CowbellConray
Registered User
- Sep 8, 2010
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With us four seasons removed from the 2020 draft, and 8 from the 2016, I wanted to take a look back at the drafts for each year, grade them against picks made right after each selection.
Criteria for grading:
1) Effectiveness of player selected to the Sabres org
2) Results of players selected within 5 picks after Sabres selection
3) Results of players of the same position drafted around Sabres pick
4) Ad Hoc Nuance of pick (For example, Dahlin being a clear #1 OVR pick should be a consideration of evaluation
Goal - to understand how the Sabres front office drafting effectiveness for players that would currently be 22-26 years old and core members of the team.
2016:
Result: Draft grade of D-
ZERO IMPACT PLAYERS
ZERO CURRENT NHL PLAYERS IN SABRES ORG
2017:
Results: Draft grade of B-
UPL was a great pick
Casey was a solid pick, nothing to be ashamed of
Bryson was a solid pick in a relatively weak draft
2018:
Results: Draft Grade of C-
Dahlin was a no brainer
Mattias was a strong pick
Not much available with the rest of the selections, but we managed to get no impact from bottom 4 picks...
2019:
Results: Draft Grade C
Dylan was a great pick
Rousek was a solid get
Very safe draft with safe results
2020:
Results: Draft Grade C
Peterka was a great pick
Quinn is a good pick
Levi makes this look better, but again, wasted selections in later rounds
OVERALL GRADE
C
Not hard to understand our lack of results over the past few years. Our first round selections have really pulled us along as an organization. However, with a serious lack of late round hits, we face organizational depth weaknesses that force a lot of pressure on our front office to fill the gaps in other ways. When you go 4/17 with picks after 100 just for even AHL talent, it's an issue.
The good news? Early later round returns for 21-23 look way way better. Another post for another time.
Hope you all enjoy!
Criteria for grading:
1) Effectiveness of player selected to the Sabres org
2) Results of players selected within 5 picks after Sabres selection
3) Results of players of the same position drafted around Sabres pick
4) Ad Hoc Nuance of pick (For example, Dahlin being a clear #1 OVR pick should be a consideration of evaluation
Goal - to understand how the Sabres front office drafting effectiveness for players that would currently be 22-26 years old and core members of the team.
2016:
Selection | Player | Grade (A-F) | Comments |
8th | Alex Nylander | D | The only thing keeping this from an F is how poor the forward selections were after Alex. The next 6-7 forwards are all disappointments |
33rd | Rasmus Asplund | D | Gave 1 season of decent play for the Sabres - 2 of the next forwards off the board: Jordan Kryou and Alex Debrincat |
69th | Cliff Pu | F | Zero organization Games |
86th | Casey Fitzgerald | B | 63 NHL Games - Above average for late 3rd round and 15 players selected after him dont have much NHL value |
99th | Brett Murray | C | 23 NHL Games - Depth org piece. Weak 4th round |
129th | Philip Nyberg | F | Zero organization Games |
130th | Vojtech Budik | F | Zero NHL Games |
159th | Brandon Hagel | F | Not signed - Productive NHL Player |
189th | Austin Osmanski | F | Zero organization Games |
190th | Vasili Glotov | D | Three organization Games |
ZERO IMPACT PLAYERS
ZERO CURRENT NHL PLAYERS IN SABRES ORG
2017:
Selection | Player | Grade (A-F) | Comments |
8th | Casey Mittelstadt | B | 359 NHL Games - Top 6 Center for Buffalo for 2 years. Better forwards selected after him (Necas/Suzuki) |
37th | Marcus Davidsson | F | Zero NHL Games |
54th | UPL | A | 102 NHL Games - Quality NHL Starter |
89 | Oskari Laaksonen | D | 109 AHL Games - No NHL players selected after him for 10 picks (Bryson) |
99 | Jacob Bryson | B | 206 NHL Games |
192 | Linus Weissbach | C | Over 150 AHL Games with Org over 3 seasons |
Results: Draft grade of B-
UPL was a great pick
Casey was a solid pick, nothing to be ashamed of
Bryson was a solid pick in a relatively weak draft
2018:
Selection | Player | Grade (A-F) | Comments |
1st | Rasmus Dahlin | A | Captain, all situations #1 D |
32nd | Mattias Samuelsson | B | Bottom 4 Defenseman with potential, 154 NHL Games. Not much selected after him |
94th | Matej Pekar | D | Minimal Org Impact |
117th | Linus Cronholm | F | No Org Games |
125th | Miska Kukkonen | F | No Org Games |
187th | William Worge-Kreu | F | No Org Games |
Dahlin was a no brainer
Mattias was a strong pick
Not much available with the rest of the selections, but we managed to get no impact from bottom 4 picks...
2019:
Selection | Player | Grade (A-F) | Comments |
7th | Dylan Cozens | A | 284 Games - Top 6 Forward with more potential available. Selections after Dylan are ok, but unless they did a super reach for Boldy Dylan was the right pick |
31st | Ryan Johnson | C | End of round is thin, but Johnson looks like he will be a solid bottom pair guy for a while. Some better players available after, but Johnson was a safe pick with a safe result |
67th | Erik Portillo | F | Traded, Zero org games |
102nd | Aaron Huglen | D | In College, but not looking to be anything more than a potential AHL deal |
143rd | Filip Cederqvist | C | 108 AHL Games - solid for a 5th round pick, but nothing special |
160th | Lukas Rousek | B | 17 NHL Games - Good 14th Forward |
Dylan was a great pick
Rousek was a solid get
Very safe draft with safe results
2020:
Selection | Player | Grade (A-F) | Comments |
8th | Jack Quinn | B | Could maybe be an A, but injuries have held him back. A healthy Quinn is a top 6 forward with deadly offensive skills |
34th | JJ Peterka | A | Steal of the draft across the league. Potential top line winger with superstar potential |
131st | Matteo Constantini | D | Maybe an AHL deal, but not much in this round anyway |
193rd | Albert Lyckasen | F | Wont get a contract |
216th | Jakub Konecny | F | Wont get a contract |
Peterka was a great pick
Quinn is a good pick
Levi makes this look better, but again, wasted selections in later rounds
OVERALL GRADE
C
Not hard to understand our lack of results over the past few years. Our first round selections have really pulled us along as an organization. However, with a serious lack of late round hits, we face organizational depth weaknesses that force a lot of pressure on our front office to fill the gaps in other ways. When you go 4/17 with picks after 100 just for even AHL talent, it's an issue.
The good news? Early later round returns for 21-23 look way way better. Another post for another time.
Hope you all enjoy!