Pre-Game Talk: 2024 Draft Thread

[Snubbed4Vezina]

Blues draft gurus, who are are some projected 4-7th round picks that would really get you excited?

 

[PocketNines]

According to mocks, already off the board by the time the Blues pick will be certainly some combination of Out of the Past, Sunset Boulevard, Double Indemnity, The Third Man, Chinatown, The Maltese Falcon, In a Lonely Place, The Asphalt Jungle, Criss Cross, Kiss Me Deadly, Night and the City, Detour and The Long Goodbye. They're just too attractive and too complete to fall.

If that all happened I would be rooting for Cutter's Way to fall. But it and Ace in the Hole I can't see lasting.

My pick: Memento (2000). This is the very greatest substantive revenge noir ever made. Plenty of style involved. Revenge is such a cornerstone of noir that I would not be able to leave it on the board.

It's either that or Panique (1946) the greatest non-English speaking noir ever made. Turns out a lot of the French really helped Hitler murder Jews, and here we have a noir tale whose substance is pointing a finger right at Vichy France, thus the nation banned the film from being shown. (They would have to ban this, there was a lot of French cowardice going around back then. Remember, a lot of them helped Hitler and were mad at this woke director Jlien Divivier who also directed the great Pepe le Moko (1937).)

Two Hackman films, The Conversation (1973) and Night Moves (1975) would be tough to pass up, same with Touch of Evil (1958). Taxi Driver, Point Blank and Rififi are all in the discussion.

The Blues need a #1 so the #1 revenger or the #1 foreign-language noir ... gotta go with revenge.

 

[Beauterham]

Blues draft gurus, who are are some projected 4-7th round picks that would really get you excited?

Let me check my list.

Players that 'could' drop to the 4th or lower (although some of these will go 2nd/3rd)

Interesting players that could drop due to being overagers:
Austin Burnevik
Anthony Romani
Ondrej Becher
Jere Lassila
Oskar Vuollet

Interesting Russian players that could drop due to very little viewings:
Timur Kol
Yegor Graf
Fyodor Avramov
Artyom Shchuchinov
Andrei Krutov
Alexander Siryatsky

Interesting players with Aug/Sep06 birthdays (AKA guys with more runway):
Luke Osburn
Rhys Pederson
Gabe Smith
Viggo Gustafsson
Gabriel Eliasson
Max Curran
Kasper Pikkarainen

Some other personal favorites:
Ilya Protas
AJ Spellacy
Mathias Dehli
Samuel Kupec

 

[PocketNines]

Then in the second round at 48 I'd expect some in my top 30-39 to still be there. Even though it's at 31 on my board I'd be certain Days of Heaven (1978) would still be there and maybe even try to game theory it out where I could let it fall to the third round ala Parayko. Days of Heaven is pure noir hiding in plain sight. I would probably take it over Odds Against Tomorrow and The Limey which are both likely to be there at 48 even though they should go higher.

The conundrum that could happen is what if somehow The Parallax View or dare I dream Elevator to the Gallows weren't taken by 48, then those both go over Days of Heaven. But let's cross that bridge when we come to it. What I might more strategically hope to do is get Odds Against Tomorrow with pick 48 and try to sneak Days of Heaven at 80. Then at 112 I would get The Rover (2014) whose real value is early third rounder / late second. We would have a Guy Pearce themed team.

It would look like:
16. Memento (2000)
48. Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) -- third best heist noir ever, legendary Belafonte performance
[dream: Elevator to the Gallows or Parallax falls]
80. Days of Heaven (1978) -- real value as a noir is late 1st rounder, value as a film in general is HOF caliber
[backup plan: I think The Limey (1999) is under the radar, best doom noir of the 90s, child of Point Blank and Get Carter]
112. The Rover (2014) -- real value is somewhere 50-75 or even higher as time goes by

I'm certain I can get Report to the Commissioner (1975) in the fifth, They Made Me A Fugitive (1947) in the sixth and Los Tallos Amargos (1956) in the seventh, those are all third round value

 

[Memento]

Blues draft gurus, who are are some projected 4-7th round picks that would really get you excited?

Roman Shokhrin would be one. Big (6'4", 201 lbs.) Russian defenseman. Very instinctive offensively and blocks a lot of shots. Not a very solid skater or stickhandler. Really raw, and of course, you have to worry about him ever coming over, but definitely worth it in the seventh.

 

[Stealth JD]

Solberg has such a fat, punchable face; kind of like Tucker. Hopefully if he's selected by the Blues he can be more than a bottom-pair guy known for his physicality.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

Let me check my list.

Players that 'could' drop to the 4th or lower (although some of these will go 2nd/3rd)

Interesting players that could drop due to being overagers:
Austin Burnevik
Anthony Romani
Ondrej Becher
Jere Lassila
Oskar Vuollet

Interesting Russian players that could drop due to very little viewings:
Timur Kol
Yegor Graf
Fyodor Avramov
Artyom Shchuchinov
Andrei Krutov
Alexander Siryatsky

Interesting players with Aug/Sep06 birthdays (AKA guys with more runway):
Luke Osburn
Rhys Pederson
Gabe Smith
Viggo Gustafsson
Gabriel Eliasson
Max Curran
Kasper Pikkarainen

Some other personal favorites:
Ilya Protas
AJ Spellacy
Mathias Dehli
Samuel Kupec

This is a great list to give me some targets to dig a little deeper into over the next two evenings. Much appreciated!

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

Roman Shokhrin would be one. Big (6'4", 201 lbs.) Russian defenseman. Very instinctive offensively and blocks a lot of shots. Not a very solid skater or stickhandler. Really raw, and of course, you have to worry about him ever coming over, but definitely worth it in the seventh.

I love this quote from EP: "He joins the rush very often, mostly as a weapon of chaos. When he carries the puck, he doesn't look to handle through traffic, he looks to skate right into the defender and take him down with no regard of where the puck goes. It's definitely a strategy. Effective? Sometimes. Entertaining? Always!"

 

[STL fan in MN]

All these mocks out there…I figured I could throw poo at the wall just as well so here my mock.

1 SJ - Celebrini
2 CHI - Levshunov
3 ANA - Silayev
4 CLB - Lindstrom
5 MTL - Demidov
6 UTH - Sennecke
7 OTT - Dickinson
8 SEA - Iginla
9 CGY - Parekh
10 NJ - Buium
11 SJ - Yakemchuk
12 PHI - Catton
13 MIN - MBN
14 BUF - Solberg
15 DET - Helenius
16 STL - Luchanko
17 WSH - Eiserman
18 CHI - Hage
19 VGK - Jiricek
20 NYI - Emery
21 LA - Connelly
22 NSH - Greentree
23 TOR - Beaudoin
24 COL - Chernyshov
25 OTT - Elick
26 MTL - Letourneau
27 CAR - Boisvert
28 CGY - O’Reilly
29 DAL - Surin
30 NYR - Parascak
31 ANA - Vanacker
32 PHI - Badinka
33 SJ - Ritchie
34 CHI - LSW
35 ANA - Basha
36 CLB* - Hemming
37 WPG - Eriksson
38 UTH - Miettinen
39 OTT - Masse
40 SEA - Artamonov
41 CGY - Pettersson
42 BUF - Gridin
43 BUF - Stiga
44 PIT - Pulkkinen
45 MIN - Kleber
46 PIT - Howe
47 DET - Freij
48 STL - Skahan
49 UTH - Shuravin
50 CHI - Hutson
51 PHI - Eliasson
52 WSH - Mews
53 SJ - Danford
54 NYI - Kiviharju
55 NSH - Muggli
56 STL - Brunicke
57 MTL - Gill
58 ANA - Ralph
59 NSH - Battaglia
60 PIT - Mustard
61 NYI - Jecho
62 CGY - L. Marrelli
63 SEA - Bednarik
64 EDM - Berglund
65 UTH - Yegorov

Notes:
2. I think it’s 50/50 Levshunov or Demidov. I hope they pick Levshunov as I don’t want to be terrorized by Bedard-Demidov for the next decade.

3. I have no idea what Pat Verbeek will do. If Chicago picks Demidov I think they go with Levshunov. Fun fact: it’s been 20 years since a Russian that played his draft year in Russia was taken in the top 5 (Ovie and Malkin). Here I’ve got 2 going top 5 so I guess I should plan on being wrong here.

16. This is likely wishful thinking on my part but he does fit the characteristics they value to a T. What I DON’T WANT is for Chicago to get him at 18. He probably fits what they value even more. I’d bet $100 Luchanko goes top 20.

36. Columbus owes Philly either their 2024 or 2025 2nd as a part of the Provorov deal. They have to decide once the 1st round is over.

 

[TK 421]

All these mocks out there…I figured I could throw poo at the wall just as well so here my mock.

1 SJ - Celebrini
2 CHI - Levshunov
3 ANA - Silayev
4 CLB - Lindstrom
5 MTL - Demidov
6 UTH - Sennecke
7 OTT - Dickinson
8 SEA - Iginla
9 CGY - Parekh
10 NJ - Buium
11 SJ - Yakemchuk
12 PHI - Catton
13 MIN - MBN
14 BUF - Solberg
15 DET - Helenius
16 STL - Luchanko
17 WSH - Eiserman
18 CHI - Hage
19 VGK - Jiricek
20 NYI - Emery
21 LA - Connelly
22 NSH - Greentree
23 TOR - Beaudoin
24 COL - Chernyshov
25 OTT - Elick
26 MTL - Letourneau
27 CAR - Boisvert
28 CGY - O’Reilly
29 DAL - Surin
30 NYR - Parascak
31 ANA - Vanacker
32 PHI - Badinka
33 SJ - Ritchie
34 CHI - LSW
35 ANA - Basha
36 CLB* - Hemming
37 WPG - Eriksson
38 UTH - Miettinen
39 OTT - Masse
40 SEA - Artamonov
41 CGY - Pettersson
42 BUF - Gridin
43 BUF - Stiga
44 PIT - Pulkkinen
45 MIN - Kleber
46 PIT - Howe
47 DET - Freij
48 STL - Skahan
49 UTH - Shuravin
50 CHI - Hutson
51 PHI - Eliasson
52 WSH - Mews
53 SJ - Danford
54 NYI - Kiviharju
55 NSH - Muggli
56 STL - Brunicke
57 MTL - Gill
58 ANA - Ralph
59 NSH - Battaglia
60 PIT - Mustard
61 NYI - Jecho
62 CGY - L. Marrelli
63 SEA - Bednarik
64 EDM - Berglund
65 UTH - Yegorov

Notes:
2. I think it’s 50/50 Levshunov or Demidov. I hope they pick Levshunov as I don’t want to be terrorized by Bedard-Demidov for the next decade.

3. I have no idea what Pat Verbeek will do. If Chicago picks Demidov I think they go with Levshunov. Fun fact: it’s been 20 years since a Russian that played his draft year in Russia was taken in the top 5 (Ovie and Malkin). Here I’ve got 2 going top 5 so I guess I should plan on being wrong here.

16. This is likely wishful thinking on my part but he does fit the characteristics they value to a T. What I DON’T WANT is for Chicago to get him at 18. He probably fits what they value even more. I’d bet $100 Luchanko goes top 20.

36. Columbus owes Philly either their 2024 or 2025 2nd as a part of the Provorov deal. They have to decide once the 1st round is over.

We're getting Luchanko unless that bastard Yzerman loves him too.

 

[Drubilly]

It’s starting to feel like Christmas Eve. The draft has become my 2nd favorite part of the season.

 

[Mike Liut]

rumors are Philly likes Solberg @11. Who knows what to believe. Probably some idiot making shit up

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

Let me check my list.

Players that 'could' drop to the 4th or lower (although some of these will go 2nd/3rd)

Interesting players that could drop due to being overagers:
Austin Burnevik
Anthony Romani
Ondrej Becher
Jere Lassila
Oskar Vuollet

Interesting Russian players that could drop due to very little viewings:
Timur Kol
Yegor Graf
Fyodor Avramov
Artyom Shchuchinov
Andrei Krutov
Alexander Siryatsky

Interesting players with Aug/Sep06 birthdays (AKA guys with more runway):
Luke Osburn
Rhys Pederson
Gabe Smith
Viggo Gustafsson
Gabriel Eliasson
Max Curran
Kasper Pikkarainen

Some other personal favorites:
Ilya Protas
AJ Spellacy
Mathias Dehli
Samuel Kupec

Good list! Vuollet is not a draft +1. He just had a December 2005 birthday like Traff. An excellent overager that was a key to Orebro's season is Svante Sjodin. Love to pick him up in the 7th as a lower line speedy energy guy. I'm also a Joel Svensson fan D+1 who scored at nearly a goal a game pace at Vaxjo with Freij and LSW. Also a very strong skater. I also liked watching McIsaac play for Spokane as he was a very solid D that played an aggressive game alongside Catton.

 

[kimzey59]

Blues draft gurus, who are are some projected 4-7th round picks that would really get you excited?

I'll admit that I'm intrigued with Miroslav Satan.
His skating is a bit rough, but he's got size, a bit of a mean streak and a fairly developed defensive game.
I could pretty easily see him developing into a solid 4th liner.

 

[Beauterham]

Good list! Vuollet is not a draft +1. He just had a December 2005 birthday like Traff. An excellent overager that was a key to Orebro's season is Svante Sjodin. Love to pick him up in the 7th as a lower line speedy energy guy. I'm also a Joel Svensson fan D+1 who scored at nearly a goal a game pace at Vaxjo with Freij and LSW. Also a very strong skater. I also liked watching McIsaac play for Spokane as he was a very solid D that played an aggressive game alongside Catton.

Huh... doublechecked, Vuollet is indeed a Dec '05 birthday... I thought he was a '04 birthday, but had a typo in my list. sigh.

 

[ExtremeColdWeather]

My 2024 Blues draft prediction (1-3 rounds):

16: Yakemchuk
48: Howe
56: Roberts
81: Jecho
95: Misa

 

[TK 421]

Freij's aggregate rank updated and he bumped up from 47th to 36th which was expected. He was already probably going higher than aggregate anyway but this indicates that he's got enough attention that he's going somewhere between late 1st and early 2nd which of course leaves us currently well out of range to get him. Jones.

K, well I'm all about taking Luchanko at 16 rather than one of the D and then hopefully still getting a shot at guys like Brunicke or Shuravin later in the 2nd. Hate missing on those two transitional D out of Vaxjo and you would think that would have me leaning one of Emery/Solberg but Luchanko is just too tempting. I would love to trade up into the early 2nd and get a shot at one of Freij or Sahlin-Wallenius but those teams that have those picks are no doubt happy to keep them. Btw Freij passed Sahlin-Wallenius by one spot 36th/37th on final lists.

 

[sfvega]

Christmas Eve is almost over, boys. Not that I think anything will top how the first 3 rounds went last year, but we have plenty of reason to be optimistic.

 

[bleedblue1223]

Pronman's latest mock. I'm curious about the part with Luchanko. Feel like there hasn't been much inside info on who we are liking at the draft this year, so is that bit people speculating or something of substance that people know we really like Luchanko and he's a real option instead of the standard speculation that we are going with defense.

16. St. Louis Blues: Adam Jiricek, D, Plzen (CZECHIA)​

With the Blues likely in position to take one of the second tier of defenders in Solberg or Jiricek and that being a pressing need for them it seems like a good chance that one of those two will be their pick here. I’ve heard Jett Luchanko’s name mentioned here by some as a possibility too.

 

[Bobby Orrtuzzo]

I'll admit that I'm intrigued with Miroslav Satan.
His skating is a bit rough, but he's got size, a bit of a mean streak and a fairly developed defensive game.
I could pretty easily see him developing into a solid 4th liner.

He’s a little older, but veteran presence is never a bad thing.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

Pronman's latest mock. I'm curious about the part with Luchanko. Feel like there hasn't been much inside info on who we are liking at the draft this year, so is that bit people speculating or something of substance that people know we really like Luchanko and he's a real option instead of the standard speculation that we are going with defense.

Don’t see it. Blues are pretty conservative with their picks. Meaning jiracek…. Luchenko I can definitely see. Very Bluesy pick.

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

Don’t see it. Blues are pretty conservative with their picks. Meaning jiracek…. Luchenko I can definitely see. Very Bluesy pick.

Agreed. And we hired luchenko’s ohl coach, so we presumably got full report on him.

 

[STL fan in MN]

It’s my favorite day of the year! (oddly enough, probably my wife’s least favorite day. Odd how that works. )

Time for some predictions and stories to follow.

•Sennecke will go higher than he’s ranked - top-7.

•Buium will go later than he’s ranked. Much closer to 10th than 5th.

•Neither Catton and Helenius go top-10.

•Eiserman drops to the 15-20 range.

•Connelly drops to the mid-20s.

•Bill Armstrong and Pat Verbeek don’t draft any players under 6’1”.

•Blues draft Luchanko at 16.

What are some other predictions?

 

[Damian Frerker]

hopefully solberg at 16 for me. if not then Luchanko. would like Pulkkinen in 2nd and Traff in 3rd

 

[BleedBlue14]

What time is the draft tonight CST?

Also, I think im happy with Luchenko or Solberg if nobody falls. I don’t necessarily love the idea of picking what Luchenko probably profiles as, but the Blues have extracted so much more out of very similar players over the years.

I think Helenius would be great if he fell. I’m not sure I love the idea of Yakemchuk, but it’s definitely a swing. Don’t love the Hage/Connollys that keep getting mocked around us.