Prospect Info: Current #2 overall poll and discussion

[Mr Bojanglez]

if you consider all top 5 guys more/less equal, why do you think we take a center? Where are locked long term for a couple of years? You go to fill a need - either at wing or D.

Unless you do think Cooley is the best player then whatever, you take him.

But i'm not of the opinion that any of the these top 5 is head and shoulders above the others. Wright might be the safest with a higher floor. But otherwise they all have similar cost/benefit

 

[MWagg72]

Locked On Sens just did a massive 4-hour first round mock draft with a bunch of guests. Some Flyers/elite prospects writer said we'd take Cooley second because something something "they may think they're set at center but they shouldn't."

"Mercer is ALLEGEDLY also a center." This seems dumb. He plays it as a pro that Cooley will be going to college and you don't have to rush him for a few years, but then they talk about Slaf to Arizona and comment about how he could be the most NHL ready prospect in the draft and the good news is Arizona still wouldn't need to rush him because they aren't one player away from contending. It seems more likely that we'd take the more NHL ready prospect at a position of need (while still being BPA for many scouts). He did clarify by saying Cooley is who HE would take and not who he thinks will get selected at 2.

 

[Rhodes 81]

As I said earlier in the thread, I take Slaf every time, but it wouldn't shock me if Cooley is the best offensive player in the draft 4-5 years from now. If we pick at 2 and it's not Slaf or Wright, Cooley is about the only other pick I could accept.

 

[Hockey Sports Fan]

As I said earlier in the thread, I take Slaf every time, but it wouldn't shock me if Cooley is the best offensive player in the draft 4-5 years from now. If we pick at 2 and it's not Slaf or Wright, Cooley is about the only other pick I could accept.

I also think there's a good chance Slafkovsky doesn't really hit his stride until he's 24 or 25. Been watching a lot of tape the past few weeks and he reminds me a lot of Blake Wheeler.

EDIT: Puljujuarvi may be a better example as I'm not sure Slaf has a Wheeler type of ceiling.

 

[Rhodes 81]

I also think there's a good chance Slafkovsky doesn't really hit his stride until he's 24 or 25. Been watching a lot of tape the past few weeks and he reminds me a lot of Blake Wheeler.

Good point. I don't know if I would quite say 5 years, but it could take some time for him to really put it all together. His shot is good, but not high end like you might expect from a winger billed as a high-end big offensive forward. I think his passing and pace will be good enough to still be an impact forward if he's riding shotgun with Hughes or Bratt, but it will likely take a few years for him to be a PPG kind of player I think he has the potential to be.

 

[Forge]

I also think there's a good chance Slafkovsky doesn't really hit his stride until he's 24 or 25. Been watching a lot of tape the past few weeks and he reminds me a lot of Blake Wheeler.

This is something I could absolutely see happening.

if you consider all top 5 guys more/less equal, why do you think we take a center? Where are locked long term for a couple of years? You go to fill a need - either at wing or D.

If you consider everyone largely equal, I think most often I would default to Center or Defense, particularly RHD.

 

[Eggtimer]

If we don’t go Wright or Slaf, I’d still consider Jiricek and Nemec over Cooley. It is almost impossible to get #1 D . Every successful playoff team seems to ha e 3/4 studs on D . Hedman / Sergachev McD Cernak .
Makar Toews Girard ( even tough Girard was hurt )
Or maybe Hamilton Hughes Severson Seigs Mukhamadoulin Graves Okhotiuk Bahl can be enough by committee ??
I want Slaf . If not Slaf or Wright …. Not sure. I’d lean Jiricek Nemec .

 

[My3Sons]

I also think there's a good chance Slafkovsky doesn't really hit his stride until he's 24 or 25. Been watching a lot of tape the past few weeks and he reminds me a lot of Blake Wheeler.

EDIT: Puljujuarvi may be a better example as I'm not sure Slaf has a Wheeler type of ceiling.

I'm not sure Poolparty as a comparable is going to instill confidence in anyone who is waffling on who they like at 2.

 

[oxman44]

An Interesting scenario that I think we should be aware of, is, I've heard our name speculated with Jiricek several times. A couple of those times by pronman, not his expectation, but from the NHL scouts and contacts he uses. I do really think Jiricek has great potential. Now after seeing the way Fitz has operated for a couple years and how I think he views a top tier Defenseman, I wouldnt be the least bit surprised If they are very high on him. Im still picking Slaf if its me, as I do think theres enough (slight) risk with Jiricek that I'd prefer to pick him in the 5-10 range.

 

[StevenToddIves]

"Mercer is ALLEGEDLY also a center." This seems dumb. He plays it as a pro that Cooley will be going to college and you don't have to rush him for a few years, but then they talk about Slaf to Arizona and comment about how he could be the most NHL ready prospect in the draft and the good news is Arizona still wouldn't need to rush him because they aren't one player away from contending. It seems more likely that we'd take the more NHL ready prospect at a position of need (while still being BPA for many scouts). He did clarify by saying Cooley is who HE would take and not who he thinks will get selected at 2.

This is exactly how one screws up a mock draft -- "it's who I would take".

 

[StevenToddIves]

As I said earlier in the thread, I take Slaf every time, but it wouldn't shock me if Cooley is the best offensive player in the draft 4-5 years from now. If we pick at 2 and it's not Slaf or Wright, Cooley is about the only other pick I could accept.

There are several players who could wind up being the best offensive player from the 2022 draft. Wright and Slafkovsky would have to be the best bets, but after them we could also assume Cooley, Savoie, Miroshnichenko and Lambert have a decent shot. The best goal-scorers could be Kemell, Gauthier or Lekkerimaki when the smoke clears a couple decades from now.

But you also have to factor in overall play, potential talent floor and several other factors when making your pick, which is why players with risk attached like Miro and Lambert could fall and why more one-dimensional players like Lekkerimaki and Savoie could fall.

 

[StevenToddIves]

I also think there's a good chance Slafkovsky doesn't really hit his stride until he's 24 or 25. Been watching a lot of tape the past few weeks and he reminds me a lot of Blake Wheeler.

EDIT: Puljujuarvi may be a better example as I'm not sure Slaf has a Wheeler type of ceiling.

I'm still wondering where the questions about Slafkovsky's upside are coming from. He's got the best combination of playmaking/puckhandling in the entire 2022 draft. His skating and shot are superb. He excels both in space and down low, in the exterior and interior. He's smart as hell and competitive. His development curve for his draft-eligible campaign was second to none -- do we somehow assume it's going to suddenly and jarringly level off?

Where is the concern over lack of upside? We literally haven't had a draft-eligible forward remotely like him for maybe a decade. Where is the concern he could bust? He just came off a tournament with 120 NHLers and was one of the best forwards in the entire tourney.

 

[bigvonbody]

An Interesting scenario that I think we should be aware of, is, I've heard our name speculated with Jiricek several times. A couple of those times by pronman, not his expectation, but from the NHL scouts and contacts he uses. I do really think Jiricek has great potential. Now after seeing the way Fitz has operated for a couple years and how I think he views a top tier Defenseman, I wouldnt be the least bit surprised If they are very high on him. Im still picking Slaf if its me, as I do think theres enough (slight) risk with Jiricek that I'd prefer to pick him in the 5-10 range.

I've mentioned this before. The Devils are very high on both. I believe either one could top their list. I was only saying don't be surprised to see Fitz take Jiricek.

 

[JimEIV]

I'm still wondering where the questions about Slafkovsky's upside are coming from. He's got the best combination of playmaking/puckhandling in the entire 2022 draft. His skating and shot are superb. He excels both in space and down low, in the exterior and interior. He's smart as hell and competitive. Is development curve for his draft-eligible campaign was second to none -- do we somehow assume it's going to suddenly and jarringly level off?

Where is the concern over lack of upside? We literally haven't had a draft-eligible forward remotely like him for maybe a decade. Where is the concern he could bust? He just came off a tournament with 120 NHLers and was one of the best forwards in the entire tourney.

His 31 games Liiga stats seems to be the only reason cited?

I mostly do not commented and just read opinions...and I suppose it's a valid argument but the same people seem to want to dismiss all his other games this year.

I don't know. He looks like a fantastic player with an amazing tool set to me.

 

[My3Sons]

His 31 games Liiga stats seems to be the only reason cited?

I mostly do not commented and just read opinions...and I suppose it's a valid argument but the same people seem to want to dismiss all his other games this year.

I don't know. He looks like a fantastic player with an amazing tool set to me.

I was listening to a podcast recently where the discussion suggested that some teams saw Wright as maybe having matured early and that he's only going to incrementally improve. I know that is a thing in sports with young players. A kid on my oldest son's HS team was bigger than the rest of the kids in 8th grade. Well, he'd been held back a season because of a late birthday so he was still six to ten months older than his peers. He was killing it the first two years. In 10th grade, the other kids started to catch up or pass him physically and he was getting forced further and further away from the net and had to start settling for outside shots. He was still good but was passed by a number of kids and never had the varsity impact predicted for him early on. Is that something someone could worry about with Slaf? I don't know enough about him or his past. While his physical development is probably plateaued I agree with you that his game seemingly improved a bunch over this season so I'm not sure if that could apply to him, even if it might be something of an issue for Wright (and it probably was for Patrick in 2017).

 

[JimEIV]

I was listening to a podcast recently where the discussion suggested that some teams saw Wright as maybe having matured early and that he's only going to incrementally improve. I know that is a thing in sports with young players. A kid on my oldest son's HS team was bigger than the rest of the kids in 8th grade. Well, he'd been held back a season because of a late birthday so he was still six to ten months older than his peers. He was killing it the first two years. In 10th grade, the other kids started to catch up or pass him physically and he was getting forced further and further away from the net and had to start settling for outside shots. He was still good but was passed by a number of kids and never had the varsity impact predicted for him early on. Is that something someone could worry about with Slaf? I don't know enough about him or his past. While his physical development is probably plateaued I agree with you that his game seemingly improved a bunch over this season so I'm not sure if that could apply to him, even if it might be something of an issue for Wright (and it probably was for Patrick in 2017).

It's interesting... Jeff Gorton during the last draft or the year before, I don't remember which, said something very similar to the point you are making...he said something like I never wanted to see a prospect that looked like a man.
And said something to the effect that a highly ranked immature player has much more room to grow and get better and that just about no 18 year is truly good enough for the NHL as is without that growth.

 

[My3Sons]

It's interesting... Jeff Gorton during the last draft or the year before, I don't remember which, said something very similar to the point you are making...he said something like I never wanted to see a prospect that looked like a man.
And said something to the effect that a highly ranked immature player has much more room to grow and get better and that just about no 18 year is truly good enough for the NHL as is without that growth.

It's a thing, it's real, I've seen it, not only on my son's team, but also on his high school soccer team where the goalie was 5'11" in 8th grade and 5'11" as a senior. He was still the starter as a senior but more on reputation by that point. It didn't hurt that the backup never grew past 5'9". But even if you see it, it plays out over a long period of time, and you have to know the kid and his mental makeup as well. A smart kid will adapt and be able to hide it longer. For most kids they are just trying to get a college landing spot, but I imagine in hockey with a high draft pick at issue, it's more important to evaluate.

 

[Forge]

I've never seen a season quite like Slaf's where the league play was so underwhelming statistically, but the international games were so impressive ,particularly given what the international games were.

 

[Omar Little]

Anyone know Slafkovskys height by age?

 

[Team Concept]

I just spent some time comparing Cooley and Hughes' stats as 18 year olds in USNTDP Juniors (USHL) and the U.S. National U18 Team. Both players were born in May for what its worth.

Hughes (USNTDP) (USHL) 24-12-36-48 4 PIM +17
Cooley (USNTDP) (USHL) 24-13-23-36 55 PIM +19

Hughes (U.S. National Team) 50-34-78-112 28 PIM ?
Cooley (U.S. National Team) 51-27-48-75 67 PIM +38

With Cooley only being 5-10 I was surprised by how many penalty minutes he had last season.

He doesn't come close to matching Hughes in terms of production, but not to far off in goals scored.

 

[Buggsy]

It's a thing, it's real, I've seen it, not only on my son's team, but also on his high school soccer team where the goalie was 5'11" in 8th grade and 5'11" as a senior. He was still the starter as a senior but more on reputation by that point. It didn't hurt that the backup never grew past 5'9". But even if you see it, it plays out over a long period of time, and you have to know the kid and his mental makeup as well. A smart kid will adapt and be able to hide it longer. For most kids they are just trying to get a college landing spot, but I imagine in hockey with a high draft pick at issue, it's more important to evaluate.

There is a specific instance in the NHL of this with the Doughty draft. It was a comparison between Doughty and Bogosian and how Doughty was dominating as a chubby teen vs Bogosian who was an athletic freak already.

So the king's choose Doughty.

 

[MWagg72]

Anyone know Slafkovskys height by age?

I heard he was 3'6" and 40lbs at birth.

 

[njdevils1982]

I heard he was 3'6" and 40lbs at birth.

André the Giant weighed 13 lbs at birth​

 

[MWagg72]

André the Giant weighed 13 lbs at birth​

Sounds like one of those tiny forwards currently on our team compared to Slaf.

 

[Eggtimer]

I think Slafkovsky will more than likely NOT be the highest scoring player from this draft but may be the best player , or at least up there . I know that kind of contradictory what I’m saying but I feel Slaf might not put up the goal totals others might , but his overall game and how he will make his linemates better will make him one of the best all around forwards . In my humble opinion and guess .