Whether you enjoyed the NHL's virtual draft or not, Give the NHL and its teams credit for giving us some memorable moments, plus winners and losers:
Winner: San Jose Sharks Director of Scouting Doug Wilson for using sign language to say Ozzy Wiesblatt’s name so Wiesblatt’s deaf mother would know instantly that her son was the 31st pick. That was one of multiple heart-warming moments.
It was an incredibly heartwarming moment.
Winner: The Otttawa Senators for bringing in Jeopardy host Alex Trebek, a Canadian who is fighting cancer, for a “Jeopardy… style announcement of Tim Stutzle as the No. 3 pick.
“Our category is the NHL,… Trebek said. “Here is the clue: With the 3rd pick in the 2020 NHL draft, the Ottawa Senators choose this player.…
“The correct response: Who is Tim Stutzle?…
Winner: The Winnipeg Jets for asking Dale Hawerchuk’s widow, Crystal, to announce Cole Perfetti as the No. 10 pick. Hawerchuk died recently after a battle with cancer.
Winner: Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion for using three first-round picks to take Stutzle, the best skater in the draft, American defenseman Jake Sanderson, either the best or second-best defenseman in the draft and Ridly Greig who might have been the grittiest first-round pick. Sanderson is the son of former NHLer Geoff Sanderson and Greig is the son of Mark Greig who played in the NHL.
Red Line Report called the young Greig “a nasty pit bull.…
Winner: Nashville Predators for grabbing Russian goaltending prospect Jaroslav Askarov with the No. 11 pick. He is said to be better than Andrei Vasilevskiy was at his age. He is playing in the Kontinental League now and projects to be ready for the NHL in two years.
Winner: New Jersey Devils for selecting Alexander Holtz at No. 7. He was one of the draft’s purest goal scorers. Future winger for Jack Hughes?
Winner: Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman for taking Swedish Lucas Raymond at No. 4. Yzerman didn’t play it safe, took the player with some magic in his game. That’s why Detroit fans believe in him. Raymond is a creative performer.
Winner: Montreal Canadiens for acquiring big, rugged Josh Anderson who can also contribute 15+ goals every season in a trade with Columbus. The Habs need Anderson’s bite. Winner: Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin for selecting Marco Rossi at No. 9. The Austrian center posted 120 points in 56 games for Ottawa in the Ontario Hockey League last season. He’s a smart, crafty offensive player. This is a value pick at this point in the draft. Guerin traded goalie Devan Dubnyk in anticipation of acquiring a new No. 1. He is shaking up the Wild organization.
Winner: Anaheim Ducks for taking defenseman Jamie Drysdale at No. 6. Drysdale was No. 4 on some lists. He has been compared to Scott Niedermayer. When the Ducks last won a Stanley Cup in 2007, Niedermayer played a big role on that team.
Loser: Columbus Blue Jackets for the Max Domi acquisition. Usually there would be nothing wrong with adding a skilled offensive player who can play center and wing. But how well will Domi's style fit with coach John Tortorella’s style? That's a fair question.
Loser: Edmonton forward Andreas Athanasiou because it was revealed before the draft that will not be receiving a qualifying offer from the Edmonton Oilers. He was a 30-goal scorer two seasons ago.
Loser: Edmonton Oilers. They gave the Red Wings two second-round picks to acquire Athanasiou for the stretch run last season. You can bet they regret that decision.
Loser: Other players scheduled for qualifying offers. Some are not going to receive them, simply because teams don’t have the cap space because of the pandemic-caused flat cap.
Loser: Teams trying to move bigger contracts for the cap reasons. They are having a difficult time trying to move those contracts, particularly the champion Tampa Bay Lightning who are trying to move some contracts to create space to sign Mikhail Sergachev and Anthony Cirelli among others.
Disappointment: C'mon New York Rangers and a couple of others. Where was the social distancing?. Most teams did it right.