Official 2025 NHL Draft Thread

[Magua]

Fight me on the grass

We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills.

 

[FLYguy3911]

Quickly went through some of these top guys. Reschny looks fun .

So you mailed it in on the end of the '24 class just to watch the next class three days later?

 

[Magua]

So you mailed it in on the end of the '24 class just to watch the next class three days later?

When the Flyers make bad picks, I usually get exhausted and struggle to watch. Hopelessness sinks in. Meanwhile, it exhilarates him. At a certain point, it’s some type of draft BDSM thing.

 

[BigToe]

So you mailed it in on the end of the '24 class just to watch the next class three days later?

Correct.

 

[hystyk1921]

 

[hystyk1921]

Even if they win the lottery, Hagens is a bit small. May have to trade back with Frost and Luchanko as undersized centers.

Aneurysm

 

[JustJeff]

Billy Zonnon, LW, Rouyn-Norando. October birthday, plays in the Q, okay stats overall, but came on late. Fun highlights. Gives off some serious Wayne Simmonds vibes for me, very similar build and compete level.

Edit: just figured how to add a YouTube video

 

[SolidSnakeUS]

This, besides McKenna, is a guy you fail for. This kid is REAL f***ing good.

 

[JustJeff]

Lynden Lakovic put up respectable numbers as a LW on a loaded Moose Jaw team, but he looks like a pretty good C prospect to me. Lots to like with surprising skill and speed for such a tall skinny kid. It will be interesting to see how much he progresses in his draft year.

 

[Wangstar]

Moose Jaw, they have been drafting and developing pretty well.

 

[Kshahdoo]

Ryabkin #18

 

[Kshahdoo]

And another great Ryabkin video. As far as I understand he's #12.

 

[Wangstar]

This team doesn’t tank. We are stuck in the middle. We have had success drafting in the 20s, Giroux,Simon Gagne, Justin Williams, TK. Nolan Patrick was a situation of the GM not listening to scouts. I would focus on 12-15 picks, then a few more mid late 20s. Then 3 more in the 30s. Hopefully we trade up, move some. We are gonna run out of contracts if we keep 6 picks in the top 40 in 2025

 

[Beef Invictus]

I remember 2024 was supposed to be the deepest defensive draft in years. You ended up with Levshunov and Yakemchuk and Silayev being 3 of the first 4 selected, all with ceiling question marks. Even Dickinson to lesser degree. And the best defensive prospect in the class fell to #12, and a certain team giddily traded out of the spot.

I'm not sure there is any other league where the terrible teams so giddily and routinely remind everyone why they're terrible

 

[Wangstar]

I don’t recall Florida or Vegas winning the cup with a small defence, the d man takin at 12 you are referring to, would be great on nhl 25. This is reality, not a video game.

 

[Appleyard]

I don’t recall Florida or Vegas winning the cup with a small defence, the d man takin at 12 you are referring to, would be great on nhl 25. This is reality, not a video game.

Yeh, Florida with their D that was marginally below league average height ahahahahahaha.

Last 10 cup winners D average height (most common 6 D):

2015: Chicago, 186.8 cm (6'0.9)
2016: Pens, 185.7 cm (6'1.1)
2017: Pens, 186.5 cm (6'1.4)
2018: Caps, 185.5cm (6'1.0)
2019: STL, 191.3cm (6'3.3)
2020: Tampa, 189.2cm (6'2.5)
2021: Tampa, 189.8cm (6'2.7)
2022: Avs, 185.2cm (6'0.9)
2023: Vegas, 190.3cm (6'2.9)
2024: Panthers, 187.5cm (6'1.8)

Average NHL Dman (40+ games) last season was 72 inches... so 6'2.

So:

6 of the last 10 winners had below average height D...

4/10 were unarguably some of the smallest D groups in the league.

 

[WIP CALLER]

Yeh, Florida with their D that was marginally below league average height ahahahahahaha.

Last 10 cup winners D average height (most common 6 D):

2015: Chicago, 186.8 cm (6'0.9)
2016: Pens, 185.7 cm (6'1.1)
2017: Pens, 186.5 cm (6'1.4)
2018: Caps, 185.5cm (6'1.0)
2019: STL, 191.3cm (6'3.3)
2020: Tampa, 189.2cm (6'2.5)
2021: Tampa, 189.8cm (6'2.7)
2022: Avs, 185.2cm (6'0.9)
2023: Vegas, 190.3cm (6'2.9)
2024: Panthers, 187.5cm (6'1.8)

Average NHL Dman (40+ games) last season was 72 inches... so 6'2.

So:

6 of the last 10 winners had below average height D...

4/10 were unarguably some of the smallest D groups in the league.

How much was tampa's average height skewed by having 6' 7 Hedman? He's obviously not your typical big bruising defensive defenseman that people with size fetishes envy.

 

[Appleyard]

How much was tampa's average height skewed by having 6' 7 Hedman? He's obviously not your typical big bruising defensive defenseman that people with size fetishes envy.

A bit. But their D was a good size regardless.

2020: 6'7, 6'4, 6'2, 6'1, 6'1, 6'0
2021: 6'7, 6'4, 6'3, 6'1, 6'1, 6'1

 

[mr figgles]

I don’t recall Florida or Vegas winning the cup with a small defence, the d man takin at 12 you are referring to, would be great on nhl 25. This is reality, not a video game.

Bruh… he is the same height as Florida’s two best dmen.

 

[FlyerNutter]

Is it odd that I’d like to see the height, and physical make up of all the “faithful” that want the Flyers to be bigger?


Somehow I feel like there may be similarities

 

[TB87]

If they DONT get a 1C with their aggressive "get so many top 45 picks in 2025" strategy. They will have a problem that is for sure.

Don’t worry.

The player development team will do wonders honing in on the draft picks weaknesses to the detriment of their strengths.

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

Vegas’ best two defensemen in Piertangelo & Theodore were billed as offensively skilled defensemen as prospects. They were/are on the taller/bigger end so there wasn’t as much belly aching over their defensive potential. If you want to tap into any area to bet on when looking at prospects regardless of size it’s their offensive ability as that’s far more potentially translatable than anything else.

Hedman’s one of biggest the defensemen in the league but generally puts up poor defensive impacts almost on a yearly basis. His offensive impacts though are often pretty good consistently. Adam Fox isn’t particularly big but since he came in the league he’s pretty much been the best two-way defensemen in the league by most analytical models on yearly basis.

Hell even the two guys mentioned on Vegas have put up poor defensive impacts at times during their careers while their offensive has been more consistent.

 

[Beef Invictus]

Being good is more important than being big. And big does not equal good.

 

[Magua]

We know that size argument is a mountain of horseshit when the Flyers two most important 23 and under defensive pieces, which they spent the highest value assets on, are both 5'11. And they acquired and tried to re-sign 5'11 Sean Walker. And the next best defensive prospect in the system, who Flahr called the 3rd best D prospect in his class (after Sanderson and Drysdale), is 5'9. Not even the Flyers believe a 6' defender is too small. They just committed cardinal sins like drafting fit over BPA, counting their chickens before they hatch, overvaluing their own talent, and not understanding that you solve fit from the top down.

Someone like Molendyk has a Forsling-like profile. But 6' LHD < 6'2 RHD. Can you imagine the lineup problems they'd have with Molendyk and Buium? Bullet dodged.

 

[Larry44]

Ryabkin #18

Just gonna say it. The kid looks like Forsberg, and plays a bit like him too.