LD Zeev Buium - University of Denver, NCAA (2024, 12th, MIN)

[MuckOG]

The Top D in this draft were all excellent prospects. One was bound to fall and I’m not surprised it was the smallish LHD. @Dack perfectly summarized how team needs and existing handedness played into the slip as well.

I do think Minnesota needs to prioritize getting a big RHD now. The blueline is small with Faber, Brodin, Buium, Spurgeon.

I wouldn't consider Faber "small" at 6'1" 200 lbs at just 21 years old. He's not going to punish many players, but he's plenty strong along the boards and can more than hold his own in front of the net.

 

[MNRube]

I wouldn't consider Faber "small" at 6'1" 200 lbs at just 21 years old. He's not going to punish many players, but he's plenty strong along the boards and can more than hold his own in front of the net.

True but he’s not an ideal biggest D in your Top 4. You want one bruiser. I think Middleton is a 5 on a contender

 

[SoupNazi]

Any more politics and you can expect a warning and a forum ban from the prospects forum for at least a week.

 

[MTL Dirty Birdy]

The Top D in this draft were all excellent prospects. One was bound to fall and I’m not surprised it was the smallish LHD. @Dack perfectly summarized how team needs and existing handedness played into the slip as well.

I do think Minnesota needs to prioritize getting a big RHD now. The blueline is small with Faber, Brodin, Buium, Spurgeon.

Spurgeon is the only truly small D there. As the games getting faster people have to get ready to see less of an obsession with size like in the 90s

 

[Mattb124]

Perhaps a real trend among losing franchises?

Ever looked at the average height of VGK’s D when they won the cup? Guessing not.

 

[MuckOG]

True but he’s not an ideal biggest D in your Top 4. You want one bruiser. I think Middleton is a 5 on a contender

Agreed. My only point is that there are more categories of size then just "big" and "small". There is a "medium" or "average" category as well. I would place guys like Faber, Brodin and possibly Buium in that class. Spurgeon is the definition of "small".

 

[roon]

Ever looked at the average height of VGK’s D when they won the cup? Guessing not.

Maybe I would have if the height of their D mattered more than their Cap circumvention in their cup wins.

 

[mphmiles]

True but he’s not an ideal biggest D in your Top 4. You want one bruiser. I think Middleton is a 5 on a contender

Colorado won a cup with a top 4 that averaged sub-6 feet with the tallest at 6-1. (And none of Makar, Toews, Girard, or Byram were anywhere close to a “bruiser”)

You need a good top 4. They don’t have to have any specific style or size. Vegas won with size and physicality. Colorado won with speed and skill.

 

[MaKarter]

Colorado won a cup with a top 4 that averaged sub-6 feet with the tallest at 6-1. (And none of Makar, Toews, Girard, or Byram were anywhere close to a “bruiser”)

You need a good top 4. They don’t have to have any specific style or size. Vegas won with size and physicality. Colorado won with speed and skill.

Girard was injured Game 3 of the second round.

Toews- Makar
Byram- Manson
Johnson- Johnson

 

[Mattb124]

Maybe I would have if the height of their D mattered more than their Cap circumvention in their cup wins.

What punishment did the NHL hand down for VGK’s cap circumvention?

Perhaps ignorance really is bliss.

 

[Larry44]

I don't recall that, at all. Potvin was a very solid player, and no one that I can remember talked about his lack of size.

Correct. Denis Potvin was built like a Mack Truck. Six Foot Square and tough.

 

[Zubrus Coffee Maker]

Colorado has a generational Defenseman in his prime. Not saying you need size or anything on defense, but that can certainly sway the line in your favour as far as team construction.

For Buium, I was sad the Devils passed on him. He looks like the prototypical modern defenseman, and I believe hes going to have a tremendous career

 

[MNRube]

For Buium, I was sad the Devils passed on him. He looks like the prototypical modern defenseman, and I believe hes going to have a tremendous career

Silayev is a perfect fit for a D core that already has Nemec, Hughes and Casey.

 

[57special]

Colorado has a generational Defenseman in his prime. Not saying you need size or anything on defense, but that can certainly sway the line in your favour as far as team construction.

For Buium, I was sad the Devils passed on him. He looks like the prototypical modern defenseman, and I believe hes going to have a tremendous career

Silayev is perfect for NJD. They need a defensive stopper, and the size is an added bonus.

 

[Michael Farkas]

For Buium, I was sad the Devils passed on him. He looks like the prototypical modern defenseman, and I believe hes going to have a tremendous career

I'm not tracking the last several pages of this thread, so apologies if this has been 200 times...but Philadelphia has Drysdale, York, to a lesser degree, Andrae...

NJ has Casey and Nemec...

As much as you like BPA all the time, there's a bit of an exception sometimes...you don't want too many of that guy...

So, just the lineup of teams in a row probably contributed a bit to him falling out of the top 10 or whatever.

 

[Boxscore]

I'm not tracking the last several pages of this thread, so apologies if this has been 200 times...but Philadelphia has Drysdale, York, to a lesser degree, Andrae...

Yes. But Drysdale has been oft-injured and didn't set the world on fire once traded to Philly. Granted, he should be given the keys to PP1 for good, but the jury is still out on how productive he will be... or if he can remain durable and healthy for long stretches.

York is a good young player. Hopefully, he could be a solid top 4D on a contender down the line.

Andrae is unproven and 5-9... and maybe 185 with rocks in his pocket.

If the above is the reason the Flyers passed on Buium for a reach in Luchanko... Briere and the entire scouting staff should be jettisoned before the 25 draft.

The last 4 players to win the Norris are Q. Hughes, Karlsson, Makar, and Fox. None of them are big, physical D. In fact, three of them are the same size (or smaller) than Buium. And, Buium outproduced three of them in the same league at the same stage of development. Heading into the draft, every reputable scout had Buium going high in the draft (some even had him ranked 4th overall) and everyone pegged his upside as a high-end, 1D.

If Drysdale, York, and Andrae were the reason the Flyers passed on the next Adam Fox, it will likely set the franchise back 8-10 years... unless Luchanko defies logic, reasoning, and every credible projection and emerges into Joe Sakic 2.0.

"Drafting for need" is a Cardinal Sin and the Flyers made it in year 2 of a franchise-altering rebuild, after landing their biggest franchise face since Eric Lindros. How they did not swing for the fences once Buium fell into their laps is mind-boggling, to say the least.

 

[JunkyardKangaroo]

What about Kyle McLaren?

 

[Larry44]

I'm not tracking the last several pages of this thread, so apologies if this has been 200 times...but Philadelphia has Drysdale, York, to a lesser degree, Andrae...

NJ has Casey and Nemec...

As much as you like BPA all the time, there's a bit of an exception sometimes...you don't want too many of that guy...

So, just the lineup of teams in a row probably contributed a bit to him falling out of the top 10 or whatever.

Drysdale and York are nowhere near Buium’s level. Passing on Zev because of them was malpractice. #FlyersPerpetualMediocrity

 

[Kalv]

Drysdale and York are nowhere near Buium’s level. Passing on Zev because of them was malpractice. #FlyersPerpetualMediocrity

I have no idea, but didn't Flyers pass on a NCAA guy more than anything else? (See - Gauthier's situation).

I just assumed so, but I really don't have any idea

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Drysdale and York are nowhere near Buium’s level. Passing on Zev because of them was malpractice. #FlyersPerpetualMediocrity

I would not be so sure that Buium will be better than Drysdale. Drysdale drafted way earlier and has done well other than the injuries.

 

[Erep]

I have no idea, but didn't Flyers pass on a NCAA guy more than anything else? (See - Gauthier's situation).

I just assumed so, but I really don't have any idea

I mean, you can argue about the actual reasons, or whatever, but this is the public explanation from Briere:

"Well, when you look at our defense, you have it right. I think Zeev Buium is gonna be a great player, and he’s someone we considered strongly. But with Cam York, Jamie Drysdale, Emil Andrae – at some point, it gets tough to go with the smaller guy. But he’s a fantastic player"

 

[DANOZ28]

well im still bouncing off the walls like a little kid on xmas morning! if buium is as good as or maybe even better than faber we have 2 of 4 top D for the next 8-10 years.

 

[BagHead]

Drysdale and York are nowhere near Buium’s level. Passing on Zev because of them was malpractice. #FlyersPerpetualMediocrity

I like your avatar.

 

[thedjpd]

Drysdale and York are nowhere near Buium’s level. Passing on Zev because of them was malpractice. #FlyersPerpetualMediocrity

Really silly take.

Drysdale was rated above Buium during his draft year and the first dman taken, and went on to put up 30+ points as an 18 year old in the NHL.

Buium was so highly rated that he was the 6th dman taken in his own draft class. Drysdale has obviously seen his stock drop due to injuries, but that’s really the only reason. It’s not like the talent is gone - he’s barely played 2 seasons worth in 4 years. There’s still plenty to develop.

I get that this is HF and all, but the hype on Buium is getting out of hand - and this comes from a Flyers fan would have preferred they took him. I also get that GMs mess up, but it’s pretty hard to justify he’s the best dman in his class at the moment any way you look at it.

 

[Peasy]

Really silly take.

Drysdale was rated above Buium during his draft year and the first dman taken, and went on to put up 30+ points as an 18 year old in the NHL.

Buium was so highly rated that he was the 6th dman taken in his own draft class. Drysdale has obviously seen his stock drop due to injuries, but that’s really the only reason. It’s not like the talent is gone - he’s barely played 2 seasons worth in 4 years. There’s still plenty to develop.

I get that this is HF and all, but the hype on Buium is getting out of hand - and this comes from a Flyers fan would have preferred they took him. I also get that GMs mess up, but it’s pretty hard to justify he’s the best dman in his class at the moment any way you look at it.

Nah it's really not that hard to justify lol. A lot of people would have had him as their top d going into the draft and him falling to 12th shouldn't change that opinion. And if it does, then your opinion was fickle to begin with.

I'll be shocked if Drysdale becomes a top tier nhler at this point. Weird talking about a guy and what he was considered during his draft when we are 4 years past that. A lot can change in 4 years and it clearly has for Drysdale. Would you still talk so highly of Kakko?