Team Board Mock Draft

[Hasbro]

A series of 1 day polls for the forthcoming draft. Picks will be decided by vote.*


*not polling for #1 since we know who it will be and Sharks fans get to vote on their other 1st

Please Only Vote if you are a Blues fan.

Links to the individual threads on the player names.

Mother Thread on Prospect Board

1. Macklin Celebrini, c, Boston University (NCAA)


2. Ivan Demidov, RW/C, SKA (KHL)


3. Artyom Levshunov, D, Michigan State (NCAA)


4. Cayden Lindstrom, C, Medicine Hat (WHL)


5. Tij Iginla, F, Kelowna (WHL)
6.

Zeev Buium, D, Denver (NCAA)

7. Anton Silayev, D, Torpedo Nizhny Novogorod (KHL)



8. Sam Dickinson, D, London (OHL)



9.Berkly Catton, F, Spokane (WHL)


10. Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, F, Mora IK (SWE)


11. Konsta Helenius, C/RW Jukurit (Liiga)


12. Zanye Parekh, D, Saginaw (OHL)


13. Carter Yakemchuk, D, Calgary (WHL)


14. Beckett Sennecke, RW, Oshawa (OHL)



15. Cole Eiserman, LW, Boston University (NCAA)


16. ????

Click to read more...

 

[SirPaste]

Went with Solberg here, it was a tough choice as there are a couple others I like here as well including Hage and Surin. Honestly, I wouldn't hate a trade down here as I feel like we could easily get one of those three guys I mentioned a little later too.

 

[PocketNines]

I love OP avatar: "Heartbreaking: The Worst Person You Know Just Made a Great Point"

 

[LGB]

I see the vision with Solberg based on highlights, but I haven't gotten a chance to see a full game where it all comes together for him. It's hard not to love the blend of physicality and skill he brings though. Based on the information I have at this point I'd go with Hage who I think can be a dynamic center and is on a pretty ideal development path.

 

[Drubilly]

This was tougher than I thought it would be. lol After a few minutes of consideration, I chose Freij.
I just have a hard time believing the forwards left will be better than the ones the Blues have chosen the past several years. I do like Hage, Surin, and I really believe Basha will be this year's Stankoven.

ps....#LongLiveTheBagelShredders!FTW

 

[bleedblue1223]

I'm probably leaning Stolberg and putting faith in those evaluators that are viewing him as a mid-1st. If I go forward, it's Luchanko.

 

[Memento]

Picking Hage. Think he has top-six upside with a gamebreaking trait (skating).

 

[Majorityof1]

Went Jiricek but wouldn't argue Hage or Stolberg. I went Jiricek because I think he could have a bit more hidden potential. Given how the board went, I am willing to gamble here that his game will grow. He is one of the youngest in the draft class and has missed a lot of time. I like how he defends the rush aggressively, reminds me of Faulk's best defensive attribute. He has a good, strong transitional passing. He has good mobility, although its a bit awkward. I think it could get even better with work. I think with improved skating, improved coaching on some decision making, and some more strength, he can have a higher ceiling than some of the safer picks.

 

[Blueston]

i went Hage. the reason that i believe he is the best available player is that he is a center with size, speed, and skill, so has multiple paths that can make him an impactful nhl player. while their are questions about hockey sense (i think he is just further behind in developing it because he is young and missed a lot time and by ned of year seems to have really blossomed), but the tools are such that he doesn't have to be a center to be effective nhl player. hage has been comped to Kyrou type and i could even see him grow into a (less crazy) Evander Kane type player. the upside is immense. and i think the floor is higher than people realize.i prefer him to a couple of guys who have already been picked so far in this mock draft, quite frankly.

 

[bleedblue1223]

I wouldn't mind Jiricek either, just don't know how to currently evaluate him, so you are banking on that raw potential that he showed in the lead up to this season.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

Went Freij. Left shot Right D. I see a 1st PP puck mover that won't hurt you on as a gap control defender. Not my typical pick. I just can't pass up the skating and skill. Thought hard about Emery, Luchanko, Solberg, and Surin. Pretty strong on LD.

 

[sfvega]

Hage is probably the best value at this pick, but if Emery hits I think he'd be more valuable than most of Hage's outcomes.

 

[LGB]

Went Jiricek but wouldn't argue Hage or Stolberg. I went Jiricek because I think he could have a bit more hidden potential. Given how the board went, I am willing to gamble here that his game will grow. He is one of the youngest in the draft class and has missed a lot of time. I like how he defends the rush aggressively, reminds me of Faulk's best defensive attribute. He has a good, strong transitional passing. He has good mobility, although its a bit awkward. I think it could get even better with work. I think with improved skating, improved coaching on some decision making, and some more strength, he can have a higher ceiling than some of the safer picks.

I'd be excited if we took Jiricek. I don't quite have the confidence to go with him because there is so little to evaluate from this season, but I also think the ceiling is really high. I think he has the tools to be an all situations first pair D.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

i went Hage. the reason that i believe he is the best available player is that he is a center with size, speed, and skill, so has multiple paths than came him an impactful nhl player. while their are questions about hockey sense (i think he is just further behind in developing it because he is young and missed a lot time and by ned of year seems to have really blossomed), but the tools are such that he doesn't have to be a center to be effective nhl player. hage has been comped to Kyrou type and i could even see him grow into a (less crazy) Evander Kane type player. the upside is immense. and i think the floor is higher than people realize.i prefer him to a couple of guys who have already been picked so far in this mock draft, quite frankly.

He does have a ton of skill and good tools to work with. I watched a lot of USHL and CHL games. I just had trouble distinguishing him from the rest of the field. Some games almost invisible until he catches a breakaway or on the PP. Reminiscent of Bolduc. Is that good or bad? I don't know. I just know he is going to the right program to get him on the right track with his skill set. He would be a solid pick at 16 as a 2nd line center with great wheels.

 

[simon IC]

I went with Hage. It was a tough call, as I really like Badinka, Solberg and Freij, but I honestly think Hage is the BPA.

 

[Blueston]

Hage is probably the best value at this pick, but if Emery hits I think he'd be more valuable than most of Hage's outcomes.

if i were GM, Emery would be the other one besides Hage that most tempts me. Even his floor is so valuable...

 

[sfvega]

if i were GM, Emery would be the other one besides Hage that most tempts me. Even his floor is so valuable...

It's very close between them for me. I think if Emery was a LD, I'd go Hage.

 

[Mike Liut]

Hage for me. Looks like a really good 2 way center to me. Probably a little better than Lars Eller

 

[tfriede2]

Chernyshov not getting much love.

 

[Blueston]

He does have a ton of skill and good tools to work with. I watched a lot of USHL and CHL games. I just had trouble distinguishing him from the rest of the field. Some games almost invisible until he catches a breakaway or on the PP. Reminiscent of Bolduc. Is that good or bad? I don't know. I just know he is going to the right program to get him on the right track with his skill set. He would be a solid pick at 16 as a 2nd line center with great wheels.

yes. we need to define success. just bc we see shades of stars in him, we are picking 16, not 2. if he ends up as brandon saad that is still a win.

Hage for me. Looks like a really good 2 way center to me. Probably a little better than Lars Eller

that would be a win.

 

[stl76]

I’m just not convinced Hage will stick at C as a pro. And if he is a winger long term then does Hage bring enough to the table to make an impact in the top 6?

I went with Solberg here, think he is the real deal. Also like Jiricek, would be happy with either IRL if the draft plays out this way for the Blues.

 

[LogosBlue]

Picked Jiricek. He has the highest upside / ceiling in my opinion out of that group. Given that he is a D is all the better. My runner up would be Mews.

 

[STL fan in MN]

I went with Luchanko. Hage and Solberg were next for me. Here’s why I chose Luchanko over Hage.

Hage wins in 2 categories - size and pure skill. Those are admittedly two very valuable categories. But Luchanko has the edge everywhere else, the main area IMO being hockey sense. To me, hockey sense is THE separating factor in the NHL. Look at Robert Thomas. What about his puck skills, skating, size etc is elite? None of it. He’s certainly skilled but pretty much NHL average in all of those categories. So why’s he around the 10th best center in the world? Hockey sense.

That’s what Luchanko has. Hage’s is fine. It’s average IMO. But Luchanko thinks the game on another level. He’s also one of the fastest and best technical skaters in the draft, has a motor that won’t quit, plays a good game positionally and basically does every little thing a coach wants a player to do that leads to winning hockey. I enjoyed his game more and more as I continued to watch him.

That’s the eye test. The numbers suggest there’s something there too. He led an offensively starved Guelph team in scoring. He won the CHL/NHL Top Prospects on-ice testing. You know the OHL Coaches Poll where Dvorsky showed up a couple times? Luchanko finished top-3 in 4 categories - 2nd in smartest player, 2nd in hardest worker, 2nd in fastest skater and 3rd in shootout ability. This poll included all players in the OHL. It’s usually the 18 and 19 year olds being the top dogs. This was his 17 year old season. The translatable skills are so obvious IMO. He’s not flashy and on a meh team so I think he’s a bit underrated but I absolutely expect him to pop big time next season. He’s a C and I absolutely expect him to stick at C. Not as sure with Hage. That’s why he’s my vote here.

 

[Reality Czech]

Picked Jiricek. He has the highest upside / ceiling in my opinion out of that group. Given that he is a D is all the better. My runner up would be Mews.

I also picked Jiricek after reading up a bit on the options. It seems like his stock is down because his injury didn't allow him to play in the juniors and his stats are bad in very limited time in a pro men's league. But the scouts still seem to like him more than the other D-men still available. I did talk about making the "safe" choice in the draft thread but I also don't wanna reach with pick 16 and take a guy that might not go till the end of the first or second round like Freij or Emery.

It was between him and Solberg for me, though Hage wouldn't be a bad pick either from the looks of it. I just think we need to go D in the first round.

 

[Stealth JD]

Want someone mean and skilled so Surin was my vote.