Prospect Info: The Second Overall Pick Thread: Part IV (Kakko/Hughes Talk)

[Rangerfans]

I personally want Kakko for the same reasons you all do. But as a reminder:

USNTDP All-Time Points Leaders:

1	Jack Hughes	2017-19	197
2	Clayton Keller	2014-16	189
3	Phil Kessel	2003-05	180
4	Patrick Kane	2004-06	172
5	Jeremy Bracco	2013-15	168
6	Auston Matthews	2013-15	167
7	Andy Hilbert	1997-99	153
8	Cole Caufield	2017-19	149
9	Jack Eichel	2012-14	139
	Jeremy Morin	2007-09	139
10	Rocco Grimaldi	2009-11	136

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*as of March 25, 2019



WJC-U18 ‑ All-Time Points Leaders:

Rk	Name	Born	Pos	GP	G	A	P	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG	G/GP	A/GP	P/GP
1		Jack Hughes	2001	F	14	14	18	32	10	13	2	0	2	1.000	1.286	2.286
2		Alexander Ovechkin	1985	F	14	23	8	31	6	27	6	1	1	1.643	0.571	2.214
3		Teemu Pulkkinen	1992	F	12	17	11	28	14	7	8	0	4	1.417	0.917	2.333
4		Phil Kessel	1987	F	12	16	10	26	8	13	7	2	5	1.333	0.833	2.167
5		Kevin Romy	1985	F	14	13	13	26	8	12	7	0	3	0.929	0.929	1.857
6		Mikael Granlund	1992	F	12	6	20	26	4	9	2	0	1	0.500	1.667	2.167
7		Andrei Kostitsyn	1985	F	20	13	12	25	50	-21	6	2	1	0.650	0.600	1.250
8		Evgeny Kuznetsov	1992	F	14	11	14	25	16	15	1	1	0	0.786	1.000	1.786
9		Cole Caufield	2001	F	14	18	6	24	4	14	6	0	2	1.286	0.429	1.714
10		Toni Rajala	1991	F	12	13	11	24	8	8	2	2	3	1.083	0.917	2.000
11		Clayton Keller	1998	F	14	8	15	23	2	18	1	0	0	0.571	1.071	1.643
12		Auston Matthews	1997	F	14	13	9	22	4	18	1	0	3	0.929	0.643	1.571
13		Konstantin Zakharov	1985	F	19	6	16	22	32	-16	3	1	1	0.316	0.842	1.158
14		Nikita Kucherov	1993	F	7	11	10	21	6	10	5	1	4	1.571	1.429	3.000
15		Jakub Vrana	1996	F	18	14	6	20	10	0	1	0	4	0.778	0.333	1.111
16		Ilya Kovalchuk	1983	F	12	13	7	20	32	17	2	2	2	1.083	0.583	1.667
17		Artturi Lehkonen	1995	F	14	10	9	19	18	5	4	0	2	0.714	0.643	1.357
18		Marian Gaborik	1982	F	13	9	10	19	14	9	1	1	1	0.692	0.769	1.462
19		Kristian Vesalainen	1999	F	14	8	11	19	14	13	2	0	0	0.571	0.786	1.357
20		William Nylander	1996	F	12	8	11	19	2	10	3	0	2	0.667	0.917	1.583

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That second list is damn impressive.

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

Further to my post above:

2018 WJC U18 Points Leaders:

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM
Jack Hughes	7	5	7	12	+3	2
Maxim Čajkovič	5	4	7	11	+7	6
Niklas Nordgren	7	8	2	10	+10	4
Jonatan Berggren	7	5	5	10	+7	2
Kaapo Kakko	7	4	6	10	+8	2
Oliver Wahlstrom	7	7	2	9	+2	4
Jesperi Kotkaniemi	7	3	6	9	+9	37
Oliver Okuliar	5	4	4	8	+5	6
Joel Farabee	7	4	4	8	+1	6
Gilian Kohler	5	5	2	7	+1	2

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2019 WJC U18 Points Leaders:

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM
Jack Hughes	7	9	11	20	+10	8
Cole Caufield	7	14	4	18	+12	4
Matthew Boldy	7	3	9	12	+6	0
Cam York	7	4	7	11	+13	0
Peyton Krebs	7	6	4	10	+9	4
Alex Newhook	7	5	5	10	+6	0
Rodion Amirov	7	6	3	9	+4	2
Dylan Cozens	7	4	5	9	+8	4
Alex Turcotte	7	4	5	9	+4	4
Karl Henriksson	7	3	6	9	+1	2

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[McRanger]

Jack Hughes is a monster and the USNTDP is ridiculously stacked. Their absurd production is like the least surprising thing ever.

 

[JT Kreider]

If we do end up with Hughes, Gorton should be aggressive and try and make a move from 20 to nab Caulfield. I've seen mocks have him as high as 7th, but I think it is more realistic he is around 13-15.

 

[Ola]

If we do end up with Hughes, Gorton should be aggressive and try and make a move from 20 to nab Caulfield. I've seen mocks have him as high as 7th, but I think it is more realistic he is around 13-15.

Yeah, I agree. Lias-Hughes-Caufield could be a pretty sick line.

 

[Cag29]

Yeah, I agree. Lias-Hughes-Caufield could be a pretty sick line.

If we get Hughes what becomes of Chityl?
We also will need a few wingers.

 

[Brooklyn Rangers Fan]

If we get Hughes what becomes of Chityl?
We also will need a few wingers.

You've answered your own question...

 

[Leetch3]

I dont think Kakko will be big in the assist category. Not saying he isnt brilliant with his passing sometimes but:

Id wager he hits 50 goals before he hits 70 assists, if you catch my drift

considering that there were only 3 players in the league with 70 assists, you aren't going out on much of a limb there

 

[OmNomNom]

came here bc i heard your boards are also burning down

you have the easiest decision, and i'm shocked you have more people propping up hughes here than we do (LOL)

both are gonna be fantastic, and these arguments will make for fun rivalry times ahead. grats on the zucc extension!

edit: fake news :|

 

[JT Kreider]

If we get Hughes what becomes of Chityl?
We also will need a few wingers.

Chytil is probably the best candidate t move to the wing, especially if Kreider is traded and we are out on Panarin.

Zibanejad
Hughes
Strome
Howden/Lias would be pretty good center depth all things considered where we were coming out of the 2016 season

 

[nyr2k2]

came here bc i heard your boards are also burning down

you have the easiest decision, and i'm shocked you have more people propping up hughes here than we do (LOL)

both are gonna be fantastic, and these arguments will make for fun rivalry times ahead. grats on the zucc extension!

It's not so much propping up Hughes (he doesn't need to be propped up), just pointing out that he has been the overwhelming choice for the number one pick for a few years, and that performance in a largely meaningless tournament over a couple weeks doesn't magically change any of that. Kakko is wonderful and will be fantastic, but Hughes is and always has been the number one pick. Nothing has changed, despite the "worries" of some of our posters.

 

[OmNomNom]

It's not so much propping up Hughes (he doesn't need to be propped up), just pointing out that he has been the overwhelming choice for the number one pick for a few years, and that performance in a largely meaningless tournament over a couple weeks doesn't magically change any of that. Kakko is wonderful and will be fantastic, but Hughes is and always has been the number one pick. Nothing has changed, despite the "worries" of some of our posters.

we've had a lot of finns/kakko fans spring up lately to try to rip him down. a good chunk of our fans have been defending both, since the idea that one must be good and the other must suck is ridiculous. people are fighting over a draft position #! the rivalry is going to be heated, and it's going to be entertaining, since both will be fantastic. arguably kakko sooner than later, but i think it eventually leads to them being two very good and different players

anyway, pretty sure we draft hughes because of 1.) fall out if we don't and 2.) he fits our systems better than kakko does. also possibly 3.) due to connections between shero and his family.

 

[GameChanger]

I don't mean to push Hughes down, but wasn't Matthews a year younger when he scored those points. There's a good reason to assume he'd scored a ridiculous amount of points if he'd stayed for one more year.

But if Hughes has been according to many a clear #1 I wonder why Caufield isn't higher up in the rankings. IMO his stats are pretty comparable to Hughes this season. He's scored a bit less points but an amazing percentage of his points are goals.

I guess his small size plays a part, but on the other hand the difference in height between him and Hughes is about the same as Hughes and Kakko. Then again I understand there is a certain point when size can become a problem and this may be the explanation here. Besides the hype Hughes has had already during the previous years.

As for the USDP, I'm sure the system is great, but it obviously makes it hard to compare the stats of the players with others as the team was so stacked. I'd loved to see Hughes in an European league to see if he could've done the same as Matthews. Now there's more question marks about the time it takes to become competitive among adults, but with that kind of special skills it has to happen at some point. How competitive that will be, but if he's raised and developed properly the end result should be very good.

 

[Hi ImHFNYR]

I wonder who fits n better with our team as it projects to be constructed now and over the next few seasons.

I feel like it's Kakko. Stronger on D, a beast with the puck, has great size, doesn't need skilled linemates

Oh...but wait...we have Kravtsov coming in which really seems to get lost in the fact that we have this 2 overall...we already have Kreider, Zibby, Chytil, Buch. Maybe having those guys with Hughes feeding them the puck works way better than having Kakko with...

We really are guaranteed to get one of these two. My god.

Please hockey gods, let Buch, Chytil, Kakko/Hughes and Kravtsov all reach their level of talent with one another. Please give us two near unstoppable top lines. Just let ONE of my teams be THE team in the league. Please. Just once.

I've suffered enough haven't I? Non Yankee, NY sports has suffered enough hasn't it?

 

[OmNomNom]

I wonder who fits n better with our team as it projects to be constructed now and over the next few seasons.

I feel like it's Kakko. Stronger on D, a beast with the puck, has great size, doesn't need skilled linemates

Oh...but wait...we have Kravtsov coming in which really seems to get lost in the fact that we have this 2 overall...we already have Kreider, Zibby, Chytil, Buch. Maybe having those guys with Hughes feeding them the puck works way better than having Kakko with...

We really are guaranteed to get one of these two. My god.

Pleas hockey gods, let Buch, Chytil, Kakko/Hughes and Kravtsov all reach their level of talent with one another. Please give us two near unstoppable top lines. Just let ONE of my teams be THE team in the league. Please. Just once.

I've suffered enough haven't I? Non Yankee, NY sports has suffered enough hasn't it?

i fear a top line of

kakko ---- kravtsov

if you find a creative type elite center, that could be deadly

 

[nyr2k2]

I literally could not care any less who the Devils choose. Other teams have good players. Every year, some really great prospects go to teams I don't like. It is what it is. I know the stakes feel higher because we're talking about the 1 and 2 guys, but in the end one will be a Devil, I will not give a shit, and I will love the guy that we end up with.

 

[nyr2k2]

i fear a top line of

kakko ---- kravtsov

if you find a creative type elite center, that could be deadly

Zibanejad had his best season last year, 74 points in 82 games, on a pretty bad team with Kreider disappearing the final month. I would not for a second argue Zibanejad is elite, but he's a damn fine player and if he were to center two high-end wings, he could probably post something resembling elite production.

IDK about Kakko playing LW though.

 

[Hi ImHFNYR]

I literally could not care any less who the Devils choose. Other teams have good players. Every year, some really great prospects go to teams I don't like. It is what it is. I know the stakes feel higher because we're talking about the 1 and 2 guys, but in the end one will be a Devil, I will not give a ****, and I will love the guy that we end up with.

I care only insofar as there will be that moment where we are finally on the clock and I finally hear the name of the franchise going forward and I can just go feast on highlights and scouting reports knowing that we actually have this player...before they pass out drunk in a snowbank and lose both feet to frostbite or whatever NY sport related catastrophe happens

 

[OmNomNom]

Zibanejad had his best season last year, 74 points in 82 games, on a pretty bad team with Kreider disappearing the final month. I would not for a second argue Zibanejad is elite, but he's a damn fine player and if he were to center two high-end wings, he could probably post something resembling elite production.

IDK about Kakko playing LW though.

oh he's a RWer, mb mb

 

[HockeyBasedNYC]

Draft Hughes, move up for Caufield and resign Zucc = Second coming of the smurfs

Draft Kakko, trade to get Dach and draft Afanasyev, with Chytil, Kravstov, Zib = The New York Giants

 

[True Blue]

Let's trade the pick for Lucic.

Rebuilds are different here

 

[Rangerfans]

Draft Hughes, move up for Caufield and resign Zucc = Second coming of the smurfs

Draft Kakko, trade to get Dach and draft Afanasyev, with Chytil, Kravstov, Zib = The New York Giants

NYG are terrible. There really is no plan. Lol

 

[RangerBoy]

Google Chrome will translate the article into English.

Are the World Cup bets proof that the Finn is a better player today than Jack Hughes? Maybe not. Hughes plays in an extremely star-studded USA and then it is difficult for coach Jeff Blashillto match his great talent. The United States goes for World Cup gold and then it is not certain that there is room for Jack. Especially not high up in the hierarchy. Kaapo Kakko, on the other hand, gets to play in Finland, on paper, worst team in decades and can therefore have a much more prominent role. Then you have to say that he has been on that role all right, too ...

 

[Cag29]

Chytil is probably the best candidate t move to the wing, especially if Kreider is traded and we are out on Panarin.

Zibanejad
Hughes
Strome
Howden/Lias would be pretty good center depth all things considered where we were coming out of the 2016 season

I thought the consensus was that Chityl is better at center. Like much better?

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

I don't mean to push Hughes down, but wasn't Matthews a year younger when he scored those points. There's a good reason to assume he'd scored a ridiculous amount of points if he'd stayed for one more year.

But if Hughes has been according to many a clear #1 I wonder why Caufield isn't higher up in the rankings. IMO his stats are pretty comparable to Hughes this season. He's scored a bit less points but an amazing percentage of his points are goals.

I guess his small size plays a part, but on the other hand the difference in height between him and Hughes is about the same as Hughes and Kakko. Then again I understand there is a certain point when size can become a problem and this may be the explanation here. Besides the hype Hughes has had already during the previous years.

As for the USDP, I'm sure the system is great, but it obviously makes it hard to compare the stats of the players with others as the team was so stacked. I'd loved to see Hughes in an European league to see if he could've done the same as Matthews. Now there's more question marks about the time it takes to become competitive among adults, but with that kind of special skills it has to happen at some point. How competitive that will be, but if he's raised and developed properly the end result should be very good.

If you’re thinking about Matthews playing overseas in his draft season, it’s only because Matthews essentially missed the 2015 draft by a few days, so he was older than most of the players in his draft class (if not the oldest). Matthews’ birthday also was in a really small window that would allow him to play overseas which is why he’s the only player I can think of that did that. As for Hughes, he probably could’ve crunched his school work and been able to play in the NCAA this year, but everything I’ve read and heard about him was he recognized how special this US crop was and really wanted to set the scoring record and stay with everyone to play all these tournaments.

And as for why Caufield isn’t higher, it’s because he projects to be a great complimentary player, but not necessarily a guy who can carry a line or a team’s offense.