GDT: NHL Draft Combine: June 4-10, Buffalo

[MarkovsKnee]

Would you target Kakko as this year's Dach?

I would but the Rangers won't. He's still signed to a reasonable contract for one more year, $2.2m. If he doesn't start getting more from the NYR though, he may ask for a trade in 2024.

It's one thing to be given opportunities and fail, but that simply isn't the case with Chytil, Kakko & Lafreniere. The veteran players are clearly getting favored: Panarin, Kreider, Zibanejad & Trocheck are given almost the entire 2 minutes of any PP, and are given any & all offensive opportunities, including favored match-ups, o-zone starts.

There is not much room for Chytil, Lafreniere or Kakko to really grow their own games offensively. I think Kakko in particular can step up more if given opportunities. I don't see him becoming a ppg player, but more along the lines of Nichushkin.

 

[JHabs]

if Kakko can become a 30-30 player with jam, he's worth trading for. I think he still has untapped potential and a solid ceiling.

 

[SannywithoutCompy]

if Kakko can become a 30-30 player with jam, he's worth trading for. I think he still has untapped potential and a solid ceiling.

I think the Rangers would move Laf before Kakko at this point, but I would love to have him slot in behind Caufield on the RW going forward.

 

[Sterling Archer]

I beg to differ.

Lane Hutson would beg to differ as well.

Canadiens Prospect Review: Lane Hutson Shattered Expectations

The Montreal Canadiens have a relatively deep prospect pool. But despite having a bevy of talented players at almost every position except for goaltending, there is one glaring weakness: a lack of high-end players that possess game-breaking potential. However, thanks to the emergence of Boston...

montrealhockeynow.com

 

[Redux91]

Lane Hutson would beg to differ as well.

Canadiens Prospect Review: Lane Hutson Shattered Expectations

The Montreal Canadiens have a relatively deep prospect pool. But despite having a bevy of talented players at almost every position except for goaltending, there is one glaring weakness: a lack of high-end players that possess game-breaking potential. However, thanks to the emergence of Boston...

montrealhockeynow.com

So,
Lane Hutson is better than Ryan Leonard
But Lane Hutson is not better than Will Smith?

 

[Sterling Archer]

So,
Lane Hutson is better than Ryan Leonard
But Lane Hutson is not better than Will Smith?

He’s not better than Michkov

 

[Habs Icing]

You are quite literally inventing nonsense and presenting it as fact, just stop. Dumais at 1st overall last year lol.

Welcome to my IL

That's not what he said and you know it.

 

[Redux91]

He’s not better than Michkov

Well, when you come to terms and accept that it's not happening with him,
I'm sure you'll start feeling better eventually lol.

 

[Sterling Archer]

Well, when you come to terms and accept that it's not happening with him,
I'm sure you'll start feeling better eventually lol.

I’ll wait until after the draft to go through my stages of grief. No use going through it twice!

 

[River Meadow]

I’ll wait until after the draft to go through my stages of grief. No use going through it twice!

That's fair...

Kent just may surprise us....

 

[SannywithoutCompy]

That's not what he said and you know it.

In fairness, I could have posted that article sooner but assumed he was being deliberately obtuse and knew what I was talking about earlier.

Even if he hadn't IL'd me (lmao), I don't think he'd change his tune though.

 

[MarkovsKnee]

I think you're too fast to call those guys busts tbh.

They'll probably not become stars in the league but will end up as solid players IMO.

Well, Kravstov is definitely a bust, as is Lias Andersson.

 

[sandviper]

But have you considered just drafting Michkov at 5?

And if you haven't, are you saying you wouldn't have picked Caufield at 15?

And if Michkov slides out of the top 10, it is because everyone is stupid except me.

For me personally, just for arguments sake, my preference is Michkov at #5, assuming Smith and Carlsson are gone. That said, I am aware of the challenges and I wouldn‘t be opposed to the other options; Leonard, Reinbacher, etc.

My issue with some posts, most of them really, is that it’s just Michkov or bust, without any consideration of other players because he dominated a U17 and nobody has watched him play live since. He may very well be the BPA, but there’s an inherent risk in that assumption given the lack of development control a team would have, geo-political reasons and other factors. We ignore the fact that other players have taken steps forward, some of them huge steps.

I mean, end of the day, scouting is an opinion based industry. However, it’d be wise to consider multiple opinions when making evaluations. Sure, in the end if a person wants to die by that sword (Michkov), they may look like geniuses 5 years from now. If they look like idiots, well, they’ll never admit to it anyways.

 

[WeThreeKings]

For me personally, just for arguments sake, my preference is Michkov at #5, assuming Smith and Carlsson are gone. That said, I am aware of the challenges and I wouldn‘t be opposed to the other options; Leonard, Reinbacher, etc.

My issue with some posts, most of them really, is that it’s just Michkov or bust, without any consideration of other players because he dominated a U17 and nobody has watched him play live since. He may very well be the BPA, but there’s an inherent risk in that assumption given the lack of development control a team would have, geo-political reasons and other factors. We ignore the fact that other players have taken steps forward, some of them huge steps.

I mean, end of the day, scouting is an opinion based industry. However, it’d be wise to consider multiple opinions when making evaluations. Sure, in the end if a person wants to die by that sword (Michkov), they may look like geniuses 5 years from now. If they look like idiots, well, they’ll never admit to it anyways.

Exactly right.

You'll see it all over the place now "Just take Michkov 5 or you're an idiot".. but maybe, just maybe, watch some of these other prospects and project them?

The skills Leonard and Reinbacher have, that have continually grown throughout the year, are translatable skills that work in the regular season and work in the play-offs.

Inside skill is a skill and it may be the most important skill to have. It is the skill Wright doesn't have and it has shown to be a barrier to him being productive when it matters most.

 

[SannywithoutCompy]

For me personally, just for arguments sake, my preference is Michkov at #5, assuming Smith and Carlsson are gone. That said, I am aware of the challenges and I wouldn‘t be opposed to the other options; Leonard, Reinbacher, etc.

My issue with some posts, most of them really, is that it’s just Michkov or bust, without any consideration of other players because he dominated a U17 and nobody has watched him play live since. He may very well be the BPA, but there’s an inherent risk in that assumption given the lack of development control a team would have, geo-political reasons and other factors. We ignore the fact that other players have taken steps forward, some of them huge steps.

I mean, end of the day, scouting is an opinion based industry. However, it’d be wise to consider multiple opinions when making evaluations. Sure, in the end if a person wants to die by that sword (Michkov), they may look like geniuses 5 years from now. If they look like idiots, well, they’ll never admit to it anyways.

I don't think it's Michkov or bust, as Leonard would be the next highest pick on my board and I think he's pretty much a sure bet to be a top 6 forward. I just think it would concern me that our organization's philosophy would be that risk averse so early in their tenure where, given how long Bergevin and his scouts were allowed to stick around, they have a lot of leeway and road ahead of them.

I appreciated that they had the cajones to pick Slaf that high last year even if we disagreed on our evaluation of him because it showed me they weren't afraid to take a big risk to potentially get a unicorn of a player.

To not pick Michkov, to me at least, would tell me they are reversing course and playing it safe which worries me.

 

[Habnot]

I don't think it's Michkov or bust, as Leonard would be the next highest pick on my board and I think he's pretty much a sure bet to be a top 6 forward. I just think it would concern me that our organization's philosophy would be that risk averse so early in their tenure where, given how long Bergevin and his scouts were allowed to stick around, they have a lot of leeway and road ahead of them.

I appreciated that they had the cajones to pick Slaf that high last year even if we disagreed on our evaluation of him because it showed me they weren't afraid to take a big risk to potentially get a unicorn of a player.

To not pick Michkov, to me at least, would tell me they are reversing course and playing it safe which worries me.

The current management of the Habs is anything but risk averse. HUGO have proven they are willing to be aggressive and that comes with risks.

They we very active last draft. Picking Mesar and Hutson clearly demonstrated that skill is an important factor in their evaluations.

If they do not draft Michkov (assuming he is still available at 5) I will trust their judgement. There is nothing in their tenure that would give me reason to doubt their ability to make the right call.

 

[sandviper]

I don't think it's Michkov or bust, as Leonard would be the next highest pick on my board and I think he's pretty much a sure bet to be a top 6 forward. I just think it would concern me that our organization's philosophy would be that risk averse so early in their tenure where, given how long Bergevin and his scouts were allowed to stick around, they have a lot of leeway and road ahead of them.

I appreciated that they had the cajones to pick Slaf that high last year even if we disagreed on our evaluation of him because it showed me they weren't afraid to take a big risk to potentially get a unicorn of a player.

To not pick Michkov, to me at least, would tell me they are reversing course and playing it safe which worries me.

Well, by the same token, would Leonard or Reinbacher be a “safe” pick? Their floors may be higher than some prospects, but Reinbacher may develop into a top-pairing guy if a lot of things fall into place. There’s definitely risk in that.

Leonard has a lot of tools that could make him a legit top-6 forward. However, the hope when drafting him is he develops into our own high motor, offensively dangerous first line winger who will go to war for us in the playoffs.

Sure, I understand the idea of safe in choosing anyone other than Michkov due to the non-hockey risks. However, I think there’s a difference between taking a chance with a player (Hutson, Dach) and just saying F it and going for a player that you can’t really scout, haven’t interviewed and cannot develop (or monitor development).

There has to be a balance between safety and risk. This management group have taken a lot of risks but end of the day, it’s a billion dollar company and this is a results oriented business despite the fact we’re in a rebuild. in fact, I’d go so far and say it’s riskier taking Leonard for example; what if he tops out as a middle-6 winger and Michkov wins 5 Harts in a row? Or, it’s Leonard winning the Conn Smythe whereas Michkov’s team misses the playoffs for the 5th year in a row?

 

[JT3]

Can't believe there are people actually trying to argue that Laf and Kakko were bad picks and they would have picked Stutzle or whoever lmao. Guarantee they would have been the ones to lose their mind if the Habs had the pick and took someone other than Laf. Probably a strong correlation between that crowd and the 'michkov or bust' crowd too.

 

[Gustave]

Can't believe there are people actually trying to argue that Laf and Kakko were bad picks and they would have picked Stutzle or whoever lmao. Guarantee they would have been the ones to lose their mind if the Habs had the pick and took someone other than Laf. Probably a strong correlation between that crowd and the 'michkov or bust' crowd too.

Kakko there *might* have been a discussion as there were a lot of big centerman (teams crave those) around that point but Laf was getting picked 1st by 31(?) teams. No question.

The development though hasn’t been optimal.

 

[JT3]

Kakko there *might* have been a discussion as there were a lot of big centerman (teams crave those) around that point but Laf was getting picked 1st by 31(?) teams. No question.

The development though hasn’t been optimal.

There might have been a small handful of scouts who had anybody over Kakko, but he was a pretty unanimous #2 after having a huge WC. I think the closest to overtaking him probably would have been Byram and then you had a group of C's like Turcotte, Dach, Cozens.

You're absolutely right though that it's likely been a development issue more than anything. I actually think Kaako will start blowing up here soon with more ice time. Laf I'm not sure about, he has never improved his skating and and pace and its preventing him from taking the next step imo.

 

[Gustave]

You're absolutely right though that it's likely been a development issue more than anything. I actually think Kaako will start blowing up here soon with more ice time. Laf I'm not sure about, he has never improved his skating and and pace and its preventing him from taking the next step imo.

Speaking of which; it kills me that the « in » thing in NHL circles is to cram 18 year old on NHL rosters if they are high draft picks (1/2/3). 3 less so but you get the gist. As if they are done learning and can’t form properly around CHL/AHL (when available as an option).

There are a plethora of aspects that can work out better with time used in a less pressure and slower game pace. My go to example is the lost season for work stoppage in 2004-05. These guys just simmered a year more and it led to an absolute ton of great young players coming in very mature and ready to play.

 

[Paddy17]

Can't believe there are people actually trying to argue that Laf and Kakko were bad picks and they would have picked Stutzle or whoever lmao. Guarantee they would have been the ones to lose their mind if the Habs had the pick and took someone other than Laf. Probably a strong correlation between that crowd and the 'michkov or bust' crowd too.

Also, the people bitching about a pick like that clearly don't understand or believe in development and context either.

 

[26Mats]

Can't believe there are people actually trying to argue that Laf and Kakko were bad picks and they would have picked Stutzle or whoever lmao. Guarantee they would have been the ones to lose their mind if the Habs had the pick and took someone other than Laf. Probably a strong correlation between that crowd and the 'michkov or bust' crowd too.

Marinaro's frequent guest for prospects, Steve "the snake" Boiverst had Stutzle 1st overall. And he's a French Quebecer! The amount of heat he took leading up to the draft was hotter than Havana. And he had Makar 1st overall his draft year.

Guess who he has 2nd overall this year, way ahead of 3rd overall?




Michkov.

 

[salbutera]

Kakko there *might* have been a discussion as there were a lot of big centerman (teams crave those) around that point but Laf was getting picked 1st by 31(?) teams. No question.

The development though hasn’t been optimal.

Development …schmevelopment… Lafreniere physically peaked earlier, he’ll end up a very useful NHLer IMO, but his lack of pace will limit his ceiling.

 

[Colezuki]

Marino's frequent guest for prospects, Steve "the snake" Boiverst had Stutzle 1st overall. And he's a French Quebecer! The amount of heat he took leading up to the draft was hotter than Havana. And he had Makar 1st overall his draft year.

Guess who he has 2nd overall this year, way ahead of 3rd overall?




Michkov.

Did he see him play though?