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Pro Hockey Rumors did their mock draft and I’ll lay out their picks for Detroit. The trade market is already picking up with Johansen leaving Nashville for Colorado (50% retained) and Durzi heading to AZ. A Kevin Hayes deal is being worked on and DeAngelo is in the midst of talks. I think the consensus has been that the trade market is where teams are really looking for pieces. This seems to be playing out. On to the draft.
As I type this, please understand this is not my pick, I’m just relaying a mock draft. Since Yzerman’s tenure (I wasn’t around for last year) I have seen one correct guess (someone picked Raymond) and I had hoped for Edvinsson but thought he’d be unavailable. Yzerman has his own mind on things, but we’ll see how these pan out.
Samuel Honzek (left wing) is pegged as the number 9 pick. Here is the quote given:
According to Steve Ewen of The Province, Detroit Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman personally scouted Honzek’s playoff games against the Kamloops Blazers in April. At the NHL Combine in Buffalo, Honzek told the media “Detroit was one of the, I would say the best meeting I’ve ever had here.… While the rankings from the draft media sphere might indicate that Honzek could be available for the Red Wings to pick at 17th overall, his impressive physical testing and tantalizing physical tools make him a defensible selection inside the top ten. The six-foot-four Slovak winger scored 56 points in 43 games in the WHL and has some believing he can play center at the next level, which only enhances his value going into the draft next week.
Axel Sandin-Pelika (RHD) is this mock draft’s pick for 17.
Here’s the quote: The Red Wings have a bit of a logjam of blueliners in their system shaping up, but that shouldn’t stop them from taking a swing on Sandin Pellikka, who is arguably the most skilled defenseman in this draft class.
My own personal thought, I do think Detroit will look at a defenseman. It’s about the least popular thing to say, but the premium on forwards in this draft could lead to a defensive prospect that has the ability to climb the ranks. Just opinion, of course.
**I’ve talked a little about Artificial Intelligence and how it is a core issue for the writer’s strike. The producers aren’t going to strike, but it looks like the actor’s guild is going to.
Most of you know Samuel L. Jackson and likely have a favorite role. I feel like he can do just about anything. Love the actor, great sense of humor and ability to be “cold as ice… on screen when needed. He recently said he would never work with Artificial Intelligence. Within a week, the new series from Disney Marvel where SLJ has a role was released and the entire intro was done by AI. The intro looks awful, but remember early CGI. That was bad until it wasn’t. Studios are using it behind the scenes and this is a major step forward. More than anything, having animators, scripts, actors, directors even for an intro is expensive and takes time. With some of the worst releases in theatres in terms of success since 1975, the writers are up against a wall here.
Toy Story came out in 1995, now look at how much CGI is involved in production. There are more green screens than sets. This signals a potentially massive shift in sports consumption as even the AI used in gaming is more and more involved and real time. When revenues are down you either find more money or spend less. The automation of manufacturing was a big concern for employees, but robotics was exciting for the world at large. AI is rapidly gaining steam and the struggle for dollars is seeing a complete lack of negotiation in current strikes. This seems abstract in the moment, but we already have virtual ads that change depending on your location during games. This conversation will pick up steam more and more.