2023 NHL Entry Draft

[ginomini]

People whining about Reinbacher just havent seen him play. Hes a surefire top 5 pick in any draft, wouldve had him in my top 4 last year.

Yeah I agree, not quite sure yet if I would have him ahead of Nemec, but for draft year alone surely ahead of Jiricek. So yeah would have been in my top 4 with Cooley and Wright in no particular order.

It's going to be fun to see Jiricek, Nemec and Reinbacher develop in the next few years. Very hard to tell who's going to stand out the most.

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

With Benson injury and his size, I expect him to drop out of the top 10...I think we should pick him if he's available with our Florida pick...though, we might decide to avoid him altogether because of Caufield, Farrell and Hudson in our future lineup...they may think that they have enough small guys.

Benson won't be dropping because of his injury. He should be expected to make a full recovery and he's played enough games to show what he is capable of.

 

[Toene]

We're finally at #5!

Hallelujah!

It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, and the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah....

HALLELUJAH! HALLELUJAH! HALLELUJAH! HALLELUUuUUUuUUUUuUUJAH!

 

[phillytennis]

Benson won't be dropping because of his injury. He should be expected to make a full recovery and he's played enough games to show what he is capable of.

Benson will fall because of his size...vulnerability to being injured as witnessed by the unfortunate injury that he sustained last week.

 

[Mrb1p]

Attitude problems
Defensive lapses
Selfish
Soff
The next Drouin
Individualiss

Lets get this going so Connor Bedass falls to 5, he's already a bust in my book.

(This is a great sequence for anyone that thinks Cristall, Benson, Michkov or Heidt are "bad" defensively. Theyre offensive forwards, you want them to be balls to the wall.)

Sure. But if you don't want it to continue, don't reply. Saying I'm derailing it and then giving your opinion that McAvoy is better is derailing it more. A weird stance to take where you say it's a derail but you continue to debate the opinion.

The point was you thinking Guhle was a number 1 and we don't have to really find someone better ASAP. I brought up Sergachev and McAvoy and it's not a thread derail like you think it is. It's player comparison in terms of if Guhle becomes a #1 or not and if we should be trying to draft someone better.

I have Reinbacher at 5 and am the main hype man for the player, it wasn't me.

 

[Habs Halifax]

I have Reinbacher at 5 and am the main hype man for the player, it wasn't me.

I was trying to find the post trail but then you replied again. Can you clarify this again? You have Reinbacker at 5 and am but it wasn't you?

 

[Egresch]

Hes a surefire top 5 pick in any draft, wouldve had him in my top 4 last year.

Before or after Nemec / Jiricek?

 

[Mrb1p]

Before or after Nemec / Jiricek?

On draft day, Nemec for sure, flip flop between Jiricek and Reinbacher but I think Jiricek before even with the injury. He would've been around Mintyukov.

 

[Team_Spirit]

A week end to forget for Bedard.

His cousin scored. Pats got dummied 7-0.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

A week end to forget for Bedard.

His cousin scored. Pats got dummied 7-0.

Only 15. Not eligible til 2026. Has 10 pts in 12 WHL games.

 

[SOLR]

Only 15. Not eligible til 2026. Has 10 pts in 12 WHL games.

He's the next one.

 

[GlassesJacketShirt]

I'd usually have an update to my list but truthfully, I've seen so little hockey in the past month due to exams and work and it is reflected in how little movement there's been in my rankings.

I'll make a few observations instead:

-Top 4 stays the same, but I'd put a premium on top 3 right now. I really like Leo Carlsson but I think Bedard, Michkov and Fantilli are easier projections to make at this point.

-Reinbacher is the safe pick at D, but I've warmed enough on Simashev to put him as my favorite. His lack of a deadly shot is what holds him back ATM, though I maintain he has the potential to be a top-flight, #1 all around D-man if he can improve that aspect. LOVE his defensive game.

-Oliver Moore's creativity isn't amazing. Part of me wants to push him out of the top 10 for this, but part of me also thinks he'd easily be part of a TOP 5 if he had that in spades. Conflicted on this one.

-Finally think I have a read on Yager and what I project him to be in the NHL. He's someone worth considering around pick #15 so long as a franchise does not put all their eggs in his basket.

 

[atrud66]

Haven't watched Yager at all in the WHL but one thing that stood out to me during the Top Prospects Game was how he kept waiting around for a teammate to win a puck battle and to get him the puck. In the Hlinka, he was playing with Bedard so he was constantly fed the puck and looked amazing with his shot and north/south game. I'd maybe consider him with the Florida pick but he needs to up his compete and willingness to win the puck.

 

[Hins77]

big skilled centers like Dach are much harder to find then defenders like Romanov

Big skilled forward are tough to find I agree. That why I think, Matthew wood is going to be pick up earlier.
However, for one big guy like Dach/wood, there is 5 small/medium size potential top 6 forward. I targeted them. Most of the time, Dman with potential are gonna be take upfront them.
That why I think Reinbacher can be pick upfront guys like yager, christall, moore etc.

 

[Naslund]

Big skilled forward are tough to find I agree. That why I think, Matthew wood is going to be pick up earlier.
However, for one big guy like Dach/wood, there is 5 small/medium size potential top 6 forward. I targeted them. Most of the time, Dman with potential are gonna be take upfront them.
That why I think Reinbacher can be pick upfront guys like yager, christall, moore etc.

Somebody will take Wood earlier than expected, and that team will be very happy.

 

[Mrb1p]

Haven't watched Yager at all in the WHL but one thing that stood out to me during the Top Prospects Game was how he kept waiting around for a teammate to win a puck battle and to get him the puck. In the Hlinka, he was playing with Bedard so he was constantly fed the puck and looked amazing with his shot and north/south game. I'd maybe consider him with the Florida pick but he needs to up his compete and willingness to win the puck.

Ive maintained that Yager is a perfect emulation of Patches. He plays exactly the same way and has exactly the same tools.

 

[atrud66]

Ive maintained that Yager is a perfect emulation of Patches. He plays exactly the same way and has exactly the same tools.................

Pretty good comp

 

[GlassesJacketShirt]

Haven't watched Yager at all in the WHL but one thing that stood out to me during the Top Prospects Game was how he kept waiting around for a teammate to win a puck battle and to get him the puck. In the Hlinka, he was playing with Bedard so he was constantly fed the puck and looked amazing with his shot and north/south game. I'd maybe consider him with the Florida pick but he needs to up his compete and willingness to win the puck.

I think he played against Bedard actually. Bedard outplayed him by quite a bit but didn't register on the scoresheet. Conversely, as much as I am not a Barlow fan, I admit he continued to show a penchant for creating his own scoring chances. Personally prefer someone who can do that for other players too, nevertheless it observable.

What I will say about Bedard: as amazing as he is, I'd love to be a fly in the room during the combine interviews. Perhaps as a function of his team, the kid has developed some awful habits that need to be cut out, and I wonder

 

[atrud66]

View attachment 668494


I think he played against Bedard actually. Bedard outplayed him by quite a bit but didn't register on the scoresheet. Conversely, as much as I am not a Barlow fan, I admit he continued to show a penchant for creating his own scoring chances. Personally prefer someone who can do that for other players too, nevertheless it observable.

What I will say about Bedard: as amazing as he is, I'd love to be a fly in the room during the combine interviews. Perhaps as a function of his team, the kid has developed some awful habits that need to be cut out, and I wonder

I was saying that he was super involved at the Hlinka when he was on a line with Bedard and was constantly being fed the puck. At the Top Prospects Game (not with Bedard), he seemed to be floating around a lot waiting for the puck to find him.

 

[montreal]

I’d be buzzed to get Rehkopf with our 2nd.

I'm not a big fan but at some point he gets interesting due to the size/skill mix.

 

[montreal]

I know you do already so much for us, prospect plebs, but is it possible for you to put some time stamps of goals and or notable sequence if you ever have more time for your next vids ?

Signed, your biggest fan MrB1P.

i'll look into it, shouldn't be too hard to figure out.

 

[GlassesJacketShirt]

I was saying that he was super involved at the Hlinka when he was on a line with Bedard and was constantly being fed the puck. At the Top Prospects Game (not with Bedard), he seemed to be floating around a lot waiting for the puck to find him.

I don't want to be that guy, but Bedard never played with Yager at the Hlinka.

Was it possible you meant Benson? Either way I agree that Yager plays a complimentary style that does not feel in line with a targeted top 10 pick.

For the record, I have Yager way down in the first round but don't think he is a a horrible option in the middle of the first round so long as organizational expectations are in line. I think Mrb1p's mentioned comparison to Pacioretty is finally the right comparison that really helped put everything into perspective: the MacKinnon and Bergeron name drops from hfboards and TSN, respectively, were driving me up the wall.

 

[atrud66]

I don't want to be that guy, but Bedard never played with Yager at the Hlinka.

Was it possible you meant Benson? Either way I agree that Yager plays a complimentary style that does not feel in line with a targeted top 10 pick.

For the record, I have Yager way down in the first round but don't think he is a a horrible option in the middle of the first round so long as organizational expectations are in line. I think Mrb1p's mentioned comparison to Pacioretty is finally the right comparison that really helped put everything into perspective: the MacKinnon and Bergeron name drops from hfboards and TSN, respectively, were driving me up the wall.

Lol you're totally right. But my point still stands. It seems that Yager needs to be surrounded with people who get him the puck which isn't ideal

 

[Jabba11]

With Florida's pick, I'd prefer Riley Heidt over Yager any day of the week. Think his motor and versatility just makes him a better player for us than Yager. Yager, I was not impressed at all this year.

 

[Draft]

I've seen quite a bit of him, and this board is sleeping on Dragicevic.

Great tools, good frame, good shot, smart plays at both ends, and loads of room for growth. Was a forward until a couple years ago and shows a lot of willingness to move up in the play. Fast, smart, and calm from what I've seen. I like that he's not trying to beat guys 1v1 offensively or rely too heavily on any single aspect of his game. Instead, he uses a lot of give and gos, gets his shot on net consistently, and just plain moves the puck. Very agile skater with an active stick - closes gaps and gets in lanes quickly. He's leading his team in points by a sizeable margin (over a PPG in the WHL) and facilitates a lot of good plays while he's on the ice. I see a very translatable skillset to the pros. On the other hand, not overly physical despite his good size and doesn't play a super flashy game. Despite pretty consistent reads but he's still refining his defensive game. Lots of growth potential here.

I think we see him rise before the draft. If he's available at 12 and we've missed out on Reinbacher, Dragicevic should be considered IMO.