HF Habs: 2023 NHL Draft part 2

[GlassesJacketShirt]

Basu is on the shitlist for that article. Thinly disguised propaganda piece.

 

[Doublechin]

Very little upside, do we even get a single 2nd line/2nd pair with this draft?

I have Leonard as a can't miss 1st liner, I see Nelson as being a late first and a player that can help win hard fought games while being a middle of the lineup forward and Strbak can definitely be a very solid right shot and a number 4

 

[The Great Weal]

I can't see how you tell the world you will take the most talented player and pass on Michkov.

 

[Skip Bayless]

I keep telling you guys, when the beat reporters keep giving their 'opinion' on why certain players don't belong in Montreal it's pretty much a comm. operations by the org.

They work hand in hand with the communications department in exchange for extra access to the team.

Arpon is going to publish an article about going to lunch with Caufield and chatting about life sometime next season. It will be thanks to stuff like this.

 

[Kennerback]

I can't see how you tell the world you will take the most talented player and pass on Michkov.

They can’t and won’t. If they want to really spin it, they can say: Habs are proud to have drafted the 3rd most talented player on the first line of the U18 gold winning team.

 

[Twisted Sinister]

Prepare yourself for Leonard being the pick, with Michkov available. I think that's the right decision. Michkov will be in the NHL in 3 years and will put up a lot of points shortly after. The fans will be on HuGo's backs forever for not picking him. However, point totals and pretty plays do not necessarily equal being effective or impactful on the ice. Leonard fits like a glove of what HuGo are trying to build: fast, strong, character and skills. Yes, the skills are there with Leonard, even though they are not at the level of Michkov. However, he also brings aspects to the game that are not very strong in Michkov. Leonard will play as a 6ft 205lbs wrecking ball, scoring some of the most important goals needed to win a hockey game.

Sometimes, a Gallagher type player does better than a Drouin, Galchenyuk, and Kostitsyn-type. I'm not saying that Leonard is Gallagher or that Michkov is like the other three. I'm just saying that there is more than skills to the game.


HuGo have been really, really good so far. If they pick Michkov, I will support them. If they don't pick him, I will support them as well.

Yes, Kucherov and Kane were useless to their f***ing teams in the playoffs.

 

[Andrei79]

Yes, Kucherov and Kane were useless to their f***ing teams in the playoffs.

Do you think they would pass over Michkov for hockey related reasons ? Like they're saying: hey this guy is Kane or Kucherov, let's pass him over for TJ Oshie ! He's been the unanimous guy at 2 for two years, yet we all agree there's no chance he gets picked there. The Habs aren't the only ones that are being wary here.

 

[Doublechin]

Prepare yourself for Leonard being the pick, with Michkov available. I think that's the right decision. Michkov will be in the NHL in 3 years and will put up a lot of points shortly after. The fans will be on HuGo's backs forever for not picking him. However, point totals and pretty plays do not necessarily equal being effective or impactful on the ice. Leonard fits like a glove of what HuGo are trying to build: fast, strong, character and skills. Yes, the skills are there with Leonard, even though they are not at the level of Michkov. However, he also brings aspects to the game that are not very strong in Michkov. Leonard will play as a 6ft 205lbs wrecking ball, scoring some of the most important goals needed to win a hockey game.

Sometimes, a Gallagher type player does better than a Drouin, Galchenyuk, and Kostitsyn-type. I'm not saying that Leonard is Gallagher or that Michkov is like the other three. I'm just saying that there is more than skills to the game.


HuGo have been really, really good so far. If they pick Michkov, I will support them. If they don't pick him, I will support them as well.

I think Pronman had implied that if the Hawks stayed at 4 they would have most likely taken Leonard there, he isn't the reach most make him seem to be if he goes at 5

 

[Twisted Sinister]

Do you think they would pass over Michkov for hockey related reasons ? Like they're saying: hey this guy is Kane or Kucherov, let's pass him over for TJ Oshie ! He's been the unanimous guy at 2 for two years, yet we all agree there's no chance he gets picked there. The Habs aren't the only ones that are being wary here.

Yes, the reason other teams might pass on him is because there are franchise/star players available that probably would have gone first in last year's draft (and many other drafts) available specifically in the top 5.

Once you leave the top 5, those players all have concerning flaws that might not make them NHL-translatable at the highest level. At that point, you really have to take the player remaining from the 5 to make this shitty season worth it.

 

[Andrei79]

Yes, the reason other teams might pass on him is because there are franchise/star players available that probably would have gone first in last year's draft (and many other drafts) available specifically in the top 5.

Once you leave the top 5, those players all have concerning flaws that might not make them NHL-translatable at the highest level. At that point, you really have to take the player remaining from the 5 to make this shitty season worth it.

There's legitimate talk of Will Smith being picked ahead of Michkov. There's absolutely no world where a player like him, as good as he is, would be picked ahead of a player like Michkov if not for the current world situation. This isn't a Habs specific thing. If Michkov falls to the Canadiens, at least one team has decided they would rather pick someone obviously less talented.

 

[Twisted Sinister]

There's legitimate talk of Will Smith being picked ahead of Michkov. There's absolutely no world where a player like him, as good as he is, would be picked ahead of a player like Michkov if not for the current world situation. This isn't a Habs specific thing. If Michkov falls to the Canadiens, at least one team has decided they would rather pick someone obviously less talented.

Sure, but there are tiers of "less talented." The top 5 is one tier and then there's a significant dropoff in my opinion. There's much more risk in 6-10 not panning out at the highest level than this weird notion that Michkov might not come over (which we've yet to see from a Russian at all, mind you.)

 

[Mrb1p]

I have Leonard as a can't miss 1st liner, I see Nelson as being a late first and a player that can help win hard fought games while being a middle of the lineup forward and Strbak can definitely be a very solid right shot and a number 4

Theres no way Leonard is a cant miss 1st liner. Thats pure overrating him.

He went from a guy I would go to bat for any day at 10 to a cant miss 1st liner and he didnt even play games.

Nelson is nice but hes more of the same, hes like Beck, hes like Rohrer, hes like Mesar. He does a lot of thing right and plays hard and will "help you win".

Meanwhile the Habs wont score more than two goals a game in a 12 goals a game league.

 

[SOLR]

Yes, the reason other teams might pass on him is because there are franchise/star players available that probably would have gone first in last year's draft (and many other drafts) available specifically in the top 5.

Once you leave the top 5, those players all have concerning flaws that might not make them NHL-translatable at the highest level. At that point, you really have to take the player remaining from the 5 to make this shitty season worth it.

Nobody in the top 8 has "concerning flaws" this year - flaws yes, but the degree is much less than last year.

 

[Vachon23]

 

[MarkovsKnee]

Columbus has already said they're taking a center, so not possible.

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

I keep telling you guys, when the beat reporters keep giving their 'opinion' on why certain players don't belong in Montreal it's pretty much a comm. operations by the org.

They work hand in hand with the communications department in exchange for extra access to the team.

Arpon is going to publish an article about going to lunch with Caufield and chatting about life sometime next season. It will be thanks to stuff like this.

They very clearly didn't do that last year when it wouldve made a lot of sense to do it with them having the 1st overall pick and the draft being in the bell center.
No reason to believe thats what they are doing with Michkov.

 

[Locks]

I usually enjoy reading Basu's article, but man the lack of actual arguments in this article is baffling.

Legit the only valid criticism I can see is that Habs wouldn't be able to control Michkov's development. But he didn't think of maybe name-dropping Panarin or Kaprizov as an example? Did they turn out bad because Chicago or MIN couldn't control their development?

When he says that Michkov is uninterested in playing defense, he didn't want to say that most junior offensive players are also not interested in playing defense, but learn it in the NHL? He's never going to be a good defensive player, but as long as he's way more +EV, then that shouldn't matter as much, especially if you can insulate him with better defensive players.

Last thing is his "we shouldn't draft Michkov cause we already have Caufield." Does that mean we shouldn't have drafted Bedard if we had the 1st pick as well? We've been starving for offensive players forever, but now because they're small we won't draft them?? Don't you think that we can insulate them with our bigger players like Dach and Slaf? Didn't we just draft Slaf cause that would mean we didn't need to draft for size in future drafts?

Excellent point. That's such a short sighted, narrow view that I can't believe Arpon, that I always liked, came up with this. As you said, the acquisition of Slaf and Dach will go a long way in providing balance up front. Then there is Heinenman in a likely top 9 role as well as very likely addition of PLD. And if Arpon had done a little more research, he would've seen Tampa going to the finals three years in a row and winning in two of them with rather small but very talented top 6 and unprecedented centreline featuring 3 players at 5-10 or smaller. And before that, he would've noticed that Pitt had only two forwards over 6' in their top 9 and none of them resembling a PF.

Now I can totally understand the geopolitical issues that may make teams hesitant, but the size issue is just a very poor argument.

 

[Skip Bayless]

They very clearly didn't do that last year when it wouldve made a lot of sense to do it with them having the 1st overall pick and the draft being in the bell center.
No reason to believe thats what they are doing with Michkov.

Picking Slaf didn't require a public relations intervention as in trading PK, or in this case not picking Michkov.

 

[WentWughes]

I hope we have the same philosophy this coming draft. This in my mind is always how the draft should be approached and stated by one of the better hockey minds in the NHL. Just a shame we had to deal with Trevor Timmons and his garbage picks for years, bizarre how long of a leash he got after getting lucky in 2007. Players like Tinordi, McCarron, DeLaRose, Lernout, Tuch, and Crisp should have never been selected. Even if they did hit their full potential players like that are relatively easily acquired. Even a pick like Leonard would be depressing, maybe controversial to some but his floor is a 3rd line 2way player, if we pass on Michkov for him that would ultra frustrating.

 

[SlafySZN]

Arpon last year during the combine said he wouldn’t be surprised to see the habs take Slaf, and it happened. He knows some more than us.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Excellent point. That's such a short sighted, narrow view that I can't believe Arpon, that I always liked, came up with this. As you said, the acquisition of Slaf and Dach will go a long way in providing balance up front. Then there is Heinenman in a likely top 9 role as well as very likely addition of PLD. And if Arpon had done a little more research, he would've seen Tampa going to the finals three years in a row and winning in two of them with rather small but very talented top 6 and unprecedented centreline featuring 3 players at 5-10 or smaller. And before that, he would've noticed that Pitt had only two forwards over 6' in their top 9 and none of them resembling a PF.

Now I can totally understand the geopolitical issues that may make teams hesitant, but the size issue is just a very poor argument.

FWIW - He did do this analysis.

 

[Bombshell11]

Columbus has already said they're taking a center, so not possible.

Yeah... and now with Babcock they're almost 100% going to go with Carlsson.

But in a scenario where they don't go with Carlsson i could see them picking Reinbacher.

After all its all about development. If you think you can develop Reinbacher to be a top 5 defender in the league, it's a shot worth taking.

 

[Redux91]

Yeah... and now with Babcock they're almost 100% going to go with Carlsson.

But in a scenario where they don't go with Carlsson i could see them picking Reinbacher.

After all its all about development. If you think you can develop Reinbacher to be a top 5 defender in the league, it's a shot worth taking.

Columbus picked RD David Jiricek 6th overall last year.
So, Lol.
Don't think they're taking a SWING at 3 on ol Reiny this year fellas..

 

[Hannibal]

This is getting out of hand lol.

Complete BS

 

[Seb]

This is getting out of hand lol.

Complete BS

There's still time to hop on the Reinbacher train. Don't be late!