Prospect Info: 2024 NHL Draft Thread

[StevenToddIves]

I’m reaching the point i reach most years where i come to believe it’ll be hard to mess up the pick.

Helenius is my current crush, but if Fitz reaches a little for MBN, or opts for a little more offense in Catton or Iginla, or if Salayev or Buium fall? All sounds good to me. I think i’ll only feel a little disappointed if the pick is Eiserman or maybe a mostly-offensive D like Parekh. And i don’t have the patience for a headcase like Connelly.

But Nemec was the one guy i didn’t want in 2022 and that’s worked out pretty well so far so i think at this point i feel comfortable trusting whatever the Devils end up doing.

Brandsegg-Nygard would not be a reach at #10. On my rankings right now he's probably in the 6-8 range.

Helenius would be a terrific pick, I couldn't agree more. The Devils need center depth, and he's just a terrific hockey player.

Parekh will not be the pick. The Devils made two very good high picks at RD with Nemec and Casey just two years ago, there's no chance Parekh will be the BPA at #10, and Fitzgerald has shown a clear preference for defensemen who play well in their defensive zone.

Buium is certainly a possibility at #10, and it would be a great pick in my mind. In a defense-heavy draft, he might just be the best defenseman in the 2024 class. I feel Silayev is less likely, because at 6'7 with his outstanding skating and sound defensive play, he's likely to be gone by #10.

Eiserman and Catton both have undeniable offensive upside, but I'm not sure either would be a great pick for the Devils. Eiserman is simply a pure shooter and scorer and does not offer much else, while Catton would not give the team the needed improvements in team speed and interior forward play which some other forwards being mentioned would.

I certainly don't see the Devils risking the PR fallout of using the #10 pick on Connolly. Certainly, Connolly is extremely talented, but he won't be the surefire Best Forward Available so early in this draft and why risk the PR disaster and potential locker-room problems?

Iginla would be a nice pick, but I still see him going to Calgary at #9 for the obvious reasons.

Right now, I have to say my smart money for the pick at #10 is Helenius, but all the other names you mentioned aside from Parekh and Connolly certainly have a chance to be the Devils pick, as well, and we can probably add Dickinson, Sennecke, Chernyshov and Hage to the list although they would all have to be considered extreme long shots.

 

[longislanddevil]

Just watched a video in which Button compares Buium to Heiskanen and Iginla to Marchand but with less edge to his game. I’m curious what you guys think of those comps.

 

[Guadana]

Brandsegg-Nygard would not be a reach at #10. On my rankings right now he's probably in the 6-8 range.

Top 11 FOR DEVILS PICK from me

Celebrini
Demidov
Lindstrom
Buium
Nygard
Chernyshov
Helenius
Catton
Levshunov
Iginla
Silayev

Its more about how I want for Devils to draft than how I see the potential. Because I would put Levshunov and Catton higher.

 

[Goptor]

Just watched a video in which Button compares Buium to Heiskanen and Iginla to Marchand but with less edge to his game. I’m curious what you guys think of those comps.

Isn't Heiskanen one of the fastest skaters in the NHL?

 

[Guadana]

Just watched a video in which Button compares Buium to Heiskanen and Iginla to Marchand but with less edge to his game. I’m curious what you guys think of those comps.

They are bad. Button is continuing do sound like a guy who doesn’t watch players mostly.

Iginla Marchand has foundation because Both are close in size and physical. Both are not about skating but skating doesn’t hurt. Buium and Heiskanen because… high profile defensemen idk. Heiskanen is much more fluid and better skater and it is effecting his game in the right way. Buium is average skater and build his game on his high iq and it is effecting his game.

 

[longislanddevil]

They are bad. Button is continuing do sound like a guy who doesn’t watch layers mostly.

Iginla Marchand has foundation because Both are close in size and physical. Both are not about skating but skating doesn’t hurt. Buium and Heiskanen because… high profile defensemen idk. Heiskanen is much more fluid and better skater and it is effecting his game in the right way. Buium is average skater and build his game on his high iq and it is effecting his game.

I was hoping the comps had some merit but was skeptical. I’m not a fan of Button’s work and I’ve seen him with some wild rankings.

 

[Guttersniped]

My guy Solberg with a goal and assist. (Yeah, he’s my guy now lol, not that we’ll get a shot at drafting him with no 2nd.)


The goal



Look at sweet assist from #72.

 

[StevenToddIves]

They are bad. Button is continuing do sound like a guy who doesn’t watch players mostly.

Iginla Marchand has foundation because Both are close in size and physical. Both are not about skating but skating doesn’t hurt. Buium and Heiskanen because… high profile defensemen idk. Heiskanen is much more fluid and better skater and it is effecting his game in the right way. Buium is average skater and build his game on his high iq and it is effecting his game.

Comparisons are super tough. I always struggle with them.

Buium is a pretty unique player because he's so anticipatory and adaptable, he's tough to pin down. Iginla reminds me in some ways of a young TJ Oshie -- does that sound like a more reasonable parallel to you?

 

[StevenToddIves]

Before I get into the LD, I realized there was one more RD who needs to be written up, because the more I watched him the more I liked him. Of course, the LD write-ups are more crucial to Devils fans, because NJ is thinner on that side and more likely to draft there. I think fortunately it is a very very good draft at the LD position, even moreso than RD which is also solid. And don't worry, @Guttersniped -- I'll try to write up Stian Solberg as soon as possible.

2024 Draft Profile:

RD Harrison Brunicke, Kamloops WHL
If there's one player most people are unfamiliar with who can surprise in the first round, it might just be Harrison Brunicke. His rankings are everywhere -- as low as the 3rd round, sometimes left off top 50 and top 64 lists altogether. But looking closer, he's exactly what NHL GMs tend to covet and plays the always-coveted position of right defense.

Brunicke is 6'3-190 and an excellent skater. He's a work in progress for sure, but he's a tremendous athlete who possesses tremendous upside on both sides of the puck. He's good enough defensively that Canada has used him to shut down the opponents' top weapons in international competition. He's a hustler and a big-time hitter with the speed and agility to close gaps quickly and the strength and ferocity to win battles once he closes in.

Brunicke is very good with an outlet pass, and even has the speed and skill to lead the rush himself. He sort of finds himself in no-man's land in an era when everyone seems to want to define defensemen as "offensive" or "defensive" because he's a little bit of both but not entirely either. He put up just-shy-of PPG numbers in his draft-eligible campaign, which tends to evoke only a yawn from the overly stat-conscious, but again it needs to be noted that this is also a physical defenseman who takes care of his own end.

Brunicke tends to prefer the safe play, but once in awhile he can pull a highlight-reel deke or cross ice, no-look pass out of his arsenal to make you wonder why he doesn't do it more often. It certainly is tantalizing in the sense that, if you're capable of high-end offensive plays, you're certainly capable of making them with greater consistency. He's a very strong shooter who projects as a consistent double-digits goal scoring rearguard in the NHL, and that's no joke.

Brunicke is not perfect in his own zone, he certainly needs refinement, but I'd also say he's a pretty high IQ player with a great deal of effort and adaptability to his game. Everything about him says to me that he's a potential diamond in the rough -- he has the athleticism, the head and the heart to be a legit, high-end, two-way big and mobile second-pairing defensemen at the NHL level. The fact that people are leaving him out of their top 50 routinely is simply baffling to me.

 

[None Shall Pass]

Helenius would be interesting IMO. From what I've read he isn't far from NHL ready and we could use depth at C.

Pretty sure he would be the entirety of our depth at C right now lol

 

[PKs Broken Stick]

Pretty sure he would be the entirety of our depth at C right now lol

I hope the focus on this draft is C and LD

 

[Guadana]

I hope the focus on this draft is the RW who will play C.

 

[devilsblood]

Any love for this Greentree character?

Wore the C, and put up pretty big numbers on a lousy Windsor team. 2nd leading point producer was far off the pace. They had a good producing 20 year old but they traded him, The 3rd leading point producer was even more drastically off the pace then the 2nd leading scorer.

Listed at 6'3" 211 lbs.

Listed as a lefty shooting RW.

Found him while looking for mocks that had MBN in the top 10(not many). Greentree is often listed in the teens, but a couple have him near or a little higher then our pick.

 

[Xirik]

Any love for this Greentree character?

Wore the C, and put up pretty big numbers on a lousy Windsor team. 2nd leading point producer was far off the pace. They had a good producing 20 year old but they traded him, The 3rd leading point producer was even more drastically off the pace then the 2nd leading scorer.

Listed at 6'3" 211 lbs.

Listed as a lefty shooting RW.

Found him while looking for mocks that had MBN in the top 10(not many). Greentree is often listed in the teens, but a couple have him near or a little higher then our pick.

He Can't skate.

He smells like a Flyers pick if there ever was one.

 

[devilsblood]

He Can't skate.

He smells like a Flyers pick if there ever was one.

Thought this was going to be hyperbole, but then I watched a shift by shift of him.

He is legit lousy. How does he put up points?

 

[Xirik]

Thought this was going to be hyperbole, but then I watched a shift by shift of him.

He is legit lousy. How does he put up points?

probably like Toffoli, slow but gets to his spots.


Wow, His birthday is literally January 1st.

 

[longislanddevil]

2024 NHL Mock Draft: Post-Lottery Edition

The Sharks will take can't-miss prospect Macklin Celebrini to open the 2024 draft, but get ready for some hand-wringing with every pick thereafter.

thedraftanalyst.substack.com

Kournianos has Iginla going at 3OA. Haven’t seen anyone else have him this high. For those MBN fans like myself, he has him as our pick. Interestingly enough, Helenius goes to Buffalo at 11OA.

 

[devilsblood]

probably like Toffoli, slow but gets to his spots.


Wow, His birthday is literally January 1st.

Far and away their assist leader as well though, on a team that doesn't have many goal scorers aside from Greentree himself and one other guy.

Had to watch highlight reels to see the skills. The shift by shift though he just looked like a bad hockey player.

 

[Hockey Sports Fan]

2024 NHL Mock Draft: Post-Lottery Edition

The Sharks will take can't-miss prospect Macklin Celebrini to open the 2024 draft, but get ready for some hand-wringing with every pick thereafter.

thedraftanalyst.substack.com

Kournianos has Iginla going at 3OA. Haven’t seen anyone else have him this high. For those MBN fans like myself, he has him as our pick. Interestingly enough, Helenius goes to Buffalo at 11OA.

That's a pretty wild mock but a lot of the chatter has been about how little consensus there is after the first pick or two.

Still, it'd be kinda wild to see Lindstrom fall all the way to 12.

 

[forceten]

How can we get a second rounder? Extra fourth and … err

 

[NJDfan86]

2024 NHL Mock Draft: Post-Lottery Edition

The Sharks will take can't-miss prospect Macklin Celebrini to open the 2024 draft, but get ready for some hand-wringing with every pick thereafter.

thedraftanalyst.substack.com

Kournianos has Iginla going at 3OA. Haven’t seen anyone else have him this high. For those MBN fans like myself, he has him as our pick. Interestingly enough, Helenius goes to Buffalo at 11OA.

0% chance we would pass on Lindstrom if it actually shakes out like that.

 

[Guadana]

How can we get a second rounder? Extra fourth and … err

Bait some GM for late first/ two seconds with Holtz. Do we want to trade him already? I didnt decide for myself yet.

 

[Guttersniped]

Helenius (#19) with a primary assist in 8-0 walloping of Great Britain.

 

[Guadana]

Helenius (#19) with a primary assist in 8-0 walloping of Great Britain.

Played as number 1 center as i understnad.

 

[Guttersniped]

Played as number 1 center as i understnad.