Prospect Info: Welcome to Montréal, Jesperi Kotkaniemi (1st round pick, 3OA 2018 - signed ELC)

[Kriss E]

I don't know people keep using this example but aren't we still at least ONE of the winners of that draft? Galchenyuk still one of the best players there and Hudon had a promising rookie year. For a weak draft that's still a good haul imo.

Obviously not all of these kids we picked are gonna make it but it's nice to see guys with REAL upside picked. We picked so many of them that the chances a few will stick are a lot better than in previous years.

That wasn't the point.
It's not about whether or not we are winners, it's the fact everyone was raving about pretty much everyone of our picks. Galch was a 3rd overall, but even if we ignored him, people were loving all the other picks propping them up to be great prospects.
Well cool, but only Hudon made it to the NHL and he's likely to be a bottom 6 player.
So ya, we can say we won that draft, but as you can see, it doesn't mean much.

 

[Andrei79]

Toews was MILES more explosive

Yeah, years later, Toews is still one of my favorite D year prospects I've watched.

And he was a beast until he signed that deal.

It's tough for me to compare Kotkaniemi. His passes and stickhandling are a lot like Koivu were post-injury. His skating is the weird but it works kind like Barkov and Kopitar. His shot is really good, especially his shot stride.

That said, I wouldn't expect an early Toews like career. Toews should've went 1st. But, I think we can expect a solid player offensively, with a high compete level.

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

Yeah, years later, Toews is still one of my favorite D year prospects I've watched.

And he was a beast until he signed that deal.

It's tough for me to compare Kotkaniemi. His passes and stickhandling are a lot like Koivu were post-injury. His skating is the weird but it works kind like Barkov and Kopitar. His shot is really good, especially his shot stride.

That said, I wouldn't expect an early Toews like career. Toews should've went 1st. But, I think we can expect a solid player offensively, with a high compete level.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed you guys and Timmins are right. Zadina is gonna be so freaking good though... and I think our draft proved my theory that the depth at center was actually quite good and that we could afford to wait and take a number of swings in rounds 2 and beyond (which we did with Olofsson, Hillis, McShane, and Fonstad).

 

[ZUKI]

To the press he just told he hope to meet Saku. Wonder if the management will organize a meeting of some sort for the two.

Saku is an old fashion hockey player now ... they should suggest him to meet Desharnais instead , no ?

 

[Kaako Kappo]

Let's clear up something here:

In 2017 Dallas Stars picked Miro Heiskanen 3rd overall. He went on to play his next season in Finland
In 2016 Columbus Blue Jackets picked Pierre-Luc Dubois 3rd overall. He was tried out in the NHL but was sent down to AHL.
In 2015 Arizona Coyotes picked Dylan Strome 3rd overall. He's still not in the NHL.
In 2014 Edmonton Oilers picked Leon Draisaitl 3rd overall. He spent his next season in the AHL.
In 2013 Tampa Bay Lightning picked Jonathan Drouin 3rd overall. He spent his next season in QMJHL.
In 2012 Was Galchenyuk
In 2011 Florida Panthers picked Jonathan Huberdeau 3rd overall. He spent his next season and a half in the QMJHL.
In 2010 Florida Panthers picked Eric Gudbranson, who spent his next season in the OHL
In 2009 Colorado Avalanche picked 3rd overall Matt Duchene. The first NHL ready player picked 3rd overall on this list.
In 2008 Atlanta Trashers picked up Zach Bogosian and he played half a season in the NHL in his draft year.

That's the last 10 years of 3rd overall picks. Now there will FOR sure be players who were picked later and they played in the NHL right away, but they are few and not relevant to this argument;

You rarely get an NHL ready player with 3rd overall pick or lower. Almost all of them take some seasoning. Everyone who thinks otherwise is delusional.

Also a note: Even after these players made the NHL, not all of them were immediate impact players.

 

[didimentionlarseller]

He looks good in highlights he does have an odd posture on the ice he’s putting a lot of weight towards to his strong hand.

That can give him a crazy powerful shot and deceptive wrist shot I’m also worried it sets him up to get hit. It seems to be a balance issue wih his height he needs to stop hunching over?

Does anyone have a video of him taking like 10 slapshots in a row that would answer so many questions for me

I like how he moves the puck

 

[Genesis76]

I really like the Attitude of that guy. No jokes hes got a great attitude.
He looks like the kind of player who's going to score like 50 goals a year with a great attitude.

Maybe his attitude will be contagious.

 

[Cobra Commander]

Yeah, but they drafted a ton of C in the later rounds as well.. tough to take that gamble with #3 overall because we are lacking scoring on the wings , and dmen as well.. so I'm still scratching me head.

Keep scratching. Everyone drafted after Kotka is a gamble as well. We need a centerman, we've needed a centerman forever now... Let's keep going for the best centers available in the first round of the next coming drafts as well, enough of this disfunctional hockey model we have been following. You win Stanley cups when you are built strong down the middle. Time for change, hopefully Bergevin is gone after next season, but if he is still here he needs to draft the BCA next year as well.

 

[Habs]

Keep scratching. Everyone drafted after Kotka is a gamble as well. We need a centerman, we've needed a centerman forever now... Let's keep going for the best centers available in the first round of the next coming drafts as well, enough of this disfunctional hockey model we have been following. You win Stanley cups when you are built strong down the middle. Time for change, hopefully Bergevin is gone after next season, but if he is still here he needs to draft the BCA next year as well.

BPA is the way to rebuild, not gambling on a C who people can't decide if he's a #2 C , or a guy who finished the year playing wing. Drafting by position is a mistake unless its a tossup, and I don't think it was. But hey, we will know in a couple years.

 

[Mrb1p]

BPA is the way to rebuild, not gambling on a C who people can't decide if he's a #2 C , or a guy who finished the year playing wing. Drafting by position is a mistake unless its a tossup, and I don't think it was. But hey, we will know in a couple years.

I dont think youre informed enough to comment on the quality of prospect we drafted.

 

[Cobra Commander]

BPA is the way to rebuild, not gambling on a C who people can't decide if he's a #2 C , or a guy who finished the year playing wing. Drafting by position is a mistake unless its a tossup, and I don't think it was. But hey, we will know in a couple years.

Kotka was BPA at 3, are you complaining that we didn't get Zadina who other teams chose to pass on as well?

 

[Korkki]

To the press he just told he hope to meet Saku. Wonder if the management will organize a meeting of some sort for the two.

Why the management should organize something like that? Just one phone call and his dad/mom/brother can drive him to Turku which is 2 hours drive from Pori. Or Saku might come here because there are lots of summer happenings here in Pori on July.

 

[Cole Caulifield]

DLC was remarking today in an article that JK47 has a brace on his right knee. It's rumors we've heard that he had an ACL tear during his 57 games with Assat Pori.

Hopefully, it fully heals and doesn't hinder his skating.

 

[Habs]

I dont think youre informed enough to comment on the quality of prospect we drafted.

Oh, right, I forgot HF is full of pro scouts and it isn't a discussion board. Glad to know you must be a scout, and super informed .... Because MB's informed mind has gotten us so far all these years.

 

[Habs]

Kotka was BPA at 3, are you complaining that we didn't get Zadina who other teams chose to pass on as well?

Nobody had JK ranked 3 but Craig Button, not even HEOTP

 

[montreal]

I don't think people should take rankings very seriously this year. We all know that unless you were drafting 1st or 2nd, between 3rd and 10 or 12th it was a real toss up. Rank them however you want, but it at least appears that you have a very tight group where you could easily get a guy at 11 that might end up better then the guy at 3 or 4. If the Habs had just won the lotto or got one place higher their would be nothing to discuss other then what we think they will do in the NHL this season.

Since we didn't we'll have to discuss, watch how it goes for the next 10 years. Maybe we got one of the better players, maybe we didn't maybe we reached, maybe we didn't. There's no way anyone can tell me that they know for sure that any of the rest of the 3 to say 12 picks are going to be better then the others. The Habs made their pick and now we'll see if it was the right one or not. Timmins has a very good record when picking inside the top 10, I doubt he gets this one wrong but that doesn't mean players picked later won't be better, just that Kotkaniemi likely ends up being a very good player.

 

[Mrb1p]

Nobody had JK ranked 3 but Craig Button, not even HEOTP

What about Bob Mcenzie at 5 ? Thats a reach?

 

[Habaneros]

What about Bob Mcenzie at 5 ? Thats a reach?

we got scammed...lol

 

[jaffy27]

Nobody had JK ranked 3 but Craig Button, not even HEOTP

Everybody had Tkachuk ranked around 3......yet, the concencus here is that he was outside the top 10......go figure

 

[TheBuriedHab]

Nobody had JK ranked 3 but Craig Button, not even HEOTP

Who cares. If the habs scouts thought Kotkaniemi was the best player at the time then take him, just like the Rangers thought Kravtsov was better than Wahlstrom or Dobson, trust your own scouts.

 

[Gally11]

Who cares. If the habs scouts thought Kotkaniemi was the best player at the time then take him, just like the Rangers thought Kravtsov was better than Wahlstrom or Dobson, trust your own scouts.

Yeah there’s a reason teams spend millions of dollars on scouting. That’s the reason why their lists will look way different than conventional ones as they should be. I bet you a lot of teams had Kotkaniemi in their top five, sounds like San Jose did.

 

[NotProkofievian]

*development camp scrimmage*

Hf habs:

 

[G0bias]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed you guys and Timmins are right. Zadina is gonna be so freaking good though... and I think our draft proved my theory that the depth at center was actually quite good and that we could afford to wait and take a number of swings in rounds 2 and beyond (which we did with Olofsson, Hillis, McShane, and Fonstad).

As good as those picks were, the odds they do fill those needs aren't favorable. It's simply not something you plan around and considering our critical situation down the middle, definitely not something we can afford.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

That wasn't the point.
It's not about whether or not we are winners, it's the fact everyone was raving about pretty much everyone of our picks. Galch was a 3rd overall, but even if we ignored him, people were loving all the other picks propping them up to be great prospects.
Well cool, but only Hudon made it to the NHL and he's likely to be a bottom 6 player.
So ya, we can say we won that draft, but as you can see, it doesn't mean much.

Fair enough I guess. I still see that example being used all the time. Where someone will say 'weren't we supposed to have been the big winners of that draft?' like the complete opposite happened.

I still think you can generally like picks because you ACTUALLY see upside. Of course they're not all gonna pan out but you can still like that we gambled on talent. We usually know when a pick's a complete dud in the last few years with very few exceptions. People were hyped about PK and Gallagher shortly after the draft. Of course, fans/hype aren't always right but it does happen often enough.

So if on paper we're one of the winners of this draft RIGHT NOW and the same thing happens where we're one of the winners in the long term as well, I'll be quite happy. We gambled on a LOT of talent. On paper, this is one of our better drafts (if not the best) that I've seen since I've been paying attention more or less. Two or 3 of these guys pan out and it's a damn good draft.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

*development camp scrimmage*

Hf habs:

it's the Brooklyn way