Prospect Info: 2025 DRAFT Thread

[CBJWerenski8]

 

[AnonCommentary]

so looks like a top D. I’m leaning towards Smith. Fits the profile of what Don likes.

 

[tunnelvision]

Lakovic seems like a really good pick if you can get him at #14, where he's ranked on average. But I also have a hard time seeing him making it to #14 if this scouting report is how the NHL scouts will view him.

Who do you think might go before and after him in the top-14 or so?

What theory?

so looks like a top D. I’m leaning towards Smith. Fits the profile of what Don likes.

Are we trading up?

 

[AnonCommentary]

Who do you think might go before and after him in the top-14 or so?


What theory?


Are we trading up?

I mean no but boards also never will shake out the way we think. Think that will be especially true in this draft after like 5.

I’m iffy on Lakovic. There’s a reason a guy with his tools and size is so low. Particularly in his class like this. His consistency / involvement can be very questionable. His physicality for a guy his size isn’t anything special. I’ll post examples below.

“If you were just going on highlights, everyone would have this guy top-5. 6-foot-4 guys who are this fast and this skilled are impossible to find, but with his talent, he should’ve had 80 points last year and over 100 this year, even on a team as bad as Moose Jaw. I always leave the rink wondering if he wants to be a difference maker.” - NHL Scout April 2025 (EP Draft Guide)

He himself brought up the aspect of his intensity/involvement, questioned by some scouts: "I want to improve that for next year, but I'm not worried. I have grit in me. You look at Aleksi Protas or Mikko Rantanen and it took them a while to become disruptive players." - X (Anthony Martineau)

 

[spintheblackcircle]

If they go defense, I'd like Aitcheson

 

[CBJx614]

I mean no but boards also never will shake out the way we think. Think that will be especially true in this draft after like 5.

I’m iffy on Lakovic. There’s a reason a guy with his tools and size is so low. Particularly in his class like this. His consistency / involvement can be very questionable. His physicality for a guy his size isn’t anything special. I’ll post examples below.

“If you were just going on highlights, everyone would have this guy top-5. 6-foot-4 guys who are this fast and this skilled are impossible to find, but with his talent, he should’ve had 80 points last year and over 100 this year, even on a team as bad as Moose Jaw. I always leave the rink wondering if he wants to be a difference maker.” - NHL Scout April 2025 (EP Draft Guide)

He himself brought up the aspect of his intensity/involvement, questioned by some scouts: "I want to improve that for next year, but I'm not worried. I have grit in me. You look at Aleksi Protas or Mikko Rantanen and it took them a while to become disruptive players." - X (Anthony Martineau)

To be fair some guys just need a little fire or kick in the ass to get the motivation they been lacking. Sometimes thats a teammate, sometimes it's a coach.

Having said that you usually want to add guys who you need to calm down not kickstart...

But if you have two picks and are planning to use both it makes it a little more tempting to grab someone who might be a little more risky.

 

[KJ Dangler]

Won’t be shocked when we trade 14 away, and take Ravensburg at 20 .

 

[CBJWerenski8]

 

[CBJx614]

Won’t be shocked when we trade 14 away, and take Ravensburg at 20 .

14 + for Necas
Sign Gavrikov
Take a swing on Ravensburg @20

Id be pretty happy with that off-season, depending on the +

 

[Indy18]

14 + for Necas
Sign Gavrikov
Take a swing on Ravensburg @20

Id be pretty happy with that off-season, depending on the +

I would love Necas but the guy seems dead set to go to the highest bidder as a UFA. Sounds like we were in the "its possible it could happen" stages last year at the draft for him but he didn't want to commit.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

I would love Necas but the guy seems dead set to go to the highest bidder as a UFA. Sounds like we were in the "its possible it could happen" stages last year at the draft for him but he didn't want to commit.

the necas no-trade last year was more about:

1. lindstrom being available when the jackets pick was on the clock
2. necas pushing hard to get treated as a point per game player

on the latter, necas was coming off of a 53-point season. now he's coming off of an 83-point season. i'd have no problem paying him $9m and i'm sure he wouldn't have a problem getting paid that much.

 

[spintheblackcircle]

If they go defense, I'd like Aitcheson

Lots of goals, lots of hits and fights. Shit disturber with personality

 

[majormajor]

I mean no but boards also never will shake out the way we think. Think that will be especially true in this draft after like 5.

I’m iffy on Lakovic. There’s a reason a guy with his tools and size is so low. Particularly in his class like this. His consistency / involvement can be very questionable. His physicality for a guy his size isn’t anything special. I’ll post examples below.

“If you were just going on highlights, everyone would have this guy top-5. 6-foot-4 guys who are this fast and this skilled are impossible to find, but with his talent, he should’ve had 80 points last year and over 100 this year, even on a team as bad as Moose Jaw. I always leave the rink wondering if he wants to be a difference maker.” - NHL Scout April 2025 (EP Draft Guide)

With his skillset, you put him with a couple finishing linemates, and all Lakovic has to do is his normal weave into the zone with his head up and set someone up, and he should be a 40 or 50 assist guy in the NHL. Maybe he doesn't have the drive to be a difference maker but even with what he currently does he's going to score. There is obviously a team effect at least partly responsible for limiting his totals.

To be fair some guys just need a little fire or kick in the ass to get the motivation they been lacking. Sometimes thats a teammate, sometimes it's a coach.

Having said that you usually want to add guys who you need to calm down not kickstart...

But if you have two picks and are planning to use both it makes it a little more tempting to grab someone who might be a little more risky.

There's not even much risk with Lakovic that he won't be a scoring line forward of some kind. He's relatively safe with how good he is at taking care of the puck. I think the risk is that you get a guy who isn't very passionate and you spend a lot of years hoping that he'll get that dawg in him and it doesn't happen. A Ryan Johansen situation perhaps.

From Simon's report it seems clear he's not a lazy player though, just very very finesse.

Maybe it's overly hopeful, but I wonder if there is a training aspect to it that might come into play - players spend 99% of their training time doing finesse training, which is the stuff Lakovic has mastered. But you can also train battle techniques, or heck even off ice fight training, which has helped some players. I'm not very familiar with what players have done though.

the necas no-trade last year was more about:

1. lindstrom being available when the jackets pick was on the clock
2. necas pushing hard to get treated as a point per game player

on the latter, necas was coming off of a 53-point season. now he's coming off of an 83-point season. i'd have no problem paying him $9m and i'm sure he wouldn't have a problem getting paid that much.

Did we find out that Necas was willing to sign here, and it was just the terms of the deal at issue? IIRC, he was picky about where he was going.

 

[Aaaarrgghh]

Did we find out that Necas was willing to sign here, and it was just the terms of the deal at issue? IIRC, he was picky about where he was going.

Maybe he just didn't want to go to a bottom feeder.

 

[majormajor]

Who do you think might go before and after him in the top-14 or so?

I just did this mock -

NYI - C Michael Misa (The Sharks might trade something to have Misa get selected by the Isles, who are indifferent between Misa and Schaefer.)
SJS - LD Matthew Schaefer
CHI - C Jake O'Brien (they need a center playmaker with height)
UTA - F Brady Martin (I've been mocking him there since the lottery)
NSH - F Anton Frondell

PHI - C James Hagens
BOS - RD Radim Mrtka
SEA - W Porter Martone
BUF - C Roger McQueen
ANA - W Victor Eklund

PIT - C Caleb Desnoyers (low, I know, but I think teams might be concerned about the two bad wrists, not a huge upside player even without that concern)
NYR - LD Kashawn Aitcheson (a team very concerned with the question "does he have that dawg in him?")

That leaves us with at least one of Jackson Smith or Lakovic on the board, depending on who Detroit takes at #13. I would like having at least one there, because for me it does drop off a lot after that. I can't think of who else I like there. I did like Carter Bear A LOT but that calf laceration is a serious concern for his skating ability. I can't remember if you had someone else on your list that was above this group of 14.

 

[tunnelvision]

I mean no but boards also never will shake out the way we think. Think that will be especially true in this draft after like 5.

True but almost all public scouting services have him ranked higher than #14. I don't expect him to be available at our pick.

Won’t be shocked when we trade 14 away, and take Ravensburg at 20 .

I would be shocked and very disappointed. Barely above .900 sv% goalie at junior level for two years in a row is quite unimpressive for a top-20 selection. There haven't been lots of 1st round goalies in recent years but all of them have had better draft years statistically (Knight, Askarov, Wallstedt, Cossa).

With his skillset, you put him with a couple finishing linemates, and all Lakovic has to do is his normal weave into the zone with his head up and set someone up, and he should be a 40 or 50 assist guy in the NHL. Maybe he doesn't have the drive to be a difference maker but even with what he currently does he's going to score. There is obviously a team effect at least partly responsible for limiting his totals.

I'm not as crazy about Lakovic's playmaking potential as Simon seems to be based on his analysis. I can imagine him playing on a productive scoring line but I think he would need more playmaking support than what is expected from two "finisher" types.

Lakovic creates passing options with his head up because with his speed and size he can get to the open space so much faster than most of his peers and buy a lot of time. But if there's only a small window play available where he would have to rely on pure instincts and do a quick reactionary type no-look pass to someone, I rarely see him try that or succeed at it.

His PP playmaking from left flank often looks kind of predictable, it's either a wrist shot or a backdoor tap-in attempt, and he always seems to be looking straight at the direction he wants to pass. I think Martone, Misa and O'Brien are more deceptive as passers and have better vision. Maybe Hagens as well, I still haven't watched him enough.

Did we find out that Necas was willing to sign here, and it was just the terms of the deal at issue? IIRC, he was picky about where he was going.

For me, dreaming about Necas is pointless. Same with Marner. Or thinking that Jenner or Severson could be traded this offseason. Complete waste of time.

 

[CBJx614]

For me, dreaming about Necas is pointless. Same with Marner. Or thinking that Jenner or Severson could be traded this offseason. Complete waste of time.

IIRC correctly Waddell said that someone called them when they were on the clock and asked if the deal was still on and they said no because Lindstrom was still available. Don't know if that was for Necas or someone else, but a deal was in place up until then.


Also I disagree about it being a waste of time, the off-season is the one time you get to fantasize about moves being made, if not now... When!?

Nobody was fantasizing about Johnny when we got the news. Same could be said about Monahan.

Part of me wants to believe that Johnny really did help change the reputation around the league by coming here.

 

[tunnelvision]

Also I disagree about it being a waste of time, the off-season is the one time you get to fantasize about moves being made, if not now... When!?

I was speaking for myself. Usually when I choose to fantasize about acquiring a high-profile player, I think of those who have not given any reason to assume they don't want to come here. We didn't know anything about Monahan's or Johnny's intentions before their arrival but we've heard some negative stuff from Marner and Necas.

 

[AnonCommentary]

McKeens Top 32
2025 Draft: Top 32

 

[KJ Dangler]

I was speaking for myself. Usually when I choose to fantasize about acquiring a high-profile player, I think of those who have not given any reason to assume they don't want to come here. We didn't know anything about Monahan's or Johnny's intentions before their arrival but we've heard some negative stuff from Marner and Necas.

We haven’t heard anything remotely negative with Necas .. maybe he just wasn’t ready to commit to a contract , and was coming off a 53 point season , this season he put up 83 .. his contract numbers probably look quite a bit different now .

 

[CBJWerenski8]

For me, dreaming about Necas is pointless. Same with Marner. Or thinking that Jenner or Severson could be traded this offseason. Complete waste of time.

On its face I agree but there’s no harm in checking in again. We’re in a different place as a franchise this year compared to last, and also there’s that potential revenge factor against Carolina.

I’m more bothered with the player being on two amazing teams/franchises and not being happy in both situations. Seems like a high maintenance player.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Item No. 2: Picks available​

The Blue Jackets have had seven first-round draft picks in the last four NHL drafts, four of them in the top 6 and six of them in the top 12 of the draft. The building continues, with Waddell looking to make significant roster upgrades. But the rebuilding is done.
Waddell heads to this year’s draft armed with two first-round draft picks: He has the Blue Jackets’ pick at No. 14 overall but also has the Minnesota Wild’s first-round pick at No. 20. That was acquired early last season when defenseman David Jiricek was traded to the Wild.

Nobody expects Waddell to select a player with both of those picks. He’s already dangling one (or both) of them in front of other GMs in an attempt to get immediate roster help.

The Athletic asked Waddell this week to put a percentage chance on the likelihood he selects a player with each of his first-round picks.

“I think it’s 50-50 (that we take) both,” he said. “I could move both of them. If we’re helping our team immediately, I’m not opposed to that, for sure. Probably, though, I would think we’d keep one of them. But I can’t say 100 percent.

“Like I always say, you never know what’s going to be presented to you or what you can chase down. You have to keep your options open, that’s for sure.”

 

[LJ7]

On its face I agree but there’s no harm in checking in again. We’re in a different place as a franchise this year compared to last, and also there’s that potential revenge factor against Carolina.

I’m more bothered with the player being on two amazing teams/franchises and not being happy in both situations. Seems like a high maintenance player.

Necas really wants to go to UFA. I would be shocked if he extended anywhere before that.

 

[stevo61]

It keeps being brought up he see's himself as a center, don't know if thats the actual issue but could be a possibility.

 

[AnonCommentary]

2025 NHL Mock Draft 2.0: Scott Wheeler predicts the first 32 picks

After the NHL Scouting Combine, here's Scott Wheeler's second version of a first-round mock for the 2025 NHL Draft.

www.nytimes.com

(14 - Lakovic) The two names I keep going back to with the Blue Jackets are Lakovic and Smith. I've heard they like Lakovic, and he just makes so much sense for them as a big, left-shot, top-nine winger who can skate and has skill. And they could use a D in their pool, and one like Smith, with all of his pro attributes, makes sense. One of them is — and maybe even both are — likely gone by the time they're up, but there's also a chance one of them is available. Lakovic is in this scenario, and while I'm sure they'd like to draft a D, sometimes you're not dealt those cards.

(20 - Hensler) I haven't heard Hensler connected to any teams in particular, but I could see the Blue Jackets doubling down on D or taking him here if they take a forward like Lakovic with their first pick. His good length, skating and skill remain appealing even if he hasn't blown people away and really grabbed it over the last couple of years. His peers — the players — respect his game, too.

NHL Draft Confidential 2025: What insiders think of Matthew Schaefer, goalies and more

After surveying a number of NHL evaluators, here's what they think about the big questions facing this draft class.

www.nytimes.com

NHL teams will at least somewhat follow public discourse. So I asked people around the league who are some top prospects for this draft that they feel the public is overrating.
Scout 2: “Lynden Lakovic. His compete is an issue, doesn’t get to the middle and lack of physical engagement, and his hockey sense is ordinary. He’s more of a late first-rounder than a top-15 pick.”

Schaefer is by leaps and bounds the top defense prospect in this draft. No other defenseman is expected to go in the top five. But the second defenseman to be picked will be interesting, and we expect another one will go in the top 10. So we asked people in the league for their second-ranked defender.
Executive 2: “Smith. He’s a better skater than Aitcheson or Mrtka. He has the most skill of all of them. His decisions aren’t the best, but he has the most pro potential.”

Executive 3: “Smith. He’s big and such a good skater, competes, has offense. There’s no miss factor with him.”