Playmaker09
Registered User
- Sep 11, 2008
- 3,519
- 1,816
With all hockey events over, here is my final 37 with player comps.
While the comps initially focused more on style (ie. Taylor Hall for Fantilli), I transitioned to a more role-centric criteria based off position/most likely outcome/build/strengths as I went along, as I had a harder time justifying a comp of Jake Guentzel for Nick Lardis for example when I have him ranked outside the first round. It just seemed less useful.
Within tiers, I typically valued low-risk/high-likelihood over swinging for the fences and had C>D>W.
A 1W is what I would want a top winger on a team to be, likely paired with a 1C. A 2W is what I would want the second best winger on a team to be, either flanking the 2C or the third member of one of the best 1st lines in the league.
Typically, I would consider the top 3 Cs, top 2 Ws, top 3 Ds and 1G as the core of the team. Complementary top 6 W and 4D also hold some value, but no one whose most likely outcome is something beneath that would ever be in my first round (or in this case 37).
I do not value two-way Ds in the top 10 (in general, although there are some weak draft years where it's fine) as some others may. Draft picks are scarce resources and in order to build a cup winning team, you will need to find some core players outside the first round. I feel much more confident in finding a quality two-way D (and goaltenders) in rounds 2-4 than I do any other core forward, so the forwards are much more prized early on.
There were no goaltenders in this draft that I evaluated as having a true 1G resume. Plenty of nice swings to take in rounds 2-3, especially if we can obtain additional picks (ie. not pick 37).
As I mentioned last year as well, my preferred choice would not be to draft at our current position.
Last year my decision would have been to trade down to 4-5 and pick whichever of the two D's were available. Assuming we were compensated with the 35th pick from Seattle to move down, my selections would have been Jiricek and Chesley as I believed much more confidently in the D crop last year than the forwards.
This year, I cannot stress enough the importance of moving up to 2 or 3. I would easily give up our 1st next year unprotected to move up two spots. Florida's pick, Calgary's pick, Mesar, Farrell, Anderson, possibly Matheson should all be in play as well. There are more than enough high-quality assets available to get it done, even at an exorbitant price, as this team's ceiling will forever be limited without the addition of a star caliber forward, and this is likely our last chance to obtain one. Failure to accomplish this would shine a clear light on the lack of vision from our management IMO and would greatly reduce my confidence in them.
Without further ado:
Generational
1 Connor Bedard (C) - Kane/Matthews
Franchise
2 Leo Carlsson (C/RW) - Draisaitl
3 Matvei Michkov (RW) - Kaprizov
1C
4 Adam Fantilli (C) - Hall/MacKinnon
Low End 1C / 1W / 1D
5 Zach Benson (LW) - Marchand
6 Ryan Leonard (RW) - Forsberg/Brown
7 Will Smith (C/RW) - Spezza
2C / 2W / 2D
8 Brayden Yager (C) - Carter/RNH
9 Oliver Moore (C) - Larkin
10 Dalibor Dvorsky (C) - Horvat
11 David Reinbacher (RD) - Pulock
12 Colby Barlow (LW) - Meier
13 Matthew Wood (RW) - Vanek
Middle 6 C / Top 6 W / 3D / 1G
14 Nate Danielson (C) - Danault
15 Calum Ritchie (C/RW) - Schenn
16 Anton Wahlberg (C/LW/RW) - Eriksson Ek
17 David Edstrom (C) - Jenner
18 Dmitri Simashev (LD) - Pelech
19 Tom Willander (RD) - Niskanen
20 Samuel Honzek (LW) - Hayes
21 Daniil But (LW/RW) - Franzen
22 Otto Stenberg (LW) - Perron
23 Gavin Brindley (C/RW) - Konecny
24 Riley Heidt (C) - Domi
25 Eduard Sale (RW) - Bailey
26 Jayden Perron (RW) - Jarvis
27 Gabe Perreault (LW) - Teravainen
3C / 4D / High-Risk
28 Gracyn Sawchyn (C) - Gourde
29 Oscar Fisker Mølgaard (C) - Cirelli
30 Danny Nelson (C/LW) - Berglund
31 Axel Sandin Pellikka (RD) - Boqvist
32 Tanner Molendyk (LD) - Jokiharju
33 Maxim Strbak (RD) - Hamonic
34 Quentin Musty (LW) - Batherson
35 Andrew Cristall (LW) - Granlund
36 Nick Lardis (RW) - Olofsson
37 Lukas Dragicevic (RD) - Shattenkirk
While the comps initially focused more on style (ie. Taylor Hall for Fantilli), I transitioned to a more role-centric criteria based off position/most likely outcome/build/strengths as I went along, as I had a harder time justifying a comp of Jake Guentzel for Nick Lardis for example when I have him ranked outside the first round. It just seemed less useful.
Within tiers, I typically valued low-risk/high-likelihood over swinging for the fences and had C>D>W.
A 1W is what I would want a top winger on a team to be, likely paired with a 1C. A 2W is what I would want the second best winger on a team to be, either flanking the 2C or the third member of one of the best 1st lines in the league.
Typically, I would consider the top 3 Cs, top 2 Ws, top 3 Ds and 1G as the core of the team. Complementary top 6 W and 4D also hold some value, but no one whose most likely outcome is something beneath that would ever be in my first round (or in this case 37).
I do not value two-way Ds in the top 10 (in general, although there are some weak draft years where it's fine) as some others may. Draft picks are scarce resources and in order to build a cup winning team, you will need to find some core players outside the first round. I feel much more confident in finding a quality two-way D (and goaltenders) in rounds 2-4 than I do any other core forward, so the forwards are much more prized early on.
There were no goaltenders in this draft that I evaluated as having a true 1G resume. Plenty of nice swings to take in rounds 2-3, especially if we can obtain additional picks (ie. not pick 37).
As I mentioned last year as well, my preferred choice would not be to draft at our current position.
Last year my decision would have been to trade down to 4-5 and pick whichever of the two D's were available. Assuming we were compensated with the 35th pick from Seattle to move down, my selections would have been Jiricek and Chesley as I believed much more confidently in the D crop last year than the forwards.
This year, I cannot stress enough the importance of moving up to 2 or 3. I would easily give up our 1st next year unprotected to move up two spots. Florida's pick, Calgary's pick, Mesar, Farrell, Anderson, possibly Matheson should all be in play as well. There are more than enough high-quality assets available to get it done, even at an exorbitant price, as this team's ceiling will forever be limited without the addition of a star caliber forward, and this is likely our last chance to obtain one. Failure to accomplish this would shine a clear light on the lack of vision from our management IMO and would greatly reduce my confidence in them.
Without further ado:
Generational
1 Connor Bedard (C) - Kane/Matthews
Franchise
2 Leo Carlsson (C/RW) - Draisaitl
3 Matvei Michkov (RW) - Kaprizov
1C
4 Adam Fantilli (C) - Hall/MacKinnon
Low End 1C / 1W / 1D
5 Zach Benson (LW) - Marchand
6 Ryan Leonard (RW) - Forsberg/Brown
7 Will Smith (C/RW) - Spezza
2C / 2W / 2D
8 Brayden Yager (C) - Carter/RNH
9 Oliver Moore (C) - Larkin
10 Dalibor Dvorsky (C) - Horvat
11 David Reinbacher (RD) - Pulock
12 Colby Barlow (LW) - Meier
13 Matthew Wood (RW) - Vanek
Middle 6 C / Top 6 W / 3D / 1G
14 Nate Danielson (C) - Danault
15 Calum Ritchie (C/RW) - Schenn
16 Anton Wahlberg (C/LW/RW) - Eriksson Ek
17 David Edstrom (C) - Jenner
18 Dmitri Simashev (LD) - Pelech
19 Tom Willander (RD) - Niskanen
20 Samuel Honzek (LW) - Hayes
21 Daniil But (LW/RW) - Franzen
22 Otto Stenberg (LW) - Perron
23 Gavin Brindley (C/RW) - Konecny
24 Riley Heidt (C) - Domi
25 Eduard Sale (RW) - Bailey
26 Jayden Perron (RW) - Jarvis
27 Gabe Perreault (LW) - Teravainen
3C / 4D / High-Risk
28 Gracyn Sawchyn (C) - Gourde
29 Oscar Fisker Mølgaard (C) - Cirelli
30 Danny Nelson (C/LW) - Berglund
31 Axel Sandin Pellikka (RD) - Boqvist
32 Tanner Molendyk (LD) - Jokiharju
33 Maxim Strbak (RD) - Hamonic
34 Quentin Musty (LW) - Batherson
35 Andrew Cristall (LW) - Granlund
36 Nick Lardis (RW) - Olofsson
37 Lukas Dragicevic (RD) - Shattenkirk
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