Prediction of the top 16 Entry draft selection and the teams that will be selecting them. Top 16 so more people can play
:::Point System:::
1 pt for every player listed actually selected in the top 15
1 pt for every player going to the correct team
1 pt for every player listed in exactly correct position
Trade at your own risk
Current Draft Order
1. New York
2. Tampa Bay
3. Colorado
4. Atlanta
5. Los Angeles
6. Phoenix
7. Toronto
8. Dallas
9. Ottawa
10. Edmonton
11. Nashville
12. Minnesota
13. Buffalo
14. Florida
15. Anaheim
16. Columbus
1.New York Islanders – John Tavares – You don’t get chances to draft players like this. New York needs a flashy franchise player. This is there only option on this day.
2 Tampa Bay Lightning – Victor Hedman – If the Isles do take Tavaras, this is a no brainer for the Lightning. They need d. Watching the potential movement of Vinny Lecavalier will be the most interesting thing of the weekend.
3 Colorado Avalanche – Matt Duschene – They’ve missed Chris Drury for a long time. Here he is again. Maybe even with a higher ceiling.
4 Atlanta Thrashers – Evander Kane – Why are all black prospects compared to Jerome Iginla? Poor Atlanta, Poor Kovy. Kane is a good prospect, but they just can’t suck bad enough to really benefit from it. Tavaras or Hedman could really change the dynamic in Atlanta, I’m not sure Kane will have that impact.
5. Los Angeles Kings – Jared Cowan. His size is huge and he’d be a perfect compliment for Doughty. A little grab here,
6. Hamilton Coyotes – Brayden Schenn – He and his brother will be one stones through away from hanging out. Maybe they can share an apartment. Schenn is an all around center who may be able to play right away for the Yotes.
7. Toronto Maple Leafs – Oliver Ekman-Larsson – The Leafs would love to add Tavaras because they need that franchise player, but Ekman-Larsson will be a great player. I think he is similar to Kaberle. Kaberle will likely not be in Toronto by the time this kid makes it big.
8. Dallas Stars – Dmitry Kulikov – One of the main reasons for Dallas’s fall was that their defense got old. Time to fix that. Kulikov reminds many of Zubov.
9. Ottawa Senators – Jordan Schroder – A slight reach, but he had one of the top combines this year. He’s a smaller guy, but he is thick. After dealing Vermette, they are suddenly a little thin at center. Their prospect pools are very thin after many years of late first rounders not panning out.
10. Edmonton Oilers – Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson – The Oil loves that he falls to them. He has top line upside that many of their younger players do not.
11. Nashville Predators – Zack Kassian – This will be heart breaking. My favorite prospect, now must become my least favorite. In the season this year it was obvious that the Preds had less snarl. Insert Kassian.
12. – Minnesota Wild – John Moore – The Wil grab the college bound defender. He’s big and mobile. He may end up being the second best defender in the draft.
13. Buffalo Sabres – Nazem Kadri – He slips a little bit, but the Sabres are thrilled. I see him being a slick playmaker or an NHL non-factor.
14. Florida Panthers – Simon Despreses- At least he kind of looks like Jay Bo. The late season push from the Panthers was fun to watch, but I knew they would be in this situation. They miss a great pick, they lose J-Bo, and they have little hope of making the playoffs. They have one of the top 5 worst rosters in the league and not a lot in terms of prospects. At least they showed heart this year… until Martin booked it.
15. Anaheim Ducks – Jacob Josefson – The Ducks can go a lot of different way with this pick, in a good way. They have a great looking roster and cap situation. They grab a great two-way player in Josefson who also has great hands and great playmaking abilities. He adds depth to their center ice position. Maybe he can play with Bobby Ryan in the future.
16 Columbus Blue Jackets -Whelp we are on the board and I am trying to decide between three different players. Ryan Ellis, Louis LeBlanc, and David Rundblad
Ryan Ellis is an undersized right shot defender who has the elusive shot from the point. I see a Marek Zidlicky type who may be a little more polished in the d zone.
Louis LeBlanc is a right shot centerman who played USHL. If you look through the alums of the USHL http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_USHL_alumni_to_play_in_the_NHL there are a few high quality players, but very very few players.
David Rundblad is the lowest rated out of my 3 picks. He has a lot more size that Ellis, something you cannot teach, he is also a right shot defender. Scouts compare him to Mike Green, but on some shifts that is definitely not a good thing. Others it is fantastic.
16 Columbus Blue Jackets – David Rundblad – This is a very tough call to make. We are in somewhat of a position to take a little gamble because none of these guys will contribute for 3-4 years (hopefully). Rundblad has the highest ceiling of all three choices. He is Swedish, he has that going for him. Swedes tend to make good hockey players. Except Christian Backman.
Put your mocks in the comments, we’ll tally them up and declare a winner.