Prospect Info: 2024 NHL Draft Thread

[evnted]

the whole crew is turning up for this thread lol surely THIS will be our last lotto pick for a while

 

[Guadana]

the whole crew is turning up for this thread lol surely THIS will be our last lotto pick for a while

Yeah, swan song! I think everybody in the work now.

Im cooking. And Im already have out of town opinion about whom we should draft)

For being calm and happy I need top-7 pick now.

 

[Unknown Caller]

There are different rankings.
View attachment 835276

There is more proven guy with Lindstrom higher than Catton. And its not like any rank is effecting on something at all. Catton is producing, Lindstrom is injury. This is the ONLY real reason why Catton can be higher and even will be picked higher. Mostly without any virtual rankings reality is about top heavy guys with skating and hands are going higher than smaller guys. Catton is fun but he isnt as dynamic as Cooley, he isnt physical, he play junior league style of the game where his flashy moves will not work against tougher competition, because he is handling in from of the face, Lindstrom is separating and manipulating. With higher speed. And of course he is million times more physical, most of his shot are not going from the perimeter. Its not like Catton is perimeter only, but his passing is more NHL transladable, big part of his shooting ability needs to work to translate it on NHL level.

So if we will have Catton - hooray, still very very good player with brain, good skating, of course need more legs days, need to learn physical stuff, may be questionable as top-6 center, but still very dynamic as a two way compete player with great offensive abilities.
Lindstrom is on another level of what he is as a player, what we need in players, with higher ceiling. More realistically top-6 center or top line winger, may be even top line center. And you never have a player like him outside the draft or very-very pricy trade. Catton is more realistically very dynamic top-6 playmaking winger/second line center.


its about from their games, not from their rankings. If its question who is better between him - there are no questions. If its a question who will be picked higher - we never know but more realistically Lindstrom is a top-5 pick, Catton is in the next tier. If its question about availability - again we dont know. Personally I think both should be drafted in top-6. Both are way better players than Helenius. I hope we will draft D or Demidov if its a qestion between them and Helenius. Lindstrom and Catton both are great to draft. If we want center we should draft them, if we want winger between Demidov and Catton - there are more questions. If we want forward, we should not even think about Helenius and just pick defenseman. All of them are better players then Helenius. I would prefer Iginla over Helenius even with "lower ceiling".

Draft Parekh by 9th pick on this draft is just stupid. Thats all about this rankings. For both Cosentino and McKenzie.

Bob McKenzie hasn’t updated his rankings since the midseasons in January. Pronman and Cosentino are both as of this week. Catton has been on fire and is flying up the boards.

If you want to act like he isn’t that’s fine, but it’s not going to change facts. He’s very likely going before Lindstrom. The production just isn’t there for Lindstrom to go beforehand.

Possible but not likely.

 

[Lou Bloom]

Bob McKenzie hasn’t updated his rankings since the midseasons in January. Pronman and Cosentino are both as of this week. Catton has been on fire and is flying up the boards.

If you want to act like he isn’t that’s fine, but it’s not going to change facts. He’s very likely going before Lindstrom. The production just isn’t there for Lindstrom to go beforehand.

Possible but not likely.

Slafkovsky went 1st overall with worse production. Projectability is important, you can't just look at junior stats. Lindstrom's combination of size/speed/skills/physicality will make him an easy top 5 pick and very likely top 3.

Catton's a very good prospect but a small forward lacking elite tools is going to go lower than the internet scouting consensus. We've seen this with players like Marco Rossi and Zach Benson.

 

[TBF1972]

He has less hair than Zibanejad.

he is young. still growing.

 

[Guadana]

Bob McKenzie hasn’t updated his rankings since the midseasons in January. Pronman and Cosentino are both as of this week. Catton has been on fire and is flying up the boards.

If you want to act like he isn’t that’s fine, but it’s not going to change facts. He’s very likely going before Lindstrom. The production just isn’t there for Lindstrom to go beforehand.

Possible but not likely.

Lindstrom isn't playing. Thats all. If you are projecting players by production on the draft - its your right to act, but im talking about skills, roles, pros and cons and NHL GMs. Previous draft and compares.
Production is a good thing but its not the full picture. And never was.

May be Catton will be drafted higher, may be Lindstrom. You don't know as me. Because it is a question how specific GMs think and see the game. Is Catton better profiled player? No.

 

[NJDfan86]

I'd be floored if any NHL GM takes Catton before Lindstrom - not because Catton isn't a phenomenal player, but because Lindstrom's skill set is so unique. 6'4 players with his skating, physicality, and finishing ability might be the most coveted asset in hockey - if he wasn't injured I believe he would be firmly locked into the #2 spot on most teams draft boards.

 

[Blackjack]

Catton's a very good prospect but a small forward lacking elite tools is going to go lower than the internet scouting consensus. We've seen this with players like Marco Rossi and Zach Benson.

I don’t think your overall point is wrong, but Catton has a couple inches on those guys, at least according to hockeydb. I’d think teams look at 5’11 a lot differently from 5’9.

That said, I do agree that even at 5’11 teams probably want you to have an elite tool or two to compensate for not being 6’2.

 

[Unknown Caller]

Slafkovsky went 1st overall with worse production. Projectability is important, you can't just look at junior stats. Lindstrom's combination of size/speed/skills/physicality will make him an easy top 5 pick and very likely top 3.

Catton's a very good prospect but a small forward lacking elite tools is going to go lower than the internet scouting consensus. We've seen this with players like Marco Rossi and Zach Benson.

Slafkovsky was a consensus 1-3 from the middle of the season when he tore up the Olympics. His stock was rising, not trailing like Lindstrom’s.

Again, we’ll see who’s right in a few months. No reason to argue about it when we’ll get an answer soon.

 

[Guadana]

Who is right)

Return to the topic




Two games of Catton. Shift by shift.

 

[Guadana]

The Devil's first round draft pick in this years draft will most likely be traded. Hopefully for a number 1A goaltender.

overall its not a good deal to trade top - 10 draft pick for 30-32 yo 1 year UFA. It is not smart management.

 

[Nubmer6]

overall its not a good deal to trade top - 10 draft pick for 30-32 yo 1 year UFA. It is not smart management.

I'd do it for Swayman, Askarov, or Walstedt... maybe.

 

[Guadana]

I'd do it for Swayman, Askarov, or Walstedt... maybe.

Im ready to do it for them. Especially in situation after Lindstrom, Demidov, Buium and Catton are gone, I think all three young goalies are worthy and some kind of proven candidates, and all of them have more years under the hood. 30+ - 32+ yo goalies can turn into the pumpkin in a one year, there are much more examples of bad ones in the modern context. And we are talking about potential sign for 6-7-8 years. So yeah, I dont like idea to trade high pick(top-10\12 is high) for older goalies. I hope Fitz is smart enough and cool enough to not make a bad panic move.

 

[Guadana]

And I feel how crazy and panic Devils fans are to ready to trade our top-10 pick for a goalie. Im starting to understand why rumors are continue to going arond Markstrom. Because he cant be a trade target for top-10 pick. If it is a reason, Im happy to have reasonable GM.

 

[My3Sons]

And I feel how crazy and panic Devils fans are to ready to trade our top-10 pick for a goalie. Im starting to understand why rumors are continue to going arond Markstrom. Because he cant be a trade target for top-10 pick. If it is a reason, Im happy to have reasonable GM.

Markstrom's best chance of being traded to NJ is to have his agent set fire to the phone lines to the Calgary GM's office and demand they trade him after the way they left him twisting in the wind the past couple of months.

 

[Ripshot 43]

Tij Iginla is a guy I've watched a bunch this year. His father is probably my favorite non-Devils forward of all time (give or take Yzerman, but I'm old), so I've been uniquely intrigued by his development.

Despite his last name, Tij was pretty low on draft radars entering this season, and it's important to stress this was not his fault. Last year, he was buried as a depth F on an absolutely stacked Seattle WHL roster. This year, as a feature F on Kelowna, he's shown in spades his potential -- as a two-way, 30+ goal NHL forward who plays with the grinding, physical, two-way mentality of a 3rd liner.

Tij's strengths are plenty and his weaknesses almost non-existent. I'd say the foremost things to like about him are his extraordinary IQ, athleticism and physical strength which far exceed his 5'11-185 frame and an elite shooting combination of release/power. He's not an elite vision type player, but he's so smart he always knows how to get pucks into high danger areas. His incredible instincts for hockey are apparent on every shift, he always seems to be thinking two to three steps ahead of the opposition, which is a trait I have always always promoted -- this rare ability sees him open for more shooting attempts, it sees him extending offensive zone play, it essentially ups every one of his physical traits by a level or two.

Though I would be loathe to compare him technically to Dawson Mercer, we're talking a similar breed of player -- a smart hard-worker who can slot to center or wing, play all situations on the ice, and slot up and down the line-up seamlessly and be effective on a first line or a third line. The kid is a coaches dream.

Though we would be mistaken to envision Tij Iginla as a superstar-type prospect, I feel he's a can't miss NHLer who has 30+ goal, 70+ point pro potential, which certainly makes him a worthy candidate for the mid-to-late 1st round of the 2024 draft.

 

[glenwo2]

I hate this.

Same.

We should be focusing on playoff seeding and instead we're back to where we were two years ago.


All that said, BPA all the way.

 

[Guadana]

Markstrom's best chance of being traded to NJ is to have his agent set fire to the phone lines to the Calgary GM's office and demand they trade him after the way they left him twisting in the wind the past couple of months.

I think we will see the trade this summer. With Devils or with other organisation. It was too harsh.

——-

In case of BPA.

Devils will likely draft in 8-11 range.

1. Celebrini

Tier 1
2-3. Lindstrom/Demidov
2-3. Demidov/Lindstrom
4. Buium
5. Catton

I want player from tier 1.
I’m good to draft Dickinson, Silayev and Levshunov. And Iginla, if this previous 8 players are not available.
I’m against to draft Helenius, Perekh, Yakemchuk and Eiserman.

I think that top-5 players (from my list) are special enough to be excited about this draft. All of them have real first line/first pair potential with special talent that can help to dominate.

Dickinson, Silayev and Levshunov have visible potential to be top-4 defensemen with first pair ceiling if they will develop some parts of their game. I think Dickinson is a more sure thing, with lesser questions, with good speed and good enough skating. Both Silayev and Levshunov are less sure things, still very very intriguing prospects, both need to polish their game. It’s hard to compare because of different context of competition, Silayev looks like a player with less red flags but with lower potential offensively. Levshunov looks more promising offensively, but he has his own version of tunnel vision and his iq… I will break them down later.
All three are still more or on the level with Reinbacher, Drysdale, Clarke etc.

Lindstrom is dynamic, has star potential in his game, he is really physical, very faster skater and great manipulator. I’m not telling about McKinnon level, Lindstrom isn’t as creative as playmaker, he is average, but as a driver, as net driver, as shooter, with great hands and snarl. He is rare great netfront player. True physical scoring center, who can shoot, check, win puck battles and play on the slot. Even if he will not develop his game, he has tools to be great top 6 physical forward, hard to play against. If he will adapt, he is pain in the vss, goal scoring center. Perfect player to draft by Devils, but I can’t believe he will be available.
Demidov is a new bright Russian Super Star winger in the making. And he is fast. He has best skills from all of this players. It’s boring for him to play on the junior level. He can do whatever he wants. And he is close to travel to NA. Not very physical, I don’t think he is NHL center, even with experience. He is playing overconfident, may be he needs to simple his game, but he will do it on the adult level. But overall if our team will draft him, just smile, be happy and sleep well. May be he will sleep through the draft somehow.

Buium is great left defenseman with great offensive and defensive tools. His two way iq is great, he can speed himself in a second, he is very manipulative, fast, aggressive, physical, smart and very talented. He reads game greatly everywhere, he is active and doesn’t give a space to breath. He isn’t very big - 183-184sm, but he is playing big. The only issue is his skating. He isn’t bad skater, he is fast skater, but there are some problems with his technique, some players can caught him. He is fast and mobile but bull on the ice. I believe some guys can tell about his skating more. I njdevils it’s a real problem, but he still isn’t as great as Luke Hughes. He reminds me faster Nate Schmidt with higher offensive ceiling. His iq is the best from this defensive squad and his physical tool and two way game is there. As a Devils pick, he would be awesome, may be he will sleep through the draft because Levshunov is big, aggressive RHD and Silayev and Dickinson are very bigger and very mobile too.

Catton is the smartest forward and playmaker. He knows where his partners are and where they are going, so he changes his position all the time. He is very good driver, he is using different tools to drive. And he has pretty accurate shot. His technique isn’t perfect, but accuracy and iq helps him to use it in the right way. His speed is good, he can make faster steps from the start and he is smart enough to save his energy to use it in the right moment.
He isn’t physical and he puckhandles to separate himself from opponents. Part of it will not work against NHLers and he will need to adapt his game against adult level, he is fast but isn’t really good skater with the puck as Top-3 forwards, but still he is very good. He is using more space to shoot but he is smart and technically competent to work on it more. His Iq is so good and will help him to achieve top-6 or even top-3 spot, he just need to add physical element into his game, work more with legs and it will help him too add more speed, more muscles will help with the power of shot. His defensive side of the game isn’t sharp, but even if he is the last player on the forecheck, he read the game well and cover the ice positionally. I like that he skates better than Rossi, Perfetti or Benson, so when he will add more muscles he will turn on the new level. I don’t know if he will become first line center, but he has real potential to be, or at least to be the first line playmaking winger.
He is number five on this list because he needs more to add in his game and develop more of his skills. But it’s not that hard to imagine 80-100 points player with his iq.

——

For now it looks like we will draft somewhere between 8-11 spots. We need to lose everything and still it will be very hard to be lower than 8, it needs to win a lot to return to 12 spot.

I hope some teams like… Ducks will draft Levshunov before us. They have great offensive depth, good centers, their left flank of defense is good, and they like big players. Levshunov looks like a perfect match. If they will not win draft lottery.
We don’t know what Chicago think about Moore and Nazar as potential second line centers. Anyway their defensive line needs more works and their offensive is little bit on the smaller side. And drafting Lindstrom should really help to make their top 6 much stronger.
San Jose has two picks, and most likely they will pick forwards by their higher pick(let’s imagine they will win lottery) and than most likely will draft defenseman by second pick from pens. Most likely they need RD. If Levshunov will not be available (I think he will be picked high, he is big and mobile RD with good production), they can pick Parekh or Yakemchuk - both are offensive defensemen with… some big question on defensive side of the game, but who cares. I care and hope Fitz will not draft them.
Arizona looks like a team that should need to draft defenseman.
But Montreal needs center hard. And Columbus. Ottawa needs everything. So I don’t see how Lindstrom, Catton and Demidov will sleep through the first 8 picks.

So it most likely Celebrini, Lindstrom, Levshunov, Dickinson, Silayev, Catton and Demidov will be drafted before 8th pick. If SJ will draft Parekh or Yakemchuk - it will help us to draft Buium. If Eiserman or Helenius will be picked before us - it will help to have more choice between available and more interesting player. Personally from my view and from my perspective of my tier 1 only Buium looks like a player who can be more realistically available for 8-11 pick. But we never know. Dickinson and Silayev are very good and interesting left defensemen to draft, very big and very mobile. So even for 11 pick it’s a good draft to cheer.

 

[glenwo2]

I think we will see the trade this summer. With Devils or with other organisation. It was too harsh.

——-

In case of BPA.

Devils will likely draft in 8-11 range.

1. Celebrini

Tier 1
2-3. Lindstrom/Demidov
2-3. Demidov/Lindstrom
4. Buium
5. Catton

I want player from tier 1.
I’m good to draft Dickinson, Silayev and Levshunov. And Iginla, if this previous 8 players are not available.
I’m against to draft Helenius, Perekh, Yakemchuk and Eiserman.

I think that top-5 players (from my list) are special enough to be excited about this draft. All of them have real first line/first pair potential with special talent that can help to dominate.

Dickinson, Silayev and Levshunov have visible potential to be top-4 defensemen with first pair ceiling if they will develop some parts of their game. I think Dickinson is a more sure thing, with lesser questions, with good speed and good enough skating. Both Silayev and Levshunov are less sure things, still very very intriguing prospects, both need to polish their game. It’s hard to compare because of different context of competition, Silayev looks like a player with less red flags but with lower potential offensively. Levshunov looks more promising offensively, but he has his own version of tunnel vision and his iq… I will break them down later.
All three are still more or on the level with Reinbacher, Drysdale, Clarke etc.

Lindstrom is dynamic, has star potential in his game, he is really physical, very faster skater and great manipulator. I’m not telling about McKinnon level, Lindstrom isn’t as creative as playmaker, he is average, but as a driver, as net driver, as shooter, with great hands and snarl. He is rare great netfront player. True physical scoring center, who can shoot, check, win puck battles and play on the slot. Even if he will not develop his game, he has tools to be great top 6 physical forward, hard to play against. If he will adapt, he is pain in the vss, goal scoring center. Perfect player to draft by Devils, but I can’t believe he will be available.
Demidov is a new bright Russian Super Star winger in the making. And he is fast. He has best skills from all of this players. It’s boring for him to play on the junior level. He can do whatever he wants. And he is close to travel to NA. Not very physical, I don’t think he is NHL center, even with experience. He is playing overconfident, may be he needs to simple his game, but he will do it on the adult level. But overall if our team will draft him, just smile, be happy and sleep well. May be he will sleep through the draft somehow.

Buium is great left defenseman with great offensive and defensive tools. His two way iq is great, he can speed himself in a second, he is very manipulative, fast, aggressive, physical, smart and very talented. He reads game greatly everywhere, he is active and doesn’t give a space to breath. He isn’t very big - 183-184sm, but he is playing big. The only issue is his skating. He isn’t bad skater, he is fast skater, but there are some problems with his technique, some players can caught him. He is fast and mobile but bull on the ice. I believe some guys can tell about his skating more. I njdevils it’s a real problem, but he still isn’t as great as Luke Hughes. He reminds me faster Nate Schmidt with higher offensive ceiling. His iq is the best from this defensive squad and his physical tool and two way game is there. As a Devils pick, he would be awesome, may be he will sleep through the draft because Levshunov is big, aggressive RHD and Silayev and Dickinson are very bigger and very mobile too.

Catton is the smartest forward and playmaker. He knows where his partners are and where they are going, so he changes his position all the time. He is very good driver, he is using different tools to drive. And he has pretty accurate shot. His technique isn’t perfect, but accuracy and iq helps him to use it in the right way. His speed is good, he can make faster steps from the start and he is smart enough to save his energy to use it in the right moment.
He isn’t physical and he puckhandles to separate himself from opponents. Part of it will not work against NHLers and he will need to adapt his game against adult level, he is fast but isn’t really good skater with the puck as Top-3 forwards, but still he is very good. He is using more space to shoot but he is smart and technically competent to work on it more. His Iq is so good and will help him to achieve top-6 or even top-3 spot, he just need to add physical element into his game, work more with legs and it will help him too add more speed, more muscles will help with the power of shot. His defensive side of the game isn’t sharp, but even if he is the last player on the forecheck, he read the game well and cover the ice positionally. I like that he skates better than Rossi, Perfetti or Benson, so when he will add more muscles he will turn on the new level. I don’t know if he will become first line center, but he has real potential to be, or at least to be the first line playmaking winger.
He is number five on this list because he needs more to add in his game and develop more of his skills. But it’s not that hard to imagine 80-100 points player with his iq.

——

For now it looks like we will draft somewhere between 8-11 spots. We need to lose everything and still it will be very hard to be lower than 8, it needs to win a lot to return to 12 spot.

I hope some teams like… Ducks will draft Levshunov before us. They have great offensive depth, good centers, their left flank of defense is good, and they like big players. Levshunov looks like a perfect match. If they will not win draft lottery.
We don’t know what Chicago think about Moore and Nazar as potential second line centers. Anyway their defensive line needs more works and their offensive is little bit on the smaller side. And drafting Lindstrom should really help to make their top 6 much stronger.
San Jose has two picks, and most likely they will pick forwards by their higher pick(let’s imagine they will win lottery) and than most likely will draft defenseman by second pick from pens. Most likely they need RD. If Levshunov will not be available (I think he will be picked high, he is big and mobile RD with good production), they can pick Parekh or Yakemchuk - both are offensive defensemen with… some big question on defensive side of the game, but who cares. I care and hope Fitz will not draft them.
Arizona looks like a team that should need to draft defenseman.
But Montreal needs center hard. And Columbus. Ottawa needs everything. So I don’t see how Lindstrom, Catton and Demidov will sleep through the first 8 picks.

So it most likely Celebrini, Lindstrom, Levshunov, Dickinson, Silayev, Catton and Demidov will be drafted before 8th pick. If SJ will draft Parekh or Yakemchuk - it will help us to draft Buium. If Eiserman or Helenius will be picked before us - it will help to have more choice between available and more interesting player. Personally from my view and from my perspective of my tier 1 only Buium looks like a player who can be more realistically available for 8-11 pick. But we never know. Dickinson and Silayev are very good and interesting left defensemen to draft, very big and very mobile. So even for 11 pick it’s a good draft to cheer.

Guadana is the new @StevenToddIves .

 

[StevenToddIves]

Slafkovsky went 1st overall with worse production. Projectability is important, you can't just look at junior stats. Lindstrom's combination of size/speed/skills/physicality will make him an easy top 5 pick and very likely top 3.

Catton's a very good prospect but a small forward lacking elite tools is going to go lower than the internet scouting consensus. We've seen this with players like Marco Rossi and Zach Benson.

I'm not disputing you, just amending your statement because Rossi and Benson clearly have elite tools. They are just not the type of elite tools we might call "measurable".

What I mean by this is neither Benson or Rossi possess a singular, easily visible elite quality like size, speed or shooting. These are the type of easily identifiable tools which weaker prospect evaluators tend to focus on, because quite frankly, you can watch the player for a few shifts and get an idea of what they bring to the table in those respects.

The less identifiable traits take longer to isolate -- you need to watch a prospect game in and game out to be able to determine whether they have elite vision, two-way capability, hockey IQ and compete level. It just so happens that these are the traits which are elite for Rossi and (aside from the two-way play, though he's decent) Benson.

Benson's vision and IQ are as elite as it gets -- you might even call his abilities in these respects "rare". It's why I firmly believe he'll top 100+ points at the NHL level multiple times.

As for Rossi, he's the perfect 2C for an NHL contender with his elite mix of IQ/compete/defensive ability combined with very good qualities across the board in terms of offensive ability.

This is why I was so high on these players when they were draft-eligibles. This is also why I tend to be skeptical of prospects who sorely lack these traits while excelling in the flashier skills of size/skating/shooting (I guess the easy example would be Broberg).

As for Slafkovsky, I think he'll be a star because he combines elite passing, puck protection and size with positive check marks across the board in pretty much every category.

 

[StevenToddIves]

Guadana is the new @StevenToddIves .

I'm pretty sure he's more talented.

 

[StevenToddIves]

Obviously center depth is a problem but I think the biggest overall need is adding players that can play a 200ft game. I'm not going to pass up a player like Brandsegg Nygard that checks a lot of boxes that the Devils need just because he isn't a center.

Brantsegg-Nygard is the type of forward that literally every team needs.

Nothing not to love about the young Norwegian. He's a big-bodied (6'1-195) power forward who plays a high-IQ, high-compete brand of physical hockey. He's also certainly in the conversation for the best defensive winger in the 2024 draft, from what I've witnessed. This combination makes him a low-risk pick -- players of his ilk almost never bust, with the worst case scenario being his offense plateaus and he becomes a terrific 3rd line guy. Quite simply, his game easily translates to any level.

But Brantsegg-Nygard also represents a high-upside player, due to his most elite trait -- this kid can absolutely fire the puck. His rocket shot combined with a willingness to play in the dirty areas and take everything to the net gives him 1st line, high-scoring upside at the highest level. He's great at puck protection, he's a very good (not elite, but very good) passer and he's one of the best draft-eligibles you'll see in terms of winning board battles and puck battles in tight. If he has one flaw, I'd say his stick handling is average at best, and that lowers his deception. I'd like to see him change the angle more just before shooting, but he clearly just prefers to "catch and blast" as it were. Of course, this is a trait which can be improved through coaching and experience.

Brantsegg-Nygard's mix of two-way play, a power game, an elite shot and a high floor makes him a guy I'd look at in the 10-20 range. Nothing not to love about this kid.

 

[Guadana]

I'm pretty sure he's more talented.

Nah. If I would, glen would know I made writes about prospects 4 years in row.
I have some issues with Barntsegg-Nygard. How high his potential is with his maturity. How good and versatile he is as a drive. Whats about his playmaking to play top 3 role. Im in the process with him and I don't have final opinion but first impression (easily could be wrong) isn't telling me "top-10".

 

[evnted]

Nah. If I would, glen would know I made writes about prospects 4 years in row.
I have some issues with Barntsegg-Nygard. How high his potential is with his maturity. How good and versatile he is as a drive. Whats about his playmaking to play top 3 role. Im in the process with him and I don't have final opinion but first impression (easily could be wrong) isn't telling me "top-10".

good points both ways, i think at this point id have to lean a little bit more on the skeptical side as well. if i were looking for slam dunk nhlers, theres few players id take before mbn for a lot of the reasons sti presented. but i agree with guadana's concerns. his game just feels so...simple at this point. amazing compete and tenacity fighting for pucks, rocket shot, and some good physical play (on and off puck), but limited glimpses of higher level vision/creativity, some questionable decision making/careless with the puck at times, and an offensive game that can be a little too predictable (ie just getting pucks on net). this is a player id be happy to pick if we went on a bit of a run and took ourselves out of that top 10-15 region, but i think we would be passing on better long term options if we were to look at him where we currently stand. all of that said, i do understand the fit and think our roster would have a much better chance of amplifying his game/alleviating some concerns than most others immediately around us

 

[Guadana]

good points both ways, i think at this point id have to lean a little bit more on the skeptical side as well. if i were looking for slam dunk nhlers, theres few players id take before mbn for a lot of the reasons sti presented. but i agree with guadana's concerns. his game just feels so...simple at this point. amazing compete and tenacity fighting for pucks, rocket shot, and some good physical play (on and off puck), but limited glimpses of higher level vision/creativity, some questionable decision making/careless with the puck at times, and an offensive game that can be a little too predictable (ie just getting pucks on net). this is a player id be happy to pick if we went on a bit of a run and took ourselves out of that top 10-15 region, but i think we would be passing on better long term options if we were to look at him where we currently stand. all of that said, i do understand the fit and think our roster would have a much better chance of amplifying his game/alleviating some concerns than most others immediately around us

Its a question where we will pick, because if its 8-11 range, I feel one of the betters will be available. But if we are talking about 12-15 range.... may be its better to take him than Helenius, Parekh, Yakemchuk or Eiserman.

I don't like Helenius overall - he looks like potential not good enough player for NHL overall. On my taste his cons separates him from NHL and his potential upside with his pros. I just don't see how with his physics and skating he will make an impact against NHL competition.

Parekh is the type of defensemen I don't like. Not physical, not fast, average skating. Not so great in defensive zone. Somewhere between D'Angelo and Ty Smith.


Yakemchuk us all about offense. I don't like his positionsl vision and his transitional game. His tools are more promising, but still he isn't in my priorities.

Eiserman is all about shooting. Players of his profile are having problems with adapting to NHL. May be still not bad to draft him in 12-15 range, just not my type.
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I think Greentree is average and doesn't have something special in his game high enough to be picked in 10-15 draft spot.

I didn't watch Connely enough. Need more time.

I like Chernyshov more, but its Russian player and because I'm Russian and everybody hates to draft Russians outside 6-7 round, so whо cares. And even with absolutely right breakdown of Yurov, I still have ptsd with Perevalov, so I'm little afraid to push for Chernyshov.


So overall Nygard doesn't look like a bad decision to pick him in 12-15 range. He isn't just a player to be exciting about. And he is RW. I would prefer LW Chernyshov or Connely may be.

I just hope that Buium will be available for our pick and I will sleep well.