Wow, we're here already? Welcome to part 4! The fourth part of a part of the fourth part of a series involving more than four parts.
1. Edmonton Oilers Select Connor McDavid 2. Buffalo Sabres Select Jack Eichel 3. Arizona Coyotes Select Mitchell Marner 4. Toronto Maple Leafs Select Noah Hanifin 5. Carolina Hurricanes Select Ivan Provorov 6. New Jersey Devils Select Dylan Strome 7. Philadelphia Flyers Select Mathew Barzal 8. Columbus Blue Jackets Select Zachary Werenski 9. San Jose Sharks Select Pavel Zacha
10. The Colorado Avalanche Select Defenseman Jakub Zboril from the Saint John Sea Dogs in the QMJHL
6’1 185lbs, 18 years old
44gp 13g 20a 33p
The first thing you’ll notice about Zboril is that he is constantly in motion. Whether in possession of the puck driving the play through the neutral zone, constantly shifting positions and opening up lanes on the PP or when coming back to defend. He isn’t caught flat footed very often. A lot of offensive potential, strong defensive potential and a physical player to boot. He was dominant at the Ivan Hlinka tournament and in the brief 3 games he played at the U18’s was miles ahead of the rest of the Czech defense. Zboril finished fifth in PPG for draft eligible defensemen, though the promise of a more complete game and frame are what set him apart. That and a Sea Dogs squad not known for their scoring abilities. Entering the draft he was in the mix for the 5-7th best defender and at this point, it’s hard to figure if he isn’t the fourth best. The Avalanche are forward heavy, but even so, it’s hard seeing them passing on some of the forwards that are mixed around that 7-15 range. Ultimately I feel that they need to improve their prospect pool on the defensive end. Maybe that means they move down, maybe that means they jump a little early on a player like Zboril who has a lot of upside.
NHL Comparable : Alexander Edler
Potential : 2-3 Two-way Defenseman
11. The Florida Panthers Select Left Winger Mikko Rantanen from TPS in the SM-liiga
6’4 212lbs, 18 years old
56gp 9g 19a 28p
This year is, on the surface, a bit of a poor showing from Europe. Rantanen enters the year as the clear number one selection from this side of the pond as Swedish hopefuls fell drastically throughout the year, the top Czech hopefuls moved to Canada and Russia is providing a really mixed bag this year with the KHL crisis hurting their ranking more and more anyways. So enter Rantanen, the 6’4 possession winger with an elite shot, strong skating and some inconsistency in engagement levels. Much like a former top Finnish prospect Joel Armia, the natural skills Rantanen possesses are elite. It’s the application that is tricky. When he is on, he is a dominating force. Hard to contain on a rush and a cycle, he controls the puck on a string and muscles players off that want to take it from him. Games go by though where he can’t get control of the puck and looks lost. Quick wrist shots from outside the circle. Moves of a lack of confidence. That has only been the case at the SM-liiga level thus far, as he has been very impressive internationally and intensely dangerous in a small tournament environment. Developing his consistency will make or break what is a high-end forward in the making. Florida loves size; they have a top prospect pool and simply will want the best player possible. Maybe a Barkov-Rantanen connection is appealing.
NHL Comparable : Max Pacioretty
Potential : Top-Six Sniper
12. The Dallas Stars Select Left Winger Lawson Crouse from the Kingston Frontenacs in the OHL
6’4 216lbs, 17 years old
56gp 29g 22a 51p
As high as 3rd and as low as 14th, Crouse is one of the hardest players to peg in the draft. However high he will go will likely be on a whim. There are several things that Crouse has going on that make him such a valuable player. Obviously his size. He’s massive and has room to grow. His speed for his size. He’s not a JVR/Wheeler/Nichushkin type of massive speedy player, but he moves surprisingly well. His young age, as you might have noticed, he’s one of the only expected top picks that is still 17 (at the time of writing this, he will have turned 18 by the draft). That means he has less development time which can lead scouts to hope that he has much more room for improvement than some others. There isn’t really any proof that late birthday players end up being better players in time (OV/Tavares for example both were both as old as possible for their drafts being born on September 17 and 20), but there’s still some truth in development time. His numbers tell an interesting story. He scores goals at a pace that only McDavid beat, but didn’t generate a lot of offense until Bennett and Watson returned from injury. That’s the main worry. His size allows him to bull his way to the net and be a dangerous player, but he lacks creativity. A similar issue that another big bold top prospect Kyle Beach had. It’s cliché, but Crouse is the player with both the lowest and highest ceiling past McEichel. With his size and game style it’s hard not to see him make the NHL in a year or so in a bottom-six role. Yet with his size and game style, could he find the next level like Corey Perry did (though I’d argue Perry had a lot more creativity to his game even going into the draft)? Dallas has a lot of young players and it wouldn’t surprise me if they traded this pick, but at 11 if Crouse is there it makes sense for them and bring another big body.
NHL Comparable : Andrew Ladd
Potential : 2nd/3rd Line Power Winger
Tanks for breeding.