NYR's worst 2nd round goalie

[Fitzy]

Olof Lindbom is currently sporting a .828 save percentage in the 3rd tier ECHL as a D+4 player.

This got me thinking a little bit about NYR's checkered post-lockout history with picking goalies in the second round, so I'm interested (And humored) to see what you all think was the biggest mistake.

Olof Lindbom (39th overall, 2018)

Sub .900 in just about every season and in each tiered league
Just barely became competent in the Swedish 2nd division as a 21 year old
Riding pine in the ECHL

Brandon Halverson (59th overall, 2014)

Bounced between AHL where he was poor, and ECHL where he was barely competent for several seasons.

Antoine Lafleur (48th overall, 2007)

Posted two seasons with a SV% in the Canadian juniors below .880, including one year where he gave up more than 4 goals a game
Of the three- the only one to not be offered a contract

Click to read more...

 

[B17 Apricots]

The only thing this is telling me is we should draft a goalie in the 2nd that was projected to go in the 4th round

It's a little discouraging that we haven't gotten a single NHL player in the 2nd round since Stepan over a decade ago in 2008

 

[KirkAlbuquerque]

So what’s worse: our drafting or our development? We have guys like Lindbum, Lias, McIlrath who were bad picks from the start, but then we have consensus top picks who end up being 3rd liners. Hard to choose tbh

 

[Daves a mess]

So what’s worse: our drafting or our development? We have guys like Lindbum, Lias, McIlrath who were bad picks from the start, but then we have consensus top picks who end up being 3rd liners. Hard to choose tbh

All the more reason to KEEP THOSE 2 FIRSTS this summer.

 

[nyr2k2]

Gotta be Lafleur. Dude straight up retired when he finished junior hockey. He didn't even have a chance to suck as a pro.

 

[ReleasO The KakkO]

I’m only slightly on topic here in that I find ALL Ranger goalie picks and pickups to be interesting. Faves:

Skapski - albeit a 6th rounder, great name and a perfect career NYR record of 2-0 (both against the Sabres)

Biron - not a Ranger pick BUT a FIRST rounder for, once again, Buffalo. If I’m not mistaken his final game - as a Ranger and NHLer - was the 7-goal shellacking by the Sharks, featuring 4 from a then non-English speaking Tomas Hertl. Fourth was a between the legs, top-shelf shot. Such a savage way to go…

 

[mike14]

I’m only slightly on topic here in that I find ALL Ranger goalie picks and pickups to be interesting. Faves:

Skapski - albeit a 6th rounder, great name and a perfect career NYR record of 2-0 (both against the Sabres)

Biron - not a Ranger pick BUT a FIRST rounder for, once again, Buffalo. If I’m not mistaken his final game - as a Ranger and NHLer - was the 7-goal shellacking by the Sharks, featuring 4 from a then non-English speaking Tomas Hertl. Fourth was a between the legs, top-shelf shot. Such a savage way to go…

I'm still on the "what if..." train for Dan Blackburn

 

[Synergy27]

For me a ranking like this comes down to opportunity cost. Who could/should they have reasonably chosen at that pick instead? Look at guys that went around that pick, or guys a large percentage of plebes like us had on our radar for the pick.

Using this rubric, the answer here is easily Lindbom. How the hell they didn’t pick Jack Drury will never, ever make sense to me. Ryan McLeod taken one pick later would be a revelation in this team’s bottom six with his skating.

Everyone paying any attention at all derided this pick immediately. I simply don’t understand how it was made.

 

[nyr2k2]

For me a ranking like this comes down to opportunity cost. Who could/should they have reasonably chosen at that pick instead? Look at guys that went around that pick, or guys a large percentage of plebes like us had on our radar for the pick.

Using this rubric, the answer here is easily Lindbom. How the hell they didn’t pick Jack Drury will never, ever make sense to me. Ryan McLeod taken one pick later would be a revelation in this team’s bottom six with his skating.

Everyone paying any attention at all derided this pick immediately. I simply don’t understand how it was made.

Yup. Lindbom was definitely going to be one of the first goalies off the board in that draft, but to take him when they did with some of those other guys still on the board was crazy.

I was okay with taking a goalie in that draft, and it would have been Skarek (who also generally sucks). But he at least went in the 70s, which IMO is the absolute earliest you should be looking at a non-elite goaltending prospect.

 

[egelband]

For me a ranking like this comes down to opportunity cost. Who could/should they have reasonably chosen at that pick instead? Look at guys that went around that pick, or guys a large percentage of plebes like us had on our radar for the pick.

Using this rubric, the answer here is easily Lindbom. How the hell they didn’t pick Jack Drury will never, ever make sense to me. Ryan McLeod taken one pick later would be a revelation in this team’s bottom six with his skating.

Everyone paying any attention at all derided this pick immediately. I simply don’t understand how it was made.

I wonder if someone tricked them with a fake rumor that another team was hot for Lindbom and going to pick him.

Or if they miscommunicated internally on draft day, somehow.

You’re right. It’s absolutely baffling. People said it immediately. I remember the consensus was ‘horrible’ and also some ‘hopefully they know something no one else knows’.

 

[Oscar Lindberg]

Lindbom

Garbage pick when it happened and now considering the talent they left on the board

Classic “we’re smarter than everyone else” energy on that one

 

[Machinehead]

Both the Lindbom and Lafleur picks occurred when the Rangers needed a goalie like they needed a hole in their heads.

I know a lot of folks always like to take BPA (neither was regardless) but there absolutely has to be an exception for goalies. You only have one starting goalie.

 

[bernmeister]

I'm still on the "what if..." train for Dan Blackburn

skapper also done in by injuries

 

[Barnaby]

Gotta be Lafleur. Dude straight up retired when he finished junior hockey. He didn't even have a chance to suck as a pro.

Agreed!

I remember thinking they just drafted LaFleur for his size, but funny enough 6’4” doesn’t seem like anything special anymore.