Prospect Info: 2015 Draft Thread

[Ziggy Stardust]

With that said, I could see the Kings using a 3rd or 4th round selection and going with a goalie prospect like Mike Robinson. He's committed to attend UNH.

Some info on Robinson:
http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/prospect-hot-list-mike-robinsons-wildcat-formation/

The draft season is a fickle thing; while some prospects are still playing in the CHL playoffs, others have been done for months and take a bit of a back seat in terms of exposure. But no one is forgetting about Robinson, a 6-foot-4 netminder from the New England prep ranks. He played for a Lawrence squad that, charitably, needed their goaltender to be a star every night because the team gave up a lot of shots.

“I loved it,” Robinson said. “It’s a big reason why I went to this school. I feel it got me a lot of attention because I could really help my team win big games.”

A University of New Hampshire commit, Robinson grew up in the state watching the Wildcats. He also has a training relationship with goalie coach Mike Buckley, who worked with UNH and is now with the Pittsburgh Penguins – and think about how insanely good Matt Murray has been in the minors this year. Buckley also worked with Jonathan Quick when the Kings star was at UMass.

“I’ve worked with Mike for 10 years,” Robinson said. “I’ve always had a good connection with him. He’s my go-to guy for anything hockey.”

Tracking the puck has become the latest revolution in goaltending thanks to Devan Dubnyk and his work with Lyle Mast and Steve Valiquette and Robinson has also bought in. The youngster noted that Buckley has incorporated such teachings in his own work for years.

“You want your nose to the glove and to watch the puck go into the glove,” Robinson said. “You focus in on the puck instead of just blocking it.”

With his big frame and athleticism, Robinson can stump shooters in a lot of ways. He will likely play for the Boston Jr. Bruins in the U.S. Premier League next year, though his USHL rights were just picked up by Lincoln. Wherever he plays, he’ll be ready for the pressure. Draft eligible in 2015.

http://unhhockeyblog.blogspot.com/2015/04/unh-recruits-update-april-20-2015.html

Robinson (DOB: 3-27-1997), the 6'5", 200 lbs. goalie who recently completed his junior season at Lawrence Academy, could very well hear his name called at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. Last January, Robinson was the #16 tender on the NHL CSS 2015 Midterm Rankings of North American goalies.

Robinson started every game this season for UNH alum Robbie Barker's Lawrence Academy Spartans and played nearly every minute. He finished with a record of 7 wins, 16 loses, and 2 ties, a Goals Against Average of 3.20, and a Save Percentage of .902. Apparently, the NHL CSS scouts were impressed because Mike Robinson moved up to #8 on their 2015 Final Rankings for North American goalies.

http://www.usahockey.com/news_artic...ives-up-to-the-hype-for-boston-junior-rangers

“The first time I saw [Robinson] play was in the summer when he played for me when I put teams together for the Chowder Cup and the Showcase,” Rich DeCaprio, the Rangers’ Metropolitan League coach, said. “We played in the upper division and he’s young, but he was unbelievable and took us to the quarterfinals in the Showcase.”

Robinson made his Metro League debut with 36 saves while holding the Walpole Express scoreless until the final five minutes of a 4-1 win. He was named the Third Star of the Week afterward.

“Mike is a young goalie with big-time potential,” DeCaprio said at the time. “It is hard to find a ’97 birth-year with his size and athleticism. He played very well for us against Walpole, making the big saves when we needed him to. I expect him to really develop this year in the MJHL.”

DeCaprio is still raving about Robinson after his second shutout, a 1-0 win over the Northern Cyclones on Nov. 3 to keep the Rangers in the Francis Division lead. Robinson is among the league leaders in both goals-against average (1.66) and save percentage (.942).

Tight defense meant Robinson faced 16 and 19 shots in his two shutouts. He has also held up well in more hectic games. Robinson has held three opponents to a single goal. In two of those games, he made at least 36 saves.

“He is very athletic,” DeCaprio said. “He moves well laterally. He stays up. He flashes his pads and makes some saves where it looks like the puck is going in, then his pads kick out.

“He’s real tough to beat on the initial shot, and he’s doing a better job of controlling his rebounds, which is one of the things he has had to work on throughout the early season.”

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/michael-robinson-commits-unh-191123319.html

"Mike [Robinson] was put on my radar by his goalie coach Mike Buckley who runs GDS Goalie School," said Barker. "Mike [Buckley] says he is one of the hardest working kids he has ever been around. He doesn't complain, he doesn't make excuses, he just works," added Barker.

The 1997-born Robinson played for the Boston Junior Rangers in the MET last season, compiling an impressive stat line. He posted a 1.99 goals against average to go along with his .934 save percentage.

"Mike played in the MET year for the Junior Rangers and put up some great numbers playing above his age group."

Robinson, listed at 6-4, is a big goaltender who covers a lot of the net. He will replace another oversized goaltender, John Stratton, who graduated, between the pipes for LA.

"Mike is a play-reading, athletic goaltender. He has great size and his ability to understand the game keeps him calm and poised. When things get unpredictable he has the ability and compete level to battle. He is a well balanced goaltender technically, physically and mentally," said Buckley of his protege.

http://www.sbncollegehockey.com/col...n-lawrence-academy-prep-hockey-unh-dick-umile

"Mike is a play-reading, athletic goaltender. He has great size and his ability to understand the game keeps him calm and poised. When things get unpredictable he has the ability and compete level to battle. He is a well balanced goaltender technically, physically and mentally," said Buckley, a former goaltending coach for UMass and UNH.

Both Barker and Buckley raved about Robinson's work ethic and desire to get better. Robinson, who also plays on the golf team at Lawrence Academy, was one of the best goaltenders at March's Beantown Spring Classic, an event extremely well attended by scouts and college coaches.

Only Topeka's Matej Tomek (North Dakota) and Cedar Rapids' Ryan Larkin (Miami) are goaltenders on the NCAA path ranked higher in Central Scouting's final rankings. Robinson will be a senior in the fall and will likely play a year of junior hockey, possibly two, before matriculating to UNH.

Robinson is an interesting prospect to watch on draft weekend as there are reportedly a few teams who really like his size and potential, thinking his ceiling is higher than his No. 8 ranking among North American goaltenders.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Replace 1st rounder Subban with undrafted Svedberg for Boston.

I put Subban in there knowing that Svedberg is done for and heading back to Europe.

 

[Holden Caulfield]

I put Subban in there knowing that Svedberg is done for and heading back to Europe.

Well if your talking next year that list can look quite a bit different. Figured you meant last year.

No real matter though, your point was made.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

By my guess, Subban likely doesn't even make the Bruins next season. He looked out of place in the one game he appeared in and will likely be starting with the P-Bruins next season.

 

[kingsfan]

Expect for the Kings with their starter from a 3rd round pick and a undrafted free agent as a backup.

If the Kings draft a goalie, I'd hope they wait until 3rd round or later. The Kings need more depth outside of the crease that will be ready way before any goalie drafted this year. Goalies are not a need right now.

Who cares the Kings starter is a 3rd and backup is undrafted? That's bucking the odds, not a gameplan for success. Do you expect the Kings to have much success doing that going forward? If so, you may want to go look at the drafting of goalies under the Dave Taylor reign, only Quick ever did much of anything and by the time Quick turned pro DL and his development staff was in place.

Draft positions of starting/backup goalies:

Anaheim:
Andersen - 3rd round, 87th overall
Gibson - 2nd round, 39th overall

Arizona:
Smith - 6th round, 161st overall
Dominigue - 5th round, 138th overall

Boston:
Rask - 1st round, 21st overall
Subban - 1st round, 24th overall

Buffalo:
Lindback - 7th round, 207th overall
Hackett - 3rd round, 77th overall

Carolina:
Ward - 1st round, 25th overall
Khudobin - 7th round, 206th overall

Chicago:
Crawford - 2nd round, 52nd overall
Darling - 6th round, 153rd overall

Colorado:
Varlamov - 1st round, 23rd overall
Pickard - 2nd round, 49th overall

Columbus:
Bobrovsky - undrafted
McElhinney - 6th round, 176th overall

Dallas:
Lehtonen - 1st round, 2nd overall
Enroth - 2nd round, 46th overall

Detroit:
Howard - 2nd round, 64th overall
Mrazek - 5th round, 141st overall

Edmonton:
Scrivens - undrafted
Bachman - 4th round, 120th overall
Fasth - undrafted

Florida:
Luongo - 1st round, 4th overall
Montoya - 1st round, 6th overall

Los Angeles:
Quick - 3rd round, 72nd overall
Jones - undrafted

Minnesota:
Dubnyk - 1st round, 14th overall
Kuemper - 6th round, 161st overall
Backstrom - undrafted

Montreal:
Price - 1st round, 5th overall
Tokarski - 5th round, 122nd overall

Nashvile:
Rinne - 8th round, 258th overall
Hutton - undrafted

New Jersey:
Schneider - 1st round, 26th overall
Kinkaid - undrafted

New York I:
Halak - 9th round, 271st overall
Neuvirth - 2nd round, 34th overall

New York R:
Lundqvist - 7th round, 205th overall
Talbot - undrafted

Ottawa:
Andersen - 3rd round, 73rd overall
Hammond - undrafted
Lehner - 2nd round, 46th overall

Philadelphia:
Mason - 3rd round, 69th overall
Emery - 4th round, 99th overall

Pittsburgh:
Fleury - 1st round, 1st overall
Greiss - 3rd round, 94th overall

San Jose:
Niemi - undrafted
Stalock - 4th round, 112th overall

St. Louis:
Allen - 2nd round, 34th overall
Elliott - 9th round, 291st overall

Tampa Bay:
Bishop - 3rd round, 85th overall
Vasilevsky - 1st round, 19th overall

Toronto:
Bernier - 1st round, 11th overall
Reimer - 4th round, 99th overall

Vancouver:
Miller - 5th round, 138th overall
Lack- undrafted

Washington:
Holtby - 4th round, 93rd overall
Peters - 2nd round, 38th overall

Winnipeg:
Pavelec - 2nd round, 41st overall
Hutchinson - 3rd round, 77th overall


11 goalies undrafted
12 goalies selected in 1st
10 goalies selected in 2nd
8 goalies selected in 3rd round
5 goalies selected in 4th round
4 goalies selected in 5th round
4 goalies selected in 6th round
3 goalies selected in 7th round
1 goalie selected in 8th round
2 goalies selected in 9th round

It's rather revealing to see that there are just about as many undrafted goalies in the NHL as there are goalies drafted in the 1st round (and a little more than drafted in the 2nd round).

Thanks for the list Ziggy, though I think it's more accurate if we just list the top two goalies per team in terms of minutes played to give a view of the starters and backups of each team. Guys like Bachman really shouldn't be on the list, and projecting who will get open spots, like Subban in Boston, is hard to do, so I'll stick to data from this past season.

Also, you missed Calgary.

So if you use just the goalies with the two highest amounts of minutes played you get:

Anaheim:
Andersen - 3rd round, 87th overall
Gibson - 2nd round, 39th overall

Arizona:
Smith - 6th round, 161st overall
Dubnyk - 1st round, 14th overall

Boston:
Rask - 1st round, 21st overall
Svedberg - undrafted

Buffalo:
Enroth - 2nd round, 46th overall
Neuvirth - 2nd round, 34th overall

Calgary:
Hiller - undrafted
Ramo - 6th round, 191st overall

Carolina:
Ward - 1st round, 25th overall
Khudobin - 7th round, 206th overall

Chicago:
Crawford - 2nd round, 52nd overall
Darling - 6th round, 153rd overall

Colorado:
Varlamov - 1st round, 23rd overall
Pickard - 2nd round, 49th overall

Columbus:
Bobrovsky - undrafted
McElhinney - 6th round, 176th overall

Dallas:
Lehtonen - 1st round, 2nd overall
Enroth - 2nd round, 46th overall

Detroit:
Howard - 2nd round, 64th overall
Mrazek - 5th round, 141st overall

Edmonton:
Scrivens - undrafted
Fasth - undrafted

Florida:
Luongo - 1st round, 4th overall
Montoya - 1st round, 6th overall

Los Angeles:
Quick - 3rd round, 72nd overall
Jones - undrafted

Minnesota:
Dubnyk - 1st round, 14th overall
Kuemper - 6th round, 161st overall

Montreal:
Price - 1st round, 5th overall
Tokarski - 5th round, 122nd overall

Nashvile:
Rinne - 8th round, 258th overall
Hutton - undrafted

New Jersey:
Schneider - 1st round, 26th overall
Kinkaid - undrafted

New York I:
Halak - 9th round, 271st overall
Johnson - 5th round, 125th overall

New York R:
Lundqvist - 7th round, 205th overall
Talbot - undrafted

Ottawa:
Andersen - 3rd round, 73rd overall
Lehner - 2nd round, 46th overall

Philadelphia:
Mason - 3rd round, 69th overall
Emery - 4th round, 99th overall

Pittsburgh:
Fleury - 1st round, 1st overall
Greiss - 3rd round, 94th overall

St. Louis:
Allen - 2nd round, 34th overall
Elliott - 9th round, 291st overall

San Jose:
Niemi - undrafted
Stalock - 4th round, 112th overall

Tampa Bay:
Bishop - 3rd round, 85th overall
Vasilevsky - 1st round, 19th overall

Toronto:
Bernier - 1st round, 11th overall
Reimer - 4th round, 99th overall

Vancouver:
Miller - 5th round, 138th overall
Lack- undrafted

Washington:
Holtby - 4th round, 93rd overall
Peters - 2nd round, 38th overall

Winnipeg:
Pavelec - 2nd round, 41st overall
Hutchinson - 3rd round, 77th overall


Note: Jhonas Enroth and Devan Dubnyk listed twice. They are only counted once in the numbers below.

11 goalies undrafted
12 goalies selected in 1st
10 goalies selected in 2nd
7 goalies selected in 3rd round
4 goalies selected in 4th round
4 goalies selected in 5th round
5 goalies selected in 6th round
2 goalies selected in 7th round
1 goalie selected in 8th round
2 goalies selected in 9th round

 

[Primakov!]

Buffalo:
Enroth - 2nd round, 46th overall [Traded to Dallas Stars]
Neuvirth - 2nd round, 34th overall [Traded to New York Islanders]

Trade the starter *and* backup -- still don't get the #1 overall pick.

 

[kingsfan]

Trade the starter *and* backup -- still don't get the #1 overall pick.

The failed tank and Murray's pouting like a three-year-old after was the best part of the lottery draft. the only thing that would have been better is if a team other than Edmonton had won it.

 

[Mattias]

The failed tank and Murray's pouting like a three-year-old after was the best part of the lottery draft. the only thing that would have been better is if a team other than Edmonton had won it.

I could only imagine Murray blowing his top if our team won the lottery. HFboards for that matter too...

 

[Ron*]

The failed tank and Murray's pouting like a three-year-old after was the best part of the lottery draft. the only thing that would have been better is if a team other than Edmonton had won it.

I think he put a hit out on Anders Lindback when he suddenly and unexpectedly won a few games there.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

The provided list of goalies in the NHL should also be a good indication of which teams may be shopping for goaltending or looking to select one at the draft.

There is wide speculation that the Oilers will opt to select the highest ranked goaltender with their second 1st round selection, obtained from Pittsburgh for Perron.

Rumors are also abound of mentions of a number of potential future starters being moved on draft day, including Eddie Lack, Cam Talbot and Robin Lehner. James Reimer and possibly Jimmy Howard may also find new addresses this summer.

 

[kingsfan]

There is wide speculation that the Oilers will opt to select the highest ranked goaltender with their second 1st round selection, obtained from Pittsburgh for Perron.

That would be interesting since under Chirelli, Boston only drafted three russians ever, all forwards, and one of those was in the 2006 draft which was just a month after Chiarelli took over so hard to say that was a true Chiarelli pick. Boston also only picked four goalies under Chirelli and only one (malcolm Subban) was drafted in the top two rounds, though granted he was a 1st round pick.

The reason I mention all this is the top ranked goalie according to most scouting reports and rankings is Russian Ilya Samsonov, who is projected to go in around pick 20.

As well, there is also a lot of talk in the hockey media up here that Edmonton will trade that pick and would like to add a top 4 defenseman for it, which would make a lot of sense.

 

[LAKings88]

I think the 3rd round would be best for a goalie. Still some good forwards and defense at 43.

 

[KingsOfCali25]

Who cares the Kings starter is a 3rd and backup is undrafted? That's bucking the odds, not a gameplan for success. Do you expect the Kings to have much success doing that going forward? If so, you may want to go look at the drafting of goalies under the Dave Taylor reign, only Quick ever did much of anything and by the time Quick turned pro DL and his development staff was in place.

That's the thing though. The Kings have a good development staff in place now. So the can wait to pick a goalie later in the draft. Taylor didn't have a good development system in place back then and wanted to buy a goalie rather than develop one. I'd be happier with a goalie picked later than earlier.

 

[kingsfan]

That's the thing though. The Kings have a good development staff in place now. So the can wait to pick a goalie later in the draft. Taylor didn't have a good development system in place back then and wanted to buy a goalie rather than develop one. I'd be happier with a goalie picked later than earlier.

That is true, DT's development system was weak, but the point is if we are talking about getting a successful goalie into the fold, the odds are it will have to come from the first two rounds.

38 per cent of all goalies who were a starter or backup last year (based on that list I posted earlier) were drafted in the first or second round. If you exclude the goaltenders who were never drafted, since we are talking about the actual draft here, then of the remianing 47 goalies that played the most or second most amount of minutes for a NHL club last year, 22 came out of the top two rounds, or 47 per cent. The odds of getting a goaltender beyond the top two rounds is so low you actually have better odds of waiting until after the draft and signing an undrafted goalie.

 

[damacles1156]

Hehe I love how people point to Dats/Quick ETC late round picks that worked out tremendous and say "Well we can just do that".

How many Dats/Quick's are in the league ? How many ? haha. Point made.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Hehe I love how people point to Dats/Quick ETC late round picks that worked out tremendous and say "Well we can just do that".

How many Dats/Quick's are in the league ? How many ? haha. Point made.

Late round superstars are rare, but look how many mid-to-late round picks are important players on our roster. Our drafting and development are second-to-none and you just have to look at Benning's comments from after the Monarchs' championship to reinforce that.

I agree that you can't count on landing the next big thing late in the draft, but we've entered the real important phase of DL's tenure, the "Detroit" phase, the part where we stay competitive forever through smart drafting and development. You never know. Hell, Konecny could turn into the next Datsyuk.

 

[damacles1156]

Late round superstars are rare, but look how many mid-to-late round picks are important players on our roster. Our drafting and development are second-to-none and you just have to look at Benning's comments from after the Monarchs' championship to reinforce that.

I agree that you can't count on landing the next big thing late in the draft, but we've entered the real important phase of DL's tenure, the "Detroit" phase, the part where we stay competitive forever through smart drafting and development. You never know. Hell, Konecny could turn into the next Datsyuk.

That's fine and dandy for depth players. But even Detriot has problems with high end. Detriot is blessed that Dats/Zetts have played so long.

No one in their drafting or system is going to replace those guys, just like Detroit has not replaced Lidstroms play.

At some point to land impact players, you need to draft high. Konecny could very well end up a star, but no one is going to land the kid in the 4-7th round.

 

[kingsfan]

Late round superstars are rare, but look how many mid-to-late round picks are important players on our roster. Our drafting and development are second-to-none and you just have to look at Benning's comments from after the Monarchs' championship to reinforce that.

I agree that you can't count on landing the next big thing late in the draft, but we've entered the real important phase of DL's tenure, the "Detroit" phase, the part where we stay competitive forever through smart drafting and development. You never know. Hell, Konecny could turn into the next Datsyuk.

Konecny isn't going to fall to the 5th round like Datsyuk.

It's also easier to land role players in the draft I think in large part because there is 12 forward spots and six D-man spots available on any one team. There's only two goaltending spots and only one of those, the starter, actually plays more than half the time. Getting the premier talent in net seems to be best done by either using a 1st or 2nd rounder, or simply waiting until after the draft and picking up a UFA guy from Europe, like Hiller and Bobrovsky.

Think of it like this, if you get the 61st best goaltender in the world, he is essentially a third string/minor leaguer in NHL terms. You get the 61st best forward, you are walking away with a 2nd liner. It's easier to pluck legit NHLers out of middle/late parts of a draft for skaters because of the sheer number of them that are needed to fill out a line up. That isn't so for goaltenders.

 

[King'sPawn]

Zachary Senyshyn

 

[Captain Mittens*]

As well, there is also a lot of talk in the hockey media up here that Edmonton will trade that pick and would like to add a top 4 defenseman for it, which would make a lot of sense.

Matt Greene is the top 4 dman that you've been looking for

 

[R S]

You guys are in an interesting spot of the draft. Here's what I could see happening...

13. Los Angeles Kings – Evgeny Svechnikov – The Los Angeles Kings are a big, strong and skilled team. They follow that trend in the opening round of the 2015 NHL Draft by taking 6’3 Russian forward Evgeny Svechnikov 13th overall. The big winger has a strong and smooth skating stride, good shooting ability and extremely good hands. He’s really the full package when comparing him to today’s top 6 NHL forward and is a guy who should be able to make the jump to the NHL with only a couple more years of development.

If not Svechnkikov? Jakub Zboril.

Rest of the mock: http://whl-from-above.blogspot.ca/2015/06/final-2015-mock-draft.html

 

[Captain Mittens*]

You guys are in an interesting spot of the draft. Here's what I could see happening...



Rest of the mock: http://whl-from-above.blogspot.ca/2015/06/final-2015-mock-draft.html

if the draft happens the way you have it happening, the Kings would take Meier in my opinion

 

[jace29]

out of barzal, konecny, meier, connor, zacha, and rantanen, who do you guys like best and least?

i think at least one of these names will be available at 13, hope its barzal or zacha

 

[417th]

For me it would be

Barzal
Zacha
Connor
Rantenen
Mier
Svechnikov
Konecny

That said if we get any one of those guys I would consider our first round pick to be exceptional. I am a big homer for Zacha and have followed him closely the past three seasons. He is going to be so very good. That said I see him going to the Devils. He just plays looks and acts like a NJD. Would love to have him on the Kings. IF Barzal fell to us then we would be the luckiest team in the draft. What can't that kid do? Give him 2 seasons of AHL development and then put him in our top 6. Future very solid top 6er, maybe even a legit 1c. Connor does everything and is really close to being NHL ready too. Two seasons and he could be a great 2nd C for us for years with #1C upside. We really couldn't go wrong with any of those guys.

 

[kingsfan]

out of barzal, konecny, meier, connor, zacha, and rantanen, who do you guys like best and least?

i think at least one of these names will be available at 13, hope its barzal or zacha

Likely Meier, though barzal and him are neck in neck in my opinion.

Least, Zacha. no reason, just someone has to be last.