It was a great day for the Edmonton Oilers. They finally got their future #1 center in Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the consensus top player in the draft. They also selected Oscar Klefbom later in round one; he's the guy Redline report suggests is the 4th best defender in the entire draft. Stu MacGregor, you Magnificent Bastard.
Now comes round two, an area of strength during the MBS years:
2008: None
2009: C Anton Lander
2010: F Tyler Pitlick, D Martin Marincin, L Curtis Hamilton
2011: ??????
Here's my list of players available in round two. Keep in mind that although the Oilers have the 31st pick, there are rumors that the team will trade down to add bullets. Here's a list of available players that I think should go in round two. Musil, Mayfield, Rask, Saad and Rattie are probably fairly high on the Oilers list.
- D David Musil: A fine defensive prospect who is rated below guys like Siemens and Oleksiak but may end up being the best player in the group of DD we're discussing.
- D Scott Mayfield: A big, mobile defender with offensive ability. Aggressive 2-way player.
- L Alexander Khokhlachev: Undersized skill winger with all kinds of talent. Highly skilled player, he represents high draft value for the math group. Under the radar from the saw him good group, he might slide but with no good reason.
- C Viktor Rask: Weird year. He entered the season highly rated, struggled some and fell off the map. Has improved in the 2-way aspects of the game and may now be underrated. Center with size, turned heads at the World Junior's.
- C Daniel Catanacci: Undersized skill player with plus speed and an abiliy to agitate opposition..
- C Boone Jenner: Nice range of skills, works hard and scouts like his work in the FO circle.
- L Shane Prince: Risk/reward pick, his tools aren't exceptional and he's average in size and speed. However, Prince posted 88 points in his draft year and that's a helluva number.
- R Ty Rattie: The WHL version of Prince, size/speed issues but man there's a lot of talent. Exciting player with the puck, we just don't know how much he'll have it in the NHL.
- L Brandon Saad: Big winger with speed and hands, but the results have been lagging. Still a quality prospect.
- R Rocco Grimaldi: Small player, very small player. Grimaldi is ripped, fast and skilled. Should go early this morning.
- R Tomas Jurco: Goal scorer with good size and soft hands. Could be a second round steal.
- R Brett Richie: 6.03 power forward with skill. Likely high on Oilers list.
- D Joel Edmundson: Big, mobile defender. Lanky, he has a mean streak and at 6.05 he's going to be a load as a full grown man.
- C Joachim Nermark: 6.01 center, excellent skater with soft hands. There was some buzz after the Ivan Hlinka last summer but he fell off early and I don't know where he'll go in the draft. He has some things the Oilers value.
- D Tyler Wotherspoon: Size and mobility, plus he's improved a great deal in the last two seasons. Oilers love big men with good speed again--they went away from it for awhile, drafting defenders like Taylor Chorney--but I think guys like Wotherspoon are the future of the Oilers blueline.
- F Colin Jacobs: Big 2-way winger with exceptional work ethic. Hard working role player who perhaps disappointed (22 goals) offensively but may have another gear. Appears to be more than the numbers from this season imply.
- C Dylan Wruck: Small center who improved a great deal during the season. Scored 38 goals for the Oil Kings and showed great work ethic. Intelligent player.
Nation Radio will hit the airwaves today at Noon. It will be "fluid", as there are all kinds of possible stories today. Scheduled to appear:
- Jason Gregor from the Jason Gregor show on Team 1260 and Oilers Nation. He's at the draft and will shed light on the big stories (RNH, Ryan Smyth, etc).
- Dustin Nielson from Team 1260's Nielson and Chase. He called the Klefbom pick and his mock had some interesting items. Dusty will give us some background on the draft and discuss today's Oilers picks.
- Terry Jones from the Edmonton Sun. Terry has been covering the entry drafts from an Oilers perspective since Kevin Lowe was a kid and will bring his usual unique viewpoint to the proceedings.
- Corey Graham from Team 1260's Sports Night Live and Oil King PBP man. Corey has good insight into the WHL kids and we'll get his input on RNH and more.
- Matt Bugg from dobber hockey is a machine on days like this and we'll get his opinion on the quality of the Oilers draft.
- Mark Napier, former Oiler drops by with some memories and tells us what he's up to these days.
What? No Keegan Lowe?
ReplyDeleteSeriously, I'm pretty happy with the way the weekend's turned out.
Anything from here on in is gravy.
I'm thinking that they will need to grab a goalie. Nashville, Fld and another team have 2 picks in the 2nd and may trade up to 31 to get someone passed by. If that happens, I hope they grab a goalie in the 2nd (a gibson) as well as a D man perhaps.
ReplyDeleteso with brule potentially gone, who are we left with for centers to start next season other than horcoff and fraser?
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking that they may go for Binnington with Calgary's 3rd or the 4th. Numbers for the year aren't great, but he was a Rock in the playoffs. That would be reasonable value for a goalie with some obvious upside. Pretty sure he's gone by the 5th round.
ReplyDeleteassuming RNH stays doesnt start the season...
ReplyDeleteAhix: Gagner, Cogliano, potentially Lander, UFA.
ReplyDeleteI don't see a need to keep grabbing goalies every draft. There's only so many positions available and so much available talent. Every 2nd draft would be more than adequate.
ReplyDeleteYou who didn't win LT's contest?
ReplyDeleteMe.
Here was my guess at the order of the top 10:
1) Nugent Hopkins
2) Huberdeau
3) Larsson
4) Couturier
5) Landeskog
6) Strome
7) Hamilton
8) Murphy
9) Zibanejad
10) Bartschi
Anyone feel like posting their top 10, if they sent one in?
It'd be interesting to see the list that won, Iwould guess someone had the top 4 bang on
speeds: Mine was....
ReplyDelete1)Couturier
2)Landeskog
3)RNH
4)Larsson
5)Hamilton
6)Huberdeau
7)McNeill
8)Murphy
9)Strome
10)Bartschi
LOL, so I was done after pick 1 and went down with my ship.
Hoping Michael St. Croix in round 3
ReplyDeletewell, you got 2 right and called WPG to go a bit off board.
ReplyDeleteAnyone read this article?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bluejacketsxtra.com/live/content/sports/stories/2011/06/25/silent-carter-angry-at-flyers-agent-says.html?sid=101
1.RNH
ReplyDelete2. Larsson
3. Huberdeau
4.Hamilton
5.Murphy
6.Couturier
7.Strome
8.Landeskog
9.Schieffle
10.Bartschi
I bite on Colorado's pump fake.Thought they were taking Larsson after they traded Liles.
Lots of teams right behind the Oilers in the second round that have multiple 2nd rounders.
ReplyDeleteSTL has 32, 41, 46
FLA has 33 and 47
NYI has 34 and 50
DET has 35, 48 and 55
CHI has 36 and 43
NAS has 38 and 52
ANA has 39 and 53
Lots of trading partners in they want to trade 31 for two 2nd rounders.
I would consider 36 and 43 from Chicago.
ReplyDeleteIf not, just draft the BPA at 31.
If the right deals there to get more picks in round 2 it's worth it. A lot of guys have slid so chances are high that you can get what you want and pick up something in the process if we don't slide too far.
ReplyDeleteGiving MBS more bullets is never a bad plan.
Richard Cloutier at HockeyBuzz is saying re the Smyth trade:
ReplyDeleteMy understanding about the snag is that LA wants to make sure a certain player they want in the 4th round is available for them to take with the pick before they complete the trade.
And if he is not?
Ducey: There are reports now that it has to do with Brule's health. The Kings want to buy him out, he's an injured player (so they can't).
ReplyDeleteThat's the snag according to mulptile reports (Gord Miller, Spec).
I'm hoping for a bidding war breaks out for 31. Five of Mackenzie's top 30 are still there and you have to think that some teams must want some of these guys pretty badly.
ReplyDelete"And if he is not?"
ReplyDeleteThey will just defer to a pick from next year. I personally think the snag is pretty minor whatever it is. Smyth, ultimately holds all the cards.
My Oilernation submission was, if I remember it correctly was
ReplyDelete1. Nugent-Hopkins
2. Landeskog
3. Huberdeau
4. Larsson
5. Couturier
6. Zibanejad
7. Strome
8. Hamilton
9. Murphy
10. Scheifele
So I figure I am still in the race for the jersey.
godot: That looks like a strong list based on the ones I've reviewed so far.
ReplyDeleteKlefbom is gonna be the erixon of this draft. What a brutal pick. He seemed suprised and unhappy to be selected by the oilers when there was a perfectly good edmontonian defenceman to tak at 19th (joe morrow) the oilers are gonna regret taking him and his CRAZY stats 1 G 1 A
ReplyDeleteIs todays coverage being streamed online somewhere?
ReplyDeleteI don't have the TV coverage.
With the trade issue being Brule's health it seems like a technicality more than anything. LA would have been well aware of his injury history.
ReplyDeleteThe issue must be the fact that he technically finished the season on the injured list with a concussion specified as day-to-day. (At least thats whats indicated on the Oilers website.)
Something that was day-to-day two months ago should have been cleared up by now. So is this an issue of management lazyness or a lost memo that this didn't get cleared off the books properly?
I don't think we can glean too much from his offensive stats in the SEL since he played few games. In other leagues, and specifically against kids his own age, Klefbom posted crooked numbers at a nice clip.
ReplyDeleteOilers management completely blindsided when the Kings asked about Brule's health.
ReplyDeleteThey didn't know you could do that!
LA reportedly still talking to the Oilers to iron out the deal... Calgary is evidently back in the picture according to McKenzie and Gord Miller.
ReplyDeleteStreaming on NHL.com
ReplyDeleteHmmm what would be the best way to follow the draft today without the NHL network?
ReplyDeleteCalgary is only back in the deal when Ryan Smyth says so and that won't be until talk between Edm and LA cease - which is very unlikely.
ReplyDeleteIts clear that Edm is his first choice.
Ah it's being streamed. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteballaman - NBOilerFan
If the Kings were just going to buy out Brule, but can't because he's hurt...why not send them Colin Fraser instead?? Neither are likely to contribute much this year with so many of last year's rookies looking to be close to ready i.e. Hartikainen, Lander, VV.
ReplyDeleteOr is there something about matching salaries that won't allow Fraser to be sent?
NBOilerFan: "Calgary is only back in the deal when Ryan Smyth says so and that won't be until talk between Edm and LA cease - which is very unlikely."
ReplyDeleteValid point. Apparently a deal had already been made yesterday with Calgary; Smyth asked to see if a deal could be made with Edmonton before he waived his NTC for Calgary.
Oilers take David Musil....
ReplyDeleteDavid Musil...
ReplyDeleteCalgary trade: What the hell? Calgary sends Regehr, Kotalik, and a 2nd next year for two mediocre prospects from Buffalo? One was a 4th round pick and another was a 6th round pick.
ReplyDeleteDavid Musil: Meh.
I would officially like to bet everyone who says Klefbom isn't going to sign with Edmonton.
ReplyDeleteI bet Klefbom will eventually sign with the Oilers (they have 2 years)
Name your terms.
Musil!
I called that one.
Great pick.
Oilers have picked up 2 very good D this year.
Awesome.
Tambo looked like he was waiting for a call/text to make a deal
ReplyDeleteMusil took on the toughs as an 18 year old.
ReplyDeleteHe'll be a good NHLer.
Who is saying Klefbom won't sign and on what basis?
ReplyDeleteMusil's floor is Ladi Smid, his ceiling is a slightly more offensive version of Ladi Smid. Its a safe pick
ReplyDeleteGood pick from the Oil. Hopefully he brings the same consistency and grit as his Dad. Thank God they didn't take Grimaldi.
ReplyDeleteJon,
ReplyDeleteI've seen stuff like mojiece post:
Klefbom is gonna be the erixon of this draft. What a brutal pick. He seemed suprised and unhappy to be selected by the oilers when there was a perfectly good edmontonian defenceman to tak at 19th (joe morrow) the oilers are gonna regret taking him and his CRAZY stats 1 G 1 A
Seen this sentiment all over the place, based on some body language by a gangly, self assured kid.
I think its just dumb.
Boston is having a great draft
ReplyDeleteFor crying out loud, he said last night during the tsn interview that he'd come over when everyone agreed he was ready. Non issue.
ReplyDeleteAll the video footage I've seen of Klefbom shows him really excited at being drafted, and speaking positively of the Oilers: Swedish connection (high on Lander, MPS, and Omark) and chance to break in earlier on a weaker blue line. His English is a little broken and abrupt, but I don't see any body language issues.
ReplyDeleteBig markets with large wealthy Russian expatriate communities have the advantage in drafting Russian players over the boonies.
ReplyDeleteLife isn't fair. Get used to it.
For crying out loud, he said last night during the tsn interview that he'd come over when everyone agreed he was ready. Non issue.
ReplyDeleteExactly.
Feel a little bad for these boys. They're flying through these picks today. Not nearly the same experience that the first round glory boys get. Still, they are living the dream, so it's all good.
ReplyDeleteI hate picking D with the type of forwards that are still on the board sitting there.
ReplyDeleteAnd what's with all the hatred of Grimaldi? He's strong as hell, skilled and highly unlikely to turn into a giant idiot (which is a huge problem for young hockey players).
@Marc
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more. The B's are consistently picking up talented sliders that shouldn't have been available at those slots.
So who are we hoping for at 61? Someone off LT's 2nd list?
ReplyDeleteRE: Grimaldi. The Oil don't need any more small forwards. Further, I'm not convinced the pastor-wannabe is the best fit culture wise.
ReplyDeleteI've got Adam Lowry at 62 for the Oilers from Swift Current.
ReplyDeleteWilliam: Someone from the combine list.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the verdict on Keith Gretzky as a scouting director? Like TO, Phoenix seems to be making a lot of reach picks? Obviously the Coyotes have a bit of a mixed bag draft record but I'm not aware when Gretzky took the reins?
ReplyDelete"RE: Grimaldi. The Oil don't need any more small forwards. Further, I'm not convinced the pastor-wannabe is the best fit culture wise."
ReplyDelete1 - Need drafting in round 2 is a mistake.
2 - If there's a "culture" problem with having a guy like Grimaldi, you've likely got bigger issues to deal with. I'm not religious but I'll take Grimaldi-types over Torres-types by about 800 miles.
LA takes another goalie...wow...when we need a backup or someone to push DD, we should talk to Lombardi again...
ReplyDeleteDreger reports Cgy going to take money saved from Regher and extend Tanguay for 5 yrs. Will this finally quash the Smyth to Flames rumors?
ReplyDeletenashvilles pick at 52 Salomaki from Finlad.The ticker has him at 5ft 11in and 297 lbs. lol
ReplyDeleteMy list...
ReplyDelete1. Nugent-Hopkins
2. Huberdeau
3. Landeskog
4. Larsson
5. Murphy
6. Strome
7. Couturier
8. Hamilton
9. Scheifele
10. Zibanejad
Colorado screwed me over at number two so I was done early. I think they may regret their decision in time.
The Columbus trade really messed with me as well.
I still have no idea why everyone loves Zibanejad. I guess I'll find out. I must have just seen him bad.
Damn Flames got Bartschi.
Oilers take Perhonen big Finnish G.
ReplyDeleteObviously, Guy Flaming like the Musil pick about as much as I do.
ReplyDelete