2023 NHL Entry Draft

[Habs Icing]

Sounds like Hughes stuck on size. Probably why he wouldn't trade Anderson and drafting of Slaf

And trading for Gurianov, Dach, Heinemen and Smilanic. But then on the other hand they drafted Hutson, Mesar, and Tourigny.

 

[morhilane]

Does Michkov have to do military duty? If he does he is non draft for me. Unless he slides to Florida pick

He has to, but he's signed with SKA, it's one of the KHL clubs that are part of the Russian army and players who do 2 years there are considered to have done their military duty (it has some light duties in the summer too). The players aren't going to be sent to the front unless the people in charge wants to punish them for something...

 

[Twisted Sinister]

I'll yell louder for the kids in the back.

Wilde was one of the people last year telling me his source close to Hughes had them taking Wright at 1.

He never walked it back. Not until Bob's list came out and he didn't even say his source said differently.

This whole thing is Grant saying they like who he likes. Hadi K jumping on it on Twitter thinking Grant has sources still and then Wilde commenting on it and running with it.

0 credibility to it. It's an assumption based on Grant who has no source ballooned by Twitter exchanges turned radio hit.

While I don't know much about Wilde's credibility one way or another (I've always found him OK in terms of being a Montreal sports personality), I really have to ask. Is this something that we can really put past Bobrov?

I really get the vibe from him that he wants to be the smartest guy in the room when he ain't that smart, and I think Gorton is definitely on board with whatever he's selling.

 

[RationalExpectations]

He has to, but he's signed with SKA, it's one of the KHL clubs that are part of the Russian army and players who do 2 years there are considered to have done their military duty (it has some light duties in the summer too). The players aren't going to be sent to the front unless the people in charge wants to punish them for something...

In my opinion this is why he signed his contract for the next 3 years.

 

[Hannibal]

I re-watched again game highlights from Dalibir Dvorsky and i honestly dont know why he’s so low on some list. His shot/shot release is elite. His implications is very good for a 17 years old against man. He throws his weight around a lot. His skating isn’t a red flag and against players of his group of age, he just flat out dominate.

 

[WeThreeKings]

I re-watched again game highlights from Dalibir Dvorsky and i honestly dont know why he’s so low on some list. His shot/shot release is elite. His implications is very good for a 17 years old against man. He throws his weight around a lot. His skating isn’t a red flag and against players of his group of age, he just flat out dominate.

The upside is capped unless he finds a way to create outside his shot. I think he's a great prospect but he's not a play creator. His handles are pretty average, his zone exits and entries aren't great, he doesn't manipulate defenses enough and his playmaking is pretty much the lane that is there, he doesn't work to create new ones.

I see him as a winger unless he improves in those areas.

 

[Hannibal]

The upside is capped unless he finds a way to create outside his shot. I think he's a great prospect but he's not a play creator. His handles are pretty average, his zone exits and entries aren't great, he doesn't manipulate defenses enough and his playmaking is pretty much the lane that is there, he doesn't work to create new ones.

I see him as a winger unless he improves in those areas.

I think he’s a winger too but that doesn’t mean the end of the world.

 

[Egresch]

The upside is capped unless he finds a way to create outside his shot. I think he's a great prospect but he's not a play creator. His handles are pretty average, his zone exits and entries aren't great, he doesn't manipulate defenses enough and his playmaking is pretty much the lane that is there, he doesn't work to create new ones.

I see him as a winger unless he improves in those areas.

He is not standard playmaking center, but he is very intriguing center. He can win faceoffs, worked hard to improve his defensive plays, plays more physical. He will complement very well with playmaking winger (someone like Mesar or Farrell). He will be in top 10. The plan with him for rest of season is: go to U18 WC and dominate offensively, most probably he will participate at mens WC as well.

 

[RationalExpectations]

The upside is capped unless he finds a way to create outside his shot. I think he's a great prospect but he's not a play creator. His handles are pretty average, his zone exits and entries aren't great, he doesn't manipulate defenses enough and his playmaking is pretty much the lane that is there, he doesn't work to create new ones.

I see him as a winger unless he improves in those areas.

He is a shooting center, sure not the typical playmaker but I don t see anyone complaining because Matthews is a shoot first center (not saying Dvorsky is Mattehws by any means). He is good defensively for his age, has a great shot, good faceoff…

 

[Jaynki]

So there is still the playoff to be played in all the junior and euro leagues.

There is still the combine and the interviews, the world cup, etc.

There has been, at most, preliminary talks about the draft list. Scouting meeting have barely started around the leagues.

On top of that, we don't f***ing know the draft spot and it may still vary quite a bit.

Meanwhile, f***ing Brian Wilde and f***ing Hadi Kalakeche knows where the habs are leaning.

Yeah sure, sounds very credible. If they actually had any real conversations with habs scouts, they have been played.

I remember on draft day, a dude said he met Chantal Machabée and he annoyed her to know who we would pick, to which she kindly answered it is gonna be Shane Wright.

Wilde things is the same burger.

 

[WeThreeKings]

He is a shooting center, sure not the typical playmaker but I don t see anyone complaining because Matthews is a shoot first center (not saying Dvorsky is Mattehws by any means). He is good defensively for his age, has a great shot, good faceoff…

Yeah he could be a good 2C. I'm aiming for higher and Matthew's might be a shoot first center but he still transitions the puck very well and gains the zone well, can control the puck well and sustain on the cycle.

Dvorsky is gonna be more limited to one touches and pulling pucks off walls.

 

[waitin425]

I remember when Matthew Barzal dropped in the 2015 draft to be selected 16th overall. Prior to his D season he was highly touted and believed to be a top 5 prospect for the draft. Reminds me of Yager.

Im eyeing him with Florida pick. Especially if we miss out on Bedard/Fantilli/Carlsson/Smith

One of Michkov/Benson

plus

Yager

would be great!

 

[Jaynki]

So Dvorsky, like Slaf is totally dominating peers of his age.

But like Slaf, he underproduced in a mens league. Dvorsky had a similar production but not in Liiga, in the f***ing Allsvenskan. He also did not have the stellar performance at the paralympic games and against Congo and North Korea in the world cup.

I can't wait to hear how many tier above he is than Slaf after his first rookie camp.

 

[Habsrule]

My top 15 as of today;

1- Bedard
2- Fantilli
3- Carlsson
4- Michkov (I have him as #2 in the draft but we all know why he slipped to #4)
5- Benson
6- Smith
7- Reinbacher
8- Cristall
9- Sale
10- Barlow
11- Dvorsky
12- Moore
13- Yager
14- Leonard
15- Wood

 

[le_sean]

Lets re-visit this in 7 games. The habs have by far the hardest schedule in the next 2 weeks. I think at best we do 2/14 points. On average the other 4 teams should do 6-10 pts each. That should be enough to put us 31st.

2nd choice overall is not completely improbable. We might also win that loterry too.

My question to you is... say we get 1st and 4th pick. Do you go Bedard + D or Bedard + Michkov. The reason why i say Michkov is because with Bedard in, the team can afford to use the 4th pick and gamble on Michkov, assuming Carlsson has been picked already and there's no russian ambargo from the NHL

You’re underselling how good the Habs look right now. They are losing, but none of the games are one-sided. It was 3-0 and 4-1 against Vegas and it almost ended up going to OT. Vegas is one of the best defensive teams in the league. I think many here are in for a surprise with how many points the Habs get in this gauntlet.

 

[le_sean]

So Dvorsky, like Slaf is totally dominating peers of his age.

But like Slaf, he underproduced in a mens league. Dvorsky had a similar production but not in Liiga, in the f***ing Allsvenskan. He also did not have the stellar performance at the paralympic games and against Congo and North Korea in the world cup.

I can't wait to hear how many tier above he is than Slaf after his first rookie camp.

You have to keep in mind a couple of things here. First of all, it’s a men’s league. Their goal is to win. They will not simply put 17/18 year olds in every favourable position because of draft hype. They will play vets. His development is not their concern.

Furthermore, for both Dvorsky and Slafkovsky, they have the added challenge of not just being young, but being young and foreign. A Finnish league will prioritize Finns and a Swedish league will prioritize Swedes.

It’s an uphill battle for both to get opportunities. Though we saw with Slaf that his team started giving him more chances and he was good in the playoffs in Liiga. Dvorsky? I guess we will find out.

 

[AHShadow]

Pronman just released his updated 2023 rankings. Definitely going for the clicks/discussions on Twitter.

@KevSkillz4 maybe you'll like this since he's ranking Nate Danielson so high.

2023 NHL Draft ranking: Connor Bedard is still No. 1, but who has moved up?

Connor Bedard tops Corey Pronman's March ranking of the top prospects at the 2023 NHL Draft.

theathletic.com

Rankings:
1. Connor Bedard
2. Matvei Michkov
3. Adam Fantilli
4. Leo Carlsson
5. Nate Danielson
6. William Smith
7. David Reinbacher
8. Danil But
9. Colby Barlow
10. Samuel Honzek
11. Dalibor Dvorsky
12. Brayden Yager
13. Zach Benson
14. Oliver Moore
15. Ryan Leonard
16. Eduard Sale
17. Dmitriy Simashev
18. Axel Sandin Pellikka
19. Matthew Wood
20. Tanner Molendyk
21. Gabriel Perreault
22. Quentin Musty
23. Calum Ritchie
24. Oliver Bonk
25. Mikhail Gulyayev
26. Charlie Stramel
27. Lukas Dragicevic
28. Bradly Nadeau
29. Maxim Strbak
30. Gavin McCarthy

 

[Doublechin]

You’re underselling how good the Habs look right now. They are losing, but none of the games are one-sided. It was 3-0 and 4-1 against Vegas and it almost ended up going to OT. Vegas is one of the best defensive teams in the league. I think many here are in for a surprise with how many points the Habs get in this gauntlet.

We need a demoralizing lost

Like a 7-0 soon because yea, you're right

 

[Jaynki]

You have to keep in mind a couple of things here. First of all, it’s a men’s league. Their goal is to win. They will not simply put 17/18 year olds in every favourable position because of draft hype. They will play vets. His development is not their concern.

Furthermore, for both Dvorsky and Slafkovsky, they have the added challenge of not just being young, but being young and foreign. A Finnish league will prioritize Finns and a Swedish league will prioritize Swedes.

It’s an uphill battle for both to get opportunities. Though we saw with Slaf that his team started giving him more chances and he was good in the playoffs in Liiga. Dvorsky? I guess we will find out.

100% agree.

 

[morhilane]

Pronman just released his updated 2023 rankings. Definitely going for the clicks/discussions on Twitter.

@KevSkillz4 maybe you'll like this since he's ranking Nate Danielson so high.

2023 NHL Draft ranking: Connor Bedard is still No. 1, but who has moved up?

Connor Bedard tops Corey Pronman's March ranking of the top prospects at the 2023 NHL Draft.

theathletic.com

Rankings:
1. Connor Bedard
2. Matvei Michkov
3. Adam Fantilli
4. Leo Carlsson
5. Nate Danielson
6. William Smith
7. David Reinbacher
8. Danil But
9. Colby Barlow
10. Samuel Honzek
11. Dalibor Dvorsky
12. Brayden Yager
13. Zach Benson
14. Oliver Moore
15. Ryan Leonard
16. Eduard Sale
17. Dmitriy Simashev
18. Axel Sandin Pellikka
19. Matthew Wood
20. Tanner Molendyk
21. Gabriel Perreault
22. Quentin Musty
23. Calum Ritchie
24. Oliver Bonk
25. Mikhail Gulyayev
26. Charlie Stramel
27. Lukas Dragicevic
28. Bradly Nadeau
29. Maxim Strbak
30. Gavin McCarthy

It's all about the size...

The lack of Cristall tells me Pronman talks to the same NHL scouts as Gabe Foley (RecruitScouting) and Cam Robinson (Elite Prospect) around ice rinks or Pronman reads these two on Twitter and saw their little conversation about how NHL scouts are really not high on Cristall compared to the "public scouts".

 

[Rusty7550]

I mean, Allsvenskan is not an easy league. Look at these Djurgardens boys (Lekkerimaki, Ostlund, Ohgren). They are year older, drafted already, playing for better club and that gap between them and Dvorsky is not big at all. He also performed better at the WJC.

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

We need a demoralizing lost

Like a 7-0 soon because yea, you're right

A blowout loss will just make the team want to compete harder the next game.

 

[Jaynki]

I mean, Allsvenskan is not an easy league. Look at these Djurgardens boys (Lekkerimaki, Ostlund, Ohgren). They are year older, drafted already, playing for better club and that gap between them and Dvorsky is not big at all. He also performed better at the WJC.

I totally agree.

My point is that such a big deal was made out of Slaf performance in Liiga, and his international performance and junior performance in the prior year were all being downplayed. I simply wanted to point the paradox with Dvorsky.

 

[jfhabs]

[TABLE=collapse]
[TR]
[TD]1) Connor Bedard (RC/RW, Canada, Regina WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]2) Matvei Michkov (RW, Russia, SKA St. Petersburg VHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]3) Adam Fantilli (LC, Canada, Michigan NCAA)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]4) Leo Carlsson (LC, Sweden, Orebro SHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]5) David Reinbacher (RD, Austria, Kloten NL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]6) Zach Benson (LW, Canada, Winnipeg WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]7) Andrew Cristall (LW/RW, Canada, Kelowna WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]8) Will Smith (RC, USA, NTDP U18)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]9) Riley Heidt (LW, Canada, Prince George WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]10) Matthew Wood (RW, Canada, Connecticut NCAA)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]11) Dalibor Dvorsky (LC/LW, Slovakia, AIK Allsvenskan)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]12) Colby Barlow (LW, Canada, Owen Sound OHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]13) Ryan Leonard (RW, USA, NTDP U18)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]14) Brayden Yager (RC, Canada, Moose Jaw WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]15) Eduard Sale (RW, Czechia, Kometa Brno Czechia)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]16) Samuel Honzek (LW/LC, Slovakia, Vancouver WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]17) Nate Danielson (RW, Canada, Brandon WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]18) Quentin Musty (LW, USA, Sudbury OHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]19) Lukas Dragicevic (RD, Canada, Tri-City WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]20) Alexander Rykov (RW, Russia, Chelmet Chelyabinsk VHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]21) Calum Ritchie (RC, Canada, Oshawa OHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]22) Koehn Zimmer (RW, Canada, Prince George WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]23) Nick Lardis RW, Canada, hamilton OHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]24) Oliver Moore (LC, USA, NTDP U18)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]25) Etienne Morin (LD, Canada, Moncton QMJHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]26) Jayden Perron (RW, Canada, Chicago USHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]27) Gabe Perreault (LW, USA/Canada, NTDP U18)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]28) Axel Sandin Pellikka (RD, Sweden, Skelleftea SHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]29) Ethan Gauthier (RW, Canada/USA, Sherbrooke QMJHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]30) Noah Dower Nilsson (LC, Sweden, Frolunda J20)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]31) Gavin Brindley (RW, USA/Canada, Michigan NCAA)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]32) Hunter Brzustewicz (RD, USA, Kitchener OHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]33) Maxim Strbak (RD, Slovakia, Sioux Falls USHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]34) Dmitri Simashev (LD, Russia, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl KHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]35) Alex Ciernik (LW/RW, Slovakia, Sodertalje Allsvenskan)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]36) Kasper Halttunen (RW/LW, Finland, HIFK Liiga)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]37) Otto Stenberg (LC/LW, Sweden, Frolunda SHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]38) Caden Price (LD, Canada, Kelowna WHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]39) Daniil But (LW/RW, Russia, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl KHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]40) Carson Rehkopf (LC/RW, Canada, Kitchener OHL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]


The mock draft had me rushing a bit to rank a few players, Im up to 75 but after 40 its very low on data and viewings, well too low for what I want it to be, at least.

My top 34 is solid, I don't think any of those guys are going down. Order might change from 23 to 34.

I really struggle with the whole Lardis, Moore, Brindley, Perrault, NDN and Perron rankings. Theyre all super close and I really struggle to chose one over the other. They all have similar-ish ceilings IMO, and similar size/play style. NDN stands out with his skating, but he may be the best passer of the rest after Perrault. Lardis is just electric and that is why I have him this high. He has the best tools overall I think. Brindley has a very good blend of all the skills needed to succeed, but he doesn't flash the elite offensive driver that I would want out of a small forward like him. His ceiling, and Moores are the highest for sure.

Perron is the most interesting one here though, he's a bit like NDN in the way he makes everyone better around him, he has a similar support game to Brindley and he can shoot it as good as Lardis. He has okay skating, but he is so small and his skating is only meh.

For all the talk about this being a "bad" draft for Ds, I really struggled to rank Ds here, I see a lot, lot of good candidates for 2nd round here. I really wish the Habs had more picks there to pickup the fallers.

What's your take on Nadeau and Dragecevic. I feel like these guys could be huge boom or bust projects in the early 2nd round for the Habs. I'd prefer gambling on Dragecevic because of roster composition and Nadeau smaller stature, but I feel like these are the type of gambles we need to take with so many picks and drafted prospects.

 

[Sterling Archer]

I’ve seen it in the past but wonder if anyone has seen it recently. It’s the scouting list, possibly Bobby Mac’s or NHL central scouting and how it’s failed vs. the actual NHL draft. If memory serves, the draft list faired better than the actual draft where teams went off the board, for the most part.

Honestly, if I ran an NHL team, I’d just go with the list and not try to over think it and go “off the board” and stay on the list that most scouts stuck by. Maybe move up or down a couple of spots depending on the player, need and outside forces, but overall I’d be really close to the main list and play it safe and hope for players to drop rather than overreach.