Ok, now that the playoffs are over and Ovi is in day 5 of a summer long bender figured maybe worth starting draft thread and one for off-season rumors.
I'll start with Brian Wilde's final top 15. I think all of these guy are legit blue-chip prospects.
I disagree with the order, but IMO they're all legit.
Brian Wilde's top 15 prospects.
Brian Wilde
& #8207; @BWildeRecrutes
35m35 minutes ago
My final top 15 Picks
1. Dahlin
2. Svechnikov
3. Zadina
4. Kotkaniemi
5. Tkachuk
6. Hughes
7. Wahlstrom
8. Bouchard
9. Dobson
10. Boqvist
11. Hayton
12. Kupari
13. Miller
14. Smith
15. Berggren
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They love Kotkaniemi in MTL and he writes for recrutes, so he is higher here (justifiably) than some places.
If the Rangers drafted Dobson there I'd say you have a top pair RD to pair with Skjei.
Not Dahlin or Hughes as a skater, but he's got a cannon shot, good size, is a rock defensively and has offensive skill - reminds of a little of Roman Josi.
but this is a ranking not a mock draft. It won't fall this way.
Also found this gem, Kovalchuk is apparently asking for or is expected to get $8M per season? Good luck, whoever signs him at that $$ deserves it if he's awful.
Grant McCagg
& #8207; @grantmccagg
1h1 hour ago
Ilya Kovalchuk...a 35-year-old who has played 32 career NHL playoff games....is going to get what.....$8M per? No thanks.
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David Pagnotta
@TheFourthPeriod
16s16 seconds ago
Lucic trade watch in full swing today. He has a NMC, but we can confirm hes willing to accept a trade out of Edmonton. Will come down to how much $ the Oilers eat and/or take back in a deal.
A part of me just wishes we would have fired AV a year ago instead of trading Stepan. Maybe could have given that group one more chance with a better coach.
1. Defenseman Erik Karlsson, Senators: If the Senators dont believe they can re-sign him, they could deal him for a package that would include players, a first-round pick and a top prospect.
2. Defenseman Noah Hanifin, Hurricanes: Its not the Hurricanes' first choice to deal Hanifin, a restricted free agent, but they havent been able to sign him yet and teams are lining up with good offers.
3. Center Ryan OReilly, Sabres: Why would the Sabres trade a hard-nosed, feisty 60-point center as they are just starting to put together an intriguing roster? Its a fair question, but there have been trade discussions about him.
4. Goalie Philipp Grubauer, Capitals: The Islanders and Hurricanes are looking for a starting goalie, and several teams want proven backups. Washington has top prospect Ilya Samsonov coming, meaning the right time to deal Grubauer is now.
5. Left wing Jeff Skinner, Hurricanes: Many of the teams looking at signing at Ilya Kovalchuk to bolster their offense have a Skinner deal as Plan B. He has scored 30 or more goals three times.
6. Left wing Max Pacioretty, Canadiens: Before last seasons struggles, Pacioretty, 29, had scored 30 or more goals for four consecutive seasons.
and 5 teams who could make moves.
1. Islanders: With Lou Lamoriello running the show and Barry Trotz now coach, the Islanders are aggressively looking to re-sign John Tavares and acquire a goalie.
The Islanders have two first-round picks (No. 11 and No. 12) to use to add young prospects or trade away for help on defense or in net.
2. Hurricanes: Don Waddell is the teams new general manager and he has made it clear he wants to change the look of his roster. Hes looking for a goalie and a top-six forward. The Hurricanes will get immediate help today because they pick No. 2 in the draft and are expected to grab scorer Andrei Svechnikov, the drafts highest-ranked forward.
3. Canadiens: Montreals most pressing need is a No. 1 center, and early intrigue of the draft will be whether they will take center Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the No. 3 pick. Most teams have scoring winger Filip Zadina ranked No. 3 behind defenseman Rasmus Dahlin and Svechnikov. Will the Canadiens address the need? Or will they trade Max Pacioretty to land a center? They could do both.
4. Rangers: The rebuilding Rangers have three first-round picks (Nos. 9, 26 and 28) and are willing to move center Kevin Hayes. They would like to move up to land one of the top defensemen in the draft or a top-flight defensive prospect. If they could move to No. 2 or No. 3, they would grab one of the premium scorers.
5. Senators: The trading of Mike Hoffman might just be the first step for the Senators, who own the No. 4 pick. Some Senators critics believe they are making a mistake by not giving that pick to Colorado to complete the Matt Duchene deal. By keeping it, they will give up their top pick in 2019 to the Avs. The Senators are expected to be among the worst teams next year, which means they will have a ticket to the Jack Hughes sweepstakes. Hughes is an American center expected to go No. 1 in 2019.
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Pierre LeBrun
Verified account @PierreVLeBrun
Expectation is that J.P. Barry, agent for Ilya Kovalchuk, will meet with the top four contenders for the UFA's services today _ Boston, L.A., SJ and Vegas _ to advance proceedings along.
So cheers to blind faith in Lou, I will be glued to the twitter feed until we hear the good news. no way we will be disappointed right?
I hear many beat writers speculate that even top 5 picks need a year or two of experience before they are ready for the NHL.
Dahlin falls into the exception category (like McDavid) but I've heard even players like Zadina, Kotkaniemi, Hughes, etc. all need time.
So just about having proper expectations.
I'd love Hamilton on the Habs.
Larry Brooks
@NYP_Brooksie
As reported here long ago, Rangers have no interest in Dougie Hamilton. Flames believed not to have made Adam Fox available but sure sounds like Travis Hamonic could be had.
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Pierre LeBrun
Verified account @PierreVLeBrun
Expectation is that J.P. Barry, agent for Ilya Kovalchuk, will meet with the top four contenders for the UFA's services today _ Boston, L.A., SJ and Vegas _ to advance proceedings along.
Larry Brooks
@NYP_Brooksie
Remains unlikely given the state of the team, but told Kovalchuk still has eyes for Rangers.
Brooks is a fucking hack anyway.
Still just 26, but he clearly hasn't broken out yet.
Falls into the Cam Ward category for me, want nothing to do with him s my starter, but could do worse as a backup in a pinch.
I'd like him on MTL, but not for Pacioretty.
I think he'd be attractive to many teams, a 22 year old C, who is still learning the game, probably a 3C today, but with upside.
People will look back and after Dahlin and Svechnikov and say WTF were those teams thinking to pass on Zadina.
Grant McCagg
@grantmccagg
13s13 seconds ago
It's difficult not to surmise that Zadina's draft stock has dipped somewhat in the past two months while Kotkaniemi's, Dobson's and to a lesser extent Tkachuk's has risen. I would not be shocked if those three go ahead of him tonight...but as always never sure.
Nor should they.
Why is Zadina thought to be dropping? Anyone know?
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Kovalchuk has too many suitors, no way they're outbidding all of those other teams for him.
Nor should they.
Why is Zadina thought to be dropping? Anyone know?
I've read it's "his skating is not elite" and I am not a professional scout by any stretch, but he was dominant every time I saw him. Before I knew who he was he stood out.
His hands and shot are at a rare elite level, IMO he's a legit NHL goal scorer, and he's not tiny with still room to grow into his frame (he's already 6'1 and probably 200 pounds).
6 months ago no one had Kotkaniemi in the top 10, very few had him top 20. Now he's going #3?
People have fallen in love with Noah Dobson's skating.
Oliver Wahlstrom switching from Harvard has an impact (as a Harvard commit I'd stay away knowing there's a chance you may not see him for 3 to 4 years), but from BC he could join the NHL after a year.
Some people 100% believe that Brady Tkachuk will be the best offensive player in this draft, he's not a 6' 3" meat head, he has legit offensive skill.
a lot of that combined to people valuing other players over the elusive Zadina (IMO).
I hope so at least.
I'd be happy with Zadina, Kotkaniemi or a couple other players even Tkachuk.
I think this is right. I don't think he'll fall to the Rangers, but his stock has fallen just enough where I think a top 6 team would allow themselves to trade down and miss out on him for the right price.
He's already 200 pounds and 6 foot tall. Tough to pass on a kid who already at 18/19 has that size/skill combo. I don't think he falls any further than Detroit. But if he does, as said here, he'd definitely be the steal of the draft for whomever got him.
He can do it all offensively. I'm not sure about his defense, it's hard to tell in the tournaments I saw him play, never saw any of his games in the Q.
Watch the draft tonight, every time one of the NBCSN announcers says "he plays a 200 foot game" take a drink.
You'll be legally drunk before pick 5.
I think it's hard to tell how these forwards all will acclimate to the NHL defensive side of the game.
So it used to be I 100% agree with you, now I'm fortunate enough to have seen a lot of these guys (even in limited chances it better than 0), but most fans don't work from home like me with the luxury of watching a US vs Sweden game at the Hlinka Memorial at 10:15 AM on a weekday (LOL).
Rumor is Pacioretty plus a 2nd for Ryan O'Reilly.
MTL has 4 second round picks this draft.
I'd rather not include the 2nd, but Max has just one year left on his contract and will turn 30 soon.
I think that's probably a fair trade - especially with the position value of ROR as a C. Downside is ROR has 5 years left at $7.5M or something like that.
Best case IMO is they re-sign Max for a 3 year 18M deal. Something like that. instead of trading him.
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seeing a little bit more smoke about pacioretty getting moved, what type of return would you be hoping for if they do decide to move him?
Rumor is Pacioretty plus a 2nd for Ryan O'Reilly.
MTL has 4 second round picks this draft.
I'd rather not include the 2nd, but Max has just one year left on his contract and will turn 30 soon.
I think that's probably a fair trade - especially with the position value of ROR as a C. Downside is ROR has 5 years left at $7.5M or something like that.
Best case IMO is they re-sign Max for a 3 year 18M deal. Something like that. instead of trading him.
This is going to be an excited draft IMO, cant wait to see how it all plays out.
I saw ROR is due 7.5M bonus on july 1, I think that will certainly play a part in what is coming back and I wonder if MTL will settle to move Max for anything less then NHL ready talent.
TRade scenario - ( New Window )
LOL I didn't include Spooner cause that is ludicrous -- but sure, I would do that in a NY minute :)
I don't hate him.
but it would take a better player. I'd move back to #9 though.
Draft tool - ( New Window )
He can run people over, yet he's shown (when playing against similar competition) he can score from all methods, greasy goals, sniper shots, and positional rebounds)
I just don't like him at #3 because there are better players.
If the Canadiens drop down with DET I'd take Tkachuk there in a heart beat.
A lot of scouts do in fact believe after Svechnikov (who doesn't get enough press IMO) Tkachuk will be the best NHL offensive player in this draft.
I wouldn't argue too much with that.
Renaud Lavoie
@renlavoietva
10s11 seconds ago
The @CanadiensMTL are still getting calls for the first round pick.
I would rather have Hughes on trade and if no trade I hope they get Tkachuk or Wahlstrom at #9.
Not the same player, but Lindholm has a role on my team.
but I wouldn't pay him a lot either.
Pierre LeBrun
Verified account @PierreVLeBrun
Meeting between Elias Lindholm camp and Hurricanes' brass did not go well today, I'm told. Still far apart on a contract. A trade now is very much possible.
Good fit for the Isles if Grubauer is too expensive. Perhaps an Anderson/Lehner duo?
To your point, this guy has a site with shift vids. May crash since this was on reddit.
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Joe Haggerty
Verified account @HackswithHaggs
42s42 seconds ago
It's more smoke than fire at this point, but there are rumblings out there about Edmonton left shot D-man Oscar Klefbom to the Boston Bruins
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NHL does it right. 3 min per pick I believe.
Now it gets interesting.