2025 DRAFT Discussion

[HoweFan]

As soon as you change it we are winning 2-1. Love it.

 

[GarlicbreadTB]

In the years where we've only had 1 1st round pick under Yzerman we've always gone in the European direction so probably a good bet this time around too.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

10 (1). Jake O'Brien - C
42 (2). Sascha Boumedienne - LD
74 (3). William Horcoff - C
77 (3). Kristian Epperson - LW
118 (4). Viktor Klingsell - LW
138 (5). Pyotr Andreyanov - G
170 (6). Lucas Karmiris - C
202 (7). Shamar Moses - RW
212 (7). Daniil Skvortsov - D

Not mad at this.

 

[Run the Jewels]

In the years where we've only had 1 1st round pick under Yzerman we've always gone in the European direction so probably a good bet this time around too.

Yzerman maximizing the value of his best draft capital, you love to see it.

 

[HoweFan]

Realgud you just single-handedly put us into the playoffs.

 

[Realgud]

Realgud you just single-handedly put us into the playoffs.

lol I'm a hero!

 

[Run the Jewels]

When none of the names sounded familiar I just started drafting guys with hyphenated names given ASP and MBN both look like good draft picks. I also picked Magomedsultanov just due to the entertainment of hearing Ken and Mickey trying to pronounce that last name.

10 (1). Michael Misa - C/LW
42 (2). Milton Gastrin - C
74 (3). Nathan Behm - RW
77 (3). Malte Vass - LD
118 (4). Anthony Allain-Samake - LD
138 (5). Dakoda Rheaume-Mullen - LD
170 (6). Louis-Antoine Denault - G
202 (7). Ilyas Magomedsultanov - D
212 (7). Grayden Robertson-Palmer - C

 

[Frk It]

Eric Nilson - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Eric Nilson, 2007-05-11 Calgary, AB, CAN Sweden. Most recently in the J20 Nationell with Djurgårdens IF J20. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

Keep seeing this guy as an option for us in round 2.

@OgeeOgelthorpe I feel like this is the kind of player you like every year, and I could also really see Hakan liking him as well.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Eric Nilson - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Eric Nilson, 2007-05-11 Calgary, AB, CAN Sweden. Most recently in the J20 Nationell with Djurgårdens IF J20. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

Keep seeing this guy as an option for us in round 2.

@OgeeOgelthorpe I feel like this is the kind of player you like every year, and I could also really see Hakan liking him as well.

If he’s anything like his dad then I’m not interested. He’s also super skinny. 6’0” 150? I’m not a size queen but this guy would get beat up in the AJHL.

 

[Frk It]

Craig’s List: Michael Misa climbs to No. 2 after exceptional OHL season | TSN

The Saginaw Spirit forward is on the rise in Craig Button's fourth NHL draft prospect ranking of the season after winning the OHL scoring race and topping the 60-goal mark.

www.tsn.ca

Interesting list. I love the boldness with the Reschny ranking.

I still have no clue what to make of Malcolm Spence, it seems like people have mixed opinions on him as a player.

 

[Christien]

Well, kinda late to the party this year following this draft class. It sucks that Carter Bear got hurt so badly; he seems like a guy we would like. This video talks about all the top WHL guys. They always do a good job. One of the guys was saying he's like this year's Jarvis.

Where do you guys think he's gonna go, and do you think we'd take him if he's there? Thoughts?

 

[Voodoo Glow Skulls]

Craig’s List: Michael Misa climbs to No. 2 after exceptional OHL season | TSN

The Saginaw Spirit forward is on the rise in Craig Button's fourth NHL draft prospect ranking of the season after winning the OHL scoring race and topping the 60-goal mark.

www.tsn.ca

Interesting list. I love the boldness with the Reschny ranking.

I still have no clue what to make of Malcolm Spence, it seems like people have mixed opinions on him as a player.

Ditto.

 

[Winged Wheel Willy]

Well, kinda late to the party this year following this draft class. It sucks that Carter Bear got hurt so badly; he seems like a guy we would like. This video talks about all the top WHL guys. They always do a good job. One of the guys was saying he's like this year's Jarvis.

Where do you guys think he's gonna go, and do you think we'd take him if he's there? Thoughts?

Depends a lot on where we finish IMO. With our schedule I think 8th OA is still in reach, if the teams below us would f***in remember how to hockey. At #8 I do not want Bear. There will be other players that are simply more promising. But at #10, if Desnoyers, McQueen, Eklund, O'Brien are off the board unfortunately, I think you go Bear, cuz I prefer him to every dman after Schaefer. Tho at that point you also need to take a good, hard look at Martin. Do not want Lakovic BTW.

 

[GarlicbreadTB]

IF and it's a big if right now. If Frondell is available with our pick. He's 100% getting selected.

Swedish
Plays for Djurgarden whom Hakan Andersson got close ties with
Draper have been over to watch him and Eklund a few times.

 

[schuelma24]

IF and it's a big if right now. If Frondell is available with our pick. He's 100% getting selected.

Swedish
Plays for Djurgarden whom Hakan Andersson got close ties with
Draper have been over to watch him and Eklund a few times.

I think Eklund is more likely based on where they'll likely finish, but yeah...I'd almost bet on it being one of those two.

 

[GarlicbreadTB]

I think Eklund is more likely based on where they'll likely finish, but yeah...I'd almost bet on it being one of those two.

Eklund also a good bet.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

I think Eklund is more likely based on where they'll likely finish, but yeah...I'd almost bet on it being one of those two.

Eklund fits the bill as that extra level motor guy Wings scouting staff love. If he was 180lbs we’d be talking about him going 4th or 5th overall instead of 8th-10th. A player like Eklund tends to be successful in some way in the league.

 

[lilidk]

Not sure I want Bear , no to McQueen for sure.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Not sure I want Bear , no to McQueen for sure.

I really liked Bear, but he tore his Achilles. That’s not an easy injury to recover from at any age.

 

[HisNoodliness]

Eklund fits the bill as that extra level motor guy Wings scouting staff love. If he was 180lbs we’d be talking about him going 4th or 5th overall instead of 8th-10th. A player like Eklund tends to be successful in some way in the league.

Yeah, I have to admit that I haven't been that interested in this draft. Eklund feels a bit like a foregone conclusion the way that Kasper, Danielson and MBN did. I will say that to me, Eklund is the most naturally creative and offensive among that group so I'll be a bigger supporter of him than I was for any of those picks.

I can't imagine From dell being there.

If Eklund is gone, feel like we'll end up trading down to 20-30 and taking Jack Nesbitt. I bet most of us will hate the pick and end up fighting about it all the time.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Yeah, I have to admit that I haven't been that interested in this draft. Eklund feels a bit like a foregone conclusion the way that Kasper, Danielson and MBN did. I will say that to me, Eklund is the most naturally creative and offensive among that group so I'll be a bigger supporter of him than I was for any of those picks.

I can't imagine From dell being there.

If Eklund is gone, feel like we'll end up trading down to 20-30 and taking Jack Nesbitt. I bet most of us will hate the pick and end up fighting about it all the time.

If O’Brien and Eklund are both gone then I want to move the pick for Byram or another youngish solid top 4 LD and maybe a bottom pair RD as a throw in. It’s not a super deep draft and I don’t see many guys after 10-12 that look likely they have future top 6 or top 4 potential.

 

[Rzombo4 prez]

If O’Brien and Eklund aren’t both gone then I want to move the pick for Byram or another youngish solid top 4 LD and maybe a bottom pair RD as a throw in. It’s not a super deep draft and I don’t see many guys after 10-12 that look likely they have future top 6 or top 4 potential.

Right, which is why our 1st won't return what you are looking for. You can't proclaim an asset as junk ( ie no future top 6 or top 4 potential) and then expect other teams to want to trade for it. Giving to get applies to draft picks as well. The other issue I struggle with is identifying who exactly would want our 1st rounder in this draft class.. It isn't going to be any team in their competitive window and the rebuilding-ish teams aren't going to want to trade youngish prospects. This leaves you with the very small pool of teams with a downward trajectory looking for a shortcut out of a rebuild....with an asset that has no real future of becoming a top 6 forward or a top 4 defensemen.

I would absolutely love to move our 1st for more immediate help. I just don't see it happening with such a crap class.

For the record I think there are several defensemen I would label as having top 4 upside in this draft. What you aren't seeing is a lot that have top pair upside.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Right, which is why our 1st won't return what you are looking for. You can't proclaim an asset as junk ( ie no future top 6 or top 4 potential) and then expect other teams to want to trade for it. Giving to get applies to draft picks as well. The other issue I struggle with is identifying who exactly would want our 1st rounder in this draft class.. It isn't going to be any team in their competitive window and the rebuilding-ish teams aren't going to want to trade youngish prospects. This leaves you with the very small pool of teams with a downward trajectory looking for a shortcut out of a rebuild....with an asset that has no real future of becoming a top 6 forward or a top 4 defensemen.

I would absolutely love to move our 1st for more immediate help. I just don't see it happening with such a crap class.

For the record I think there are several defensemen I would label as having top 4 upside in this draft. What you aren't seeing is a lot that have top pair upside.

2022 draft was relatively poor in top end talent. Chicago got a 7th (Korchinski) for DeBrincat to Ottawa in a lose-lose trade since DBC wanted out of Ottawa.

Value is in the eye of the beholder though. Maybe someone is in love with another prospect here and is willing to move for them? It’s purely hypothetical but not impossible.

 

[Rzombo4 prez]

With Kasper and Danielson looking like they’ll be at least average 2C’s with above average defense I’m putting less emphasis on centers this draft. If the best player available is a center? Great. If not? I’m ok with it as well.

I’m not sure what to make of McQueen because I only saw him last season. I didn’t get long term center vibes though. He played like a north-south winger. I saw some of Byfield in his game and I don’t know if that’s a good thing.

Bear feels like a sleeper to me. He’s that buzzsaw kind of average to below average sized guy that gets his points by sheer determination. The prospects he reminds me of are Coronato and Jarvis. I think he’ll be a producer at the next level. Maybe middle 6, maybe top 6.

After our last discussion I did some more digging into O’Brien and I think he’s my favorite guy outside of the top 4. He’s going to take 3 years to make it to the NHL but I think he has real top line potential. I believe his playmaking will translate up very well.

Frondell is another guy I feel iffy about. I know some will be drawn to him as a center, and others because his points he got later in the season. The thing is, he didn’t really start scoring until he was paired with…Viktor Eklund. I haven’t watched enough Swedish hockey this season to say if Frondell made Eklund better or vice versa. I was terribly unimpressed by Frondell at the start of the year though. He showed flashes of Veleno brain.

I am not convinced that Kasper and Danielson alone solve our center problem as Larkin gets up there in age. Like I said before, you can't have too many in the organization and as we have seen they are really, really hard to acquire in free agency and the trade market. I agree though with your assessment of McQueen which I think is spot on. I don't think he is really cut out to be a center and that there could be some round hole square pegging going on there. In short, I would shade towards Frondell, Desnoyers and O'Brien over Eklund even though I totally respect the later and understand why people find him attractive.

On an unrelated note I don't want Bear after that injury, which is really sad because I genuinely liked him before it.

 

[Rzombo4 prez]

2022 draft was relatively poor in top end talent. Chicago got a 7th (Korchinski) for DeBrincat to Ottawa in a lose-lose trade since DBC wanted out of Ottawa.

Value is in the eye of the beholder though. Maybe someone is in love with another prospect here and is willing to move for them? It’s purely hypothetical but not impossible.

OK, who is going full, scorch-earth rebuild this offseason like Chicago did when they traded Cat?