Prospect Info: 2024 NHL Draft Thread

[Guadana]

> mentions skinner making it to the scf
> doesn't mention bob making it to the scf

bleedred also said quick was finished, why are you mentioning his opinions at all?

when you say 'signing an older free agent for money' (which is a novel idea, i was thinking we'd sign one for wampum) what goalie are you even talking about? another mystery box, i'm guessing? you don't know who the return would be, what the price would be, who we would draft and whether they would even pan out, yet it's critical that we use our #10 pick instead of filling an immediate need that we've had for literally ten years.

also, you did mention the rangers, i didn't. again, i'm not saying to trade away our core to acquire a goalie, that's a false choice to support your narrative (and nestles in snugly with your strawman arguments, for example the idiotic nemec comment you made). i'll be THRILLED with the amount of time i've spent here if you concede that it is possible to have an above average goalie alongside depth. you keep treating it like it's one or the other- it's not.

probably the most hilarious part of this is you shitting all over every goalie you imagine the return for 10 would be, while at the same time saying we shouldn't get a "top level goalie". it's also pretty funny that you think that if we were to sign this ancient goalie you've imagined to a huge contract, we wouldn't be able to get out of it if/when we needed to.

i don't spend months jerking off over the next year's draft prospects, but everything i've read makes it seem like there's a very small upper tier and then an enormous decent tier, so you can stop making it seem like we're missing out on the next mcdavid. we have guys entering their prime, we have guys on very team friendly contracts, it's time to shift our focus from looking for a savior to addressing the biggest holes we have, coaching and goaltending, and filling in what we need (bottom 6 guys and a defenseman) through free agency. if fitz had your mentality, we'd continue spinning our wheels for the foreseeable future. thankfully, he seems to be intelligent enough to realize we need a goalie and is willing to spend one of our best assets, a top ten pick, to get one.

Is Bob a very good example? His career after sign a deal with Florida is average. And is far away from 10 mil worthy. He is as good or as bad as other 3-6 mil goalies all over the league. Are you trying to use him as a good examole? Seriously?

Im talking about the same goalies as you - same mistery boxes every goalies after 30's are. Bob too.
I know players who are available on the draft for top ten. I know what kind of potential they have. So why should I worry? As I said if we will trade and sign 30-32 yo goalies and he will fail - we will have aged 30's yo goalie with 7-9 mil under the cap for 7 8 years. If prospect will fail - its just a bad pick. If 30-32 yo goalie will be good - we will have 2-4 good years with 7-9 mil under the cap. If prospect will be good - we will have top-6 top-4 or even top-line talent for the 7-11 years under control after he will start to play. About 6-8 years of his prime, may be even more.

Yap, I mentioned rangers, I said they cant win it because of depth even with 5 mil Shestyorkin. Teams like St Louis and Vegas won it with worser goalies because of depth and defense. I didnt say they should trade Shestyorkin for depth. It was your idea, not mine. You are making false conclusions, not me. Bad take about "not worry about Palat deal, worry about goalie deal" is bad not because of "deal" (and deal too, because goalies will be older, their deals will be longer) but because they need 10OA pick to trade for them.

Nemec comment isnt idiotic. Its your argument - trading mistery box for proven old goalie. Nemec is still mistery box. You dont know ceiling and floor of prospect from this draft. How do you know how good or bad they will be if you are "reading", how do you know how good Nemec will be - he is kid without any proves yet and he will be a kid next season. Or it is the same idiotic offer as trading top-10 pick for aged goalie. I offer you to decide. But you have only 2 options. Or trading Nemec is valid because he will not be impactful next season as Ullmark or Saros, or trading 10OA for Ullmark and Saros is stupid overpayment.


Im not against good goalie. Bad golies svcks. But still teams like Colorado and Carolina did pretty okay with Georgiev and Anderson. And Oilers with Skinner. Im fully against trading player with real top-6 top 4 potential and ceiling of top liner for goalie. Especially for 30-32 yo goalie. Because of their best case scenario 4 years good impact and tonns of money under the cap after playing their pick in different team.

Im not sh1tting on Swayman Wallstedt and Askarov. Would be okay to trade for them. Still - all are mistery boxes(except Swayman), all are not be tradable. But they are closer to NHL, they have some proves of good goaltending, they have many years ahead of them. Ullmark and Saros? 4 years maximum.

About funny of being able to get out of contract - its not so funny. Some teams are doing it, some teams are not. Florida tried to trade Bobrovsky away for some time, Merzlikins and Gibson are anchors on their teams but both are younger. So on my taste there are enough to worry about. Im not so worry btw as you are trying to imagine again wrongfully. Because Im okay to sign Saros for example on free agent market. Again you dont understand idea and you are trying to put false narratieves in other people mouth.

Im against trading 10OA or Nemec or Bratt or even Mercer for Saros or for Hellebyuck or for Ullmark. Thats plain and simple.

I would prefer to sign B level goalie, tandem him with Allen and cover them by Daws and Schmid/Poulter. And build strong depth and defence. They will survive like they did year ago with VV and MB. If they will have problems - go and trade Ullmark or Saros for less. Or\and sign them after. We were bad this year because we have only Schmid behind Vanecek this year.

Again you have no arguments about goalies because Allen and Kahkonen played absolutely well after trade deadline. Devlis lost games no matter how good they played. No matter how bad Vanecek played we won games before trade deadline. Because of how good or bad was the team ahead of them.

Who said about McDavid? You are losing your minimum patience and continuing to make false arguments. Everybody who knows something about this draft knows the level of potential strong top-10-12-15 players of the draft. Players with high floor and high ceiling. You know nothing and making any favor for yourself when is trying to say "no mcdavids". You dont have arguments.
Because if you would know SOMETHING about draft or about teams like Dallas and Florida who drafted very impactful players Johnston. Stankoven(after playing in the final) and Lundell, you would prefer to say different things, you would understand that ELC talented players are doing great things for top teams because they are very talented, cost nothing and create secondary or even primary scoring.

But you know nothing. About draft, about teams and how they were built, about who is successful and how they help, what kind of deals they have, how good or bad goalies are performing in NHL after 32yo.
You just want goalie no matter what. Okay. But sorry that I understand the sh1ttisness of trading 10OA pick for aged goalie. You want goalie, I want success for my team. Thats a difference. Reason why I have strong preferences whom I want to draft and whom I want to trade this pick for. You want goalies. Dont worry, Fitz will sign goalie this summer. I hope he will not trade this pick for goalie Because even if you think it will prove your point - again - dont mess red with soft. It will prove that Fitz is on the hot seat. You are not on the hot seat. I believe you are not even that old, your mind should still have some freshness. May be to understand what kind of options we have, even if you need some time.

 

[StevenToddIves]

Helenius shows confidence at combine, ‘very close’ to playing in NHL | NHL.com

Niagara forward He has potential to become 2nd China-born player taken in draft; Becher may be surprise pick

www.nhl.com

I have a strong sense that if Helenius is available at 10OA, Fitz is going to draft him. He fills a need and isn’t far off from being NHL ready. Since we are in “win now” mode with Fitz probably feeling his seat is warming up, it makes perfect sense.

Agreed.

But I would also add that Nygard is equivalently close to NHL-readiness and played a good deal of center towards the end of the year. Fitzgerald has shown a preference for bigger players at the draft. In the past THREE drafts, the only sub-6'0 player the Devils have drafted has been Seamus Casey.

I agree that, like Casey, Helenius plays bigger than his size. But then we have to also see that Nygard plays much bigger than his size and is also bigger to start with.

I'm going to say that my strongest possibilities for #10 are (in no order):

1) A LD who falls lower than expected. Dickinson, Buium and Silayev are three players I feel would all have great appeal for the Devils brass.

2) A F who falls lower than expected. Specifically (and bafflingly), Cayden Lindstrom has dropped in the rankings. I don't see him falling to #10, but if he did it's safe to say he would be a slam dunk for the Devils pick. If everyone is scared off by Demidov's, um... Russian-ness? I don't think NJ would think twice about grabbing a potential franchise-caliber NHL forward. Both unlikely scenarios of course, but I thought I'd include them just in case.

3) Helenius or Nygard or Iginla -- three players who fit team need and the Devils profile

4) Surprise pick which people call a reach but really is not -- with Mukhamadullin and Stillman, Fitzgerald showed a willingness, for better or worse, to buck the consensus. C Michael Hage and LD Stian Solberg are two players who jump to mind as potential high-upside options at areas of NJ need.

5) Pure skill forward to add to an already-skilled forward group -- I might not personally like this decision, but it's possible the Devils scouting staff has fallen in love with a Catton or Eiserman and decide to go that route at #10 overall.

 

[longislanddevil]

Agreed.

But I would also add that Nygard is equivalently close to NHL-readiness and played a good deal of center towards the end of the year. Fitzgerald has shown a preference for bigger players at the draft. In the past THREE drafts, the only sub-6'0 player the Devils have drafted has been Seamus Casey.

I agree that, like Casey, Helenius plays bigger than his size. But then we have to also see that Nygard plays much bigger than his size and is also bigger to start with.

I'm going to say that my strongest possibilities for #10 are (in no order):

1) A LD who falls lower than expected. Dickinson, Buium and Silayev are three players I feel would all have great appeal for the Devils brass.

2) A F who falls lower than expected. Specifically (and bafflingly), Cayden Lindstrom has dropped in the rankings. I don't see him falling to #10, but if he did it's safe to say he would be a slam dunk for the Devils pick. If everyone is scared off by Demidov's, um... Russian-ness? I don't think NJ would think twice about grabbing a potential franchise-caliber NHL forward. Both unlikely scenarios of course, but I thought I'd include them just in case.

3) Helenius or Nygard or Iginla -- three players who fit team need and the Devils profile

4) Surprise pick which people call a reach but really is not -- with Mukhamadullin and Stillman, Fitzgerald showed a willingness, for better or worse, to buck the consensus. C Michael Hage and LD Stian Solberg are two players who jump to mind as potential high-upside options at areas of NJ need.

5) Pure skill forward to add to an already-skilled forward group -- I might not personally like this decision, but it's possible the Devils scouting staff has fallen in love with a Catton or Eiserman and decide to go that route at #10 overall.

That article also talks up one of your favorite draft prospects, Kevin He.

 

[Guadana]

Agreed.

But I would also add that Nygard is equivalently close to NHL-readiness and played a good deal of center towards the end of the year. Fitzgerald has shown a preference for bigger players at the draft. In the past THREE drafts, the only sub-6'0 player the Devils have drafted has been Seamus Casey.

I agree that, like Casey, Helenius plays bigger than his size. But then we have to also see that Nygard plays much bigger than his size and is also bigger to start with.

I'm going to say that my strongest possibilities for #10 are (in no order):

1) A LD who falls lower than expected. Dickinson, Buium and Silayev are three players I feel would all have great appeal for the Devils brass.

2) A F who falls lower than expected. Specifically (and bafflingly), Cayden Lindstrom has dropped in the rankings. I don't see him falling to #10, but if he did it's safe to say he would be a slam dunk for the Devils pick. If everyone is scared off by Demidov's, um... Russian-ness? I don't think NJ would think twice about grabbing a potential franchise-caliber NHL forward. Both unlikely scenarios of course, but I thought I'd include them just in case.

3) Helenius or Nygard or Iginla -- three players who fit team need and the Devils profile

4) Surprise pick which people call a reach but really is not -- with Mukhamadullin and Stillman, Fitzgerald showed a willingness, for better or worse, to buck the consensus. C Michael Hage and LD Stian Solberg are two players who jump to mind as potential high-upside options at areas of NJ need.

5) Pure skill forward to add to an already-skilled forward group -- I might not personally like this decision, but it's possible the Devils scouting staff has fallen in love with a Catton or Eiserman and decide to go that route at #10 overall.

Please, dont use Mukhamadullin and Stillman in the same sentence. Mukhamadullin was a prospect to trade for Meier (our late first round and second round are not so attractive in compare with other teams). Stillman could be good AHLer. May be good 4th liner if he will turn a lot of corners. Mukhamadullin is top-4 defenseman potentially and he proved it year after year on any level he played. Stillman didnt.


Overall
SJ will draft Celebrini.
Ducks will pick RD Levshunov more realistically.
Chicago needs F and D. There is a big chance they will draft F.
Columbus needs F. May be D but Demidov or second line center Lindstrom will be much more attractive for them.
Montreal needs F.
Arizona needs D more but still have some questions about forward group. I would wait D pick.
Ottawa needs RD much more. Or even F because Norris cant be healty.
Seattle needs D, but we still dont know how they are thinking about their wingers roster and prospect depth. And they are having more need in RD.
Calgary needs everything, they need defenseman more than wingers but Iginla still could be available.
From top-10 SJ, Montreal, Chicago and Columbus will pick forward. May be even Calgary. There is a big chance that Ottawa and Seattle will pick Yakemchuk and Parekh. Its not 100% but still its a strong chance there could be one left defenseman available from top group.

 

[MartyOwns]

Fitzgerald is literally saying he's willing to trade #10 overall for a goalie to quiet the complaining of a specific contingent of the fan base.

you don't actually believe that, do you? you think he's saying he would move it to pacify a fanbase? he said:

"I haven't gotten anything yet but the more I talk to teams, I say 'Listen, I'm open to moving No. 10, but it's going to have to be something (significant).'"

and, to further point of my previous post, he went on to say:

"At the end of the day, we're in a position now versus two years ago when we drafted (defenseman) Simon Nemec (No. 2 in the 2022 NHL Draft) where if we can find the right piece to help us get to where we want to go today, tomorrow and wherever the controllable future is for that player, great," Fitzgerald said. "That's the mindset versus 'Great, we have a top-10 pick and this kid is going to be fantastic when he's 25 years old'."

he's literally telling us he wants to make a splash with a significant goalie, and he's telling us that #10 is in play. do the math, fellas. you may not like it for some bizarre reason, but he wants to win now and he's going to at least try and do what will be required to achieve that goal.

 

[MartyOwns]

Is Bob a very good example? His career after sign a deal with Florida is average. And is far away from 10 mil worthy. He is as good or as bad as other 3-6 mil goalies all over the league. Are you trying to use him as a good examole? Seriously?

Im talking about the same goalies as you - same mistery boxes every goalies after 30's are. Bob too.
I know players who are available on the draft for top ten. I know what kind of potential they have. So why should I worry? As I said if we will trade and sign 30-32 yo goalies and he will fail - we will have aged 30's yo goalie with 7-9 mil under the cap for 7 8 years. If prospect will fail - its just a bad pick. If 30-32 yo goalie will be good - we will have 2-4 good years with 7-9 mil under the cap. If prospect will be good - we will have top-6 top-4 or even top-line talent for the 7-11 years under control after he will start to play. About 6-8 years of his prime, may be even more.

Yap, I mentioned rangers, I said they cant win it because of depth even with 5 mil Shestyorkin. Teams like St Louis and Vegas won it with worser goalies because of depth and defense. I didnt say they should trade Shestyorkin for depth. It was your idea, not mine. You are making false conclusions, not me. Bad take about "not worry about Palat deal, worry about goalie deal" is bad not because of "deal" (and deal too, because goalies will be older, their deals will be longer) but because they need 10OA pick to trade for them.

Nemec comment isnt idiotic. Its your argument - trading mistery box for proven old goalie. Nemec is still mistery box. You dont know ceiling and floor of prospect from this draft. How do you know how good or bad they will be if you are "reading", how do you know how good Nemec will be - he is kid without any proves yet and he will be a kid next season. Or it is the same idiotic offer as trading top-10 pick for aged goalie. I offer you to decide. But you have only 2 options. Or trading Nemec is valid because he will not be impactful next season as Ullmark or Saros, or trading 10OA for Ullmark and Saros is stupid overpayment.


Im not against good goalie. Bad golies svcks. But still teams like Colorado and Carolina did pretty okay with Georgiev and Anderson. And Oilers with Skinner. Im fully against trading player with real top-6 top 4 potential and ceiling of top liner for goalie. Especially for 30-32 yo goalie. Because of their best case scenario 4 years good impact and tonns of money under the cap after playing their pick in different team.

Im not sh1tting on Swayman Wallstedt and Askarov. Would be okay to trade for them. Still - all are mistery boxes(except Swayman), all are not be tradable. But they are closer to NHL, they have some proves of good goaltending, they have many years ahead of them. Ullmark and Saros? 4 years maximum.

About funny of being able to get out of contract - its not so funny. Some teams are doing it, some teams are not. Florida tried to trade Bobrovsky away for some time, Merzlikins and Gibson are anchors on their teams but both are younger. So on my taste there are enough to worry about. Im not so worry btw as you are trying to imagine again wrongfully. Because Im okay to sign Saros for example on free agent market. Again you dont understand idea and you are trying to put false narratieves in other people mouth.

Im against trading 10OA or Nemec or Bratt or even Mercer for Saros or for Hellebyuck or for Ullmark. Thats plain and simple.

I would prefer to sign B level goalie, tandem him with Allen and cover them by Daws and Schmid/Poulter. And build strong depth and defence. They will survive like they did year ago with VV and MB. If they will have problems - go and trade Ullmark or Saros for less. Or\and sign them after. We were bad this year because we have only Schmid behind Vanecek this year.

Again you have no arguments about goalies because Allen and Kahkonen played absolutely well after trade deadline. Devlis lost games no matter how good they played. No matter how bad Vanecek played we won games before trade deadline. Because of how good or bad was the team ahead of them.

Who said about McDavid? You are losing your minimum patience and continuing to make false arguments. Everybody who knows something about this draft knows the level of potential strong top-10-12-15 players of the draft. Players with high floor and high ceiling. You know nothing and making any favor for yourself when is trying to say "no mcdavids". You dont have arguments.
Because if you would know SOMETHING about draft or about teams like Dallas and Florida who drafted very impactful players Johnston. Stankoven(after playing in the final) and Lundell, you would prefer to say different things, you would understand that ELC talented players are doing great things for top teams because they are very talented, cost nothing and create secondary or even primary scoring.

But you know nothing. About draft, about teams and how they were built, about who is successful and how they help, what kind of deals they have, how good or bad goalies are performing in NHL after 32yo.
You just want goalie no matter what. Okay. But sorry that I understand the sh1ttisness of trading 10OA pick for aged goalie. You want goalie, I want success for my team. Thats a difference. Reason why I have strong preferences whom I want to draft and whom I want to trade this pick for. You want goalies. Dont worry, Fitz will sign goalie this summer. I hope he will not trade this pick for goalie Because even if you think it will prove your point - again - dont mess red with soft. It will prove that Fitz is on the hot seat. You are not on the hot seat. I believe you are not even that old, your mind should still have some freshness. May be to understand what kind of options we have, even if you need some time.

- yes, i'm using bob as an example. he is an above average goalie on a big ass contract, the kind of contract that i imagine keeps you up at night. if florida lifts the cup, and i hope they do because f*** canada, you can ask florida fans if it was worth giving him $10m a year, let me know what they say.

- you are just imagining scenarios at this point and then arguing against them. don't say "we're discussing the same goalies"- i didn't mention saros, i didn't mention ullmark, nor did i say we would or should be signing them to 8 year deals worth $9 million. you're having the argument you want at this point, without reading or understanding what i'm saying.

-i'm sure every guy slated to go in the first round has a lot of potential, that's great. but there's absolutely no guarantees, i would hope that even you would acknowledge that. bringing in a proven goalie is way more of a guarantee.

-"if prospect will be good, we will have first line talent, cost controlled, for 7-11 years". hmmm ok. "if goalie will be good, we will have 3 stanley cups over next 7 years". i can make wild hypotheticals too, it holds absolutely no weight. what do you imagine contributes to our next cup win more? a goalie who can stop 9 out of 10 shots? or some teenager we draft this summer?

-according to your logic, we could win a cup with or without stellar goaltending; therefore, we should not bother with a goalie because it's a coin toss. what if we acquire depth through FA like a normal team AND bring in a reliable goalie? is that allowed? putting ourselves in the best possible position to be successful? for the third (although i fear not the last) time, it doesn't have to be one or the other.

- "teams like colorado and carolina did pretty okay with georgiev and anderson"...so that's good, yet you also say the rangers f***ed it all up (even though they went further than colorado or carolina) with igor because of a lack of depth. so once again, by your logic, the rangers should sell off igor and spend the $8-$9 million he'll command on depth and acquire a jake allen type goalie. surely, that will end their draught. give me a break. the rangers spend most of their money on soft, perimeter, one dimensional guys who disappear in the playoffs. that's where they're wasting their money, not on igor.

- you might have missed this, but nemec played quite a few games last year and did not look out of place for the most part. he is not a mystery box, i'm quite confident he will be a top pairing defenseman soon enough. there's no way i'd trade him for any goalie you've mentioned. now, if nashville wanted him straight up for askarov? that's something to consider. apples and oranges, just a very dumb situation that isn't analogous at all.

- you're fine signing saros in FA? wow, what a visionary you are. of course you would be, anyone here would. staying on the theme of 'things i already said but have to say again', when do goalies of that caliber get signed in FA? the irony of you saying i know nothing while spouting off about scenarios that rarely (if ever) happen is incredible.

- what "b level goalie" are you talking about signing?

- johnston was drafted at #23, stankoven at #47 and lundell at #12. any other idiotic examples that actually disprove your point you'd like to throw out there?

- despite my immaturity, i am way older than you apparently imagine i am. another swing and a miss.

- i do not want a goalie "no matter what". if there's a deal fitz feels makes sense, and the ask (or part of the ask) is #10, i want him to pull the trigger. again- try reading what i'm saying before you publish your next hf novel in response.

 

[Monsieur Verdoux]

The best goalies likely available in the trade market are Ulmark and Markstrom. Either can likely be had for one of the Devils two 3rd round picks. Neither is appreciably better than Allen and both are entering UFA seasons.

The Devils shouldn't trade the #10 pick for a goalie, but Ullmark is definitely better than Allen and his value is a lot higher than a 3rd round pick.

 

[Aom9]

I know his skating is a little lackluster but I really believe in Greentree being a top 10 prospect.
TOP 15 POSPECTS IN THE 2024 NHL DRAFT (Highlights & Analysis) https://youtu.be/bDCymSDTuK0

 

[OmNomNom]

I know his skating is a little lackluster but I really believe in Greentree being a top 10 prospect.
TOP 15 POSPECTS IN THE 2024 NHL DRAFT (Highlights & Analysis) https://youtu.be/bDCymSDTuK0

may have to edit your hyperlink there

 

[Bleedred]

bleedred also said quick was finished, why are you mentioning his opinions at all?

I know this isn't the thread for it, but I've explained this on Quick multiple times throughout the season.

YES, I said Quick was done.

And you know what? Like I've said many times this season, that Quick IS done. He was a different goalie last year. He completely changed his game. I don't know if was his idea or if it was Benoit Allaire's idea. But Quick completely reinvented his game. Either way, Quick deserves a TON of credit for that. It's gotta be insanely hard to change your game at 37 years old, when you've been playing one way for the 20+ years or maybe even 30 years since he was a kid.

If you watched Quick play this year and compare him to the Quick of the year before or even the Quick of his prime, he plays MUCH different. The Quick prior to 23-24 was ALWAYS flopping, ALWAYS overcommitting and shooting himself all over the place. WAY too overaggressive. He would leave about 5-8 empty nets (I'm not saying he allowed 5-8 empty net goals per game) per game and usually there were a couple of goals against because of it.

That's not how Quick played this past year. If he continued to play like that, he would have looked like the same burnt, overdone, left on the BBQ to completely turn to ash goalie that he looked like in 22-23.

Yeah, I thought for sure he was finished. And the Quick of old was absolutely finished. That wasn't the Quick we saw this past year. Of course, there were some remnants of the old Quick, but he looked like a different player from the Quick of old. Even the good Quick of old played significantly different in style from Quick of last year.

Whoever got him playing differently deserves a ton of credit. And he deserves credit for reinventing his game. It's very tough to do for any player, of any position, at that age. I never even thought there was a possibility that he could do that. It never crossed my mind. And because of that, I'll take the L on that one.

I've really hoped he would elaborate and talk about the changes in his game, but he's kept quiet on it.

 

[Bleedred]

If Saros doesn't hit the trade market, I honestly don't think there is a goalie available who is appreciably better than Jake Allen.

The best goalies likely available in the trade market are Ulmark and Markstrom. Either can likely be had for one of the Devils two 3rd round picks. Neither is appreciably better than Allen and both are entering UFA seasons.

Fitzgerald is literally saying he's willing to trade #10 overall for a goalie to quiet the complaining of a specific contingent of the fan base. You don't "shop" a pick -- it's what other teams ask for in return for specific players. There's no goalie available worth more than Jake Allen, much less #10 overall when your prospect pool has slipped into the bottom 10 of the league. Fitzgerald also said he was willing to trade the 1st round pick in 2022 and 2021 for "help now". He didn't do this until Timo Meier was made available in 2023.

I think the problem with Allen is that he's shown he can be a good backup/1b goalie at most, but completely melts down when being starter/1a. The season when an unknown Binnington came from the AHL and saved the day is the greatest example of that.

His play at the very end of the season may have been another instance of this, or it just could have been very random (he played way above his head for the first 7 or 10 games here, I can't remember the exact number) or maybe it was Rogalski poisoning him.

I'm so disillusioned with the state of the goalie department within the organization and the people who run it, that I don't have too high of hopes in it getting a whole lot better.

But the 22-23 season did happen and there was decent to solid goalie play that season from goalies not named Blackwood. And the team did predictably exile Vanecek after the season he just had.

Hopefully the expected save percentages (which were like .897% last year) come up a little bit this upcoming season to something more respectable or closer to the .904% league average of the last two seasons. Maybe with Keefe/potential new staff it can get better. Although they were around league average with Ruff in 22-23, if not slightly above league average, and two of the 3 goalies here exceeded what was expected and stayed above water.

 

[Bleedred]

Ullmark to Edmonton as a one year rental (like Kuemper to Colorado in 2021) really looked like something that made too much sense if the Oilers didn't get past the Stars, due to Skinner completing the implosion.

Win or lose in the SCF, I don't think they'll find it too imperative to go for Ullmark or some other big name this offseason. I think they'll just run it back with Skinner again.

I don't know how this turned into the new goalie thread. It wasn't me, I just kept it going.

 

[ZachaFlockaFlame]

I have no issue moving 10 but it would hurt a bit for an older goalie. I do agree that Fitz is probably going to be more desperate after the shit show in 23-24 but I also think that most scenarios are gonna be ok for the Devils. As long as it isn't a stupid half measure, we should be ok with what the Devils do. The only thing that would scare me is if Fitz goes AWOL and tries to keep his job by overpaying for a Markstrom or Ullmark with the draft picks in his arsenal this year. (Probably a Devils roster post but I saw the goaltending talk in here so I decided to put it here)

 

[longislanddevil]

I’m waiting for some reports or something newsworthy to come out from the Combine…….

 

[StevenToddIves]

I know his skating is a little lackluster but I really believe in Greentree being a top 10 prospect.
TOP 15 POSPECTS IN THE 2024 NHL DRAFT (Highlights & Analysis) https://youtu.be/bDCymSDTuK0

I tried to read this but couldn't. Would love to debate you on Greentree -- I have him ranked in the mid-2nd round.

 

[StevenToddIves]

Folks, please. Let's move the trade talk to the rightful main thread. This should be about prospects. Doesn't even have to be Devils. I can talk all day about whether Chicago will take Demidov or Levshunov, but I want to pull my considerably beautiful hair out after 2 minutes of arguing who is the most average-plus out of a group of average goalies.

It's fine to debate this. But not here. The draft page should be a refuge for that kind of talk, not the destination. It's about hope for the future, and it bums me out to see "hope for the future" devolve into "panic right now".

In the efforts to turn this page back to where it is meant to go -- which player (or what kind of player) would you folks like to see the Devils grab with their two 3rd round picks?

Let's talk sleepers!

I know there have to be some great opinions out there from folks like @Guadana @evnted @Guttersniped @longislanddevil etc. etc.

 

[My3Sons]

Folks, please. Let's move the trade talk to the rightful main thread. This should be about prospects. Doesn't even have to be Devils. I can talk all day about whether Chicago will take Demidov or Levshunov, but I want to pull my considerably beautiful hair out after 2 minutes of arguing who is the most average-plus out of a group of average goalies.

It's fine to debate this. But not here. The draft page should be a refuge for that kind of talk, not the destination. It's about hope for the future, and it bums me out to see "hope for the future" devolve into "panic right now".

In the efforts to turn this page back to where it is meant to go -- which player (or what kind of player) would you folks like to see the Devils grab with their two 3rd round picks?

Let's talk sleepers!

I know there have to be some great opinions out there from folks like @Guadana @evnted @Guttersniped @longislanddevil etc. etc.

Sleepers? My youngest once slept over 13 hours. We were worried something was wrong.

 

[StevenToddIves]

Sleepers? My youngest once slept over 13 hours. We were worried something was wrong.

Let's use our 6th rounder on the youngest child of @My3Sons

 

[Nubmer6]

Let's use our 6th rounder on the youngest child of @My3Sons

Is his first name Lovejoy?

 

[evnted]

Folks, please. Let's move the trade talk to the rightful main thread. This should be about prospects. Doesn't even have to be Devils. I can talk all day about whether Chicago will take Demidov or Levshunov, but I want to pull my considerably beautiful hair out after 2 minutes of arguing who is the most average-plus out of a group of average goalies.

It's fine to debate this. But not here. The draft page should be a refuge for that kind of talk, not the destination. It's about hope for the future, and it bums me out to see "hope for the future" devolve into "panic right now".

In the efforts to turn this page back to where it is meant to go -- which player (or what kind of player) would you folks like to see the Devils grab with their two 3rd round picks?

Let's talk sleepers!

I know there have to be some great opinions out there from folks like @Guadana @evnted @Guttersniped @longislanddevil etc. etc.

i tried my best to drown it out last night by spamming all those random euro kid profiles

id say some of my top targets for the 3rd round (to no ones surprise) would be:
-puck moving C's who can slot in a checking line role (bednarik, boilard, eriksson, pettersson, spellacy, villeneuve)
-mobile left shot DFD's who may fall for a lack of tools (muggli) or from their nationality (shuravin)
-energetic forecheckers who could probably mesh with talent (gojsic, he, kos, mustard, traff, ziemer)
-maybe a goalie? thats still in work for me. george, nabokov, yegorov are all interesting at first glance

and a blanket answer for anyone who might go underappreciated (pitner, plante, poirier, and even some whispers about freij) and wouldnt really fit the above criteria

currently going over some names ive been seeing ranked that havent really be on my radar this year. should have more sleeper profiles out in the coming days, which will hopefully culminate in some sort of brief goalie overview for the middle rounds (which will mean nothing when we inevitably take a double overager ive never heard of but thats beside that point)

 

[StevenToddIves]

Two Players At Every Position the Devils Might Have A Shot At In Round 3:

LD: Daniil Ustinkov -- smooth skating, Swiss shut-down defender who is very smart with the puck
LD: Leon Muggli -- another smooth skating, Swiss shut-down defender who is very smart with the puck. For the layperson, Ustinkov is a bit better without the puck while Muggli is a bit better with it, but neither player has any real weakness.

RD: Tory Pitner -- no player is as calm, cool and collected, regardless of situation. Never makes a bad decision no matter how much pressure is on him.
RD: Harrison Brunicke -- all the tools are there, he just needs to tie it all together

LW: Kevin He -- my dream pick, but may even be around as late as the 5th round -- this kid can fly, thinks the game really well, plays with heart and skill. Super underrated player.
LW: Ondrej Kos -- fast, physical and smart; maybe just middle 6 upside but Kos is always on the puck like peanut butter on the roof of your mouth

RW: Hiroki Gojsic -- Tij Iginla's literal right-hand man in Kelowna, Gojsic is a 6'3-190 interior forward who possesses both the skill to play with high-end talent and the energy and power to open up room on the ice for them to shine.
RW: Kasper Pikkarainen -- big, fast kid and son of an ex-Devil (Ilkka), certainly a project but plays physical and has a great tool kit to work with. One of the youngest draft-eligibles for 2024 and could have a huge development arc.

C: Kamil Bednarik -- sure he's a jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none, but the Devils lack any centers in the system and adding a high-floor kid like Bednarik would be extremely useful
C: Kieron Walton -- 6'5, skates well, can fire the puck and plays a heady, high-effort style. Walton might not stick at C (also a LW with Sudbury) but if he can, could be a real steal if he falls.

Ultimate pipe dream:
Former Bergen Catholic standout John Mustard falls to Round 3. He's a center, he has top-line-type upside, and no one has him ranked as a 1st rounder except me.

 

[Darkauron]

Pikkarainen???? GIVE ME HIM NOW.

 

[StevenToddIves]

Pikkarainen???? GIVE ME HIM NOW.

Kasper Pikkarainen is admittedly as raw as it gets and a loooong way from the NHL. But 6'3-195 wingers with high-end skating, shooting and puck skills don't come around often, especially when they are as physically willing to engage as this kid.

Of course, the reason he might be around in the 3rd Round (or even 5th Round) is that he is one of the youngest players in the class and way behind most of these kids developmentally. He's got the tools but has yet to figure out exactly what his game is going to be.

To be honest, I don't see him at the top of my list for either of the 3rd round picks, but if he falls to the Devils later picks I think he'd be a tremendously fun home run swing.

 

[StevenToddIves]

i tried my best to drown it out last night by spamming all those random euro kid profiles

id say some of my top targets for the 3rd round (to no ones surprise) would be:
-puck moving C's who can slot in a checking line role (bednarik, boilard, eriksson, pettersson, spellacy, villeneuve)
-mobile left shot DFD's who may fall for a lack of tools (muggli) or from their nationality (shuravin)
-energetic forecheckers who could probably mesh with talent (gojsic, he, kos, mustard, traff, ziemer)
-maybe a goalie? thats still in work for me. george, nabokov, yegorov are all interesting at first glance

and a blanket answer for anyone who might go underappreciated (pitner, plante, poirier, and even some whispers about freij) and wouldnt really fit the above criteria

currently going over some names ive been seeing ranked that havent really be on my radar this year. should have more sleeper profiles out in the coming days, which will hopefully culminate in some sort of brief goalie overview for the middle rounds (which will mean nothing when we inevitably take a double overager ive never heard of but thats beside that point)

Great list.

A couple of follow-up questions, because I'm a pain in your ass:

1) Do you think there is any realistic chance Eriksson falls to Round 3? He's a do-it-all center with no real weakness, and Sweden is scouted quite well in the modern draft age.
2) After the slightly higher-profile Cs of Ericksson and Bednarik, how would you order your secondary sleeper targets of Boilard, Pettersson, Spellacy and Villeneuve?
3) Do you think Russian-ness could conceivably drop Shuravin to Round 3, or are we both pipe-dreaming?

 

[evnted]

Great list.

A couple of follow-up questions, because I'm a pain in your ass:

1) Do you think there is any realistic chance Eriksson falls to Round 3? He's a do-it-all center with no real weakness, and Sweden is scouted quite well in the modern draft age.
2) After the slightly higher-profile Cs of Ericksson and Bednarik, how would you order your secondary sleeper targets of Boilard, Pettersson, Spellacy and Villeneuve?
3) Do you think Russian-ness could conceivably drop Shuravin to Round 3, or are we both pipe-dreaming?

1) no not really (i've got him late 1st/early 2nd), but his consolidated ranking is around our pick, as well as bob's most recent placement, so i figured he made sense to include

2) pettersson, boilard, villeneueve, spellacy. pettersson is the only one i think has boom potential and has shown the best overall this year, boilard is the one i trust the most even if he isn't as exciting, villeneuve is more of a wild card but offers a unique game and could have a big rebound year, spellacy is more limited in terms of his actual game but what he does (skate, forecheck) he does at a very high level. i would argue you a bit on bednarik being eriksson tier, i like pettersson more than him and think he's in the mix of boilard/villeneuve

3) i dont rule ANYTHING out with these type of defenders, never mind ones picked out of russia. karpovich hitting 186 is all the confirmation of that i need lol. and even beyond him, luneau mid 2nd in 22, svozil early 3rd in 21, and so on were all comically low for their projections