasons, and with JJ ready to go for the kings prospect I think they pass on Alzner and Ellerby and decide to go with BPA in Turris.
#5 - WASHINGTON - KARL ALZNER (Calgary - WHL)
Reason: Washington has it’s top franchise forwards Ovechkin/Backstrom) and with Green and Schultz progressing well the future looks bright for the caps, but Alzner would be an upgrade from the 2 defensemen mentioned and would probably have a better impact on the franchise rather than going after a forward.
#6 - EDMONTON - KEATON ELLERBY (Kamloops - WHL)
Reason: Ellerby would be a great choice for the Oilers, they are already young upfront and have several great offensive prospects on their way up, picking up Smid was a boost to the defence but it’s clear the Oilers need to pick up some defensive talent, and they find it in Ellerby.
#7 - COLUMBUS - JAKUB VORACEK (Halifax - QMJHL)
Reason: With a new GM this one is really hard to pick, especially with all the close talent at the #7 pick, so I will go with the safe pick and say BPA in Voracek, a lot could argue that Espo would go, but I think Voracek would be the safer pick, and they could use a durable player like Voracek that can play all 3 positions.
#8 - BOSTON - ANGELO ESPOSITO (Quebec - QMJHL)
Reason: For the second year in a row the Bruins take a former sure fire #1 overall pick that falls to them in Espo, the Bruins may trade this pick down to a team that is desperate to land someone with the franchise player potential of Espo so the bruins could draft a defenseman which they need and gain something good enough in return for falling, but if they keep the pick Angelo is a no brainier.
#9 - St. LOUIS - MIKAEL BACKLUND (Vasteras - SWE)
Reason: Blues have shown a lot of liking towards Swedish players in recent history and I think considering Backlund’s talent he would make absolute sense for the Blues to take 9th overall, especially with EJ from last year just makes it more clear that they will definitely go after a forward, and take who they would see as the BPA considering they have 2 more picks in this first round.
#10 - FLORIDA - SAM GAGNER (London - OHL)
Reason: In a position they are all too familiar with they draft at the end of the top 10, still without a playoff spot, they take the BPA and a player who’s father has had some roots in this city in Sam Gagner, although Florida is not known for this type of action (passing on Chris Stewart last year) but Gagner would most likely be the best player for the Panthers, they could be a candidate to trade down so they could take a shot at Smith or Cann but if they stay at 10 which they likely will, Gagner would be their selection.
#11 - CAROLINA - ZACH HAMILL (Everett - WHL)
Reason: Carolina who is surprisingly at 11, considering they won the cup a year ago, the team has a very weak prospect core, all their top prospects have moved on to the NHL and they need to build again, most importantly would be a scoring prospect, and Hamill is probably the best scoring prospect remaining and with that Hamill will go 11th.
#12 - MONTREAL - LOGAN COUTURE (Ottawa - OHL)
Reason: Couture is most likely BPA at #12, and would make the most sense, Montreal has a good prospect core, and BPA makes the most sense for a good Montreal team.
#13 - TORONTO - DAVID PERRON (Lewiston - QMJHL)
Reason: Mayorov may be the BPA at this point, but I have noticed that the Leafs have NO history in taking a Russian high in the draft ever since the unfortunate Borchevsky injury, and I can’t see that changing now, Perron is what I think the leafs could want, this is the toughest pick at this point, Leaf fans have some of the most die hard fan and there isn’t a player that can be named that some wouldn’t argue against, Eller being a top Swede could be of interest to the leafs also would be Colton Gillies because of his size, but when it comes down to it Perron makes the most sense.
#14 - COLORADO - NICHOLAS PETRICKI (Omaha - USHL)
Reason: Colorado has a deep history of taking US born or College players high in the draft, that routine ended with Stewart getting drafted in the first round, a lot of people feel Billy Sweatt will be taken with this pick, but with the abundance of young talent at forward for Colorado I would say big defenseman Petricki would be ideal for Colorado.
#15 - EDMONTON - JONATHAN BLUM (Vancouver - WHL)
Reason: The pick acquired in the Ryan Smyth deal will give the Oilers their second defenseman in the draft, the pick up of Ellerby and Blum would practically cover their need of defensemen, as both are extremely talented and both play different games.
#16 - ANAHEIM - LARS ELLER (Frolunda - SWE)
Reason: Despite dominating the 2007 playoffs the ducks still manage to get a pick in the middle of the draft, with absolutely no needs in the organization the ducks go for a player who probably has the highest potential of players remaining in Lars Eller, Burke is no stranger to going after players from Sweden and that will be apparent with the selection of Eller at 16
#17 - NY RANGERS - COLTON GILLIES (Saskatoon - WHL)
Reason: A no-brainer for the Rangers, Gillies a huge centre prospect which would cover 2 needs for the rangers having a big presence on the top 2 lines, and a player who is good at the centre position, if Gillies is available at 17 there is no question he will be putting on the Rangers jersey.
#18 - CALGARY - BRANDON SUTTER (Red Deer - WHL)
Reason: Once again no surprise, it’s just like the Hunters in the OHL they will go a little off the board to get one of their own, and that’s what Darryl does with the 18th overall pick.
#19 - MINNESOTA - TOMMY CROSS (Westminster - HS)
Reason: Minnesota looks like they could use a defensive prospect, and Cross is arguably the best defenseman available at this point in the draft
#20 - PITTSBURGH - ALEX PLANTE (Calgary - WHL)
Reason: This is a no-brainer that the Penguins will be going after a big physical defenseman, as it’s really the only thing they need, they have endless talent at forward, they could use a good young power forward but with none really in sight, a big strong defenseman would be in the works and Plante is bigger than any player projected for the first round, and with that the Penguins would go for Plante.
#21 - PHOENIX - MARK KATIC (Sarnia - OHL)
Reason: Phoenix addressed their biggest need at the 3rd overall spot, and now with the pick acquired in the Nagy deal, they go after a lesser need, good potential top 4 defenseman, which is exactly where Katic falls, they have Jones and Stephenson who would be physically intimidating presences, and have shown in the past they like to go after strong skaters, and Katic is the best skating defenseman in the draft by a decent margin, Katic has two-way defenseman abilities which would fit well in the Coyotes system so the first surprise pick will go at 21 with Katic to Phoenix.
#22 - MONTREAL - MAXIM MAYOROV (Almetsyevsk - RUS)
Reason: Mayorov finally gets taken at 22, he falls due to the non transfer agreement but with the pro and prospect depth in Montreal they go after BPA and take Mayorov in hopes they can bring him over sometime in the next few years.
#23 - PHILADELPHIA - BRETT MCLEAN (Oshawa - OHL)
Reason: Philly takes the best forward available, it’s hard to call with the new GM but with recent trades since he began he seems to have a bit of a bias towards CHL players, so McLean would be the best guess for this pick that was acquired in the Forsberg deal.
#24 - ST. LOUIS - RYAN MCDONAUGH (Cretin-Derham - HS)
Reason: St. Louis at 24 would make the most sense taking BPA, Ryan would fit the bill.
#25 - VANCOUVER - MICHAL REPIK (Vancouver - WHL)
Reason: I know a bit of a story book set up for Repik and the Canuck organization they take a player who has spent his junior year in the same city, but at this point it is really hard to tell who goes where, and if Repik is as good as some are saying, then Vancouver would have gotten the biggest, longest look at him, and would be willing to use up their 25th overall pick to make sure he stays in Vancouver.
#26 - ST. LOUIS - KEVIN SHATTENKIRK (USA Under-18)
Reason: BPA for St. Louis, take another defenseman that can be placed in the top 4 for the Blues.
#27 - DETROIT - JEREMY SMITH (Plymouth - OHL)
Reason: The Wings are not very deep at goaltender, beyond Howard who should be a great goaltender the Wings don’t have much, so Smith who the wings could see a lot of since Plymouth is only half an hour outside Detroit. Smith could be this year’s Steve Mason, not many teams know about him because he is a back-up but has a lot of talent, without the opportunity to display it due to having a more experienced goaltender ahead of him, I expect Neuvirth to be dealt this year, to make way for Smith and a lot of people will be surprised at how good he really is, just like Mason… well everyone except for the Red Wings, who always seem to be one step ahead in scouting.
#28 - WASHINGTON - BILLY SWEATT (USA Under-18)
Reason: Sweatt is probably the BPA at this point, a solid player who would fit into the Caps organization well.
#29 - OTTAWA - MIKE HOEFFEL (USA Under-18)
Reason: Ottawa has great pro team right now, with good youth, and shouldn’t need anything in specific but Forwards would come before defenseman on this team, and Hoeffel would give them great potential and depth on the wing.
#30 - EDMONTON - OSCAR MOLLER (Chiliwack - WHL)
Reason: Edmonton rounds out the 1st round selecting a talented forward they will get to see a lot of (due to the expantion Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL) and someone who could be the BPA at #30, however there is so much talent at this point 10 different names could come in here and not look out of place at #30.
Thanks for your time in viewing this list, I’ve put some work into it and we’ll see how close I am come draft day.
#1 - CHICAGO - PATRICK KANE (London - OHL)
Reason: Chicago has drafted good defenseman the last few drafts, Kane would probably fit into their system better, Kane goes first overall in a very hard to call first pick.
#2 - PHILADELPHIA - ALEXEI CHEREPANOV (Omsk - RSL)
Reason: Philadelphia has always gone after the big power forwards HOWEVER with Clarke gone, and the need for big wingers is gone, Philly goes after who is probably the best player in the draft talent wise and take a chance (considering there is no agreement with Russia) and take talent over size.
#3 - PHOENIX - JAMES VAN RIEMSDYK (USA Under-18)
Reason: With Mueller, Wheeler and Hanzal (2/3 centres) combined with the fact that they are skill/speed over size James would be a logical addition to Phoenix, with the top 4 picks BPA isn’t really a factor as these players are close knit and the top winger prospects for Phoenix are Wheeler and Lisin, Phoenix is pretty crippled right now as far as top end winger prospects, that makes Van Riemsdyk a great choice for Phoenix.
#4 - LOS ANGELES - KYLE TURRIS (Burnaby - BCHL)
Reason: As much as I like Turris personally, I think he will drop because of the following 3 reasons, and with JJ ready to go for the kings prospect I think they pass on Alzner and Ellerby and decide to go with BPA in Turris.
#5 - WASHINGTON - KARL ALZNER (Calgary - WHL)
Reason: Washington has it’s top franchise forwards Ovechkin/Backstrom) and with Green and Schultz progressing well the future looks bright for the caps, but Alzner would be an upgrade from the 2 defensemen mentioned and would probably have a better impact on the franchise rather than going after a forward.
#6 - EDMONTON - KEATON ELLERBY (Kamloops - WHL)
Reason: Ellerby would be a great choice for the Oilers, they are already young upfront and have several great offensive prospects on their way up, picking up Smid was a boost to the defence but it’s clear the Oilers need to pick up some defensive talent, and they find it in Ellerby.
#7 - COLUMBUS - JAKUB VORACEK (Halifax - QMJHL)
Reason: With a new GM this one is really hard to pick, especially with all the close talent at the #7 pick, so I will go with the safe pick and say BPA in Voracek, a lot could argue that Espo would go, but I think Voracek would be the safer pick, and they could use a durable player like Voracek that can play all 3 positions.
#8 - BOSTON - ANGELO ESPOSITO (Quebec - QMJHL)
Reason: For the second year in a row the Bruins take a former sure fire #1 overall pick that falls to them in Espo, the Bruins may trade this pick down to a team that is desperate to land someone with the franchise player potential of Espo so the bruins could draft a defenseman which they need and gain something good enough in return for falling, but if they keep the pick Angelo is a no brainier.
#9 - St. LOUIS - MIKAEL BACKLUND (Vasteras - SWE)
Reason: Blues have shown a lot of liking towards Swedish players in recent history and I think considering Backlund’s talent he would make absolute sense for the Blues to take 9th overall, especially with EJ from last year just makes it more clear that they will definitely go after a forward, and take who they would see as the BPA considering they have 2 more picks in this first round.
#10 - FLORIDA - SAM GAGNER (London - OHL)
Reason: In a position they are all too familiar with they draft at the end of the top 10, still without a playoff spot, they take the BPA and a player who’s father has had some roots in this city in Sam Gagner, although Florida is not known for this type of action (passing on Chris Stewart last year) but Gagner would most likely be the best player for the Panthers, they could be a candidate to trade down so they could take a shot at Smith or Cann but if they stay at 10 which they likely will, Gagner would be their selection.
#11 - CAROLINA - ZACH HAMILL (Everett - WHL)
Reason: Carolina who is surprisingly at 11, considering they won the cup a year ago, the team has a very weak prospect core, all their top prospects have moved on to the NHL and they need to build again, most importantly would be a scoring prospect, and Hamill is probably the best scoring prospect remaining and with that Hamill will go 11th.
#12 - MONTREAL - LOGAN COUTURE (Ottawa - OHL)
Reason: Couture is most likely BPA at #12, and would make the most sense, Montreal has a good prospect core, and BPA makes the most sense for a good Montreal team.
#13 - TORONTO - DAVID PERRON (Lewiston - QMJHL)
Reason: Mayorov may be the BPA at this point, but I have noticed that the Leafs have NO history in taking a Russian high in the draft ever since the unfortunate Borchevsky injury, and I can’t see that changing now, Perron is what I think the leafs could want, this is the toughest pick at this point, Leaf fans have some of the most die hard fan and there isn’t a player that can be named that some wouldn’t argue against, Eller being a top Swede could be of interest to the leafs also would be Colton Gillies because of his size, but when it comes down to it Perron makes the most sense.
#14 - COLORADO - NICHOLAS PETRICKI (Omaha - USHL)
Reason: Colorado has a deep history of taking US born or College players high in the draft, that routine ended with Stewart getting drafted in the first round, a lot of people feel Billy Sweatt will be taken with this pick, but with the abundance of young talent at forward for Colorado I would say big defenseman Petricki would be ideal for Colorado.
#15 - EDMONTON - JONATHAN BLUM (Vancouver - WHL)
Reason: The pick acquired in the Ryan Smyth deal will give the Oilers their second defenseman in the draft, the pick up of Ellerby and Blum would practically cover their need of defensemen, as both are extremely talented and both play different games.
#16 - ANAHEIM - LARS ELLER (Frolunda - SWE)
Reason: Despite dominating the 2007 playoffs the ducks still manage to get a pick in the middle of the draft, with absolutely no needs in the organization the ducks go for a player who probably has the highest potential of players remaining in Lars Eller, Burke is no stranger to going after players from Sweden and that will be apparent with the selection of Eller at 16
#17 - NY RANGERS - COLTON GILLIES (Saskatoon - WHL)
Reason: A no-brainer for the Rangers, Gillies a huge centre prospect which would cover 2 needs for the rangers having a big presence on the top 2 lines, and a player who is good at the centre position, if Gillies is available at 17 there is no question he will be putting on the Rangers jersey.
#18 - CALGARY - BRANDON SUTTER (Red Deer - WHL)
Reason: Once again no surprise, it’s just like the Hunters in the OHL they will go a little off the board to get one of their own, and that’s what Darryl does with the 18th overall pick.
#19 - MINNESOTA - TOMMY CROSS (Westminster - HS)
Reason: Minnesota looks like they could use a defensive prospect, and Cross is arguably the best defenseman available at this point in the draft
#20 - PITTSBURGH - ALEX PLANTE (Calgary - WHL)
Reason: This is a no-brainer that the Penguins will be going after a big physical defenseman, as it’s really the only thing they need, they have endless talent at forward, they could use a good young power forward but with none really in sight, a big strong defenseman would be in the works and Plante is bigger than any player projected for the first round, and with that the Penguins would go for Plante.
#21 - PHOENIX - MARK KATIC (Sarnia - OHL)
Reason: Phoenix addressed their biggest need at the 3rd overall spot, and now with the pick acquired in the Nagy deal, they go after a lesser need, good potential top 4 defenseman, which is exactly where Katic falls, they have Jones and Stephenson who would be physically intimidating presences, and have shown in the past they like to go after strong skaters, and Katic is the best skating defenseman in the draft by a decent margin, Katic has two-way defenseman abilities which would fit well in the Coyotes system so the first surprise pick will go at 21 with Katic to Phoenix.
#22 - MONTREAL - MAXIM MAYOROV (Almetsyevsk - RUS)
Reason: Mayorov finally gets taken at 22, he falls due to the non transfer agreement but with the pro and prospect depth in Montreal they go after BPA and take Mayorov in hopes they can bring him over sometime in the next few years.
#23 - PHILADELPHIA - BRETT MCLEAN (Oshawa - OHL)
Reason: Philly takes the best forward available, it’s hard to call with the new GM but with recent trades since he began he seems to have a bit of a bias towards CHL players, so McLean would be the best guess for this pick that was acquired in the Forsberg deal.
#24 - ST. LOUIS - RYAN MCDONAUGH (Cretin-Derham - HS)
Reason: St. Louis at 24 would make the most sense taking BPA, Ryan would fit the bill.
#25 - VANCOUVER - MICHAL REPIK (Vancouver - WHL)
Reason: I know a bit of a story book set up for Repik and the Canuck organization they take a player who has spent his junior year in the same city, but at this point it is really hard to tell who goes where, and if Repik is as good as some are saying, then Vancouver would have gotten the biggest, longest look at him, and would be willing to use up their 25th overall pick to make sure he stays in Vancouver.
#26 - ST. LOUIS - KEVIN SHATTENKIRK (USA Under-18)
Reason: BPA for St. Louis, take another defenseman that can be placed in the top 4 for the Blues.
#27 - DETROIT - JEREMY SMITH (Plymouth - OHL)
Reason: The Wings are not very deep at goaltender, beyond Howard who should be a great goaltender the Wings don’t have much, so Smith who the wings could see a lot of since Plymouth is only half an hour outside Detroit. Smith could be this year’s Steve Mason, not many teams know about him because he is a back-up but has a lot of talent, without the opportunity to display it due to having a more experienced goaltender ahead of him, I expect Neuvirth to be dealt this year, to make way for Smith and a lot of people will be surprised at how good he really is, just like Mason… well everyone except for the Red Wings, who always seem to be one step ahead in scouting.
#28 - WASHINGTON - BILLY SWEATT (USA Under-18)
Reason: Sweatt is probably the BPA at this point, a solid player who would fit into the Caps organization well.
#29 - OTTAWA - MIKE HOEFFEL (USA Under-18)
Reason: Ottawa has great pro team right now, with good youth, and shouldn’t need anything in specific but Forwards would come before defenseman on this team, and Hoeffel would give them great potential and depth on the wing.
#30 - EDMONTON - OSCAR MOLLER (Chiliwack - WHL)
Reason: Edmonton rounds out the 1st round selecting a talented forward they will get to see a lot of (due to the expantion Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL) and someone who could be the BPA at #30, however there is so much talent at this point 10 different names could come in here and not look out of place at #30.
Thanks for your time in viewing this list, I’ve put some work into it and we’ll see how close I am come draft day.
