We are just five days away from the first round of the NHL draft, where the Devils will pick 29th overall. Here are some notes on the upcoming draft, and other Devils related topics.
- I touched on some potential draft candidates for the Devils with their 29th overall pick the other day,
which you can read here, but I have yet to touch on some sleepers who could very well end up being drafted by New Jersey in the mid-to-late rounds of the draft.
Defenseman Nick Ebert of the Windsor Spitfires is one guy Devils fans should keep their eye on. He's a smooth skating, talented puck-moving defenseman. While he's not overly big and his defensive game could use some work, the New Jersey native could be a good pick in the middle rounds of the draft. While I don't think he'll go in the top two rounds, his upside was high enough for myself and the staff at TheHockeyGuys.net to put him in
our top 60 rankings.
Another guy to look out for is Spitfires forward Michael Clarke. He's a solid two-way forward who is smart and can play in all situations. Spitfires Head Coach Bob Boughner, who also coached Adam Henrique in Windsor, compared Clarke's game to Henrique's. I'm sure if Lou Lamoriello or any member of the Devils scouting staff talked to Boughner about Clarke he put in a good word.
The last guy I'll touch on today is Niagara Ice Dogs defenseman Jesse Graham. He is mobile, smart, makes a good first pass and has potential to be a top-four defenseman who can quarterback a powerplay. While, like Ebert, his defensive game needs work, Graham is very talented and there's nothing some solid coaching couldn't fix. I'm sure Larry Robinson and Scott Stevens could coach him up pretty well in development camp next month if Graham were to be drafted by the Devils next weekend.
- See that tweet? That's exactly why the Devils shouldn't use a top-60 pick on a goaltender. Goaltenders are unpredictable, and quite often you can get a goaltender in the 5th round as good as one drafted in the 1st. The Devils have a few solid goaltending prospects in the system and all of them were mid-to-late round draft picks or signed out of college. You don't need to draft a goaltender in the first round in order to get a potential starter.
- I was asked by a reader yesterday about the possibility of Jason Arnott signing with the Devils this summer. Simply put, I would be shocked if it happened.
- The Devils have not yet announced the signing of Finnish winger Harri Pesonen. I expect them to do so in the next few days.
You can read more on him here.
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