Prospect Info: Draft 2025: Is it too late to tank? Asking for a friend

[Ulf5]

Martone seems like a guy Neely would want.

Should be a guy kyle wants.

 

[Andy99]

I wouldn't take McQueen if the Rangers pick was 20th. Have a little ambition, man. Dude's gonna be Bjugstad, and that's if he even pans out, and that's up in the air with a potential chronic back injury.

I think Desnoyers is more likely to be Bjugstad lol…McQueen is more likely to never even make the league due to injury

 

[Ulf5]

I think you’re right starting at like 7/8

I think sitting 6 on draft day could be huge tho. Someone is gonna want Frondell/Desnoyers high, maybe both. Same for Mrtka/Smith. Like I think there is a very real chance Frondell goes top 3-4.

it’s unlikely but I can see Martone or Hagens getting to 6 tbh.

Hagens definitely seems to be slipping a bit due to his mid performance his freshman year. Might work to our benefit.

 

[Empoleon8771]

I still think the Penguins end up taking O'Brien with their 1st, regardless of whether it's sitting at #6 overall or #8 overall. Just a gut feeling I have.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

Hagens definitely seems to be slipping a bit due to his mid performance his freshman year. Might work to our benefit.

Hopefully. I am of the opinion he didn’t look great at times this year but can absolutely be a 1C still.

IMO this is a very strong top 4.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

I still think the Penguins end up taking O'Brien with their 1st, regardless of whether it's sitting at #6 overall or #8 overall. Just a gut feeling I have.

maybe. Wild if they pass on Frondell or Eklund for O’Brien to me but maybe.

Well I guess Eklund isn’t wild. He’s a midget winger but idk man. O’Brien is a very hard sell for me at 6. But once you get outside of my top 6 (top 4 plus two Swedes) I don’t really care who they take in this class.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

Even if Hagens isn't a 1C, he's probably a very solid 2C. If he falls into the Pens' lap for whatever reason, you take that and run without even thinking about it.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

Even if Hagens isn't a 1C, he's probably a very solid 2C. If he falls into the Pens' lap for whatever reason, you take that and run without even thinking about it.

I think at worst- he’s a low end 50 point middle 6 C that needs good linemates. Maybe like a Kyle Turris type career.

At best? I’m cloudier on the upside than I was at beginning of season. But then I’m like “he’s better than Cooley was” so I wouldn’t be shocked if he’s this dynamic true 1C at his peak.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

I think at worst- he’s a low end 50 point middle 6 C that needs good linemates. Maybe like a Kyle Turris type career.

At best? I’m cloudier on the upside than I was at beginning of season. But then I’m like “he’s better than Cooley was” so I wouldn’t be shocked if he’s this dynamic true 1C at his peak.

From what little I've watched, I get a lot of Jack Hughes vibes from Hagens. He does everything quickly and he has great hands. I don't think he has Hughes' shot, but I think he could end up a similar player stylistically.

 

[Empoleon8771]

maybe. Wild if they pass on Frondell or Eklund for O’Brien to me but maybe.

Well I guess Eklund isn’t wild. He’s a midget winger but idk man. O’Brien is a very hard sell for me at 6. But once you get outside of my top 6 (top 4 plus two Swedes) I don’t really care who they take in this class.

Eklund's size and questions about how well his body would hold up with his playstyle are legit concerns I have with him. Purely based on talent, I think he's easily the 5th best player in the draft. But that size is really concerning and his playstyle makes it worse.

I wouldn't criticize them for taking a 6'2" center with top-6 center upside over a 5'10" winger with top-6 winger upside. Eklund looked really good in the clips I saw, but the dude is tiny.

From what little I've watched, I get a lot of Jack Hughes vibes from Hagens. He does everything quickly and he has great hands. I don't think he has Hughes' shot, but I think he could end up a similar player stylistically.

I think Hagens is basically Aldi's version of Hughes.

 

[Jacob]

Hagens definitely seems to be slipping a bit due to his mid performance his freshman year. Might work to our benefit.

Leonard and Perreault having better seasons and not really doing much in the NHL so far (still great prospects but I think it lengthens Hagens’ learning curve a bit) probably won’t help his stock either.

Wonder if, whoever we get, we sign them and send them to the AHL if eligible. I could see Eklund or Frondell going that route. Dubas did that with Sandin, Liljegren and Nylander.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

From what little I've watched, I get a lot of Jack Hughes vibes from Hagens. He does everything quickly and he has great hands. I don't think he has Hughes' shot, but I think he could end up a similar player stylistically.

I don’t know. Hughes even in his DY I always thought played like McDavid where it’s non stop that he’s trying to get downhill and attacking defenders and eventually the net. Hagens is more perimeter driven imo. He’s almost like a pure center version of Marner maybe?

I don’t have a good comp for him but I really like him. I remain unconvinced he is far off/worse prospect than Misa.

 

[Ulf5]

Leonard and Perreault having better seasons and not really doing much in the NHL so far (still great prospects but I think it lengthens Hagens’ learning curve a bit) probably won’t help his stock either.

Wonder if, whoever we get, we sign them and send them to the AHL if eligible. I could see Eklund or Frondell going that route. Dubas did that with Sandin, Liljegren and Nylander.

I don't see many leaving college anymore. At least not upper end prospects.
Why would they? Often times the NIL money is as much if not more than a rookie contract. Not too mention the college lifestyle and easy drunk co-eds.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

I wouldn't criticize them for taking a 6'2" center with top-6 center upside over a 5'10" winger with top-6 winger upside. Eklund looked really good in the clips I saw, but the dude is tiny.

Yeah but do that with Frondell. Not O’Brien.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

I think you've probably got the makings of a solid 2nd line with McG-Hagens-Koivunen if they all pan out and work well together. Nothing overwhelming but good enough. I don't think Hagens is gonna end up a bonafide 1C, but McG has the on-ice IQ to work well as a third wheel guy who facilitates the game of his more dynamic, better linemates on a 1st line. Koivunen's smart too, dunno if he has the tools to be more than a middle 6 guy.

I'm still hoping Martone falls to the Pens somehow; either by jumping up a few spots in the lotto or teams ahead of the Pens going a bit off board and snagging Frondell, Desnoyers, and McQueen. Think Hagens probably has the better shot to drop though.

 

[Empoleon8771]

I'm not advocating for drafting based on need over BPA with saying this, but I think another thing that the team might be thinking about is what prospects will be available with the Rangers pick as well when deciding what to do with their 1st. Considering they have more wing prospects plus the prospects available at the Rangers pick seem to be somewhat winger heavy, I could see them preferring to get a center with their 1st over drafting another winger in Eklund.

It seems pretty likely that you can have your pick of Lakovic, Carbonneau, Kindel or Bear with that Rangers 1st, and all of those guys are either wingers or seem most likely to end up as wingers in the NHL. Kindel is playing center right now (he's actually playing on a line with Howe), but I'm skeptical someone with his size will stick at center.

 

[Jacob]

I could see Hagens moving to wing. At his size he’s going to have trouble defending deep in his own zone and I’m just gonna guess that, like Hughes, Bedard and Zegras, he’s gonna struggle on faceoffs too.

 

[Turin]

I can see centers lining up like ducks in a row after Schaefer. Makes for a bummer day for Martone and even Eklund, but that's the demand of the center position for ya.

Schaefer
Misa
Frondell
Hagens
Desnoyers
O'Brien
McQueen

I even think some team still takes Bear in around the top 10 and there's still Martin.

I don’t see O’Brien going that high

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

I could see Hagens moving to wing. At his size he’s going to have trouble defending deep in his own zone and I’m just gonna guess that, like Hughes, Bedard and Zegras, he’s gonna struggle on faceoffs too.

Don’t see it. I think he’s a pure center

 

[SEALBound]

Actually, I'm starting to think that our odds of getting one of Frondell or Desnoyers are fairly decent. All we need is Philly or Bruins to love McQueen and take him. Would be extra beneficial if Buffalo wanted Mrtka but I just can't see them passing on forward in this draft. After Schaeffer, if you're drafting top 10 and want defense, it's a reach. You're better off trading down.

I think there are ways to still get a really good guy and after 4-5ov, I think there are legit 4-5 players that are all about the same.

SJS - Schaeffer
Chicago - Misa
Nashville - Hagens
Boston - Martone
Seattle - Frondell
Philly - McQueen
Penguins - Desnoyers
Buffalo - Mrtka

If Desnoyers gets taken, we take O'Brien. If we are at Buffalo's slot and no one takes McQueen, we still get Eklund. Quite honestly, while I much prefer center, I think the group of McQueen, Desnoyers, Eklund, JOB are all about equal (at least from the POV of draft projects, don't quote me on that looking back in 10 years).

Best case scenario, IMHO:
SJS - Schaeffer
Chicago - Misa
Nashville - Martone
Boston - McQueen
Seattle - Hagens
Philly - Desnoyers
Penguins - Frondell
Buffalo - Mrtka

That's purely based on nincompoop ideas that Trotz and Neely might have.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

Philly just won the lottery 4x in a row on Tankathon. The 5th spin we won and Philly somehow got 2nd

5 wins in 5 spins for them. Nightmare fuel.

 

[Jacob]

I could see a team or two falling in love with someone other than McQueen too, like Aitcheson or Martin. Or Smith. Especially if they scouted them late in the year. Or Spence. U18s could have an impact too. Martin and Smith be there, will probably have a good showing. Frondell likely won’t be. These GMs and scouts aren’t brilliant, they’ll remember the last thing they saw. Meanwhile they’ve been watching Hagens and Martone for so long they’re seeing nothing but flaws.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Without a lottery win, I still think the best case scenario is drafting both O'Brien and Eklund with their 1sts by trading up a few slots with the Rangers 1st (or the Rangers 1st ends up high enough to get O'Brien anyway). That said, trading up is something Dubas hasn't done much in the past, he has shown to be wanting to trade back far more than trade up. Not something I think is super likely.

I think that top-10 would end up something like:

1. San Jose: Schaefer
2. Chicago: Misa
3. Nashville: Hagens
4. Boston: Martone
5. Seattle: Frondell
6. Philly: Desnoyers
7. Pittsburgh: Eklund
8. Buffalo: Mrtka
9. Pittsburgh: O'Brien
10. Anaheim: McQueen

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

I find it impossible to believe NYR is handing over a top 10 pick

I can MAYBE see them conveying it if is at 12 or 13

Higher than that hard to believe. I will be estatic to be incorrect and we get a top 10 pick for MP, so come back to this post and flame me if I’m wrong.

 

[eXile3]

I could see a team or two falling in love with someone other than McQueen too, like Aitcheson or Martin. Or Smith. Especially if they scouted them late in the year. Or Spence. U18s could have an impact too. Martin and Smith be there, will probably have a good showing. Frondell likely won’t be. These GMs and scouts aren’t brilliant, they’ll remember the last thing they saw. Meanwhile they’ve been watching Hagens and Martone for so long they’re seeing nothing but flaws.

Can confirm.