2018 Draft D-Men

[Pavel Buchnevich]

RIP Quinn Hughes

I'd place him 8th right before Bouchard.

 

[McNurse]

The 2018 draft for defencemen is looking to be incredible, so much talent sprinkle all through the first two rounds its kind of ridiculous. Can’t wait to see ~4 years down the road to see how it turns out.

 

[Buresflyingelbow]

Of all the D-men drafted in this past draft how would you have them ranked? I know it’s very early but based off of what I have seen from each of them my top 10 would be
1. Hughes
2.Dobson
3.Wilde
4.Smith
5.Boqvist
6.Miller
7.Merkley
8.McIssac
9.Bouchard
10.Beaudin
HM: Bernard-Docker, Lundkvist, Alexeyev, Samuelson
-Also I am excluding Dahlin because he is obviously #1

Where’s Rasmus Dahlin?

 

[Ctrain2k]

I don't really care whether it is true or not to be honest. Who are the other two though?

Actually there was 4 Dave Maloney, Hy Buller, Radek Hamr and Michael Volcan.

 

[Buresflyingelbow]

Jett Woo should be on every list

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Actually there was 4 Dave Maloney, Hy Buller, Radek Hamr and Michael Volcan.

Cool.

 

[GTA]

Jett Woo should be on every list

Anytime I watch Moose Jaw I can't help but notice that Brook always takes the more difficult matchups allowing Woo to play softer competition. And that Jett Woo gets a lot of secondary assists after giving it to Brook on the line during PPs to make a play. Not saying he isn't going to be good, it's just his stays don't really tell the whole story this year.

 

[HuGo Sham]

Of all the D-men drafted in this past draft how would you have them ranked? I know it’s very early but based off of what I have seen from each of them my top 10 would be
1. Hughes
2.Dobson
3.Wilde
4.Smith
5.Boqvist
6.Miller
7.Merkley
8.McIssac
9.Bouchard
10.Beaudin
HM: Bernard-Docker, Lundkvist, Alexeyev, Samuelson
-Also I am excluding Dahlin because he is obviously #1

no Romanov? ridiculous

 

[ChicagoHockeyFan]

This was a big draft for D for sure and I’m sure I’m gonna look back at this and think I’m an idiot. Sandin should have made mine as a HM or took Beaudin’s spot. After about the first 5 on my list it’s hard to separate the rest of the pack

 

[ChicagoHockeyFan]

no Romanov? ridiculous

I haven’t seen enough of Romanov, only WJC really and didn’t impress me too much there I think these guys will pan out better

 

[HuGo Sham]

I haven’t seen enough of Romanov, only WJC really and didn’t impress me too much there I think these guys will pan out better

well you're wrong

 

[ChicagoHockeyFan]

well you're wrong

Good reasoning!

 

[avsfan09]

Sandin has the highest PPG of any 18 year old D man, in the AHL of all time. Nearly double that of Hampus Lindholm for example. I'm not making the argument that he should be ranked above anyone, but he should be on the list. He's having a very good year.

Isn't he 19?

 

[Llamamoto]

It’s not all about PPG obviously. Bouchard is 10 months older than Boqvist.
-Bouchard is at .3 goals a game (12 in 40 games), and Boqvist is at .38 goals a game (19 in 50 games)
-I have watched multiple London games and Boqvist has a better toolbox than Bouchard. Both are very smart players, Boqvist has a huge advantage in skating, Bouchard has a slight advantage in his shot. The D for both of them seems to be a bit shaky but Boqvist can stay with his man better and has a better gap.
-Overall Bouchard’s skating is a real issue for me with the modern NHL, he will still be a solid D but IMO Boqvist’s upside is way higher

Bouchard will bust hard.

0 motor.

Low low defensive awareness

IMO people are sleeping a bit on Bouchard because of a poor few games in the World Juniors. Boqvist is a +14, Bouchard a +30. People who watch Knights games say that he can take over the game better than anyone else in the league. He is leading the league in ppg for defensemen.

And his skating is underrated. He has the Draisaitl 'lazy look' but actually has a decent motor.

 

[ConnorMcMullet]

Wow, Bouchard is getting totally slept on in this thread.

I don't love +-, but Bouchard is a +30 and Boqvist a +14 on the same team. Bouchard has a better ppg too. Ask any Knights fan, Bouchard is the clear-cut better defenseman right now. Far more dominant.

Rankings:

Dahlin

Hughes
Bouchard/Dobson
Boqvist/Smith

Miller
Wilde

McIsaac
Merkley
Bernard-Docker
Beaudin
Sandin
Alexeyev

 

[Kshahdoo]

Good reasoning!

He was named the best defenseman of the tournament, wasn't he? Not saying about leading all defensemen in points, but people care about points only when points support their agendas...

 

[Havre]

Not only true for Boqvist, but I think it is worth keeping in mind he moved to a new country with different rink sizes at the age of 18. I can only imagine me at 18 moving to NA to play hockey. Not surprising that you need some time to settle in.

Personally I ranked Boqvist pre-draft as the 2nd best D. But I expected him to be more of a long-term project. At the moment he is far ahead of what I expected in terms of production (not that I'm much of an expert). So not surprised when some have Boqvist high even if there are some outproducing him at the moment.

 

[FlyguyOX]

Wilde and Miller definitely both in the top 5.

Wilde top non-overager defenseman in OHL.
Miller on PPG pace as freshman in NCAA until suffering injury

 

[FlyguyOX]

Boqvist is a +14, Bouchard a +30.

Well NOW I'm convinced. Very enlightening!

 

[izlez]

Sandin has the highest PPG of any 18 year old D man, in the AHL of all time.

sample size of 3.




one of which was Liljegren, who we heard the same crap about last year.

 

[newfy]

Of all the D-men drafted in this past draft how would you have them ranked? I know it’s very early but based off of what I have seen from each of them my top 10 would be
1. Hughes
2.Dobson
3.Wilde
4.Smith
5.Boqvist
6.Miller
7.Merkley
8.McIssac
9.Bouchard
10.Beaudin
HM: Bernard-Docker, Lundkvist, Alexeyev, Samuelson
-Also I am excluding Dahlin because he is obviously #1

Bouchard is WAAYY too low on this list. You dont like his defensive game but would have him below guys like Merkley and WIlde? Wilde is way too high as well. Hes having a really good year but he was always a guy who wuld light up junior. He fell because he isnt much of a defensive player and gets by on really good athleticism. He should be more like 10th, theres a reason the USA didnt take him to the world juniors this year. Merkley sam thing. Hes flashy offensively but that doesnt mean hes any more effectiv than guys who produce a traditional way. Hes a train wreck defensively, is an asshole of a teammate and really isnt that productive numbers wise this year. He should be an HM at best. Sandin is missing somewhere in the 7-HM range as well

Why? Mcisaac leads the qmjhl in dman ppg

Hes 0.03 points per game off the lead of the entire CHL for dmen. Hes having an extremely good year and living up to his pre-draft year hype

Jett Woo should be on every list

Woo should be on these lists but he should be low on them. Maybe even only an HM. It was a really good draft for dmen and playing with Brook is definitely helping him. Every guy in the top ten of this list is the number one dman on their team or a top 8 draft pick (Boqvist)

 

[Nocashstyle]

Wilde and Miller definitely both in the top 5.

Wilde top non-overager defenseman in OHL.
Miller on PPG pace as freshman in NCAA until suffering injury

Assuming you have Dahlin #1, which of Boqvist, Smith, Hughes, Bouchard, and Dobson are they replacing? I don’t see it

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Isn't he 19?

Today is his birthday so yeah I guess lol.

 

[Daximus]

Anytime I watch Moose Jaw I can't help but notice that Brook always takes the more difficult matchups allowing Woo to play softer competition. And that Jett Woo gets a lot of secondary assists after giving it to Brook on the line during PPs to make a play. Not saying he isn't going to be good, it's just his stays don't really tell the whole story this year.

It's situational. Brook is typically the guy out there when the Warriors are down a goal and gets a lot more offensive opportunities. His game carries a lot of offensive risk with it and because of that he is often the guy the Warriors want out there for a spark. Woo takes on the much more defensive matchups. If the Warriors are defending a lead Woo will see the ice in more testing situations. Especially in the defensive zone. Woo is by far the better penalty killer as well. They each have their strengths and their utilization depends on the situation. When Brook left for the WJC Woo stepped up and kept the Warriors in the playoff race and was over PPG during that stretch. Ask any Warrior fan and they will tell you that Woo is probably the more dependable dman. Wheras Brook is the guy you want on the ice when you need a goal. Kid comes up big a lot.

 

[FlyguyOX]

Assuming you have Dahlin #1, which of Boqvist, Smith, Hughes, Bouchard, and Dobson are they replacing? I don’t see it

Dahlin
Hughes
Miller
Bouchard
Wilde

Reality is that Boqvist hasn't been good this season by any measure, Smith is still hampered by his size, Dobson has not had an exceptional season and hasn't shown much improvement.