Hrkac Circus
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Out of all those LD’s, surely one of them would be a “hit”.
Pre-Game Talk: 2024 Draft Thread
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Beauterham
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I rest my case
STL fan in MN
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Well…it is possible to do it without being all LD.I rest my case
Not sure that’s really any more realistic though…
just finished watching sweden-canada game from u18. initial thoughts:
as expected, sweden team nowhere near as good as last year's team. last year's team had AT LEAST 3 forwards and 3 defensemen who is better draft prospect than anyone on sweden's team this year.
canada's team is as interesting for who isn't there as who is. by my reckoning, 8 of the top 10 canadian prospects for this upcoming draft are missing from canada u18 team. yak is too old, celebrini has outgrown u18, dickinson, parekh, and sennecke are still playing in chl playoffs, hage was skipped over, and catton and lindstrom are sitting out with injuries.
to compensate for missing so many top guys, canada has gone young. and that seems like wise choice as the '26 draftee looks like best guy on team and several of the 25 were impressive too (particularly martone but also shafer).
of the draft eligible players, beaudoin i thought helped his cause the most. he was physical presence all over ice. iginla, greentree, and luchenko showed why they are highly regarded.
i didn't see any d that i would want to spend our 1st on, even if we dropped back a half dozen spots. mews, freij, and elick are i think all in conversation for 1st round but none looked like top 20 picks. mews and freij showed their wheels and puck skills, but both had their struggles. i'm not convinced mews is
quite as big as you want, and his decisionmaking/dumb penalites didn't endear him to me. freij's decisonsmaking with puck was scary and i'm not convinced he shows the level of defensive commitment you want either. elick is still too much of an adventure with puck for my tastes.
lsw i thought generally was best swedish d, but his size is definitely a liability. f marelli is another guy who plays nice game but is undersized (he isn't even my favorite marelli in this draft). bruneck and gill both have size and skating and skill combination you want, and their are times i think each is 1st round guy, but overall they both leave me wanting more. i think they each have another gear but it would be nice to see more hints of it as the tournament progresses.
as expected, sweden team nowhere near as good as last year's team. last year's team had AT LEAST 3 forwards and 3 defensemen who is better draft prospect than anyone on sweden's team this year.
canada's team is as interesting for who isn't there as who is. by my reckoning, 8 of the top 10 canadian prospects for this upcoming draft are missing from canada u18 team. yak is too old, celebrini has outgrown u18, dickinson, parekh, and sennecke are still playing in chl playoffs, hage was skipped over, and catton and lindstrom are sitting out with injuries.
to compensate for missing so many top guys, canada has gone young. and that seems like wise choice as the '26 draftee looks like best guy on team and several of the 25 were impressive too (particularly martone but also shafer).
of the draft eligible players, beaudoin i thought helped his cause the most. he was physical presence all over ice. iginla, greentree, and luchenko showed why they are highly regarded.
i didn't see any d that i would want to spend our 1st on, even if we dropped back a half dozen spots. mews, freij, and elick are i think all in conversation for 1st round but none looked like top 20 picks. mews and freij showed their wheels and puck skills, but both had their struggles. i'm not convinced mews is
quite as big as you want, and his decisionmaking/dumb penalites didn't endear him to me. freij's decisonsmaking with puck was scary and i'm not convinced he shows the level of defensive commitment you want either. elick is still too much of an adventure with puck for my tastes.
lsw i thought generally was best swedish d, but his size is definitely a liability. f marelli is another guy who plays nice game but is undersized (he isn't even my favorite marelli in this draft). bruneck and gill both have size and skating and skill combination you want, and their are times i think each is 1st round guy, but overall they both leave me wanting more. i think they each have another gear but it would be nice to see more hints of it as the tournament progresses.
kimzey59
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- Aug 16, 2003
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Having done this a few dozen times now(ok, maybe more) my biggest takeaway:
How did I completely forget that Satan Jr. was eligible this year?
Not that he's anything overly special(although, that size....) but the name value alone should have gotten my attention.
On a more serious note;
- If the actual draft goes anything like the simulator we should be able to stock up on D prospects. I don't think I've had more than a handful of runs without getting at least 3 really strong D prospects and I typically go with a forward in round 1(I'm not a fan of Yakemchuk or Mews).
-The sweet spot for goalies seems to be around the 100-120 mark. If we plan on taking a goalie(and we should be given that we haven't in a few years), we probably need to plan on using pick #97 to grab one.
there will likely be almost twice as many defenders selected in 1st round of nhl draft as nfl draft!
Drubilly
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Same here but I’ve seen both players ranked in the late 20s all the way into the late 50s in various mocks.
With the U18s and the playoffs, has any particular player or players moved up or down in your own personal opinion regarding the draft?
great question. i've been impressed with all 3 oshawa kids. i wouldn't mind taking sennecke, danford, and marelli in 1st 3 rounds. raoul boilard is another guy i've moved up after seeing more of him in playoffs. i could see him going in top 20.
at u18s best part so far has been chance to see the americans more extensively. i hadn't seen much of them this year, so relative to my expectations i think stiga has been really impressive.. emery has been strong (i don't understand why he isn't ranked higher). i see 4 1st rounders on us team (eisermen, emery, stiga, and connelly) along with a couple even better guys for next year.
for canada beaudoin and brunecke are 2 who have reallly outperformed my expectations. i knew they were good but they are both forcing their way into 1st round conversation. and schaeffer i've liked too as potential high pick next year. everyone else has largely been what i thought they were or even a bit disappointing (greentree, gill, mews) from what i expected.
those are only teams who i've seen twice, so i don't wanna slag anyone else based on 1 tough game against superior team. i will note that zetterburg always looks like top player when i watch him, so even though he is miniature i could see him going 2nd or 3rd. and while i have become leery of smaller d, galvas is really good. fwiw, haven't seen finns yet.
how about you?
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Beauterham
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Haven't watched too much U18's atm, but with my limited viewing I'd say Hemming might've moved up 2-3 spots. Linus Eriksson could probably go all the way up to early 2nd while Heikki Ruohonen could be a late 2nd/early 3rd.
Ow, and Eiserman will probably show up in the top-10 on more lists. Yes, he's a one trick pony, but that one trick is damn fine.
Drubilly
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I haven’t followed the U18s at all but I do feel the same regarding Emery. “How is this guy not a 1st rounder?” I mean a low 1st but still…
There are real questions about his offensive upside. Size, Skating are all there, but...
I like Stiga a lot, but he is small. In person, visibly so. he is all over the ice, but there are some legit concerns about his size.
STL fan in MN
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Generally agree that the talent level this year doesn’t match last year…at least in terms of the guys that are draft eligible this summer. The guys that’ll be in the 2025 and 2026 drafts have really shined in this tourney.
Freij and LSW haven’t looked as good as I’ve expected but some of the Swedish forwards have looked better than I expected. Zetterberg is clearly the most talented but he’s only 5’8”. Is he the next Nathan Walker or Rocco Grimaldi? Or the next Logan Stankoven? Of the others, Linus Ericsson has stood out the most to me. Lots of smart plays. Good vision. Fernstrom, Petterson and Eklund have looked good too. All worthy of 2nd round picks IMO.
Canada is being led by the 2025/26 guys but of the 2024 guys, Iginla has looked good. As expected. The one that’s impressed me the most though is Luchanko. Not a ton of skill but he’s smart, skates well and works his butt off. That’s the makings of a solid middle-6 forward, mostly likely a center. I’d use a late 1st to 2nd round pick on him. Not 16th overall though.
The one guy that’s ranked in the range of pick 16 is Greentree and he’s just looked ok to me. Not super impressed but some of the video on him in the Dub has been better. He’d be an ok selection at 16 but I wouldn’t be elated by any means.
I still really like Helenius. Maybe the teams ahead of the Blues are stupid and pass on him but I doubt it.
Kiviharju and Hutton are two 5’10” d-men that absolutely have NHL talent. I like d-men with size but at some point in the 2nd round, their talent should win out over the size of others.
Eiserman has looked as expected IMO. He has obvious holes in his game but he simply has an elite nose for the net. 2 goals away from tying Cole Caufield’s NTDP goals scored record. Has 2-4 more games to do it.
I’ll also note this Slovakia team is BAD. Like, at risk of getting relegated bad. Kazakhstan will likely be the other team at risk of relegation (they’re the team that moved up this season) but they just got their 1st win ever at this level today, beating the Czechs in OT.
I think it’ll be the US and Canada in the final. Coin flip on who I’d take.
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EastVillageBlues
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This is from the trade and free agency board.
How many people here would be down with moving Kyrou for the #5 pick?
What about for Thomas with them adding another significant piece ?
This year it would almost certainly be a D-man with top pairing potential available there.
How many people here would be down with moving Kyrou for the #5 pick?
What about for Thomas with them adding another significant piece ?
This year it would almost certainly be a D-man with top pairing potential available there.
bleedblue1223
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We discussed some of that. I think Kyrou for 5th as the main piece is something a lot of people would be on board with. Thomas is a non-starter. If we trade Thomas, that indicates we are in a full tear-down and going for the #1 pick next year. Maybe if they offer the 5th+Reinbacher, we can consider it from a value perspective, but if we remove Thomas, we are going for a top 5 pick next season.
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I’m a big Kyrou fan, but I’d think long and hard about trading him for 5OV. We’d get a stud defender and clear 8 mill of annual cap space. I think I’d do it.
Not even 5th+Reinbacher would move the needle for Thomas.
OHL-Everything has stopped and started with Dickinson as the best all around and most safe pick. (that would be Buium..) I watched my share of London seeing if there is anything in Landon Sim (I guess if they don't resign Keenan Washkurak...) What I can say about Dickinson is he is really good and seems good at icing the puck. Doesn't think the game that well? Another kid that has my attention, Woolley has looked good in the playoffs (7th?)
Parekh is just one of the best offensive guys ala Housely I have seen in a while without the elite skating....which makes me wonder when he hits a wall. He will be gone before we pick. Greentree- He just seems slow.
Sennecke is going to be a very good NHL player even in the playoffs. He has that *.
Vannacker I really like. If he falls to round 3, then I would take him.
The Oshawa bunch....really like Danford. He is crazy and will block anything. Mews will be really good with the right partner. I can say that about LSW, Freij Tarin Smith, Hutson, too....
Battaglia-I saw alot of him watching Quinton Burns. Love to get him after the 4th round.
Luca Marrelli- I would spend up to a late 2nd on him depending who is off the board. He is a very solid all around defender that is being overlooked.
A couple late guys I really like Villeneuve, Procyszyn (total menace to Sudbury), He (great tools, fast, and chippy)
WHL-The U18s have made McKenna the next Bedard (3g 0g 1a -6) his stats with Yak guarding him.....Don't underestimate what Yak could be under control. He shut his butt down.
Elick- reminds me so much of Jbo when he was older. Top pair on team Canada Looks the part.
Unimpressed with Parascak (slow) Ritchie (missing *) Basha (disappears but fast)
Would draft - Roberts, Tarin Smith, Ollie Josephson (good player) Wetsch (bottom six stud) Brunicke, McIsaac, Pederson
Q-Spencer Gill I would draft in the 2nd round. terrible league this year.....
USHL-Overrated in my opinion. Hage is very inconsistent, but very talented. Gridin and Boisvert are slow. Connelly is Hoffman reincarnated. I do like Kleber, Emery, and Skahan whom I saw a lot of. Hagens and Hensler are the best players on the USNTP. Eiserman will score anywhere. The floor will be 30 goals. I don't think he stays in the NHL scoring under 30 a season. That may sound strange, but he is just an empty vessel without the puck? He could score 50 though....Next Brett Hull?
I would take a flyer on Jake Fischer and Pahlsson. Both look like they could develop into NHL players.
Finns-A surprisingly good crop. Hemming is very good with a wicked shot and is getting sh*t on like Halttunen did last year. London sure isn't complaining about Kaspar.....especially in the playoffs. Saarelainen is quite the player. Small but he can dish the puck and has no fear at all. Helenius is well....he will be gone before we pick anyway....Pulkkinen I would spend a high second on. Quite impressive in the tourney I got to watch. Pikkarainen I like...
Sweden- There GM should be shot...Why would you not get better partners than what you chose to go with LSW and Freij. They don't even have the freedom to play their game in this tournament. Eliasson??? Two lollipop guilders??? Those two aren't that big to handle the muscle Canada and the US will be coming with. Big line up will overpower the Swedes. Ericksson with a 2nd definitely! Herman Traff, Oscar Vuollet, and Jack Berglund. (Rep too.)
Would I pick Nygard, Hemming, Greentree, Connelly at 16? Why do we need another winger? I would want a premium position D or C with our pick, but I'm of the opinion that I may trade down. Not sold on Hage or Boisvert. I don't think Freij Badinka, Pulkkinen, Roberts, Gill, Emery, Kleber, Elick, etc. are worth that pick. Like to leave that draft with at least two of them.
Maybe I tried to keep it too brief? Hope it makes sense....
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I disagree, but I think you could convince me with a significant + from the Habs. You had better be 100% sure, though, that Buchnevich is extending before you move your top goal scorer.
joe galiba
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who realizes Luke Schenn was a 5th OA pcik?
any D drafted there has a better chance of being similar to Schenn than Makar
any D drafted there has a better chance of being similar to Schenn than Makar
EastVillageBlues
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I would be hardpressed to decide if the offer was really 5th + Reinbacher for Thomas. That is just what we needed to restock D for the future, basically solves all of our problems there.
Although it would be also very difficult to find another as sure of a thing as Thomas.
bleedblue1223
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I purposely picked something that would technically be worth more than Thomas from a value point of view, something Montreal wouldn't offer, but something that we also should accept. Trading Thomas puts us much closer to the Chicago/San Jose tank territory, and ownership isn't doing that.
That's sort of what I was implying with the from a value perspective. Ownership wouldn't allow a Thomas trade IMO, the only exception would be something that improves our current team, while also remaining young, which wouldn't happen. It's such a ridiculous scenario that it's not even worth the time posting about.
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