Leading OHL scorers with such authority over Americans any day.
- JohnFergusonJr

Best player available, any day.

Best player available, any day.
- lumlums

Which is Strome and Marner, every day.

We're a rebuilding club and therefore should grab the BPA. BPAs are:

1. McDavid








2. Eichel

3. Hanifin




4. Strome
5. Marner

The bigger the space between players, the bigger the skill gap. If we're picking 3rd, we draft Hanifin. I wouldn't be opposed to trading down to 4th.

To TOR: 4th overall, nurse
To EDM: 3rd overall
- cesareborgia

Are you a scout?

Which is Strome and Marner, every day.
- JohnFergusonJr

Every professional scouting service and ranking disagrees... apart from Button.


Is that really the company that you wish to keep...???

Which is Strome and Marner, every day.
- JohnFergusonJr

Without the power of hindsight, BPA drafting is an absurd myth and phrase. ISS has Crouse ranked 3rd, guess some people will want him and think he's the best player at 3

So Toews being good is because he's Canadian... and Kane being good is because he played one year in Canada?
- lumlums

Kane being from Buffalo, wouldn't surprise me at all that he spent a lot of his younger days crossing the boarder, playing against Canadian teams and going to Canadian hockey camps long before he played in London.

Just go down the list of all the Americans from the NCAA who went really high, most of them didn't turn out as hyped. Erik Johnson, huge bust, Jack Johnson, bust, Kessel was suppose to be the American Crosby, never happened, took JVR awhile to get up to 30 goals but he's never really lived up to a 2nd overall type player, I'm sure there are plenty of others.

Every professional scouting service and ranking disagrees... apart from Button.


Is that really the company that you wish to keep...???
- lumlums

Those same guys said Yakupov was better than Galchenyuk too.

Without the power of hindsight, BPA drafting is an absurd myth and phrase. ISS has Crouse ranked 3rd, guess some people will want him and think he's the best player at 3
- systemtool

When they put these lists together, they see a guy with NHL size and they go soaring up the rankings.

A lot of it is to generate hype to get interested in the draft too. They love all that hype.

Those same guys said Yakupov was better than Galchenyuk too.
- JohnFergusonJr

At this moment Galchenyuk is playing better. Drop Yak onto the Canadiens and Gally onto the Oilers and maybe that changes. I think however that projecting the outcome of their career in their draft year +3 is pretty foolish tbh.

At this moment Galchenyuk is playing better. Drop Yak onto the Canadiens and Gally onto the Oilers and maybe that changes. I think however that projecting the outcome of their career in their draft year +3 is pretty foolish tbh.
- lumlums

Then the whole ranking system should be pointless to you too.

Every team is going to value players differently. The Leafs have a Hunter on staff and history shows guys from the OHL and the London Knights do well when they hit the NHL. So guys like McDavid, Marner and Strome are going to be priorities. And they should be because history shows those are the guys who usually succeed.

Kane being from Buffalo, wouldn't surprise me at all that he spent a lot of his younger days crossing the boarder, playing against Canadian teams and going to Canadian hockey camps long before he played in London.

Just go down the list of all the Americans from the NCAA who went really high, most of them didn't turn out as hyped. Erik Johnson, huge bust, Jack Johnson, bust, Kessel was suppose to be the American Crosby, never happened, took JVR awhile to get up to 30 goals but he's never really lived up to a 2nd overall type player, I'm sure there are plenty of others.
- JohnFergusonJr

I'd be willing to bet right now that if Marner/Strome were American and Hanifin Canadian you'd be singing Hanifin's praises and saying how overrated Strome and Marner are...

Then the whole ranking system should be pointless to you too.
- JohnFergusonJr

Two questions:

1) How do you take what I said and make such a conclusion?

2) Did you warm up first? Keep reaching like that without any warmup and you'll suffer quite the injury...

I'd be willing to bet right now that if Marner/Strome were American and Hanifin Canadian you'd be singing Hanifin's praises and saying how overrated Strome and Marner are...
- lumlums

If Marner and Strome were American but put up 120 points in the OHL, go with Marner and Strome. The OHL / CHL produces more top players than any other league, history shows that time and time again.

Two questions:

1) How do you take what I said and make such a conclusion?

2) Did you warm up first? Keep reaching like that without any warmup and you'll suffer quite the injury...
- lumlums

You said 3 years in the NHL isn't enough to tell who's going to have a better career but rankings in one year are gospel for whos the BPA? C'mon...

Then the whole ranking system should be pointless to you too.

Every team is going to value players differently. The Leafs have a Hunter on staff and history shows guys from the OHL and the London Knights do well when they hit the NHL. So guys like McDavid, Marner and Strome are going to be priorities. And they should be because history shows those are the guys who usually succeed.
- JohnFergusonJr

You're making a statement about a collective (i.e. OHL vs NCAA; and I agree with your statement that OHL players typically have more success) and applying it to individuals without really considering their talent. There are plenty of cases of really hyped CHL players who didn't live up to expectations as well...

Those same guys said Yakupov was better than Galchenyuk too.
- JohnFergusonJr

Gally has 15 more points then Yakupov so far in their young careers on a far superior team, wouldn't be suprised if Yak has a better career.

Gally has 15 more points then Yakupov so far in their young careers on a far superior team, wouldn't be suprised if Yak has a better career.
- ClarksonDavid

Galchenyuk is a way better all around player, not just about points.

You said 3 years in the NHL isn't enough to tell who's going to have a better career but rankings in one year are gospel for whos the BPA? C'mon...
- JohnFergusonJr

BPA is based on the opinions of LOTS of people who are paid to watch the game. I trust their judgement versus Buddy on the internet. It is essentially ranking people based on their raw and unrefined abilities; that's what is inferred by BPA, whose ceiling is higher. Yak had better junior numbers while playing on the same team, so he was ranked higher. Gally also suffered a serious injury, which was factored into his lower ranking.

Projecting a career for two players who have very different supporting casts and are still 6 years away from prime is asinine.

You're making a statement about a collective (i.e. OHL vs NCAA; and I agree with your statement that OHL players typically have more success) and applying it to individuals without really considering their talent. There are plenty of cases of really hyped CHL players who didn't live up to expectations as well...
- lumlums

Make an All-Star team of top picks from the NCAA and then an All-Star team of top picks from the OHL/CHL and you'll see the difference. I'm sticking with the two local boys who destroyed the OHL.

More on Hanifin:

The 2015 draft’s top defenseman…a smart and powerful two-way force… big, but very mobile... moves well with good speed and agility…uses his strength and reach very well when he rushes the puck, and he is tough to contain when he gets going…is skilled and confident with the puck and has the ability to take it end-to-end…used his size and body well to contain players and box them out on the walls…is smart and makes great defensive decisions…has an instinctive knack for knowing where his teammates are on the ice…supremely skilled quarterbacking the power play. (August 2014)
- lumlums

first - I don't have an issue with Hanifin... but I do have an issue with how the rankings are put together.

here's why: AUg2014 Hanifin hadn't played a single NCAA game - he's a freshman this year... so on what basis is "great at boxing out"... 17 year old high school players?

with a player like McDavid who's been in the spot light for a while, who's played in a competitive tough league for a number of years ... no one should be drawing comparisons.

BPA is based on the opinions of LOTS of people who are paid to watch the game. I trust their judgement versus Buddy on the internet. It is essentially ranking people based on their raw and unrefined abilities; that's what is inferred by BPA, whose ceiling is higher. Yak had better junior numbers while playing on the same team, so he was ranked higher. Gally also suffered a serious injury, which was factored into his ranking.

Projecting a career for two players who have very different supporting casts and are still 6 years away from prime is asinine.
- lumlums

So you're fine with Crouse? 3rd on the ISS rankings. BPA

You're also confusing best player available with most potential. Not the same. I would say the best players right now are the guys destroying the OHL

first - I don't have an issue with Hanifin... but I do have an issue with how the rankings are put together.

here's why: AUg2014 Hanifin hadn't played a single NCAA game - he's a freshman this year... so on what basis is "great at boxing out"... 17 year old high school players?

with a player like McDavid who's been in the spot light for a while, who's played in a competitive tough league for a number of years ... no one should be drawing comparisons.
- BorjeFan4Ever

Great point. A lot of times, the level of competition isn't good enough to make a good assessment. This is why you get these pro scouts saying Kessel is the American Crosby because they see him skating around pylons in American High School instead of against the most competitive leagues which are in Canada.

If we don't win mcdavid I don't care which we end up with really. Gold jacket green jacket.

If we don't win mcdavid I don't care which we end up with really. Gold jacket green jacket.
- Bigzby

Marner and Strome matter too.

Make an All-Star team of top picks from the NCAA and then an All-Star team of top picks from the OHL/CHL and you'll see the difference. I'm sticking with the two local boys who destroyed the OHL.
- JohnFergusonJr

Of course, the CHL has been establiished for longer for top quality players. However there are more players coming through US developmental programs than before and they shouldn't be discounted just for being American, which is essentially what you're doing here.