Well stated. And for the record, I don't have much problem with your valuation other than Wiz (I think your off by miles on that one). I'd disagree about the value of the late first second round draft picks. A look through the drafts post 2003 and you see guys taken after 25 like Mike green, Vlasic, Stasny, Perron, Subban, John Carlson, RoR, etc. As you said, these late picks are often not first liners but they can be (on a surprisingly regular basis) or more likely they become solid contributors for the second line. Right now we have no top 6 talent. There is not a player on this roster that I would put on the second line of Pitt, Bos, Chi, etc. We need 1st
AND 2nd line talent.
Also these draft picks are not only valuable for the players that they can bring in, but also the flexibility that it gives us to move up in the draft. Often the price of moving into the 10-20 range in the first round is a late First rounder and a second or third round pick. So the question to me is as much the pick itself, as getting ourselves ready to be aggressive and grab the guys we like on draft day.
(BTW, I'll bet you internet cookies that Max Domi becomes a first liner
. He is a fantastic forward who like a number of other guys (Shinkaruk, Mantha, Erne, Compher) is getting lost behind the extremely talented forwards at the top of this draft.)