I had the unique opportunity today to meet and talk with the first, second and third overall picks in the upcoming 2009 NHL Entry Draft.
I just didn’t know who was who.
No one
really does, right?
Which player ends up where still appears to be a bit of a mystery but surely John Tavares, Victor Hedman and Matt Duchene will indeed be the first three picks come June 26th in Montreal.
My bet remains that picks 1-3 will go down exactly as I’ve just written them but the Tampa Bay Lightning, sitting comfortably at draft position #2 and waiting on the New York Islanders to commit to
Tavares someone, obviously thought enough of each kid to have them all down for a visit today.
You know, just in case …
Lightning general manager Brian Lawton is saying that they like all three top prospects an awful lot and, judging at least by their willingness to wine and dine
all of them, you have to take that at face value. (Scratch the
wine for this teen trio, come to think of it. Make that
dine and dine.)
Of course, Lawton’s situation is such that he has to envision any one of these three players in a Tampa Bay jersey. Until Isles GM Garth Snow officially makes his move, the Lightning (and the Colorado Avalanche behind them) can’t settle on their ultimate prize of the 2009 draft class.
The Islanders, at the crossroads of all crossroads in their franchise history, need a name in the worst way. Tavares, who has only been pegged to go first overall in the ’09 draft for, oh, about
five seasons or so now, has to be that name, it would seem, especially when the name comes with 40+ goal potential, by most accounts. 6,000 and change in attendance at the Nassau Coliseum Draft Party on draft day may actually tear the old barn down otherwise. (Maybe that’s actually the plan? Incite the local faithful to riot by picking one of the other two and watch as the NVMC crumbles? Hellooooooooo, fast-tracked Lighthouse Project?)
But, only because it isn’t (yet) official, we have to consider the reality that Snow
could go with Hedman at 1. Or Duchene. (Or me, for that matter. Hell, this
is the Islanders we’re talking about here ...)
And Lawton is forced to take the same approach. Wait and see.
It’s certainly one of those “good problems to have” situations.
But the more I thought about it today as I sat and watched the prospects handle questions from myself and others (rather deftly, I’d say, for 18-year-olds, FYI), the more I realized,
“Maybe there’s no real mystery to any of this after all.”
While it is
possible that Snow could kick things off with a curveball come draft day, it’s more likely that he’s just being mum for mum’s sake (or to piss off Brian Burke, which is a whole different story – and entirely possible, by the way) and that he’ll satisfy the Long Island masses and call Tavares’ name with the first pick.
Table’s set, Tampa Bay. You’re up. Colorado, you’re in the hole.
Though Lawton says he hasn’t yet decided on his ideal choice (today referencing an inability to make a requested recommendation to ownership just yet) he’ll have to see something either
really special in Duchene or something that
really scares him off about Hedman himself to pass on the defenseman. (Maybe the desire to get his pilot’s license that we all found out about today might do the trick? The big Swede laughed off that suggestion today …)
As much of a fit for the Islanders as Tavares seems to be, Hedman looks to be the Lightning’s equivalent. For a club that has both immediate and long-term goals on defense, a 6’6”, 220-pound, NHL-ready, physical, offensively gifted rearguard who has honed his skills against professionals far older and more experienced than he for the past two seasons sure sounds like a no-brainer, wouldn’t you say?
And in the three slot, for the Colorado Avalanche, Duchene looks to be just as great a fit as the other two appear to be for their prospective clubs. There are comparisons to Joe Sakic, who Duchene admits was a favorite of his growing up, and the Avs just so happen to be on the brink of losing a – whattdyaknow? – Joe Sakic!
Funny how these things work out sometimes, you know.
So, back where I started …
I met the first, second and third overall picks in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft today – three weeks before the damn thing, no less.
John Tavares, Victor Hedman, Matt Duchene. In that order. Call it a day. Mystery solved.
The Atlanta Thrashers are on the clock.
***
Top quote from each of the prospects today:
Matt Duchene:
“I didn’t know that stuff would be coming up down the road. This past year I haven’t been a fan really of anybody because I know I’ll be property of somebody soon. I think it’s important to kind of let go of that fan side so, when you play your favorite team, you still want to beat them and not the other way around.”
On
this video clip, making its way around NHL internet circles of late, showing a young Duchene clad in Colorado Avalanche gear.
John Tavares:
“I think what I was trying to say was that, if I’m selected by the Islanders, I’m totally, 100% committed to going there. I think that’s the point I was trying to make. If I end up coming here, it would be the exact same thing – the exact same exciting feeling and honor to come (to Tampa Bay). Obviously, it’s a special class to be chosen first overall and I’d be very excited about it but, you know, down the road and at the end of the day, it’s not gonna matter where I’m selected. I’m just going to be happy to be part of an organization that sees me as part of the future and to hopefully build a winning tradition and be part of a team that can win some Stanley Cups.”
On
a recent interview with
Islanderspointblank.com’s Chris Botta, where Tavares was quoted as saying,
“I want to be an Islander”.
Victor Hedman:
“I think it’s big, playing in the men’s league for two years and playing with (Mattias) Timander for two years. He knows a lot about the NHL. I’ve asked him a couple of questions and he’s taught me a lot both on the ice and off the ice. He’s been a big impact on my hockey game so far and I have a lot of thanks to give to him.”
On the benefit of playing against veteran opponents with MoDo of the Swedish Elite League, where his defense partner for most of the past two seasons was former NHLer Mattias Timander.
***
Road trip!
I’ll be out of commission (barring anything urgent) for until the 12th or 13th, as I’ve packed up the family and will put rubber to road in the morning for a long journey to the northeast.
The tentative plans call for some sort of soiree with our old friend B.D. Gallof (now of
Islandersindependent.com fame) somewhere on Long Island before I head back south, stopping in New Jersey for a few days to track down this mysterious Eklund character, who has apparently been trying to trade my rights to other internet hockey sites for a king’s ransom of
jelly beans and a six-pack of Old Milwaukee draft picks, prospects and a boatload of cash.
Anything pressing in the interim,
drop me an email.
Until next time …
JJ
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