Prospect Info: The 2018 Draft Thread

[MessierII]

Goaltending is obviously very important but the most important thing in the game is a teams ability to transition and control the puck. Several times Ive seen the Oiler d men and wingers unable to complete simple 20 foot passes. Let alone make multiple without it being intercepted. This needs to change, watch how Vegas transitions, they put on a clinic most of the games Ive seen.

Vegas has been dominated in shots and puck possession all series. They’ve won because of absurdly good goaltending.

 

[snipes]

I have this weird feeling that Boqvist will be there at 10

 

[voxel]

Drafting Tkachuk is drafting for size.

Wahlstrom...that's not drafting for size, that's skill.

Does Wahlstrom do anything elite except shoot? I prefer drafting for elite hockey sense/IQ which is why I preferred Draisaitl over a guy like Bennett but then again I might have selected Sam Reinhart if we had the chance (boo me).

 

[CycloneSweep]

Does Wahlstrom do anything elite except shoot? I prefer drafting for elite hockey sense/IQ which is why I preferred Draisaitl over a guy like Bennett but then again I might have selected Sam Reinhart if we had the chance (boo me).

Being able to play with an elite talent like Hughes is a skill. Guy would fit perfectly beside McDavid

 

[EDMOILERS9729]

I have this weird feeling that Boqvist will be there at 10

Same here. Maybe its just wishful thinking but ive been hearing that a lot of people have soured on him after his SHL stint.

 

[snipes]

Same here. Maybe its just wishful thinking but ive been hearing that a lot of people have soured on him after his SHL stint.

I'd be ecstatic if he fell to 10

 

[MoneyGuy]

I have this weird feeling that Boqvist will be there at 10

That is weird.

 

[Joey Moss]

I can't believe how underrated Tkachuk has become. People acting like he's a coke machine, give me a break.

This guy has big time skill. His brother was underestimated in his draft year too.

If Tkachuk and Wahlstrom were available at our pick I'd want Tkachuk over Wahlstrom.

 

[Spawn]

I can't believe how underrated Tkachuk has become. People acting like he's a coke machine, give me a break.

This guy has big time skill. His brother was underestimated in his draft year too.

If Tkachuk and Wahlstrom were available at our pick I'd want Tkachuk over Wahlstrom.

I wonder how much of the perception of Tkachuk comes from the fact that he missed last years draft by a day. He's got almost a year of age on some of the other top guys.

 

[Raab]

Does Wahlstrom do anything elite except shoot? I prefer drafting for elite hockey sense/IQ which is why I preferred Draisaitl over a guy like Bennett but then again I might have selected Sam Reinhart if we had the chance (boo me).

Very good skater

 

[Raab]

I can't believe how underrated Tkachuk has become. People acting like he's a coke machine, give me a break.

This guy has big time skill. His brother was underestimated in his draft year too.

If Tkachuk and Wahlstrom were available at our pick I'd want Tkachuk over Wahlstrom.

Tkachuk wont be available. As you said guys are underrating him.

 

[Mcnotloilersfan]

I have this weird feeling that Boqvist will be there at 10

I hope so but I think the Wings will take him

 

[snipes]

I hope so but I think the Wings will take him

I think they take Hughes. But who knows? I think I read somewhere that they also liked Boqvist too.

Maybe with Hughes playing well for the Yanks at the WHC and the Wings coach being the head coach that may sway things a bit? Probably not much but could be a factor if he advocates for Hughes.

 

[McDNicks17]

I wonder how much of the perception of Tkachuk comes from the fact that he missed last years draft by a day. He's got almost a year of age on some of the other top guys.

That's the big thing for me.

He's basically only on par with players he's a year older than and a year ahead of. Combine that with a fairly lackluster 17 year old season and limited goal scoring ability(something that I think curbs "power forward" potential quite a bit) and I have a tough time seeing much more upside than a complementary top6 guy.

 

[rambo97]

I doubt Dobson will be available at #10 but man would I love this guy in Oiler silks:

Noah Dobson's maturity, skating, smarts has his peers excited - Sportsnet.ca

Give me a player that works hard and is always working on his game and weaknesses and trying to get better any day. He’s going to be a star in this league. He really has no flaws or very few. But after reading this article and learning he’s constantly trying to improve his game (and then seeing the results on the ice this year) I have very little doubt he’s going to be a success

 

[nabob]

I doubt Dobson will be available at #10 but man would I love this guy in Oiler silks:

Noah Dobson's maturity, skating, smarts has his peers excited - Sportsnet.ca

Give me a player that works hard and is always working on his game and weaknesses and trying to get better any day. He’s going to be a star in this league. He really has no flaws or very few. But after reading this article and learning he’s constantly trying to improve his game (and then seeing the results on the ice this year) I have very little doubt he’s going to be a success

In my dream last night the Oilers drafted Dobson. I never dream, or at least only remember a few a year. It's a sign, he will be drafted by the Oilers.

 

[rambo97]

In my dream last night the Oilers drafted Dobson. I never dream, or at least only remember a few a year. It's a sign, he will be drafted by the Oilers.

Man that would be awesome. There’s some part of me that thinks “maybe” but then I tell myself “nah” so that I’m not disappointed.

They were talking about Dobson I think in yesterday’s pre-game telecast. Cosentino mentioned that Dobson in the first 10 playoff games for the Titans only had 4 points because the coaches needed him to play strong defense and shutdown the opposition. Then in the last 10 games he had 9 points because they needed him to be offensive for them to win.

How awesome of a weapon is he that you can deploy him in so many ways depending on matchups and what your team needs to be successful.

Imagine him on the Oilers in a few years and having that luxury on the backend. Right shot D...6’3”. Man I hope we get this guy

 

[McDoused]

Man oh man, I just hope one of the top 9 drops to us. Every year it happens, someone drops but I don't know if it's going to happen this year. I don't see them going in this order but right now I have them ranked:

1. Rasmus Dahlin
2. Andrei Svechnikov
3. Filip Zadina
4. Oliver Wahlstrom
5. Evan Bouchard
6. Brady Tkachuk
7. Adam Boqvist
8. Quinn Hughes
9. Noah Dobson
10. Joel Farabee

- Wahlstrom might be a bit too high but everyone always puts an emphasis on goal scoring in the NHL. He's probably the best goalscorer left in the draft.
- Evan Bouchard to me isn't as dynamic as the other dmen but I just love this guy. He lead his team in scoring and to me is the best passer from the blue-line.
-Torn with Farabee being #10 right now. He can skate, create offence and score goals. Just seems like such a solid pick.

 

[Zaddy]

Honestly the Oilers should get a really good player no matter who is there at #10. Even if no one in the top9 falls you still have Kotkaniemi and Kaut.

I'm more worried about the pick being moved than about who we select. The prospect at #10 could be very valuable going forward, especially with the Seattle expansion looming.

The Oilers mantra should be about drafting and developing. That's how you succeed in the NHL these days.

 

[lakai17]

Same here. Maybe its just wishful thinking but ive been hearing that a lot of people have soured on him after his SHL stint.

It's wishful thinking to believe Boqvist drops down to the 10th overall.

 

[MoneyGuy]

Man oh man, I just hope one of the top 9 drops to us. Every year it happens, someone drops but I don't know if it's going to happen this year. I don't see them going in this order but right now I have them ranked:

1. Rasmus Dahlin
2. Andrei Svechnikov
3. Filip Zadina
4. Oliver Wahlstrom
5. Evan Bouchard
6. Brady Tkachuk
7. Adam Boqvist
8. Quinn Hughes
9. Noah Dobson
10. Joel Farabee

- Wahlstrom might be a bit too high but everyone always puts an emphasis on goal scoring in the NHL. He's probably the best goalscorer left in the draft.
- Evan Bouchard to me isn't as dynamic as the other dmen but I just love this guy. He lead his team in scoring and to me is the best passer from the blue-line.
-Torn with Farabee being #10 right now. He can skate, create offence and score goals. Just seems like such a solid pick.

You can pretty much be cereal that one of youtbtop nine falls to 10. I'd love any of those five to nine.

 

[Zaddy]

It's wishful thinking to believe Boqvist drops down to the 10th overall.

I don't think so. I just tried to make a mock draft for the top10 and it's really quite hard to nail down who is going to take who, but I think a lot of teams would consider passing on Boqvist. Not because Boqvist isn't good but because guys like Dobson and Bouchard are bigger and more physically developed while also being accustomed to playing North American hockey / small ice. For similar reasons teams could prefer a Tkachuk or Wahlstrom. And then there's Kotkaniemi who is also a big guy and is already playing against pros.

I don't think Ottawa or Arizona will take Boqvist so the real question for me is what Detroit does at #6. Would they rather take a more NHL ready guy to try and somehow keep competing with the core they have, or are they willing to wait on Boqvist? I really wonder what their scout Håkan Andersson is thinking. Would he be willing to pass on a player who plays the game like Erik Karlsson? Tough to say, and Detroit showed last year they're quite unpredictable as they took Rasmussen over guys like Vilardi, Tippett, Necas and Liljegren.

If Detroit does not take him I could see him sliding down to #10, but again it's hard to know what Vancouver and Rangers are thinking. Rangers aren't afraid to pick swedes high as we saw with Andersson last year. Boqvist would be a nice piece for them and they're firmly committed to a rebuild so he'd fit their timeline quite well and they need game-breaking defensemen, but I could just as easily see them go with Wahlstrom, Bouchard or even Kotkaniemi if those guys are still available.

Draft day will be really interesting.

 

[Mcnotloilersfan]

Honestly the Oilers should get a really good player no matter who is there at #10. Even if no one in the top9 falls you still have Kotkaniemi and Kaut.

I'm more worried about the pick being moved than about who we select. The prospect at #10 could be very valuable going forward, especially with the Seattle expansion looming.

The Oilers mantra should be about drafting and developing. That's how you succeed in the NHL these days.

Yup. I've said it over and over again. Chia and his team are great in that regard. Boston is still paying off with their drafting (Pastrnak) and finding guys (Krug).

Next year is the first year since the lockout where I'll really start to care about the farm team. He has done a great job of building depth down there, of players who could very well contribute in the bigs.

For the first time, we are starting to see later picks make an impact.

 

[Kalost]

I feel DET,VAN,CHI,NYR are teams that will be looking to draft a defenseman. One of them could like Ty Smith a lot, but i think we should be looking to try and move up

 

[MessierII]

I feel DET,VAN,CHI,NYR are teams that will be looking to draft a defenseman. One of them could like Ty Smith a lot, but i think we should be looking to try and move up

I agree but I could see the Rangers grabbing a forward if whichever guy they’re high on is available.