GDT: 2024 NHL Draft Thread

[Aaaarrgghh]

For the Lindstrom Crowd

Great read that. I really liked the part describing the step he took this year and his mentality. With the right people around you, sometimes it can just click.

For what it's worth, they talked about his injuries in that article. His agent said that the doctor and physiotherapist "feel that he will make a full recovery without requiring surgery." Lindstrom himself said that he's "not quite there yet" but will be "pretty soon." Obviously the teams' judgement of his health at the Combine will decide whether he is a top 5 pick or not. I'm holding my thumbs for him, as we say in Sweden, regardless of if the Blue Jackets pick him or not. He seems like a really good young man.

Though I must also admit, listening to the latest draft-related episode of The Athletic Hockey Show gave me just the tiniest sliver of hope that Columbus might get Demidov. Can't we just fast forward to the draft?

 

[majormajor]

Great read that. I really liked the part describing about the step he took this year and his mentality. With the right people around you, sometimes it can just click.

For what it's worth, they talked about his injuries in that article. His agent said that the doctor and physiotherapist "feel that he will make a full recovery without requiring surgery." Lindstrom himself said that he's "not quite there yet" but will be "pretty soon." Obviously the teams' judgement of his health at the Combine will decide whether he is a top 5 pick or not. I'm holding my thumbs for him, as we say in Sweden, regardless of if the Blue Jackets pick him or not. He seems like a really good young man.

Though I must also admit, listening to the latest draft-related episode of The Athletic Hockey Show gave me just the tiniest sliver of hope that Columbus might get Demidov. Can't we just fast forward to the draft?

"Not quite there yet" at this point is getting unnerving. The combine is getting close.

 

[koteka]

Kinda surprised Iginla is being talked about in the top 5. Mid sized, regular 1st round level production, skating didnt stand out to me in u18s. Looked like an usual #10-15 pick to me tbh.

Can someone elaborate what makes him rise from #10-15 to ~#5? What makes him better than Catton who outscored him by large margin and led his own team in scoring? Progress during the season, last name, adv.stats, something else?

Too me, so many of the top guys have flaws. Celebrini and Demidov are can’t miss. Nobody else is. Lindstrom might not be a center, but his floor is a power forward. I think those are the top three.

Beyond that, everything is a crap shoot. Iginla has the highest floor, so if you want a can’t miss top 6 guy for 10+ years, that is the appeal of Iginla. Sure there are guys with higher upside, but plenty of those guys could be busts or mediocre nhl players. I see Dickinson as the highest floor D. You know he won’t be the best D in a redraft, but you can slot him in your top 4 for years to come.

This is the kind of draft that in 5 or 6 years people will be saying “How could my team have drafted X? Y went 3 picks later and we should have taken him.”

 

[majormajor]

Someone on the mains compared Levshunov to Jack Johnson and it felt too spot on. The fastest and strongest player on the ice, who is very sloppy with positioning and very sloppy with the puck? Yes, that describes both of them.

I found a Levshunov game I hadn't watched yet and watched it to test out this Jack Johnson comparison. And the comp is close. The first few passes were good but after that it felt like he was off the mark for about 70% of his passes. He has so many moments where I'm like, why are you there?



Like why is he not in the video frame at 16:29? There's a missing player there!

I also watched more Dickinson and the London Knights recently. Max McCue was running around laying guys out. I'm sure Jackets scouts have seen every game. Heck our next GM might be their GM! But the thought that we would be Dickinson fans didn't really bother me. He is pretty good! Just a little bit basic and I'd rather shoot for a higher upside player, but getting a #2/#3D with the fourth pick of the draft would be okay. Levshunov and Silayev will go high as well and I think they would be worse picks.

 

[Aaaarrgghh]

"Not quite there yet" at this point is getting unnerving. The combine is getting close.

Agreed. Though, to be fair, it's unclear when exactly the interview was held.

EDIT: Apparently, it was the week before the article was posted, so mid-May. So yes, that's concerning. He plans to attend the combine and that pre-draft camp though. I guess we'll see.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Kinda forgot about this. I think I’d defer to next year, and hope our pick isn’t as premium.

 

[CBJx614]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1793325346118684709

 

[Xoggz22]

Kinda forgot about this. I think I’d defer to next year, and hope our pick isn’t as premium.

Of course defer. unless we are top 3, then it can't be any better for the Flyers than this year. I suspect they will want to see how the 1st round plays out. If they feel there are another 4 players with 1st round grades, they'll keep the pick and I have to believe...have to.... they will not be drafting top 5 next year.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

obligatory "yeah i know it's craig button" warning here but craig button released his new draft board and it is different. some highlights:

• 3-4-5 is helenius, iginla and parekh
• eiserman (9) ahead of lindstrom (10)
• solberg (15) ahead of silayev (16)

am i only posting this because it validates the preexisting biases (high on heleinus/parekh, low on silayev) that i had before clicking? you sure bet i am!

just to keep beating the helenius drum: button thinks he's an "elite number 1 center" with elite hockey IQ, excellent skill and a high level of confidence. said he thinks helenius will be a "lowercase sasha barkov" which imo would be a perfect player for the jackets to draft and build around.

 

[DoingItCoolKiwi]

obligatory "yeah i know it's craig button" warning here but craig button released his new draft board and it is different. some highlights:

• 3-4-5 is helenius, iginla and parekh
• eiserman (9) ahead of lindstrom (10)
• solberg (15) ahead of silayev (16)

am i only posting this because it validates the preexisting biases (high on heleinus/parekh, low on silayev) that i had before clicking? you sure bet i am!

just to keep beating the helenius drum: button thinks he's an "elite number 1 center" with elite hockey IQ, excellent skill and a high level of confidence. said he thinks helenius will be a "lowercase sasha barkov" which imo would be a perfect player for the jackets to draft and build around.

Craig’s List: Konsta Helenius, Tij Iginla push into top five | TSN

The 2024 NHL Draft is loaded with a number of quality defencemen, but TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button sees forwards making a late push toward the top.

www.tsn.ca

 

[DoingItCoolKiwi]

I wonder earlier whether Helenius would be creeping up the rankings too, when major said Tij is close to top 5 as a 'safe' pick in the draft. Craig clearly has a thing for safe picks this year.

Silyaev at 16 too.. Rare occurance but I kinda like what Craig is cooking. The man doesnt care a bit about height

Edit. oh woow, Julius Miettinen, who didnt even make the Finnish u18 team, at #19 above Hemming, Kiviharju, Väisänen. Gotta respect the hottakes

 

[CBJx614]

obligatory "yeah i know it's craig button" warning here but craig button released his new draft board and it is different. some highlights:

• 3-4-5 is helenius, iginla and parekh
• eiserman (9) ahead of lindstrom (10)
• solberg (15) ahead of silayev (16)

am i only posting this because it validates the preexisting biases (high on heleinus/parekh, low on silayev) that i had before clicking? you sure bet i am!

just to keep beating the helenius drum: button thinks he's an "elite number 1 center" with elite hockey IQ, excellent skill and a high level of confidence. said he thinks helenius will be a "lowercase sasha barkov" which imo would be a perfect player for the jackets to draft and build around.

I actually came here to post this, extremely high praise from Olli Jokinen.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

I actually came here to post this, extremely high praise from Olli Jokinen.

helenius was one of the best forwards in the entire finnish league this season, as a draft-eligible 5'11 prospect playing center. i think he's a slam-dunk future selke winner and his offensive upside is higher than people realize.

i know it's seen as a defense-heavy draft, but my personal top four is all forwards (celebrini, demidov, helenius, lindstrom in that order) and i think 3/4 of those guys are no-doubt NHL centers, with the fourth (demidov) having a chance to play there with the right coaching.

 

[majormajor]

If it was just based on his Liiga play I could buy into the idea that Helenius might have some topline upside. His tools are more mid-lineup but when you have a player that smart, we shouldn't be putting a low ceiling on him as most seem to do.

His international play recently though has been disappointing. He wasn't very good at the U18s and we thought maybe he would excel more at the men's level because of his structured style. Then at the Men's world championship he gets an opportunity with good ice time vs some weaker countries, and he gets outplayed and taken out of the lineup.

i think he's a slam-dunk future selke winner

That's over the top. We're really bad at forecasting who will be the best defensive forwards (see Shane Wright). If we could tell who the top defensive forwards would be, we wouldn't have Bergeron, O'Reilly, and Danault going outside of the first round.

 

[KJ Dangler]

I think the article yesterday on Lindstrom pretty much confirms he will drop in this draft . Anyone want to put that faith in the CBJ doctors to make that call? . Craig’s list is interesting .. I honestly could see us drafting any of the players 2-10 , although Lindstrom is fading fast

 

[Indy18]

I think the article yesterday on Lindstrom pretty much confirms he will drop in this draft . Anyone want to put that faith in the CBJ doctors to make that call? . Craig’s list is interesting .. I honestly could see us drafting any of the players 2-10 , although Lindstrom is fading fast
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Yeah I am slowly coming around to the Iginla train though I know people are gonna complain about "yet another winger"

 

[Aaaarrgghh]

Yeah I am slowly coming around to the Iginla train though I know people are gonna complain about "yet another winger"

If Lindstrom's injuries constitute too much of a risk and Demidov's gone, then I'm all-in on Buium. I'm not convinved that Iginla is a pick you make at #4.

 

[squashmaple]

If Lindstrom's injuries constitute too much of a risk and Demidov's gone, then I'm all-in on Buium. I'm not convinved that Iginla is a pick you make at #4.

And in two years we'll have all forgotten who got picked where because we'rre tribal. If Iginla is the correct pick, it won't matter who was still on the list when he was chosen because we won't care.

 

[DankoCBJ]

Just realised that Zeev Buium has been my blind spot of this Draft Class... Dear God he is so good and dynamic. Undeniably TOP5 talent. We should consider taking him, if he is still available.

 

[KJ Dangler]

Just realised that Zeev Buium has been my blind spot of this Draft Class... Dear God he is so good and dynamic. Undeniably TOP5 talent. We should consider taking him, if he is still available.

He’s dynamic for sure. I’m pretty sure that Werenski Mayeychuk and Svozil are left handed D, as is Buium, so where would he slot?

 

[DankoCBJ]

He’s dynamic for sure. I’m pretty sure that Werenski Mayeychuk and Svozil are left handed D, as is Buium, so where would he slot?

This was a problem to me too before, but maybe that is just a good problem to have? We dont know for sure that Z, Mateychuk and Svozil will be our LDs for the next decade or so. Buium seems like the kind of player that should not be skipped "just because we already have lefties on D". Just a thought.

EDIT. I mean I wouldnt take Levshunov over Buium just because Lev is a righty and Buium isnt...

 

[cbjthrowaway]

He’s dynamic for sure. I’m pretty sure that Werenski Mayeychuk and Svozil are left handed D, as is Buium, so where would he slot?

buium's ceiling is arguably higher than what werenski is right now, and mateychuk is capable of playing on the right side, so…

 

[Aaaarrgghh]

And in two years we'll have all forgotten who got picked where because we'rre tribal. If Iginla is the correct pick, it won't matter who was still on the list when he was chosen because we won't care.

So now is the time to be opinionated before we have a horse in the race.

 

[KJ Dangler]

buium's ceiling is arguably higher than what werenski is right now, and mateychuk is capable of playing on the right side, so…

That’s fair .. I saw a video with Dickinson and same point was made of our current make up…. Is defenseman more of a need than Center ? Looking at our D depth, you have Mateychuk, Jiricek, and Svozil all under 20 yrs old . Boquist is 23, Werenski 26..

Looking at center .. Fantilli is probably #1c .. you feel confident that Voronkov and Sillinger are adequate , down the middle ? Most of these dominant playoff teams are elite down the middle

 

[cbjthrowaway]

That’s fair .. I saw a video with Dickinson and same point was made of our current make up…. Is defenseman more of a need than Center ? Looking at our D depth, you have Mateychuk, Jiricek, and Svozil all under 20 yrs old . Boquist is 23, Werenski 26..

all of the silayev stuff (and dickinson, to a lesser extent) is rooted in a misunderstanding of what teams actually get out of the draft imo.

do the blue jackets need to improve defensively? yes. does their current defensive core lack physicality? sure. does drafting a 18-year-old in a position that takes much longer to develop fix any of that within the next few years? nope.

it's far better to draft BPA (regardless of position) and, if there's overlap positionally or skill-wise with other prospects, you can just live with that.

defensemen take longer to develop, and the specific kind of defenseman that the jackets are looking for is harder to project at 18 + takes longer to develop, so… just take BPA and trade a 'redundant' player at a later date for a guy who's actually NHL-ready in that role?

it's a much smarter use of assets, unless they think that dickinson and silayev are sure-thing top-pair guys who will also provide value in offense/zone exits.

Looking at center .. Fantilli is probably #1c .. you feel confident that Voronkov and Sillinger are adequate , down the middle ? Most of these dominant playoff teams are elite down the middle

most of the remaining playoff teams are really good down the middle, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it's all big guys. vincent trocheck, for example, is small but he's awesome in his role.

i'd love helenius because he could be the trocheck to fantilli's zibinejad (or the RNH to his draisaitl) – a super smart, competitive center who drives play at both ends and plays the game the right way.