2024-25 San Diego Gulls/Tulsa Oilers

[ZegrassyKnoll]

Yeah, if someone told me right now that Nathan Gaucher would have as good of a career as Derek Grant has had, I would take it.

That seems like his upside and I personally have a problem with that. To each their own

There’s no way to say this without coming off as a dick but my advice would be to re-evaluate your expectations for a late first round pick.

A very small number of players will over perform and make you think that everyone else is hitting home runs in the late first round, but 90% of picks in that area are singles at best.

There hasn’t been a single high-performance player taken at 22OA since 2014, and that was Kapanen, who has never topped 44 points.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

There’s no way to say this without coming off as a dick but my advice would be to re-evaluate your expectations for a late first round pick.

A very small number of players will over perform and make you think that everyone else is hitting home runs in the late first round, but 90% of picks in that area are singles at best.

There hasn’t been a single high-performance player taken at 22OA since 2014, and that was Kapanen, who has never topped 44 points.

Draft pick number playing 100 NHL games or more:

That's a steep decline from pick #1 to pick #31.

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Draft pick number playing 200 games or more:

The decline is even steeper when identifying 200 NHL games played between pick #1 to #31.

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People cite how 1st round picks are valuable, but not realize the vast different in talent value between the top-3 picks, picks 4-10, picks 11-19, and picks 20+. There's less of a gamble with top-3 picks. The risk of missing out increases exponentially the further away you are from a top-3 pick until pick 40. Pick 40 is when the drop off changes from an exponential drop to a gradual drop.

Anaheim bucks the trend in defense and goalies.

• Current NHL roster has 4 drafted youths playing:
  • LD Minty (Rd 1, 10th OA)
    81 NHL games
  • LD/RD Zell (Rd 2)
    44 NHL games
  • LD/RD LaCombe (Rd 2)
    86 NHL games
  • RD Helleson (Rd 2, traded pick)
    7 NHL games

• Current NHL roster has both goalies drafted outside the first round:
  • G Dostal (Rd 3)
    80 NHL games
  • G Gibby (Rd 2)
    481 NHL games

Because the Ducks draft well at both defense and goal, they can afford to dedicate top-10 picks to forwards.

2019, 9th OA: C Zegras
2021, 3rd OA: C McTavish
2022, 5th OA: LW Cutter (trade for 2020 6th OA RD Drysdale)
2023, 2nd OA: C Carlsson
2024, 3rd OA: RW Senneck

With several finesse forwards draft in the top-10, Verbeek wanted more defensive-minded support players in 2022 C Gaucher and 2023 Rd2, 33rd OA LW Myatovic. Oddly, Verbeek's stance changed in 2024 with shorter, offensive-minded C Pettersson.

 

[AngelDuck]

There’s no way to say this without coming off as a dick but my advice would be to re-evaluate your expectations for a late first round pick.

A very small number of players will over perform and make you think that everyone else is hitting home runs in the late first round, but 90% of picks in that area are singles at best.

There hasn’t been a single high-performance player taken at 22OA since 2014, and that was Kapanen, who has never topped 44 points.

But the issue is that Gaucher’s best case scenario was never more than a 3rd line center. That was on draft night.

I don’t have a problem with a Perreault who had upside but just didn’t pan out

I have a huge problem with guys that have low upside and don’t pan out

I don’t know why we’re not allowed to criticize Madden’s bad picks and praise the good ones. He doesn’t walk on water, though he is above average I’d say

 

[shach1]

Pointless streaks:
Gaucher 12 games
Myatovic 10 games


If these picks are busts, it shortens are cup window when Terry ages out of his prime in 2030 or 2031.

Missed out on Kulich who scored the gwg against us yesterday, Danila Yurov and Jimmy Snuggurud. 3 top forward prospects rn by drafting Gaucher.

You can get a 4th line C anywhere.

We passed on Andrew Cristal with taking Mayatovic.

Leading scorer in the WHL.

I don't know why you would ever draft a player who basically has a third line ceiling.

Those are the easiest guys to find in FA.


Ritche Tracy Perault Mayatovic Gaucher

 

[ZegrassyKnoll]

But the issue is that Gaucher’s best case scenario was never more than a 3rd line center. That was on draft night.

I don’t have a problem with a Perreault who had upside but just didn’t pan out

I have a huge problem with guys that have low upside and don’t pan out

I don’t know why we’re not allowed to criticize Madden’s bad picks and praise the good ones. He doesn’t walk on water, though he is above average I’d say

Let me try to explain my perspective.

Every draft pick from 1 to 224 is a risk at some level, and it all comes down to the value of the pick vs. the risk-value of the player.

If Joe Schmoe is projected to go anywhere from 20th-40th, gets picked at 25th, and fails to pan out, that's not a bad pick - it's just statistics.

25OA is only a moderate-value pick, and his projection of going 20-40 is a moderate value player. If a GM had picked Schmoe at 10OA and he doesn't pan out, that's a bad pick - wasting a high value pick on a moderate value player.

Looking at our case:

Because of the value of the pick and the risk of the player, Sennecke has potential to be a bad pick. I happen to like taking a swing, but if he doesn't pan out I think it would be a fair criticism of Madden to say he should have gone with someone else.

But Gaucher was projected to go anywhere from 13th (yes, 13th) to 25th. Even if he doesn't pan out, a player that was projected to go 13-25, is picked at 22, and fails isn't really a pick worthy of critique.