The Never-Too-Early 2019 NHL Entry Draft - Were not picking at 31

[Leaf Rocket]

so who is this years zadina powerful and scoring.

 

[Sundinisagod]

What do you guys think of Vukojevic and Korczak? Based solely and scouting reports they sound interesting.

I went to the Rangers game yesterday and saw Vukojevic. I liked what I saw. Big, smart, mobile. Keeps it simple. Good potential imho.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

This is my top 40 right now (not necessarily in the listed order):

Top 5
C Hughes
C/RW Cozens
LD Broberg
RW Kaako
RW Podkolzin

Top 10
C Turcotte
C Newhook
C Dach
C Suzuki
RW Kaliyev

Top 25
LD Vlasic
LD Bowen
LW Boldy
C Zegras
RD M. Robertson
LD York
LW/C Krebs
LW/RW Cajkovic
C/RW Lavoie
RW Williams
C Guskov
LD Knyazev
LD Bjornfot
RD Soderstrom
RD Korczak

Top 40
LW Foote
RW Caufield
LW Poulin
LW Hoglander
G Knight
LD Vukojevic
C/RW McMichael
LD Harley
C/RW Donovan
RD Seider
C/RW Zaitsev
LD Mironov
RW Gutik
C/LW Spiridonov
C/LW Nussbaumer

In case people are worried about me forgetting about him, I have Honka outside of the top 40 for a reason. He's small, not an exceptional skater, and has questionable defensive decision making and skills in general. Very high upside, but some of the biggest bust potential in the draft as well. I had trouble filling this out, with a lot of guys I thought were good 2nd/3rd round guys but not top 40. Also, Mutala, Kokkonen, Aaltonen, and Grewe are guys I purposely left off as well.

Anybody I should consider adding?

2nd
C Tomasino
RD Honka
C Beecher
G Ellis
RW Mutala
LW Pelletier
C Nikkanen
C Rees
RD Hugo Has
LD Kolyachonok
RW Holmstrom
LD Okhotyuk
C Afanasyev
C Farinacci
RW Likhachyov
LW Puistola
LD Brinkman
LD Kokkonen
C Prikryl
RW Dorofeyev
RW Teply

3rd
LW N. Robertson
RW Legare
RW Grewe
C Saarela
RD Lundmark
G Alnefelt
G Gauthier
LD Warren
C/LW Mastrosimone
LD Ahac
LD Heinola
RD Turan
LW Hamaliuk
LD Malysjev
LD Johnson
C/LW Murray
LD Allensen
RD McCarthy
LD Rasanen
C Nikolayev
C Nodler
LD Koster
LD Thrun
LW Toporowski
LD Brewer
RD Helleson
RW Silianoff
C Swankler
C Morgan
G Jones
LD Fensore

That's the rest for the top 3 rounds.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

so who is this years zadina powerful and scoring.

Seems like Kaako and Podkolzin are the Svechnikov/Zadina this year.

Holmstrom, who I have a 2nd round grade on, has some lofty claims from Swedes this year. However he started the year injured and never had the Zadina production in Sweden. Plus he's not nearly as big.

 

[realgoodleafs]

Bowen Byram
Peyton Krebs
Kirby Dach
Lassi Thomson

WHL player names

Anyways my early Leafs pick is Cole Caufield.

 

[TheMadHatTrick]

Is Daniil Antropov an actual decent prospect or is it just the familiar name factor?

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Is Daniil Antropov an actual decent prospect or is it just the familiar name factor?

Decent but a lot of holes. Probably not a Leafs player, and could easily go undrafted. His production isn't bad but he had like holes in a lot of important things. Although he does have some high end offensive skills too, so some team may be willing to give him a shot. I thought he might be worth a late round pick if he works hard on progressing his short comings.

 

[LeafsOHLRangers98]

I went to the Rangers game yesterday and saw Vukojevic. I liked what I saw. Big, smart, mobile. Keeps it simple. Good potential imho.

Im a Ranger fan, but I really like the poise in Vukojevics game. Was arguably our best defensemen last spring as a 17 year old in the playoffs after only playing a few regular season games. I expect him to move into the mid first round at some point but if he falls to us i would take him.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Bowen Byram
Peyton Krebs
Kirby Dach
Lassi Thomson

WHL player names

Anyways my early Leafs pick is Cole Caufield.

He's probably the next DeBrincat/Yamamoto, but the question is that is a small scoring winger really worth it? Obviously getting the next DeBrincat would be nice but the Leafs do not exactly need one right now or going forward... especially not with a first round pick. You can find good scoring wingers anywhere, especially undersized ones. Maybe they are not as skilled as Caufield but that usually is not the problem with those guys making it.

I have him in our range but I am not sure he would be my first choice in that tier.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Im a Ranger fan, but I really like the poise in Vukojevics game. Was arguably our best defensemen last spring as a 17 year old in the playoffs after only playing a few regular season games. I expect him to move into the mid first round at some point but if he falls to us i would take him.

The top 25 is tough to crack. He may slip in, but it would take a lot of guys underperforming for him to get higher than that. Plus he needs to be better than what I've seen. He's just as likely to hit the 1st round as falling out of the top 40 in my books right now, and it's probably not going to change from that. He's the prototypical early 2nd round or last few picks of the first round guy.

 

[93LEAFS]

2nd
C Tomasino
RD Honka
C Beecher
G Ellis
RW Mutala
LW Pelletier
C Nikkanen
C Rees
RD Hugo Has
LD Kolyachonok
RW Holmstrom
LD Okhotyuk
C Afanasyev
C Farinacci
RW Likhachyov
LW Puistola
LD Brinkman
LD Kokkonen
C Prikryl
RW Dorofeyev
RW Teply

3rd
LW N. Robertson
RW Legare
RW Grewe
C Saarela
RD Lundmark
G Alnefelt
G Gauthier
LD Warren
C/LW Mastrosimone
LD Ahac
LD Heinola
RD Turan
LW Hamaliuk
LD Malysjev
LD Johnson
C/LW Murray
LD Allensen
RD McCarthy
LD Rasanen
C Nikolayev
C Nodler
LD Koster
LD Thrun
LW Toporowski
LD Brewer
RD Helleson
RW Silianoff
C Swankler
C Morgan
G Jones
LD Fensore

That's the rest for the top 3 rounds.

Only things I take notable issue with is Broberg, Kaliyev, Turcotte, and Boldy. I think Broberg is more a 10-15 guy. I really question his hockey sense when initiating the rush, it works against weaker teams like Slovakia because his speed and strength is unreal for that level, but it got exposed heavily vs Canada in the Gold Medal game. He had two terrible turnovers on zone exits as the last man back which led to breakaways and in one case a huge goal for Canada. I think he falls somewhere between 8-15. As for Kaliyev, I'm not sold on him having the skating ability or drive to be highly effective.

I love Boldy's game and think there is a very high chance he becomes the ideal complimentary winger to a star center. That makes him a 5-12 guy for me. He's skilled, works hard and has high-IQ. Think Matthew Tkachuk with significantly less nastiness. Turcotte is another player I'm a big fan of, I think he belongs in the top 5 over Broberg.

I could nit-pick some stuff, but nothing I feel strongly enough about.

 

[facelessjoe1990]

I' m hoping if the leafs are in the 25-31 range that they go for Kaedan Korzcak.
Will he be available then? Can anyone tell me about his negatives?

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Only things I take notable issue with is Broberg, Kaliyev, Turcotte, and Boldy. I think Broberg is more a 10-15 guy. I really question his hockey sense when initiating the rush, it works against weaker teams like Slovakia because his speed and strength is unreal for that level, but it got exposed heavily vs Canada in the Gold Medal game. He had two terrible turnovers on zone exits as the last man back which led to breakaways and in one case a huge goal for Canada. I think he falls somewhere between 8-15. As for Kaliyev, I'm not sold on him having the skating ability or drive to be highly effective.

I love Boldy's game and think there is a very high chance he becomes the ideal complimentary winger to a star center. That makes him a 5-12 guy for me. He's skilled, works hard and has high-IQ. Think Matthew Tkachuk with significantly less nastiness. Turcotte is another player I'm a big fan of, I think he belongs in the top 5 over Broberg.

I could nit-pick some stuff, but nothing I feel strongly enough about.

The draft to me almost has a top 8. The guys in the 6-8 tier are closer to the top 5 than Suzuki and Kaliyev in the top 10. I included Broberg that high because he's the best defenseman right now by far (it's a weak top end for defense right now) and I think teams (the Leafs included) would be willing to reach for him.

Also, Boldy is near the top 10 himself. He's the type of guy I have at 11, 12 or 13 probably. I do not bother giving exact rankings, but I do have some inherent disparity within each tier. Like Knyazev, Bjornfot and Soderstrom are in the same tier as Bowen, Robertson and York, but I would easily take the latter before any of the former right now. However I do not have enough disparity to bother splitting it into a top 15 or top 20 instead of a top 25.

 

[Critical13]

2nd
C Tomasino
RD Honka
C Beecher
G Ellis
RW Mutala
LW Pelletier
C Nikkanen
C Rees
RD Hugo Has
LD Kolyachonok
RW Holmstrom
LD Okhotyuk
C Afanasyev
C Farinacci
RW Likhachyov
LW Puistola
LD Brinkman
LD Kokkonen
C Prikryl
RW Dorofeyev
RW Teply

3rd
LW N. Robertson
RW Legare
RW Grewe
C Saarela
RD Lundmark
G Alnefelt
G Gauthier
LD Warren
C/LW Mastrosimone
LD Ahac
LD Heinola
RD Turan
LW Hamaliuk
LD Malysjev
LD Johnson
C/LW Murray
LD Allensen
RD McCarthy
LD Rasanen
C Nikolayev
C Nodler
LD Koster
LD Thrun
LW Toporowski
LD Brewer
RD Helleson
RW Silianoff
C Swankler
C Morgan
G Jones
LD Fensore

That's the rest for the top 3 rounds.

You are missing Billy Constantinou. I would take him over Tomasino, who you have in the high 2nd.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

You are missing Billy Constantinou. I would take him over Tomasino, who you have in the high 2nd.

In all honesty, I have going undrafted right now. I think. Maybe I have a late round grade on him I have to check. It may be premature, but I do not even have him as someone who is on my shortlist for a late round pick. He could easily skyrocket, but the few games I saw out of him, I did not see him as someone who the Leafs would consider drafting at all. These games were all last year though and people develop obviously. He seems to have the heart, and of course he has some good offensive potential, but I question his defensive consistency. That is key for really any of the defensemen I have on my list, especially in the top 3 rounds. Obviously if he shows he can be consistent, and can produce, he'll probably end up in the top 3 rounds somewhere. Maybe even second round. Same with if there are guys on here who do not show defensive consistency like they did in their previous years.

I also have Tomasino in the mid-low second round.

 

[Critical13]

In all honesty, I have going undrafted right now. I think. Maybe I have a late round grade on him I have to check. It may be premature, but I do not even have him as someone who is on my shortlist for a late round pick. He could easily skyrocket, but the few games I saw out of him, I did not see him as someone who the Leafs would consider drafting at all. These games were all last year though and people develop obviously. He seems to have the heart, and of course he has some good offensive potential, but I question his defensive consistency. That is key for really any of the defensemen I have on my list, especially in the top 3 rounds. Obviously if he shows he can be consistent, and can produce, he'll probably end up in the top 3 rounds somewhere. Maybe even second round. Same with if there are guys on here who do not show defensive consistency like they did in their previous years.

I also have Tomasino in the mid-low second round.

That’s wild, I think he could sneak into the high second round.

If he goes undrafted I would be flabbergasted.

 

[93LEAFS]

The draft to me almost has a top 8. The guys in the 6-8 tier are closer to the top 5 than Suzuki and Kaliyev in the top 10. I included Broberg that high because he's the best defenseman right now by far (it's a weak top end for defense right now) and I think teams (the Leafs included) would be willing to reach for him.

Also, Boldy is near the top 10 himself. He's the type of guy I have at 11, 12 or 13 probably. I do not bother giving exact rankings, but I do have some inherent disparity within each tier. Like Knyazev, Bjornfot and Soderstrom are in the same tier as Bowen, Robertson and York, but I would easily take the latter before any of the former right now. However I do not have enough disparity to bother splitting it into a top 15 or top 20 instead of a top 25.

I think by the end of the year the top of the draft will probably a top 10 of forwards. So, while I can see the appeal of Broberg, I don’t like ranking due to need.

I wouldn’t be shocked to see Broberg passed. I need to see more but his IQ issues scare me. I feel there might be some Wilde or Chychrun to his game.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

That’s wild, I think he could sneak into the high second round.

If he goes undrafted I would be flabbergasted.

I can see a team taking him in the second or third round (I doubt high 2nd though. Too many better players in this draft), but I just do not see the Leafs being one of them.

 

[TheMadHatTrick]

Ok, so assuming we pick in the bottom quintile of the draft, the guys currently ranked in that area I find interesting so far:

Caulfield
Soderstrom
Korczak
Bjornfot
Guskov
Seider
Kokkonen
Grewe
Vukojevic
Poulin

 

[93LEAFS]

Pronman put out a list for those who subscribe to The Athletic.

Pronman: Ranking the top prospects for the 2019 NHL Draft

 

[WTFMAN99]

Ok, so assuming we pick in the bottom quintile of the draft, the guys currently ranked in that area I find interesting so far:

Caulfield
Soderstrom
Korczak
Bjornfot
Guskov
Seider
Kokkonen
Grewe
Vukojevic
Poulin

My horse.

 

[Apotheosis]

Wouldn't mind Lavioe (probably spelled that wrong) dropping to us. Has that big body and elite skating and skill and plays centre. Probably would play wing with the Leafs, but would be insane on a Marner-Tavares line.

 

[93LEAFS]

Wouldn't mind Lavioe (probably spelled that wrong) dropping to us. Has that big body and elite skating and skill and plays centre. Probably would play wing with the Leafs, but would be insane on a Marner-Tavares line.

He's been a winger most of his time in Halifax.

 

[facelessjoe1990]

can anyone give a rundown on Moritz Seider?

 

[TheMadHatTrick]

I know some people are patently opposed to taking a goalie before the fourth round but depending on how late our pick is and who's on the board I would at least consider taking Knight, or trading back to take him.

Those who have seen him a lot say he's at least as good a prospect as John Gibson was in his year, and much better than Demko or Oettinger. I don't think he's quite at the Vasilevsky or Samsonov level, but he's in that next tier, and he's one of the younger players in the draft.