Speculation: With the third pick in the 2024 NHL draft the Anaheim Ducks select...(Plus other Draft talk)

[tomd]

Buium with the first pick and then use our other first round pick for the best big bodied RHD available, or trade it for an NHL player that can fill the role.

What that kid is doing in the NCAA is really impressive, and he's a local kid from Laguna Niguel!

I normally follow the BPA philosophy but if the Ducks draft Buium then they really are adding to a position (LHD) that is already young and talented. Seems like you'd have three primarily offensive D on the left side who will be around for the next decade in Mintyukov, Zellweger, and Buium. None of them have proven they can play their off side. How do you manage their ice time? Would PV be ok with the lack of size and physicality on the left side? I just don't know if that is the best asset management especially when Buium is not the clearcut 3rd best player in the draft. OTOH, Silayev is also a LHD but can play the right side and has a physical and skill set that the Ducks are sorely missing. Between the two LHD, I'd take Silayev before Buium.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

I normally follow the BPA philosophy but if the Ducks draft Buium then they really are adding to a position (LHD) that is already young and talented. Seems like you'd have three primarily offensive D on the left side who will be around for the next decade in Mintyukov, Zellweger, and Buium. None of them have proven they can play their off side. How do you manage their ice time? Would PV be ok with the lack of size and physicality on the left side? I just don't know if that is the best asset management especially when Buium is not the clearcut 3rd best player in the draft. OTOH, Silayev is also a LHD but can play the right side and has a physical and skill set that the Ducks are sorely missing. Between the two LHD, I'd take Silayev before Buium.

Zellweger played RD in juniors. Zeev Buium played RD in college, just like his brother Shai - both are LD's.

The problem doesn't lie in the players. The problem lies with our GM who prefers his players play on their shooting side, which he cites often.

 

[Deuce22]

Zellweger played RD in juniors. Zeev Buium played RD in college, just like his brother Shai - both are LD's.

The problem doesn't lie in the players. The problem lies with our GM who prefers his players play on their shooting side, which he cites often.

Perhaps just me, but I don’t see the “problem” with wanting guys on their natural side.

 

[tomd]

Zellweger played RD in juniors. Zeev Buium played RD in college, just like his brother Shai - both are LD's.

The problem doesn't lie in the players. The problem lies with our GM who prefers his players play on their shooting side, which he cites often.

I must admit that I’m not a big fan of defensemen playing their off side unless they’ve been doing it since they were tykes. I guess I’m with PV on this one. But beyond that I’m not sold on Buium being worthy of being taken at 3OA. My 2 cents anyway.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Perhaps just me, but I don’t the “problem” with wanting guys on their natural side.

The problem is that we are pigeon-holed into taking specific players. But PV often goes back on his words b/c remember what he said about Cutter is that Cutter can play all three forward spots: LW, C, or RW.

If we follow through on same-sidedness, then we're gonna have to get rid of some prospects at the NHL level.

NHL level
LD: Fowler, Minty, Zell, LaCombe*, and Vaak**
RD: Gudas, Lindstrom**, and Luneau

Key​

* = RFA​

** = RFA with Arbitration​

We're going to grab a top-4RD in the summer, according to Verbeek.

I must admit that I’m not a big fan of defensemen playing their off side unless they’ve been doing it since they were tykes. I guess I’m with PV on this one. But beyond that I’m not sold on Buium being worthy of being taken at 3OA. My 2 cents anyway.

LaCombe has played RD for 4 years in college.
Zellweger has playerd RD for 4 years in the WHL.
Hinds has probably played RD for 4 years in the Q.
...
Shai and Zeev Buium played RD for Denver this season.

Finding RD's is a lot more difficult to come by, which is why I've listed several Left shot who have been playing RD.

The call out on LaCombe struggling b/c he was playing on his off-side disguises the fact he was playing top-pairing minutes as a rookie. The latter is probably the reason for the struggle, but people latch on to the former and not realizing LaCombe played RD for all four years in college. Obviously, his play settled down as the season went as he was deployed on both sides for the rest of the season.

LaCombe	2023-24
Game Set	Games	G	A	Pts		+/-	Hit	Blocks	Playing
1 to 69	71	2	15	17		-24	50	129	.
1 to 6	6	0	1	1		1	3	10	Pair 2
7 to 20	14	0	2	2		-17	15	18	Pair 1
21 to 40	20	0	4	4		-7	14	41	Pair 1 to 3
41 to 60	20	1	5	6		-2	13	43	Pair 1 to 3
61 to 71	11	1	3	4		1	5	17	Pair 1 to 2

We see marked improvement throughout the season, as Cronin identified LaCombe being on of the players who has shown the most progress.

Minty	2023-24
Game Set	Games	G	A	Pts		+/-	Hit	Blocks	Pair
1 to 63	63​	4​	24​	28​		-20​	85​	65​	.
1 to 20	20​	1​	10​	11​		-1​	30​	24​	Lybush 3rd pair
21 to 40	20​	1​	7​	8​		-10​	26​	19​	Lyubush, 2nd P, injury
41 to 47	7​	1​	3​	4​		-2​	10​	2​	Lyubush
48 to 55	8​	0​	2​	2​		-5​	6​	13​	Gudas, top pair
56 to 62	7​	1​	2​	3​		0​	11​	7​	LaCombe
63	1​	0​	0​	0​		-2​	2​	0​	Lindstrom

As you can see, Minty's game dropped big time once he was pushed up to the top-4 pairing. Minty didn't change sides.

Do you see those 7 games with LaCombe where Minty put up a +0 rating? That's LaCombe playing RD.

 

[DavidBL]

Part of me thinks they go Helenius. Not really based on anything. I feel like they want more RS forwards.

 

[Deuce22]

The problem is that we are pigeon-holed into taking specific players. But PV often goes back on his words b/c remember what he said about Cutter is that Cutter can play all three forward spots: LW, C, or RW.

If we follow through on same-sidedness, then we're gonna have to get rid of some prospects at the NHL level.

NHL level
LD: Fowler, Minty, Zell, LaCombe*, and Vaak**
RD: Gudas, Lindstrom**, and Luneau

Key​

* = RFA​

** = RFA with Arbitration​

We're going to grab a top-4RD in the summer, according to Verbeek.



LaCombe has played RD for 4 years in college.
Zellweger has playerd RD for 4 years in the WHL.
Hinds has probably played RD for 4 years in the Q.
...
Shai and Zeev Buium played RD for Denver this season.

Finding RD's is a lot more difficult to come by, which is why I've listed several Left shot who have been playing RD.

The call out on LaCombe struggling b/c he was playing on his off-side disguises the fact he was playing top-pairing minutes as a rookie. The latter is probably the reason for the struggle, but people latch on to the former and not realizing LaCombe played RD for all four years in college. Obviously, his play settled down as the season went as he was deployed on both sides for the rest of the season.

LaCombe	2023-24
Game Set	Games	G	A	Pts		+/-	Hit	Blocks	Playing
1 to 69	71	2	15	17		-24	50	129	.
1 to 6	6	0	1	1		1	3	10	Pair 2
7 to 20	14	0	2	2		-17	15	18	Pair 1
21 to 40	20	0	4	4		-7	14	41	Pair 1 to 3
41 to 60	20	1	5	6		-2	13	43	Pair 1 to 3
61 to 71	11	1	3	4		1	5	17	Pair 1 to 2

We see marked improvement throughout the season, as Cronin identified LaCombe being on of the players who has shown the most progress.

Minty	2023-24
Game Set	Games	G	A	Pts		+/-	Hit	Blocks	Pair
1 to 63	63​	4​	24​	28​		-20​	85​	65​	.
1 to 20	20​	1​	10​	11​		-1​	30​	24​	Lybush 3rd pair
21 to 40	20​	1​	7​	8​		-10​	26​	19​	Lyubush, 2nd P, injury
41 to 47	7​	1​	3​	4​		-2​	10​	2​	Lyubush
48 to 55	8​	0​	2​	2​		-5​	6​	13​	Gudas, top pair
56 to 62	7​	1​	2​	3​		0​	11​	7​	LaCombe
63	1​	0​	0​	0​		-2​	2​	0​	Lindstrom

As you can see, Minty's game dropped big time once he was pushed up to the top-4 pairing. Minty didn't change sides.

Do you see those 7 games with LaCombe where Minty put up a +0 rating? That's LaCombe playing RD.

Don’t agree that Verbeek’s preference pigeon holes our draft plans. If Ducks think a LHD is the BPA, clear one or two of the LHD off the roster thru trade. Or just play someone on their off side. Since I don’t take every Verbeek comment as gospel, I don’t see the big deal here.

 

[tomd]

Right or wrong I just don't see another 6' defenseman being added to this group. Now if Buium measures 6'2" at the combine then it's a totally different ballgame.

 

[lwvs84]

Handedness/need should only be a tie breaker between similarly rated prospects. If you have a clear BPA, draft them and make a move for what you need later. Plus, you don't know what's going to be available later in the draft or which prospects will boom/bust. Just load up on talent.

 

[Rasp]

Handedness/need should only be a tie breaker between similarly rated prospects. If you have a clear BPA, draft them and make a move for what you need later. Plus, you don't know what's going to be available later in the draft or which prospects will boom/bust. Just load up on talent.

After Celebrini who is the clear best at pick 2 and 3? The scouts seem to have the next group of players all over the place

 

[JAHV]

After Celebrini who is the clear best at pick 2 and 3? The scouts seem to have the next group of players all over the place

The scouts as a collective do, but I'm guessing the Ducks have a guy they like. And if that guy is Buium, they should take him, even if he's redundant with what they have in the organization already.

I don't know why, but I just don't have a great feeling about Levshunov. I only saw him in live game action once, and he did not impress me, but that's a very small sample. I'm just wary that his main weakness is going to severely limit his upside. Someone made the comparison to Luca Sbisa awhile ago and I can't get it out of my head.

I'm not going to be mad if the Ducks take him since they know a million times more than I do about it. I'm just skeptical.

 

[forever1922]

Part of me thinks they go Helenius. Not really based on anything. I feel like they want more RS forwards.

That's wild. I think Helenius' only draw vs the rest of the field is that he looks like a center more than any of the other 2-15 rated players. He is less dynamic than the rest but he has great habits and has shown good progression through out his career so far.

If this team was desperate for steady middle 6 centers I could see it, but for where we're at, I can't imagine they see him as the BPA, even if they value IQ greatly.

I'll add an out, if Helenius pushes vets out of finniah roster at IIHF WC24, he has a chance to impress like Leo the year before. But currently it's looking like he's on the outside looking in.

 

[DavidBL]

That's wild. I think Helenius' only draw vs the rest of the field is that he looks like a center more than any of the other 2-15 rated players. He is less dynamic than the rest but he has great habits and has shown good progression through out his career so far.

If this team was desperate for steady middle 6 centers I could see it, but for where we're at, I can't imagine they see him as the BPA, even if they value IQ greatly.

I'll add an out, if Helenius pushes vets out of finniah roster at IIHF WC24, he has a chance to impress like Leo the year before. But currently it's looking like he's on the outside looking in.

I just have a feeling the player will come out if left field and he had some interesting qualities. Probably won't be. Just a feeling.

 

[lwvs84]

After Celebrini who is the clear best at pick 2 and 3? The scouts seem to have the next group of players all over the place

Ducks scouts might have a clear #2. If they don't or have multiple guys in that same tier, then take need. If they view 2-10 as equal, then take a RHD.

 

[DuckDuckGetz]

I normally follow the BPA philosophy but if the Ducks draft Buium then they really are adding to a position (LHD) that is already young and talented. Seems like you'd have three primarily offensive D on the left side who will be around for the next decade in Mintyukov, Zellweger, and Buium. None of them have proven they can play their off side. How do you manage their ice time? Would PV be ok with the lack of size and physicality on the left side? I just don't know if that is the best asset management especially when Buium is not the clearcut 3rd best player in the draft. OTOH, Silayev is also a LHD but can play the right side and has a physical and skill set that the Ducks are sorely missing. Between the two LHD, I'd take Silayev before Buium.

It's a fair concern. My thinking is that penciling Zellweger and Mintyukov into our blue line for the next decade is a bit premature. I also think that Zell will probably be more 2nd/3rd line than 1st/2nd line, so even if they all stick around having a LHD of Buium/Mintyukov/Zellweger would be fine.

 

[FiveTacos]

I don't know why, but I just don't have a great feeling about Levshunov. I only saw him in live game action once, and he did not impress me, but that's a very small sample.

Well it's also about progression right? A guy on a steep upward trajectory over the past 2+ years who's a bit raw, vs. a more polished player who's been on a steady but shallow upward trajectory ... you could watch the first guy for a game and be unimpressed, but if you saw him over the last few years and then watched that same game this year you might be like, "oh my god his game has grown by leaps and bounds" which would change your perception of that performance.

It's gonna be a roll of the dice no matter which way we go, none of these guys are on the Carlsson/Fantilli tier as prospects so there's gonna be flaws/question marks. No sure things (or close to sure things) even at #2 this year. As long as we get a high upside guy who fits what we're trying to do, I'm good with it. I'll only be disappointed if we go with a "safe" low upside pick.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Right or wrong I just don't see another 6' defenseman being added to this group. Now if Buium measures 6'2" at the combine then it's a totally different ballgame.

Shai Buium is listed as 6'3 by EP. Zeev is listed at 6'0 by EP. Look at the championship post-game interview to identify that Zeev is not 6'2. Shai is standing on the left side of the interviewer.

 

[Dr Johnny Fever]

Shai Buium is listed as 6'3 by EP. Zeev is listed at 6'0 by EP. Look at the championship post-game interview to identify that Zeev is not 6'2. Shai is standing on the left side of the interviewer.

Now that's a f***in' great interview.

 

[Bender66]

So how does one even pronounce this?

• Zeev Buium

Is it Zeeeve BweeUm?

 

[The Duck Knight]

So how does one even pronounce this?

• Zeev Buium

Is it Zeeeve BweeUm?

Zeeve Boo-Yum is how I've heard it.

 

[Rooch]

Cayden Lindstrom's video is really standing out to me. Big, fast, skilled-up forward who has some work to do on his skating, but holy smokes. He can play.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Handedness/need should only be a tie breaker between similarly rated prospects. If you have a clear BPA, draft them and make a move for what you need later. Plus, you don't know what's going to be available later in the draft or which prospects will boom/bust. Just load up on talent.

I think you missed the idea about handedness.

There are LD's who play exclusively RD for years such as LaCombe, Zell, and Hinds. This year, we have LD Buium playing RD in his rookie season at Denver in a top pairing role at the end of the season. His brother, Shai, is also a LD playing RD this past season for Denver in a 2nd pairing role.

We witnessed this year that some LD's can't play RD such as Vaak. Last year, it was White, Benoit, and Beaulieu who were LD's that proved they can't play RD.

I think the narrative that playing on the original side is best seems overblown when I compared the seasons between LaCombe (who played both sides) and Minty (played LD only). The level of competition and being rookies affected both players, but LaCombe's play improved as the season went and Minty's game dipped as he was introduced into the top-4 minutes.

A GM is preferring to keep players on their natural shooting side while not possessing talent at RD despite that LD having several years playing RD feels like a misuse of assets. It's kinda like Cronin coaching where he is strict on everything and is incapable of being creative. Z didn't start scoring until the last 20 games of the season, when Cronin admitted that he finally let go of the reins to see what the team can do.

With that said, I'm more focused on the defensive side b/c we're lacking shutdown talent in the top-4. RD Lev is atop that list. Afterwards, I have LD Dickinson. There's far more value in drafting a defenseman with shutdown capabilities for the team going forward since most teams don't like giving away top-4 d-men that are young or in their prime. We got RD Gudas b/c he's 33 years old. We traded a 4th rd pick for RD Lyubushkin b/c he's a third pairing on better, talented teams.

Wheeler put out his post-lottery mock this morning and is thinking like me about investing in a defensive-minded d-man.

3. Anaheim Ducks: Artyom Levshunov, RHD, Michigan State University​

After the Jamie Drysdale-for-Cutter Gauthier swap and the use of recent high picks on Leo Carlsson and Mason McTavish, the belief among scouts I’ve talked to is that the Ducks will target a defenseman with their pick. If the Blackhawks take Demidov, Levshunov comes into focus. If the Blackhawks take Levshunov, the Ducks will likely consider and do their due diligence on each of towering Russian defenseman Anton Silayev, Denver breakout star Zeev Buium and London Knights two-way stud Sam Dickinson. With what they already have in Olen Zellweger and Pavel Mintyukov, I wonder if the size and defensive ability of Silayev and Dickinson will win out over Buium’s more active game. It’s worth noting both Mintyukov and Zellweger are lefties and so are Silayev, Buium and Dickinson, which may place an even greater premium on Levshunov. It’s also worth noting they’ve had a lot of success with CHL D, which could help Dickinson factor into the conversation if they trust their scouts there — even if he’s not the consensus guy at No. 3 league-wide.​

 

[Gliff]

Shai Buium is listed as 6'3 by EP. Zeev is listed at 6'0 by EP. Look at the championship post-game interview to identify that Zeev is not 6'2. Shai is standing on the left side of the interviewer.

I'm not saying you're wrong, I suspect he also is about 6'0, but using that video as validation is just dumb. He is clearly standing in front of the interviewer and his brother is standing behind her and with the angle of the shot means it is an optical illusion.

 

[tomd]

I think you missed the idea about handedness.

There are LD's who play exclusively RD for years such as LaCombe, Zell, and Hinds. This year, we have LD Buium playing RD in his rookie season at Denver in a top pairing role at the end of the season. His brother, Shai, is also a LD playing RD this past season for Denver in a 2nd pairing role.

We witnessed this year that some LD's can't play RD such as Vaak. Last year, it was White, Benoit, and Beaulieu who were LD's that proved they can't play RD.

I think the narrative that playing on the original side is best seems overblown when I compared the seasons between LaCombe (who played both sides) and Minty (played LD only). The level of competition and being rookies affected both players, but LaCombe's play improved as the season went and Minty's game dipped as he was introduced into the top-4 minutes.

A GM is preferring to keep players on their natural shooting side while not possessing talent at RD despite that LD having several years playing RD feels like a misuse of assets. It's kinda like Cronin coaching where he is strict on everything and is incapable of being creative. Z didn't start scoring until the last 20 games of the season, when Cronin admitted that he finally let go of the reins to see what the team can do.

With that said, I'm more focused on the defensive side b/c we're lacking shutdown talent in the top-4. RD Lev is atop that list. Afterwards, I have LD Dickinson. There's far more value in drafting a defenseman with shutdown capabilities for the team going forward since most teams don't like giving away top-4 d-men that are young or in their prime. We got RD Gudas b/c he's 33 years old. We traded a 4th rd pick for RD Lyubushkin b/c he's a third pairing on better, talented teams.

Wheeler put out his post-lottery mock this morning and is thinking like me about investing in a defensive-minded d-man.

3. Anaheim Ducks: Artyom Levshunov, RHD, Michigan State University​

After the Jamie Drysdale-for-Cutter Gauthier swap and the use of recent high picks on Leo Carlsson and Mason McTavish, the belief among scouts I’ve talked to is that the Ducks will target a defenseman with their pick. If the Blackhawks take Demidov, Levshunov comes into focus. If the Blackhawks take Levshunov, the Ducks will likely consider and do their due diligence on each of towering Russian defenseman Anton Silayev, Denver breakout star Zeev Buium and London Knights two-way stud Sam Dickinson. With what they already have in Olen Zellweger and Pavel Mintyukov, I wonder if the size and defensive ability of Silayev and Dickinson will win out over Buium’s more active game. It’s worth noting both Mintyukov and Zellweger are lefties and so are Silayev, Buium and Dickinson, which may place an even greater premium on Levshunov. It’s also worth noting they’ve had a lot of success with CHL D, which could help Dickinson factor into the conversation if they trust their scouts there — even if he’s not the consensus guy at No. 3 league-wide.​

Not taking a player at 3OA whose last name ends with a “v” would be very unfortunate IMO.

 

[lwvs84]

I think you missed the idea about handedness.

There are LD's who play exclusively RD for years such as LaCombe, Zell, and Hinds. This year, we have LD Buium playing RD in his rookie season at Denver in a top pairing role at the end of the season. His brother, Shai, is also a LD playing RD this past season for Denver in a 2nd pairing role.

We witnessed this year that some LD's can't play RD such as Vaak. Last year, it was White, Benoit, and Beaulieu who were LD's that proved they can't play RD.

I think the narrative that playing on the original side is best seems overblown when I compared the seasons between LaCombe (who played both sides) and Minty (played LD only). The level of competition and being rookies affected both players, but LaCombe's play improved as the season went and Minty's game dipped as he was introduced into the top-4 minutes.

A GM is preferring to keep players on their natural shooting side while not possessing talent at RD despite that LD having several years playing RD feels like a misuse of assets. It's kinda like Cronin coaching where he is strict on everything and is incapable of being creative. Z didn't start scoring until the last 20 games of the season, when Cronin admitted that he finally let go of the reins to see what the team can do.

With that said, I'm more focused on the defensive side b/c we're lacking shutdown talent in the top-4. RD Lev is atop that list. Afterwards, I have LD Dickinson. There's far more value in drafting a defenseman with shutdown capabilities for the team going forward since most teams don't like giving away top-4 d-men that are young or in their prime. We got RD Gudas b/c he's 33 years old. We traded a 4th rd pick for RD Lyubushkin b/c he's a third pairing on better, talented teams.

Wheeler put out his post-lottery mock this morning and is thinking like me about investing in a defensive-minded d-man.

3. Anaheim Ducks: Artyom Levshunov, RHD, Michigan State University​

After the Jamie Drysdale-for-Cutter Gauthier swap and the use of recent high picks on Leo Carlsson and Mason McTavish, the belief among scouts I’ve talked to is that the Ducks will target a defenseman with their pick. If the Blackhawks take Demidov, Levshunov comes into focus. If the Blackhawks take Levshunov, the Ducks will likely consider and do their due diligence on each of towering Russian defenseman Anton Silayev, Denver breakout star Zeev Buium and London Knights two-way stud Sam Dickinson. With what they already have in Olen Zellweger and Pavel Mintyukov, I wonder if the size and defensive ability of Silayev and Dickinson will win out over Buium’s more active game. It’s worth noting both Mintyukov and Zellweger are lefties and so are Silayev, Buium and Dickinson, which may place an even greater premium on Levshunov. It’s also worth noting they’ve had a lot of success with CHL D, which could help Dickinson factor into the conversation if they trust their scouts there — even if he’s not the consensus guy at No. 3 league-wide.​

I agree, the handedness comment is based on Verbeek stating he didn't want guys on their off wing. Zellweger seemed fine on the right side... LaCombe probably struggled more with the top pairing than the side he played on. The three left line (Gauthier, Carlsson, Killorn) looked great in limited time. If he's not set on "lefties on the left side, righties on the right" that opens it up to just getting the best possible player for this team(which I hope we do).