Prospect Info: 2025 DRAFT Thread

[alphafox]

Out of Curiosity is there any prospect that anyone would be willing to trade both 1st round picks for if they fell to 6-8 (roughly the equivalent trade value per puckpedia)

 

[Doggy]

Out of Curiosity is there any prospect that anyone would be willing to trade both 1st round picks for if they fell to 6-8 (roughly the equivalent trade value per puckpedia)

I am not against the concept at all for the right guy. Other than Schaefer though it seems like the vast majority of the top ten is going to be centers. I don't feel like any of the Cs (assuming Misa and Frondell are gone) would be worth moving up for but I could see moving #14 and perhaps a second round pick to move up 4-5 picks if GMDW and the staff really love a d-man like Mrtka who has size and skates well (over the next tier of d-men in the draft).

 

[tjcourt6]

Out of Curiosity is there any prospect that anyone would be willing to trade both 1st round picks for if they fell to 6-8 (roughly the equivalent trade value per puckpedia)

IMO, if we're doing that its for an NHL ready player ready to make an impact on the current roster situation. We don't really need more prospects as we're already naturally ending the rebuild.

 

[Ice9]

IMO, if we're doing that its for an NHL ready player ready to make an impact on the current roster situation. We don't really need more prospects as we're already naturally ending the rebuild.

Larkin? I’d consider it more so were he a couple years younger. One of our firsts and a C prospect/player…

 

[tjcourt6]

Larkin? I’d consider it more so were he a couple years younger. One of our firsts and a C prospect/player…

Honestly, I think Larkin is a lifer. Love him but that's exactly the same sentiment detroit has with him im sure. For the price it would cost CBJ it just doesn't really seem worth it tbh.

 

[majormajor]

Out of Curiosity is there any prospect that anyone would be willing to trade both 1st round picks for if they fell to 6-8 (roughly the equivalent trade value per puckpedia)

Simon St. Laurent has talked me in to Jake O'Brien as a player that is worth trading up for. There's #1C upside.



Then of course Schaefer and Misa. Simon doesn't like Martone but nonetheless I think the upside is very high and I would trade both picks to move up if he was still on the board at 6-8.

Desnoyers, I would probably trade both picks to get him.

I wouldn't do it for Frondell or Eklund. Eklund is a guy who might slip to #14 and I would love to get him there. Same with McQueen, I'm willing to hope he makes it to #14.

IMO, if we're doing that its for an NHL ready player ready to make an impact on the current roster situation. We don't really need more prospects as we're already naturally ending the rebuild.

We would love to stop drafting so much but there aren't enough sellers this summer.

Now there will probably be a team or two that struggles badly in the season and decides to sell off during the season, at the deadline or maybe even earlier. So what we might see happen is us making our picks this summer and then trading them or other prospects during the season.

I was imagining the instructions to our scouts this summer is to ignore any team considerations and just to focus on drafting the players who will have the most trade value over the next few years, because they might not be Blue Jackets for long.

 

[Doggy]

...Simon doesn't like Martone but nonetheless I think the upside is very high and I would trade both picks to move up if he was still on the board at 6-8...

I keep hearing Martone's skating is not great. If that's true I'm not sure GMDW is moving up to get him.

 

[majormajor]

I keep hearing Martone's skating is not great. If that's true I'm not sure GMDW is moving up to get him.

He skates better than Corey Perry or Matthew Tkachuk ever did. When he wants to move he can move well.

Now Martone isn't a power forward like Perry or Tkachuk. He's a big soft playmaker. Which might be fine, but he might be too soft. The effort level has to be there or that could be an issue on your team.

 

[Doggy]

Pronman and Wheels just dropped a collaborated two round mock draft. Some notable movers...

• Hagens drops to five
• O'Brien goes six
• McQueen goes seven
• Martone drops to eight
• Mrtka is the second d-man off the board at twelve
• Aitcheson at thirteen

CBJ take LW Lakovic at fourteen

• In between our two picks are Jackson Smith, Cole Reschny and Sascha Boumedienne

CBJ take LHD Cameron Reid at twenty

• Players we leave on the board at twenty are Fiddler, Hensler and Ravensbergen.

Seems to me we just miss out by a pick or two on guys who would interest me at 14 (Mrtka) and at 20 (Smith/Boumedienne). As I said earlier, if GMDW really likes Mrtka (or Aitcheson) then go ahead and trade up (not both firsts) to get the guy.

 

[EspenK]

Pronman and Wheels just dropped a collaborated two round mock draft. Some notable movers...

CBJ take LW Lakovic at fourteen

• In between our two picks are Jackson Smith, Cole Reschny and Sascha Boumedienne

CBJ take LHD Cameron Reid at twenty

• Players we leave on the board at twenty are Fiddler, Hensler and Ravensbergen.

Seems to me we just miss out by a pick or two on guys who would interest me at 14 (Mrtka) and at 20 (Smith/Boumedienne). As I said earlier, if GMDW really likes Mrtka (or Aitcheson) then go ahead and trade up (not both firsts) to get the guy.

I don't get these picks. Why take a winger when Jackson Smith is available and I'd take Fiddler who is RD over Reid and 5 inches taller.

Also I'd trade up to get Mrtka even if it took both 1sts.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

if the first 13 picks go the way the athletic's mock predicted, the jackets are better off just trading both of the picks to get guys who can either help now or prospects who are closer to being NHL-ready.

 

[alphafox]

if the first 13 picks go the way the athletic's mock predicted, the jackets are better off just trading both of the picks to get guys who can either help now or prospects who are closer to being NHL-ready.

I think at this point my preference would be 1. swing for the fences on someone like Charlie McAvoy with both 1sts 2. Trade up to get Mrtka using both firsts if necessary 3. Trade picks for more assets next year to have ammo during the season and at the deadline 4. make the picks where we are

 

[EspenK]

if the first 13 picks go the way the athletic's mock predicted, the jackets are better off just trading both of the picks to get guys who can either help now or prospects who are closer to being NHL-ready.

Great in theory. I'm sure other teams are just waiting for the offers.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

We’ve been told almost every single time we’ve had multiple firsts that we’d like to trade one for a win now piece. 7 times by my count (2008, 2013, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023, and now 2025) we’ve had multiple firsts at one point.

We’ve only traded one of the picks twice. 2008 for umberger and 2023 for Provorov. We also traded our first in 2011 for Jeff Carter, our first in 2017 for expansion purposes, and our first in 2019 for Matt Duchene.

That on top of the fact many teams have multiple firsts and this draft is supposedly very weak with few teams being cap strapped or tearing it down to rebuild.

So color me skeptical that we trade these picks. I’d love to be wrong, but I anticipate us making these picks personally

 

[Nanabijou]

I personally won't be too upset if they just use the picks. Waddell can waggle the bait out and if someone is willing to sell off a D for futures, then great. But, like you, it's not clear to me who is actively heading to a rebuild and makes sense as a trading partner. If nothing makes sense, hold the picks. I agree that there's a number of teams that might be taking a swing at it now and bailing if things go south after the first few months of the season. Having a cupboard full of prospects is not a bad place to be if nothing makes sense at the draft.

I want the team to improve, but I also don't think there is extreme urgency even though fans are tired of waiting. It's not like CBJ have an aging core like Pittsburgh and the GM is pressured to make drastic moves now.

 

[Ice9]

Outside of Fantilli and Werenski there’s nobody I wouldn’t move with those picks if I thought we bettered our situation.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

I want the team to improve, but I also don't think there is extreme urgency even though fans are tired of waiting. It's not like CBJ have an aging core like Pittsburgh and the GM is pressured to make drastic moves now.

No but they have an all pro defenseman who is tired of missing the playoffs and approaching UFA status quickly. “Extreme” urgency is maybe too drastic, but there is definitely urgency needed.

 

[ClevelandJacketFan]

We’ve been told almost every single time we’ve had multiple firsts that we’d like to trade one for a win now piece. 7 times by my count (2008, 2013, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023, and now 2025) we’ve had multiple firsts at one point.

We’ve only traded one of the picks twice. 2008 for umberger and 2023 for Provorov. We also traded our first in 2011 for Jeff Carter, our first in 2017 for expansion purposes, and our first in 2019 for Matt Duchene.

That on top of the fact many teams have multiple firsts and this draft is supposedly very weak with few teams being cap strapped or tearing it down to rebuild.

So color me skeptical that we trade these picks. I’d love to be wrong, but I anticipate us making these picks personally

Did we not trade a 1st for Vermette?

 

[stevo61]

Did we not trade a 1st for Vermette?

Wasn't it LeClair and a 2nd or 3rd?

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Wasn't it LeClair and a 2nd or 3rd?

Correct. Leclaire and a 2nd (who they turned into Robin Lehner)

 

[tunnelvision]

Here's one thought experiment regarding picks #14 (and possibly #20):

Let's imagine there's been a framework for a "roster player for the 14OA pick" type trade at the draft. The roster player could be a forward, defender or goalie, but the relevant point here is that this player would assumably make Jackets better next year.

The team at #13 makes their selection, and Waddell gets a call from another team to ask if he's ready to pull the trigger on the trade. Jackets are tempted to accept it, but they also realize there's still a prospect on the board at #14 they happen to have in their top-4, and which we fans cannot know who it is.

Question: How good would the roster player have to be for you to approve the proposed trade?

 

[majormajor]

Here's one thought experiment regarding picks #14 (and possibly #20):

Let's imagine there's been a framework for a "roster player for the 14OA pick" type trade at the draft. The roster player could be a forward, defender or goalie, but the relevant point here is that this player would assumably make Jackets better next year.

The team at #13 makes their selection, and Waddell gets a call from another team to ask if he's ready to pull the trigger on the trade. Jackets are tempted to accept it, but they also realize there's still a prospect on the board at #14 they happen to have in their top-4, and which we fans cannot know who it is.

Question: How good would the roster player have to be for you to approve the proposed trade?

If the 4th guy on their list is there you don't trade it.

Even supposing it was like the 8th guy on their list I'm still inclined to make the pick - it's really only if the player coming back is a big shutdown upgrade on defense that I'm listening for. I don't think we need any big upgrades up front.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

Here's one thought experiment regarding picks #14 (and possibly #20):

Let's imagine there's been a framework for a "roster player for the 14OA pick" type trade at the draft. The roster player could be a forward, defender or goalie, but the relevant point here is that this player would assumably make Jackets better next year.

The team at #13 makes their selection, and Waddell gets a call from another team to ask if he's ready to pull the trigger on the trade. Jackets are tempted to accept it, but they also realize there's still a prospect on the board at #14 they happen to have in their top-4, and which we fans cannot know who it is.

Question: How good would the roster player have to be for you to approve the proposed trade?

i actually think a version of this happened both last season and in the 2022 draft.

last year, there was a TON of noise around the jackets trading the pick (either for necas or chicago's 2025 unprotected 1st). clearly they had their eyes on lindstrom. once the 2-3 picks went levshunov-sennecke they decided to keep the pick. reading between the lines, i think they had lindstrom as the #2 player on their board behind celebrini.

and in 2022, they were reportedly in on both dach and romanov. they had the 12th pick. mateychuk was still on the board, so they ran up to the stage, and… both dach and romanov moved while the 13th pick was on the board.

as for a hypothetical this year – i do think the positions of each piece matter. if they have victor eklund as the #4 player in the draft, and the trade framework involves a defenseman, they should take eklund and try to rework the trade around something like 20oa + brindley to secure the defenseman as well.

 

[Xoggz22]

Here's one thought experiment regarding picks #14 (and possibly #20):

Let's imagine there's been a framework for a "roster player for the 14OA pick" type trade at the draft. The roster player could be a forward, defender or goalie, but the relevant point here is that this player would assumably make Jackets better next year.

The team at #13 makes their selection, and Waddell gets a call from another team to ask if he's ready to pull the trigger on the trade. Jackets are tempted to accept it, but they also realize there's still a prospect on the board at #14 they happen to have in their top-4, and which we fans cannot know who it is.

Question: How good would the roster player have to be for you to approve the proposed trade?

May be a little tricky to answer, but at that level I think the risk for the 14th pick is high enough that they may or not be A) an impact player and B) an NHL player that I would opt for the trade anyway. I would think (hope) any trade of a draft pick comes with someone coming back that is already an established NHL player and has more than 2 years a control/life remaining on the tires.

I don't see the 14th pick being in the NHL within 3-5 years (typically - there are always exceptions). I'd like to see the improvement, but not for a one year plug if we're using a 1st. That certainly would seem to be consistent with GMDW not moving 1st round picks at the deadline. It would be tough knowing one of their guys was left, but unless you could move 20 with a sweetener for the same deal... I still pull the trigger.

 

[stevo61]

I think right now I'm onboard with Bear or Aitcheson