WORSE Draft 1st Rounder Ever?

[AJ1982]

I would call 1999 as being easily the most disappointing draft. But 1996 is the worst. QUOTE]

Entirely agree. 1999 was supposed to be what 2003 was.

 

[roast]

Pens made a fine art of this post 1992.
93 #23 Stefan Bergkvist
94 #24 Chris Wells
96 #23 Craig Hillier
97 #17 Robert Dome

95 was Morozov, 98 was Kraft, 99 was Koltsov. To be calling Stefan, Beech, etc Busts is a bit premature IMO. Beech was injured for a significant amount of time this season. Give him and Stefan 1 more year before they get the Bust tag.

 

[Sting]

Of all those players in the 1999 draft...I think only Havlat was deserving of being in the first round...maybe the Sedins too. Looking back tho...Havlat was an absolute steal at the end of the first round.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Pens made a fine art of this post 1992.
93 #23 Stefan Bergkvist
94 #24 Chris Wells
96 #23 Craig Hillier
97 #17 Robert Dome

95 was Morozov, 98 was Kraft, 99 was Koltsov. To be calling Stefan, Beech, etc Busts is a bit premature IMO. Beech was injured for a significant amount of time this season. Give him and Stefan 1 more year before they get the Bust tag.

Bergkvist was horribly injured, unfair really...though I didn't have high hopes for him
Wells (somehow) got us Barnes and Wooley so he worked out just fine. :lol
Hillier was a flat out bust who never tried. The guy barely even got a cup of tea in the AHL and got destroyed. Bad ECHLer too...
Dome was ruined by the Penguins.

 

[Mizral]

As for 1999, none of those guys outside of Havlat have really 'broken out' yet either. So you never know. Down the road, guys like the Sedin twins, Pyatt, Saprykin, Oulette, Stefan, and Ahonen still could all get a lot better.

Also, the later picks in the 1999 draft weren't too bad. Didn't Zetterberg get picked somewhere in there?

 

[Mizral]

Oh, and Jackman is a lot more than just 'good'. Heck, I'd take him ahead of Havlat.

 

[#2]

Oh, and Jackman is a lot more than just 'good'. Heck, I'd take him ahead of Havlat.

Ya jackman is good but i wouldnt take him over Havlat

 

[Mothra]

This is probably the worse 1st Round Draft year EVER!
I think 1999 produced some bad 1st rounders

1st - Patrik Stefan - BUST
9th - Jamie Lundmark - Still Got Faith, but he hasnt done much

So Stefan is a "BUST" and Lundmark isnt......?

I realize draft position comes into play.....but Lundmark is still a very high pick and its not like Stefan cant play at all......

Ranger fan eh?

 

[Terrier]

I still can't believe the Bruins wasted a first round pick on Evgeny Ryabchikov! He was awful from his first exhibition and his name is synonymous with "bust".

 

[#2]

So Stefan is a "BUST" and Lundmark isnt......?

I realize draft position comes into play.....but Lundmark is still a very high pick and its not like Stefan cant play at all......

Ranger fan eh?

Cant say that i am a Rangers fan, my avatar does have Leetch but i just like Leetch.....

Im saying i still got faith in Lundmark cause hes been playing on the Rangers who have had a stellar roster, hes done nothing so far but he could become descent if he gets more playing time.Now that the Rangers have dealt away such players as Kovalev, Nedved etc.. Lundmark could possibly see more playing time. On the other hand Stefan was drafted 1st overall and the coaching staff of the Atlanta Thrashers have tried to work him on with heatley or Kovalchuk 2 young superstars but still he hasnt produced. Stefan only really has to compete with the often injured Marc Savard, so Patrik does get his playing time

 

[Mothra]

Cant say that i am a Rangers fan, my avatar does have Leetch but i just like Leetch.....

Im saying i still got faith in Lundmark cause hes been playing on the Rangers who have had a stellar roster, hes done nothing so far but he could become descent if he gets more playing time.Now that the Rangers have dealt away such players as Kovalev, Nedved etc.. Lundmark could possibly see more playing time. On the other hand Stefan was drafted 1st overall and the coaching staff of the Atlanta Thrashers have tried to work him on with heatley or Kovalchuk 2 young superstars but still he hasnt produced. Stefan only really has to compete with the often injured Marc Savard, so Patrik does get his playing time

My Ranger comment comes more from your comments than the avatar.....but anyway.....

I understand what you are saying about not getting the chance (or earning the chance) to play.....but to me a "BUST" is a guy who just fails.....cant play in the league.....or is at the best a borderline player. I dont see that in the Stefan case at all.....no, he isnt tearing up the NHL....and its possible he may never be a force....but I still say he isnt a "BUST"

it might just be me....but I have a problem when people throw around extreme terms...if he is a "BUST" how can we accurately describe players like Volchkov, Chyzowski, Dore, Brady, etc.....super duper busts?

 

[Bluenote13]

Take a look at the D-men from the '99 draft. Thats as awful as it gets, alot worse than '96, IMO.

Lundmark-Stefan argument: I agree, that Lundmark is just as much of a disappointment, but then again, he was never handed the icetime that Stefan has gotten in the Pro's up until two months ago. The Ranger's have been notorious for bringing along youth in a horrible fashion. Both players have had injuries early on, but there is still skill in their games, i'd give it some more time to label one of them a bust.

 

[X-SHARKIE]

1999 was annnnnnnn ugly draft. 1996-1995 were not good ones either.

Luckily for us...2002 (top few)-2003-2004-2005 are going to produce good players.

I still remember getting hyped up about the 1999 draft...with Stefan doing what he did in the IHL ect. ect. And the Sedin twins were supposed to be just awesome.
Didnt quite work out that way. Rangers were so happy after that draft as well I remember.

Oh well...mistakes happen.... Couver did great actually coming out of the first round with the Sedins if you think about it....Thank god Havlat was there.

 

[craig1]

Bergkvist was horribly injured, unfair really....

Yeah, a brain tumor can really dampen your NHL career. He's just happy to be alive I'm sure.

 

[craig1]

Vancouver's 1996 draft:

227 C Lubomir Vaic - WHO?

Uhhmmm.....didn't he at least make it to the show for a little bit? That's not bad for 227 overall in a really bad draft.

 

[#2]

My Ranger comment comes more from your comments than the avatar.....but anyway.....

I understand what you are saying about not getting the chance (or earning the chance) to play.....but to me a "BUST" is a guy who just fails.....cant play in the league.....or is at the best a borderline player. I dont see that in the Stefan case at all.....no, he isnt tearing up the NHL....and its possible he may never be a force....but I still say he isnt a "BUST"

it might just be me....but I have a problem when people throw around extreme terms...if he is a "BUST" how can we accurately describe players like Volchkov, Chyzowski, Dore, Brady, etc.....super duper busts?

I think i am more loose when i says "Bust" and your more conservative when you use the term "Bust", its like with Exclamation marks some use it all the time some just use it when there is something BIG!...
and my word for players like Volchkov are "Garbage"

 

[#2]

Take a look at the D-men from the '99 draft. Thats as awful as it gets, alot worse than '96, IMO.

Lundmark-Stefan argument: I agree, that Lundmark is just as much of a disappointment, but then again, he was never handed the icetime that Stefan has gotten in the Pro's up until two months ago. The Ranger's have been notorious for bringing along youth in a horrible fashion. Both players have had injuries early on, but there is still skill in their games, i'd give it some more time to label one of them a bust.

ya thats a pretty fair judgement, they do still have time to develop, lol maybe everyone in 1999 draft are Just LATE bloomers, something similar to alot of baby's being born on full moon's, they may just all come out at once.

 

[clefty]

Of all those players in the 1999 draft...I think only Havlat was deserving of being in the first round...maybe the Sedins too. Looking back tho...Havlat was an absolute steal at the end of the first round.

Koltsov.

The Pens in 1999:

18 Koltsov - Looks to be one of the better picks in the first round that year
51 Matt Murley - A couple of pretty good pro. seasons. Good potential
57 Jeremy Van Hoof - Has played all but 9 of his pro games in the ECHL
86 Sebastien Caron - All Rookie team last season. Inconsistent this season
115 Ryan Malone - Top 5 rookie this season
144 Tomas Skvaridlo - Disappeared of the face of the planet
157 Vladimir Malenkykh - Could be a good player if he comes over
176 Doug Meyer - Who?
204 Tom Kostopoulos - Played well for us this season. Will be a nice fourth liner
233 Darcy Robinson - Career minor leaguer
261 Andrew McPherson - Career minor leaguer. Never made it to the AHL

Not to bad, really. 1996 on the other hand...

23 Craig Hillier - Diabolical. Worst first round pick in years.
28 Pavel Skrbek - Ended up trading him for Boughner. Played 12 games in the NHL.
72 Boyd Kane - Was supposed to be one of our top prospects. Never signed him. 7 NHL games, all this season with the Flyers.
77 Boris Protsenko - Had some decent early seasons in the AHL, fell apart from there.
105 Michal Rozsival - Has done some good in the NHL. Injuries have screwed him up.
150 Peter Bergman - Never played pro hockey
186 Eric Meloche - At least he made it to the NHL
238 Timo Seikkula - ?

The '96 draft class is an embarrassment.

 

[Dadof5boys]

As for 1999, none of those guys outside of Havlat have really 'broken out' yet either. So you never know. Down the road, guys like the Sedin twins, Pyatt, Saprykin, Oulette, Stefan, and Ahonen still could all get a lot better.

Also, the later picks in the 1999 draft weren't too bad. Didn't Zetterberg get picked somewhere in there?

For the Preds, the 99 draft wasn't all that bad. Not great, but decent. We got 2 solid NHL players out of it.

6 G Brian Finley- Had groin injuries hamper him, but he had a decent year in the AHL this season. Could fight for #2 spot behind Vokoun in a year or two.
33 R Jonas Andersson Another guy who has the injury bug. He never will be on a scoring line, but he has the size and speed to be a potential 3rd liner if he can ever get over this injury bug...Doubtful though
52 F Adam Hall- Hall is turning into a pretty darn good power-forward type who plays on both ends of the ice. He will rarely be on Highlight reels for goals he scores, but he has a knack for getting to the net.
54 D Andrew Hutchinson- Probably the Preds most improved prospect from last season. He has been the first call up on D this season when we had an injury to our backline ( he scored 8pts in 18 games) he still needs to work on his defensive game for another season in the AHL.
61 D Ed Hill Never panned out.
65 G Jan Lasak The Preds were high on him going into this season, and he was set to be the #2 guy behind Vokoun; however, he just didn't get it done, so he is playing in Europe now.
72 D Brett Angel Never panned out.
121 C Evgeny Pavlov- Didn't want a 2 way contract, so he is in Russia playing.
124 L Alexandr Krevsun- Deceased
131 R Konstantin Panov - Had a good Junior season but never really developed past that. Played a few years in the AHL...back in Russia now.
162 D Timo Helbling- Recently traded to the Bolts.
191 R Martin Erat - Not a bad pick up for the Preds in the 7th round. He was one of the Pred most consistant fowards this season.
205 G Kyle Kettles- Never really panned out
220 D Miroslav Durak-Another guy playing in Russia.
248 F Darren Haydar- Well he is small, so he is under rated IMO. This guy has done very well on every level he has played in. He was a Hoby Baker finalist a few seasons ago. Last year as a rookie in the AHL, he was the Ads leading scorer, and is tied for the lead in scoring for the Ads this season.

 

[Canada Girl]

72 D Brett Angel Never panned out.

He plays for Acadia University in the AUS league now (Canadian universities)

 

[Habsfunk]

Montreal drafter Mathieu Garon and Aaron Asham in 1996 in the 2nd and 3rd round respectively. Other than that it was a complete bust for the Habs. It must be mentioned that since then we've acquired Jan Bulis, Andreas Dackell, Pierre Dagenais, and Steve Begin, who were all drafted that year.

1999 was even worse. Not a single Montreal draftee from that year is even close to the NHL.

1997 produced Jason Ward, and nothing else.

1998 though was a good one. Eric Chouinard is barely above bust status. After that Montreal drafted Mike Ribeiro, Andrei Markov, and Michael Ryder, which is a pretty good haul for one draft.

 

[Gnashville]

For the Preds, the 99 draft wasn't all that bad. Not great, but decent. We got 2 solid NHL players out of it.

6 G Brian Finley- Had groin injuries hamper him, but he had a decent year in the AHL this season. Could fight for #2 spot behind Vokoun in a year or two.
33 R Jonas Andersson Another guy who has the injury bug. He never will be on a scoring line, but he has the size and speed to be a potential 3rd liner if he can ever get over this injury bug...Doubtful though
52 F Adam Hall- Hall is turning into a pretty darn good power-forward type who plays on both ends of the ice. He will rarely be on Highlight reels for goals he scores, but he has a knack for getting to the net.
54 D Andrew Hutchinson- Probably the Preds most improved prospect from last season. He has been the first call up on D this season when we had an injury to our backline ( he scored 8pts in 18 games) he still needs to work on his defensive game for another season in the AHL.
61 D Ed Hill Never panned out.
65 G Jan Lasak The Preds were high on him going into this season, and he was set to be the #2 guy behind Vokoun; however, he just didn't get it done, so he is playing in Europe now.
72 D Brett Angel Never panned out.
121 C Evgeny Pavlov- Didn't want a 2 way contract, so he is in Russia playing.
124 L Alexandr Krevsun- Deceased
131 R Konstantin Panov - Had a good Junior season but never really developed past that. Played a few years in the AHL...back in Russia now.
162 D Timo Helbling- Recently traded to the Bolts.
191 R Martin Erat - Not a bad pick up for the Preds in the 7th round. He was one of the Pred most consistant fowards this season.
205 G Kyle Kettles- Never really panned out
220 D Miroslav Durak-Another guy playing in Russia.
248 F Darren Haydar- Well he is small, so he is under rated IMO. This guy has done very well on every level he has played in. He was a Hoby Baker finalist a few seasons ago. Last year as a rookie in the AHL, he was the Ads leading scorer, and is tied for the lead in scoring for the Ads this season.

Very good job on this one Erat was the Steal of this draft for the Predators. Hall has come out of his sophmore slump at the right time. Erat is freaking explosive at times.