2024 Draft Thread - Friday June 28 and Saturday June 29 - Sphere Las Vegas

[Amadeus]

Wrong draft year... that was last year.

His brother Cole is draft eligible this year and many project him as potentially better.

 

[DragoGrizzly]

His brother Cole is draft eligible this year and many project him as potentially better.

Speaking of Cole, I wonder why he’s not getting talked about very much. Especially since he broke the record for most points by a d-man in the USNDTP surpassing his brother. Is it just the size thing like it was with his brother?

 

[Amadeus]

Speaking of Cole, I wonder why he’s not getting talked about very much. Especially since he broke the record for most points by a d-man in the USNDTP surpassing his brother. Is it just the size thing like it was with his brother?

He's taller apparently at his age than Lane Hutson.

He will rise.

 

[Peasy]

His brother Cole is draft eligible this year and many project him as potentially better.

That was true before this year started, but I havent really seen anyone say this as the years played out. He'll be gone in the 2nd. Wouldnt take him at 23.

 

[Peasy]

Speaking of Cole, I wonder why he’s not getting talked about very much. Especially since he broke the record for most points by a d-man in the USNDTP surpassing his brother. Is it just the size thing like it was with his brother?

Lane scored more points during their draft year. Cole outproduced him in the u18s.

 

[Fonzieleaf]

The more I hear about EJ Emery the more I think he will be a good fit for us if Solberg is gone before 23. He's a true shut down D man who skates like the wind. 6'3 and around 200 pounds, the guy is jacked. There are 15 drills in total. He was in the top 10 in 8 drills, top 5 in 7 drills, and 1st in 4 drills (body fat %, horizontal jump, vertical jump, and no arm vertical jump). He is probably the best conditioned prospect. He's considered the best rush defender in the draft by dobberprospects. Also an adequate cycle defender. Loves to hit but is not always looking for the big one; he picks and chooses wisely. His offensive production isn't the greatest but he still managed 16 points (all assists) in 61 games for the NTDP and had 6 assists in 7 games in the Under 18's (Cole Hutson was his partner).

Would be a great option, especially considering that Tre has made it clear we are looking for big, strong, shut down D for playoff style hockey.

 

[Fonzieleaf]

His brother Cole is draft eligible this year and many project him as potentially better.

Not these days. Lane is more flashy and assertive with the puck. Cole is still good as I believe he is more cerebral with his offence. However his defending is a real concern.

 

[stats1]

The more I hear about EJ Emery the more I think he will be a good fit for us if Solberg is gone before 23. He's a true shut down D man who skates like the wind. 6'3 and around 200 pounds, the guy is jacked. There are 15 drills in total. He was in the top 10 in 8 drills, top 5 in 7 drills, and 1st in 4 drills (body fat %, horizontal jump, vertical jump, and no arm vertical jump). He is probably the best conditioned prospect. He's considered the best rush defender in the draft by dobberprospects. Also an adequate cycle defender. Loves to hit but is not always looking for the big one; he picks and chooses wisely. His offensive production isn't the greatest but he still managed 16 points (all assists) in 61 games for the NTDP and had 6 assists in 7 games in the Under 18's (Cole Hutson was his partner).

Would be a great option, especially considering that Tre has made it clear we are looking for big, strong, shut down D for playoff style hockey.

Also when is the last time we had a legit D prospect to get excited about? Lilly? Like we scream about improving our D but at some point we should address that in house. EJ would a nice addition to the prospect pool

 

[Fonzieleaf]

Also when is the last time we had a legit D prospect to get excited about? Lilly? Like we scream about improving our D but at some point we should address that in house. EJ would a nice addition to the prospect pool

We haven't drafted a D with our first pick since Sandin in 2019. He's gone and Lily I don't think is going to be here much longer. So yes we need a legit D prospect.

 

[darrylsittler27]

So because the Leafs don't have a 2nd round pick, they would select a lower ranked player on their list over a higher ranked one

Letourneau. We need dmen. So, yes, not having a second is potentially bad. I see a bunch of would be firsts slipping through. How do you resist a 6ft 6 Cman Tage deux? Or a Cole Hutson? Just saying.

 

[darrylsittler27]

Also when is the last time we had a legit D prospect to get excited about? Lilly? Like we scream about improving our D but at some point we should address that in house. EJ would a nice addition to the prospect pool

When you are 23 you truly take what falls. Yes we need dmen and C. But if yet another 40 to 50 goal winger falls? They interviewed Eiserman, if that guy falls, trade up.Toronto needs dmen and C but don't have the draft capital.

 

[ULF_55]

When you are 23 you truly take what falls. Yes we need dmen and C. But if yet another 40 to 50 goal winger falls? They interviewed Eiserman, if that guy falls, trade up.Toronto needs dmen and C but don't have the draft capital.

This draft is unlikely to help for 2-3 years, especially on defense, so BPA.

Any defenseman this year isn't going to solve any problems before Matthews is UFA again.

 

[Scion]

Speaking of Cole, I wonder why he’s not getting talked about very much. Especially since he broke the record for most points by a d-man in the USNDTP surpassing his brother. Is it just the size thing like it was with his brother?

He is a little big bigger than his brother and better defensively, but despite the point totals he is not as dynamic as Lane.

 

[chamchibap]

What? If you haven't watched them play that's fine but don't say they can't move the puck when that's just not true at all. Emery definitely needs to get better with the puck but Elick can move the puck just fine. Both are good skaters and already sound defensively and on the PK. That alone makes their floor higher than most. I wasn't too high on either a while ago but Elick has grown on me and Emery I won't act like I know too much about because I've seen very little of him but his reach and defensive game is already very good.

Elick on the other hand probably has a higher ceiling because he has shown already he has some offensive potential. His team wasn't great this year but next year they should be pretty damn good and Elick will be the #1D most likely and possibly playing on the PP. So he'll be in the perfect situation to get better offensively.

Friej is just like a lot of other defenders like him. Good skaters but if they aren't producing offece they aren't really doing much of anything. He's weak on the puck and we see players like that all the time not have a good career in the NHL. I wouldn't be mad with picking him because I do like him but is he really better just because his offensive game is better? I think I like the defender who can play defence better and can get better offensively over a guy who is better offensively and not a great defender. I also like Luchanko and wouldn't be mad with that pick.

Maybe I caught the wrong games, but neither Emery or Elick looked remotely skilled offensively. Emery seemed a little more explosive (could even just be the camera angles) but I don’t think there’s much separating the two. Both were making sort of reactionary and simple plays, which could be the product of coaching or teammate quality as well.

Defensively, the skating, size, and the competitiveness were great to see. At this point, think both are a level below the top tier guys in controlling the game, understanding the game and preventing plays, and playing with poise. But like you say, a little opportunity, growth in confidence and coordination/strength, these guys could be impact players. Tons of top 3 D are picked outside the top 15, could definitely happen with these two.

I think their floors are something similar to Benoit, which may sound bad but it’s valuable and playable in the playoffs. On the other hand, the floor for small offensive D who struggle on the defensive side (i.e Sandin) are unplayable. All that to say, I hope Stolberg is still available but wouldn’t mind Emery or Elick if our scouts see something they love. Might be able to trade back and still get one or both though

 

[Thornbury]

It may well be that the best option available at 23 will be a C, and it would be hard to argue if they could add a potential 2C.

 

[Peasy]

When you are 23 you truly take what falls. Yes we need dmen and C. But if yet another 40 to 50 goal winger falls? They interviewed Eiserman, if that guy falls, trade up.Toronto needs dmen and C but don't have the draft capital.

This draft must be crazy. First youre sayin we could get a Tage Thompson late first/early 2nd, and now youre say we could get a 40-50 goal scorer too. Sheesh, I wonder what the top 15 players are going to become if this is the case.

 

[darrylsittler27]

This draft is unlikely to help for 2-3 years, especially on defense, so BPA.

Any defenseman this year isn't going to solve any problems before Matthews is UFA again.

I sus

This draft must be crazy. First youre sayin we could get a Tage Thompson late first/early 2nd, and now youre say we could get a 40-50 goal scorer too. Sheesh, I wonder what the top 15 players are going to become if this is the case.

Louterneau a 6ft 6 C, is compared to Tage but could go say 32nd. Eiserman was interviewed by us and could very well be a 40 goal guy but not likely to fall to 23rd spot. I think its a good draft and we need a 2nd rounder.

 

[horner]

This draft is unlikely to help for 2-3 years, especially on defense, so BPA.

Any defenseman this year isn't going to solve any problems before Matthews is UFA again.

We have been saying this for 5 yrs we have one one rd.
We have no dman in the system , we have traded every pk to go for it , it hasn't worked out.
With what McDavid is doing shows that greatness can carry a team .
I have never seen mathews rise to these hieghts.
We need to build a defense.

or

Grab a forward with the most potential and trade one of our young players to grab said dman
Ljiligren
Robertson
Minten
Grebyonkin

 

[ULF_55]

We have been saying this for 5 yrs we have one one rd.
We have no dman in the system , we have traded every pk to go for it , it hasn't worked out.
With what McDavid is doing shows that greatness can carry a team .
I have never seen mathews rise to these hieghts.
We need to build a defense.

or

Grab a forward with the most potential and trade one of our young players to grab said dman
Ljiligren
Robertson
Minten
Grebyonkin

The problem we've never seen that from Matthews and it likely isn't in him.

So whatever they've done the past 5 years should be flushed. It's gone. Maybe Matthews is Ovechkin, and his career will be about chasing most goals, and a fluke Cup somewhere.

So grab the BPA for the future, not to fix Matthews.

 

[WTFMAN99]

The problem we've never seen that from Matthews and it likely isn't in him.

So whatever they've done the past 5 years should be flushed. It's gone. Maybe Matthews is Ovechkin, and his career will be about chasing most goals, and a fluke Cup somewhere.

So grab the BPA for the future, not to fix Matthews.

I don't know how to describe it but it felt like that team got a lot better when it became about more than just Ovechkin and friends, they genuinely had good players around him and good depth. Ovechkin didn't have a playoff like McDavid is having, he was just consistently good and they had other guys step up with some big performances too.

The problem is the Leafs haven't had the $$ to surround the top end guys with additional depth because so much was going to only 4 guys. They never pivoted off this and until they do, there will be no success.

 

[weems]

I wonder if Montreal would think about drafting this kid at #5 or that might just be too early.

Either way, he's got some of the best hands I've seen.

https://x.com/i/web/status/1804156720526299217

 

[Kiwi]

Not going to lie

Eiserman scares the crap out of me, he's got a great shot on him but he's been slowly falling on a lot of public draft boards and we have shoot first centers

I'm not sure that's a great mix

 

[WTFMAN99]

Not going to lie

Eiserman scares the crap out of me, he's got a great shot on him but he's been slowly falling on a lot of public draft boards and we have shoot first centers

I'm not sure that's a great mix

How do we feel about Alfons Freij?

He could be an option for us.

I feel like we're at the spot where we can get a little lucky with 1-2 guys dropping to us.

 

[chamchibap]

Is there a plausible scenario we could trade back and draft Emery or Elick and another between Shuravin or Pulkkinen? That would totally change our D pipeline

 

[PROUD PAPA]

Is there a plausible scenario we could trade back and draft Emery or Elick and another between Shuravin or Pulkkinen? That would totally change our D pipeline

It could very well be one of those years that trading back is successful. I see more serious discrepancies in the rankings than usual which could lead to teams still seeing their guy available at 23 and wanting to secure him. Of course that could happen any year but the volatility in this drafts rankings suggests to me a higher potential for a solid trade back option than other years.