1 | | - | | I think everyone knows who the Sharks will pick here. Its Celebrini. They get skill, speed, size, and team defense up front. The depth down the middle for the Sharks looks insane now, Celebrini-Smith-Bystedt is something special. Congrats Sharks fan. |
2 | | - | | The ongoing rumor is that Chicago is high on Dickinson, but Demidov has slowly solidified himself as the clear #2 in the draft. The upside is about as good as Celebrini's, and a future duo of Bedard and Demidov would look enticing for the future. Demidov has spoken out and said he wants to come over to NA as soon as possible, so the wait wouldn't have to be long at all. Demidov was #1 on my board at multiple points of the season before getting injured, so that explains how good of a pickup this is for Chicago. They get pure playmaking along with speed, 200-ft game, and a guy that can shoot from anywhere. Is he a better prospect than Michkov? I don't think so, Demidov's upside is slightly lower and he's less well-rounded. But Demidov has the edge in terms of consistency and maturity. No matter what, the Blackhawks get a top line generational winger to help Bedard lead the team. |
3 | | - | | Anaheim is a team that doesn't have a clear positional need. While the play may be BPA, Verbeek and company are really high on Levshunov and I think he will be the pick here. Levshunov seems like a Verbeek type guy: two-way defender with size, smarts and skill. The Ducks already have a stacked prospect pool, it just gets even better from here. A top 4 of Mintyukov, Levshunov, Luneau, and Zellweger would be nasty for the future. |
4 | | - | | Columbus is another team without a clear need, but one thing they could use in their system is size and speed. Lindstrom addresses both of these. Dynamic two-way winger/center, has size, speed, defensive smarts, and a booming shot. Center depth behind Fantilli is lacking, a future 1-2 punch down the middle with Fantilli and Lindstrom would be excellent for the future. |
5 | | - | | Ok, here's where the draft gets really interesting. We have our first reach with this pick. The Canadiens no matter what better options that are available take their guy. Last year it was Reinbacher, this year its Sennecke. Apparently they have talked to a few prospects already, but the guy that is intriguing them the most is Sennecke. Clear reach in the top 5, but Sennecke has one of the best toolkits in the draft. Insane hands, hockey IQ, size, and skating. Pretty much a Matthew Boldy type player, Sennecke just needs to round out his defensive game and continue filling out his frame. A big, mean line of Slafkovsky, Dach, and Sennecke would wreak havoc against other teams. |
7 | | - | | I wasn't sure where to go with this Senators pick. They could pretty much use anything but LD. I have them taking Iginla because I feel like their biggest need is a goal-scorer to play with Stutzle. He provides exactly that along with compete, skill, and physicality. More of a Chris Kreider type build, the skating isn't there and there's not enough consistency without the puck. A top line of Tkachuk-Stutzle-Iginla would be scary for the future. |
8 | | - | | I believe that Francis will go heavy with defenders this whole draft. Drafting Dickinson is a great way to start. He falls into their lap, the Kraken once again end up getting lucky during the 1st round. Dickinson is pretty much the complete package and has all the necessary tools a GM looks for in a prospect. Big kid, booming shot, physical, and can skate really well. Comparable to Noah Hanifin in many ways, pretty much no holes except his smarts offensively. Sooner rather than later, Dickinson will be the future anchor of the Kraken blue line. |
9 | | - | | Calgary is a team that is clearly rebuilding given by the trades involving Lindholm and Hanifin. They value size a lot in their prospects, the two smaller yet skilled prospects that they have drafted in general within the past few years have been only Coronato and Zary. They go with size again and draft Silayev. He does have a two-year contract in the KHL, but the upside is well worth drafting here. Similar player to Dickinson, the pure two-way forward but has worse puck skills. Also doesn't have the offensive smarts, but his size, skating, and defensive game alone are good enough to put him here. But I do expect Silayev to fall a bit mostly due to that 2-year KHL contract, I'm sure it will be too long of a wait for the teams above Calgary. But the Flames are in a rebuild, so they can take their time waiting for Silayev's arrival. Get the potential out of him, they have themselves the future #1 defender of the blue line. |
10 | | - | | I have the Devils drafting Stiga here. A bit of a reach, but he gives the Devils the goal-scoring touch that they haven't gotten from Holtz. The Devils did confirm that they are no longer high on Holtz, let Stiga come in and inject scoring. But while he can do exactly that, Stiga is more known for his elite defensive game and being the best skater in the draft. No real holes in his game aside from using his body with the puck. He mainly tends to find the open area rather than powering himself thru the opposition. William Eklund type player. |
11 | | - | | This is where I have Eiserman going. In 2022, Wright fell cause of his maturity and the lack of playing time. Eiserman has played but there are question marks about his maturity so that may scare a few teams away. But Eiserman is of course an elite goal-scorer but he also plays with slick hands and offensive IQ. His skating is better than what some think, while he doesn't have agility, Eiserman has shown that he can play with speed. More of a straight-line winger. Eiserman does also lack team defense. More of a boom or bust prospect, if given the right development, Eiserman will light up the NHL and give the Sabres the scoring winger they currently want. |
12 | | - | | The Flyers aren't going to let Buium slip any further than this. Anywhere past the top 10 is considered a steal. Even though the Flyers already have Bonk, Drysdale, Andrae, and York, adding Buium would give them another premium D to build the back end around. A top pair of Buium and Drysdale would be tantalizing for Briere and company, who has done well drafting since taking over Fletchers position. Buium is a solid stay-at-home defender, but he isn't physically imposing. But the Flyers have had to play Kris Letang a lot throughout the past decade, here they get a similar breed of player. |
13 | | - | | The Wild take Chernyshov here, whose draft range is wide open. Can go from at least 12th to 30th. Its a coin flip for him, but this just feels like a Guerin type pick. Some may call it a reach and I get it. But the upside is there and I love Chernyshov's skating, something I value a lot while scouting prospects. Chernyshov is a pure power forward with speed, playmaking, 200-ft game, and a booming shot. Good two-way option as well. Pierre-Luc Dubois is a solid comparison for him, even though Chernyshov has the offensive tools to succeed at the highest level, finding consistency offensively is an area to improve. Also the Russian factor is a thing, but the Wild have shown they aren't afraid of Russians given the Yurov pick. And they have developed Russians well, given the Kaprizov and Khusnutdinov picks. Yurov didn't show a lot of offense in his draft year, here its the same scenario for Chernyshov. If the Wild are able to get the potential out of Chernyshov, he could be a solid top 6 winger for them aside smaller players like Rossi and Khusnutdinov. |
14 | | | | The Sharks need a D more, and while Parekh is a good option, they aren't going to let Catton slip any further. Catton has really good intangibles and is solid in all areas. However, I do expect him to fall a bit during draft day due to GMs favoring size over anything. This is basically this year's Zach Benson, so there's a good chance that Catton sneaks into the NHL by surprise. Pretty much lacks size and strength, but is great everywhere else. Sharks get a steal here. |
15 | | - | | I believe the RD depth is already good enough with Sandin Pelikka and Seider, therefore I don't see Parekh being taken here. Instead the Red Wings take Brandsegg Nygard. I considered Greentree here because of the strong connections from Detroit to Windsor, but MBN plays in the SHL. That's all there is to it, Yzerman loves the SHL talent. MBN is a pure power forward who brings scoring and grit, two things that Detroit is missing in their forward core. |
16 | | - | | The Blues are the one team that need D the most, not wingers OR centers. And if Parekh is still available, they cannot pass up on him. Yes, there are holes in his defensive game but the offense on him is unreal. Zach Werenski type player: pure offensive defenseman with slick puck handling, shot, playmaking, skating. Defensively he can stick check but all the other areas he needs improvement. A top pair of Lindstein and Parekh would look enticing for the future. |
17 | | - | | Like everyone is expected, Connelly will fall quite a bit during the draft. Whoever grabs Connelly is getting a heck of a prospect, he has top 5 talent all over him. Pretty much can do everything right offensively and is also the second best skater in the draft behind Stiga. In Washington's case, they are known for taking prospects with a lot of question marks. Ignore the off-ice issues, take Connelly for the talent. |
18 | | - | | The Islanders get a steal at 18th in Helenius. Even though wingers aren't a need, Helenius can play center and can form a strong 1-2 punch down the middle with Barzal. I feel like Helenius will fall due to the lack of intangibles in his game. But he has played wonderfully against men and plays a solid all-around game. Pretty much the same player at Catton, except without the intangibles. A good NHL comp for Helenius would be Lehkonen. |
19 | | - | | After back-to-back steals in Connelly and Helenius, Vegas reaches for Burrows here, who is basically a clone of Mark Stone. Two-way winger with a knack of going hard-nosed to the net and is more than willing to muck it up in the corners. Has size and poise. However, Burrows is more of a straight line player as he lacks agility in his game. Also more playing more minutes against higher competition is a question mark, in the small sample size Burrows has played, he's done great. Super underrated player, Burrows fits the Golden Knights system very well. |
20 | | | | The Blackhawks get Greentree here, who is one of the bigger fallers in the draft. But he has the clear making of a power forward, something that the Blackhawks could use. The new top line would be Bedard-Demidov-Greentree. The Blackhawks are getting a player who has smarts, size, slick playmaking, and a booming shot. Also one of the better forecheckers in the draft. However, rounding out his skating is a priority in order to make the NHL as well as finding more consistency without the puck. But I don't expect Greentree to drop out of the top 20 due to his tall frame which most GMs favor. The Blackhawks look more dangerous from here. |
21 | | - | | LA did a very good job grooming Toffoli into an impactful player, Parascak plays a similar breed of game. Skilled forward but needs to round out his skating and defensive play. |
22 | | - | | Nashville is the team that takes the high rising Boisvert. The Predators need a center in the system. Boisvert is the best center and the best player available at this point. Solid all-around center that plays with skill and smarts and has played unreal defensively. More of a Dylan Strome type player, where the two-way game is there, but offensively is inconsistent. |
23 | | - | | Given the Cowan pick last year, I have a feeling that Toronto will reach once again and turn Elick into a heck of a prospect. Reportedly they are high on him, while the offensive upside isn't there Elick has been unreal defensively and has shown slick puck skills. Plays size and does everything for you defensively. Toronto has lacked team defense in the playoffs, Elick can give them exactly that. Not as big of a reach as Cowan, but still a reach as Elick isn't on my draft board. |
24 | | | | I wasn't sure where to go with this Ducks pick, after taking their guy in Levshunov, they take another Verbeek type player in Beaudoin. Has size and is committed to playing a two-way game. Power forward that is similar to Boone Jenner: wins faceoffs, physical, smart, skilled and has a booming shot. Power forward centers like Beaudoin are hard to come by, Anaheim gets one here. |
25 | | - | | It is clear that the Avalanche need a 2C long-term as the future of Mittelstadt is unknown. They take Surin here, who is another high riser. The upside is totally worth it at this point and he's pretty much the same player as Beaudoin. Likely a better player, skating is a lot better but he lacks discipline in his game. But plays the same power forward game as a center. Expect Surin to go much higher than expected. |
26 | | | | After drafting Iginla, potentially reaching for him, the Senators get a steal here in Jiricek. That is, if he can stay healthy. I feel like many teams may back off from him due to the fact that he was injured for most of the season, but given his incredible two-way game and skating, I don't think Jiricek falls out of the first round. He also addresses a positional need for Ottawa as a RD. Great top 4 option alongside Sanderson, Chabot, and Chychrun. |
27 | | | | Some may call this a reach, but I do see Luchanko going around this spot. He is basically the kid I compare most to Nick Suzuki. |
28 | | - | | Carolina has had a trend of selecting high schoolers early on in the draft. And after the Nadeau and Morrow picks have paid off, they pick Letourneau who will give them the long-term 2C option. Pure power forward, comparable to Tage Thompson. |
29 | | | | Having gone for Silayev, Calgary goes for skill over size and draft his teammate in Artamonov. This is a similar thing to what Arizona did last year: select two Russian teammates. |
30 | | | | The Flyers get a heck of a prospect in Bednarik, whom I see going much higher than this. Plays with strong playmaking and is committed to playing a two-way game. Phillip Danault type player with Rantanen passing. |
31 | | - | | Dallas goes for BPA, which is Hemming. |
32 | | - | | The surging Rangers take a guy that plays like Artemi Panarin in Basha. Smart in all areas offensively. |