Prospect Info: With the #106 pick, Minnesota selects Brandon Duhaime

[Dr Jan Itor]

And how many Cups since expansion? The Islanders have been like Italy under the Borgias, the Wild have been like Switzerland.

And if you guys don't think a guy scoring in the AHL three years post-draft is a better asset than a guy who was an overager in his draft season and a third liner in college, I don't know what else to say.

The point isn't that Duhaime was a terrible pick - he might well carve out a career. But the Wild were known for drafting grinders, low upside, character-driven more than skill-driven guys. And that's what they did here. Will Koivula blow him away? My gut says probably not, but guys like Gaudreau, Benn, and many others are PROOF that you can find stars late in the draft IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR THEM.

I point this out and the response is to complain? This is a loser franchise until things change.

Duhaime was on Providence's top line this year, and top power play, at least in the game against UMD.

Isn't that what we're hoping Kaprizov is? Or is he a future grinder too?

I just think going hindsight on mid/late round picks is pretty pointless. Anything that is found there has a lot more to do with luck than it does organizational prowess.

 

[Dickie Dunn]

4th round pick gets an ELC 3 years after draft......there are a lot of reasons to shred the Wild for their drafting but this doesn’t seem like one of those times.

 

[AKL]

And how many Cups since expansion? The Islanders have been like Italy under the Borgias, the Wild have been like Switzerland.

And if you guys don't think a guy scoring in the AHL three years post-draft is a better asset than a guy who was an overager in his draft season and a third liner in college, I don't know what else to say.

The point isn't that Duhaime was a terrible pick - he might well carve out a career. But the Wild were known for drafting grinders, low upside, character-driven more than skill-driven guys. And that's what they did here. Will Koivula blow him away? My gut says probably not, but guys like Gaudreau, Benn, and many others are PROOF that you can find stars late in the draft IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR THEM.

I point this out and the response is to complain? This is a loser franchise until things change.

I just want to say I find it hilarious that you’re going to war over a 4th round pick from almost 4 drafts ago who’s now finally doing okay in the AHL but has still yet to do anything at the NHL level as if he was a no brainer pick at the time.

Drafting is really, really easy in hindsight, isn’t it?

 

[2Pair]

I just want to say I find it hilarious that you’re going to war over a 4th round pick from almost 4 drafts ago who’s now finally doing okay in the AHL but has still yet to do anything at the NHL level as if he was a no brainer pick at the time.

Drafting is really, really easy in hindsight, isn’t it?

That seems to he his bit.

I do get a kick out of an Oilers fan calling Minnesota a "loser franchise"

 

[thestonedkoala]

Drafting is really, really easy in hindsight, isn’t it?

I mean, kind of sort of. A lot of us were disappointed that Minnesota picked Gabriel over Bjorkstrand. Bjorkstrand had 23 goals (a little less points). Gabriel is no longer with the organization. Some of us were disappointed that Minnesota took Bussieres in the second round. I know there were some disappointed Minnesota took JEE over Boesner. So, while yes - some of it is easy in hindsight, some of it isn't hindsight.

 

[57special]

Koivula...c'mon, we had a chance to draft him and we didn't? We missed a chance to have a Koivu and a Koivula on the team?

 

[Wild11MN]

Koivula...c'mon, we had a chance to draft him and we didn't? We missed a chance to have a Koivu and a Koivula on the team?

That was the only thing I could think of while reading that earlier.

 

[57special]

That was the only thing I could think of while reading that earlier.

Really...doesn't anyone with a sense of humour, or destiny, work over there? I mean, the possibilities for the pranks alone would be near endless. Imagine sending Mikko down to the ECHL, or sending him to summer development camp?

Dumba would be out of his mind.

 

[Saga of the Elk]

4th round pick gets an ELC 3 years after draft......there are a lot of reasons to shred the Wild for their drafting but this doesn’t seem like one of those times.

That wasn't at all what the issue was. Nor was I saying that Otto Koivula was a guy I targeted. I was responding to a poster saying that 4th round picks don't matter and that is deeply stupid.

And the Edmonton Oilers have won a playoff series more recently than the Minnesota Wild have.

 

[AKL]

That wasn't at all what the issue was. Nor was I saying that Otto Koivula was a guy I targeted. I was responding to a poster saying that 4th round picks don't matter and that is deeply stupid.

And the Edmonton Oilers have won a playoff series more recently than the Minnesota Wild have.

There's a difference between saying 4th round picks don't matter and not being upset about a 4th round pick not making the NHL. You're the one conflating the two and getting upset with others for your misunderstanding.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

I would love it if everybody we picked became an NHL player. I just expect it less and less as you get later in the draft, as the statistics bear out.

 

[Saga of the Elk]

There's a difference between saying 4th round picks don't matter and not being upset about a 4th round pick not making the NHL. You're the one conflating the two and getting upset with others for your misunderstanding.

Once again, you distort what I was saying. From the first time I saw Duhaime, I posted that he plays a pro game. It's not fancy, but once again: you can see what the Wild liked about him. That said, if people are going to cry and complain about the Wild taking safe players like Filip Johansson - why not accept that safe, low upside hockey is the Wild style. It's not a winning style, but it's a style. If I were running the draft, I guess I'd be saying, why not a few more Kaprizov/Sokolov types? But from the pushback I get around here, it's apparent that people don't mind not watching playoff/winning hockey.

 

[AKL]

Once again, you distort what I was saying. From the first time I saw Duhaime, I posted that he plays a pro game. It's not fancy, but once again: you can see what the Wild liked about him. That said, if people are going to cry and complain about the Wild taking safe players like Filip Johansson - why not accept that safe, low upside hockey is the Wild style. It's not a winning style, but it's a style. If I were running the draft, I guess I'd be saying, why not a few more Kaprizov/Sokolov types? But from the pushback I get around here, it's apparent that people don't mind not watching playoff/winning hockey.

I didn’t distort anything. That’s all you. And none of the rest of your rant has anything to do with any of my recent posts in this thread.

 

[Bazeek]

Once again, you distort what I was saying. From the first time I saw Duhaime, I posted that he plays a pro game. It's not fancy, but once again: you can see what the Wild liked about him. That said, if people are going to cry and complain about the Wild taking safe players like Filip Johansson - why not accept that safe, low upside hockey is the Wild style. It's not a winning style, but it's a style. If I were running the draft, I guess I'd be saying, why not a few more Kaprizov/Sokolov types? But from the pushback I get around here, it's apparent that people don't mind not watching playoff/winning hockey.

Because it's a stretch to extrapolate a "style" based on taking Brandon Duhaime over Otto Koivula in the 4th round? I don't even totally disagree with the conclusion you've jumped to, but it doesn't follow from your argument.

As for how much we should care about a specific 4th round pick? I agree with AKL: who cares? How much should we care that the Wild haven't pulled many NHL players (or potential NHL players) out of the mid rounds? In aggregate I agree that it's an issue. I suspect that shooting for "low ceiling, high floor" guys in the mid rounds is at least partially a result of dealing away several 1sts and many 2nds. If Fenton's more miserly with those higher picks I think the issue will resolve itself, and the 2018 draft seems like a step in the right direction.

 

[2Pair]

Once again, you distort what I was saying. From the first time I saw Duhaime, I posted that he plays a pro game. It's not fancy, but once again: you can see what the Wild liked about him. That said, if people are going to cry and complain about the Wild taking safe players like Filip Johansson - why not accept that safe, low upside hockey is the Wild style. It's not a winning style, but it's a style. If I were running the draft, I guess I'd be saying, why not a few more Kaprizov/Sokolov types? But from the pushback I get around here, it's apparent that people don't mind not watching playoff/winning hockey.

If you were running the draft, we would just have to hope that they allowed you to make all of your picks 4-5 years after the actual draft happens.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

It’s a very defensible position to say that you want us to draft better players.

It gets sidetracked when you throw out names that nobody knew about on draft day, 4 years down the line.

 

[Circulartheory]

Not to mention, Duhaime wasn't a pure goon like the Kurtis Gabriel pick; scoring 32 points in 39 games in the USHL is pretty good for a 4th round pick. Combine that with his gritty side and a projected 6'1" 210lbs body, and I was excited we made that pick in the 4th in 2016.

 

[Saga of the Elk]

Because it's a stretch to extrapolate a "style" based on taking Brandon Duhaime over Otto Koivula in the 4th round? I don't even totally disagree with the conclusion you've jumped to, but it doesn't follow from your argument.

As for how much we should care about a specific 4th round pick? I agree with AKL: who cares? How much should we care that the Wild haven't pulled many NHL players (or potential NHL players) out of the mid rounds? In aggregate I agree that it's an issue. I suspect that shooting for "low ceiling, high floor" guys in the mid rounds is at least partially a result of dealing away several 1sts and many 2nds. If Fenton's more miserly with those higher picks I think the issue will resolve itself, and the 2018 draft seems like a step in the right direction.

Again, I mentioned Koivula ONLY because a poster claimed "who cares" about a fourth round pick. (And Duhaime was by no means a bad pick, unlike say Misley.) (The fact that the Wild should draft more out of Finland is obvious too.) Koivula seems to be a decent pro - who knows if he's an NHLer. 4th round picks like Benn and Gaudreau are elite players - needless to say, the Wild's draft philosophy was not enamored with either one. So, my point was that 4th round picks can matter a great deal. People disagree so I'll leave it at that.

 

[AKL]

Again, I mentioned Koivula ONLY because a poster claimed "who cares" about a fourth round pick. (And Duhaime was by no means a bad pick, unlike say Misley.) (The fact that the Wild should draft more out of Finland is obvious too.) Koivula seems to be a decent pro - who knows if he's an NHLer. 4th round picks like Benn and Gaudreau are elite players - needless to say, the Wild's draft philosophy was not enamored with either one. So, my point was that 4th round picks can matter a great deal. People disagree so I'll leave it at that.

No one disagrees that 4th round picks can matter. Everyone is perfectly aware that you can still find a good or even elite player in the 4th round. The crux of what people are saying is that 1) as you go deeper into the draft, the chances of that happening get lower, 2) the expected value of a 4th round pick is significantly closer to a Brandon Duhaime than it is to a Jamie Benn ot Johnny Gaudreau, and 3) if our fourth rounder doesn’t happen to make the NHL, everything will still be okay.

You seem to think that means we’re starting a war on 4th rounders. Not a single person here disagrees with you about Fletchers drafting philosophy, we all wish we could get Benn or Gaudreau in the 4th every year. The difference is most of us understand that’s just not how it works.