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Calgary Flames 2013 Draft Pt.1 - Jonathan Drouin - Flames Postgame vs Avs

April 9, 2013, 10:59 AM ET [241 Comments]
Colin Dambrauskas
Calgary Flames Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
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The Calgary Flames have finally broken their road loss streak as they overcame the Avalanche with a 3-1 victory last night in Colorado.

Rookie Sven Baertschi who played for 12:36 total ice time with only one shot registered, was outshined by Roman Horak who earned two assists and played sturdy defensively. Reinhart also played a higher level of minutes with 11:23 and for the most part, all the youngsters played well.

Though Roman Cervenka took two hooking penalties, he changed the pace of the game when he scored from the slot during the 1st period. The goal was big for his team as it came immediately after the Flames failed to convert on a power play. Unfortunately Cervenka’s line mate Juri Hudler was out with an upper body injury last night and couldn’t contribute, though on the other hand it shows that Cervenka can get into the mix without his Czech counterpart.

The shining star of the game was without question goaltender Joey MacDonald. With the recent concerns surrounding Kipursoff’s future with the team, it’s a breath of fresh air to see MacDonald playing well in net. He stopped 39 shots for the night and gave his team the chance to win the game.

Overall it was a good effort from the Flames, and although wins aren’t necessarily needed at the moment, no one wants to extend a losing streak beyond 13 games. Even with a win over Colorado, most are hoping the Flames drop the next string of games in order to increase their chances for a lotto pick in this year’s draft.

With that in mind, I thought it would be a good idea to look over the top five potential draft selections for the upcoming 2013 NHL draft, and perhaps discuss who may or may not be the Flames’ best choice. To start things off, I’d like to cover one of the top prospects Jonathan Drouin who has been climbing up the rankings.

One thing to note about Drouin is that regardless of his pros and cons for the Flames specifically, this young man is a pretty remarkable hockey player. Drouin graduated from midget AAA to Major Juniors and further succeeded as top line guy for the Canadian World Juniors…all within a year. He’s currently ranked #3 on Central Scouting’s midterm report, and ranked 2nd in the league with 105 points in 49 games. Not bad eh?

So why do I feel the Flames could need him? In addition to the abovementioned, he has insane stick skills, soft hands, and he can encourage great things from other players. Feaster and company have been trying to acquire players with a certain level of hockey IQ, something that is also a big factor to Jonathan’s game. With that being said, I believe Drouin could succeed with just about any team or system given that his understanding for the game and intelligence is bar none.

He is smart enough to find his fit and understand his role on any team he has had the chance to play with. In fact, this may even translate further at the NHL level because he’ll be playing with smarter and quicker players. Again, something the Flames are seeking in their young players.

Although at times this season playing in Halifax Drouin has been eclipsed by Nathan MacKinnon, it hasn’t fazed him at all. He has a maturity and confidence about him that can’t be taught. Furthermore, he proved during an 11 game stretch without MacKinnon that he is a superstar in his own right, producing 11 goals and 27 points.

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So why wouldn’t Calgary want Drouin? Well for starters he’s a small winger, smaller than Baertschi who has already been told he needs to beef up. Not that this will sway the Flames decision given his size, but with the lack of higher end prospects with size in the Flames system, he just may not be the right fit or piece to add to the puzzle. At the present moment, a defender and center are more important than a winger for Calgary and I could see them deciding against Drouin for that reason alone.

Tomorrow we will continue the player by player analysis for the Flames potential draft selections. Thanks for reading!

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