McMullet's 2020 Draft Rankings - Top 31 - March

[SoundAndFury]

Hard to compare those eras. And Koivu was a heavy late bloomer. I'd be surprised if Lundell becomes that good at both ends of the ice.

Furthermore Pavelski is a great player but one has to wonder where he would be without Thornton feeding him sweet dishes for most of his career. Arguably the best playmaker of his generation. Still likely a 15-25 goal scorer but unlikely he reaches the heights he did without him.

Yes, the eras are different but not exactly ages apart. Furthermore, term late bloomer is mostly used to define players who go under the radar until a certain age. Koivu sure took his sweet time to pan out but people saw his potential all along, arguably to the point of him being overrated at the time. And yes, it would be surprising if Lundell becomes that good defensively since they are a lot different players but I don't think there would be anything surprising if Lundell became better offensively.

It's also hard to call Pavelski Thornton's product as they rarely even played on the same line. Moreover, when Pavelski started entering his true prime Thornton was well past it so one could really make a pretty good case Thornton benefited from playing with Pavs as much as vice versa.

 

[FinPanda]

We've seen this song and dance before. So did Armia, Kotkaniemi, Vesalainen, Saarela, Lehkonen, Puljujarvi, Kupari, and Kakko. Liiga seems to be so watered down lately that any solid 17/18 year old forward can score if given the minutes.

Why is Kupari included in this group? He was a late first rounder and he is injured at the moment. Armia is a solid NHL'er, Kotkaniemi will be one. Lehkonen is solid NHL player too. Kakko is 18, not sure why he was counted. I'll give you Vesalainen, Saarela and Puljujärvi.

You just tried to bash the league by counting some NHL players in. They probably didn't live up their draft position, but that doesn't mean they aren't solid NHL'ers. Liiga isn't as good as it once was, but that doesn't mean it can't produce players.

 

[Daximus]

Why is Kupari included in this group? He was a late first rounder and he is injured at the moment. Armia is a solid NHL'er, Kotkaniemi will be one. Lehkonen is solid NHL player too. Kakko is 18, not sure why he was counted. I'll give you Vesalainen, Saarela and Puljujärvi.

You just tried to bash the league by counting some NHL players in. They probably didn't live up their draft position, but that doesn't mean they aren't solid NHL'ers. Liiga isn't as good as it once was, but that doesn't mean it can't produce players.

I'm not saying Lundell won't be a good NHL player I'm just not sure he will be a great NHL player, at least not worthy of a top 10 pick and maybe not even top 15 depending on who you value more. His skating is his massive weakness for me. Good top end speed but his acceleration, edges and lateral movement are a real negative. Positioning is phenomenal and it is what really saves him in a lot of spots. But to be a top 6 C in the NHL you need to be a good skater. On top of that he seems to be very physically developed at his age which leads me to believe there isn't much more he can really gain in that area. Can he improve on his skating? Sure, I just don't think it will be significantly enough to put him in that top cohort of NHL centers. I think he can be a good dependable middle 6 type of center that plays shutdown hockey and can chip in offensively. A #2 on a mediocre team, #3 on a contender type of guy. Who can fill in higher in case of injuries but not a real clear cut 1C and maybe not even a high end 2C.

With that being said that's not something you should take lightly as I think he has a high floor to be an NHLer. The maturity in his game is obviously very high and he takes a lot of his assignments and responsibilities very seriously. The kid just screams pro to me and the kind of guy that players will love to have around both on the ice and in the locker room. If you want to draft him based on his floor then all the power to you. But it's likely that a few guys like that will be found throughout the draft. If you want him based on his ceiling then I'm not sure he's worth taking over more prominent players with higher ceilings.

 

[FinnishSniper]

My opinion is my opinion. Late birthday, mediocre production in a mediocre league, the aging curves people are expecting improvements on aren’t really there has he’s already got proper mass for his height. He’s had good, not great scoring in his age cohort and that usually doesn’t translate as you get into a deeper pool.

If you think a bottom 6 C is a top 10 pick, bully for you. It takes a lot more projection than I’m comfortable with than compared to someone like Holtz.

Mediocre production for you is outscoring Puljujärvi, Rantanen and Kotkaniemi at the same age, while playing a way more complete game? He maybe isn’t the flashiest but holy moly are you underestimating his skill...

Mediocre league for you is arguably a top 5 league in the world?

I want the same stuff you’re on bud!

 

[elitebottomsix]

We've seen this song and dance before. So did Armia, Kotkaniemi, Vesalainen, Saarela, Lehkonen, Puljujarvi, Kupari, and Kakko. Liiga seems to be so watered down lately that any solid 17/18 year old forward can score if given the minutes.

Yes I agree we have seen this song and dance before with Barkov, Aho, Hieskinen, Laine, and Rantanen. Not to mention kotkaniemi, kupari and Kakko are all still teenagers and the others you mentioned weren’t exactly hyped up prospects besides Puljujarvi.

 

[Daximus]

Yes I agree we have seen this song and dance before with Barkov, Aho, Hieskinen, Laine, and Rantanen. Not to mention kotkaniemi, kupari and Kakko are all still teenagers and the others you mentioned weren’t exactly hyped up prospects besides Puljujarvi.

They really haven't been all that special outside of Laine, Rantanen, Aho and Heiskanen recently. Though the Finnish hype machine contingent on here has set unrealistic standards for a lot of their players.