Welcome back. Edmonton fans, you can stop complaining about the wait and instead complain about the pick.
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. Colorado Avalanche Select Jakub Zboril 11. Florida Panthers Select Mikko Rantanen 12. Dallas Stars Select Lawson Crouse 13. The Los Angeles Kings Select Kyle Connor 14. The Boston Bruins Select Timo Meier 15. The Calgary Flames Select Nick Merkley
16. The Edmonton Oilers Select Forward Yevgeni Svechnikov from the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles in the QMJHL
6’2 201lbs, 18 years old
55gp 32g 46a 78p
Svechnikov was all over the place this year. He went into the season as a left winger in the MHL, started as a right winger for the first 10 or so games then was moved to centre for two or so months before closing out as a right winger for the remainder of the season. How’s that for a sprinkle of versatility? Svechnikov is a personal favourite and a player I really liked watching in the MHL. His mixture of skill and physicality is something I feel separates him in this cluster of the late first round. He personally models his game after Alex Ovechkin, which I’m sure many players might say, but few do. He never passes a chance to try to hit his opponent and he hits to make an impact. His physical and sometimes reckless play has led to some very questionable hits including one that caused him to be suspended for 5 games in the MHL for a knee on knee. One might wonder what Edmonton is getting out of; especially considering their last tap of the Russian well isn’t going as smoothly as hoped. Let alone the obvious need for upgrades on defense. Added to this the fact that their right wing slot is massively covered (should he stick there). So why pick Svechnikov? For me it’s simple. He plays a gritty game and has the kind of size the Oilers need in their top-6. He has a much higher offensive ceiling than many “big… players around this part of the draft. I would include Bittner, Crouse and Zacha. I also think Edmonton needs to look to the near future, instead of drafting a defenseman and hoping he can make the team in a small capacity in 3-4 years, they could be hoping a player like Svechnikov can develop enough and faster to make others expendable for the big move for an established defender. Plus, I think he’s the BPA at this moment.
NHL Comparable : Logan Couture
Potential : Top-Six Power Winger
17. The Winnipeg Jets Select Centre Joel Eriksson Ek from Fà¤rjestad in the Elitserien
6’2 183lbs, 18 years old
34gp 4g 2a 6p
The numbers like many European prospects playing in their professional leagues are not impressive to glance at. That’s kind of what happens when you play on the fourth line as a 17 year old. Despite that, his six points were enough to be the highest for a junior player in the league. Eriksson Ek (Ek? Eklund?) was a dominant force in the SuperElit as he spent a large amount of his season jumping back and forth between the two leagues as most elite Swedish prospects do. He’s a goal scoring centre with an elite shot and a hard nose for the net. At the U18’s he really impressed me with his positioning in both zones. Defensively he knew where to be and how to box players off effectively. Offensively he gained space for himself in the slot and was able to find skating and shooting lanes with ease. So dangerous around the net, he can really turn a mundane wrap around into a dangerous scoring chance. Also that goal against Canada…wow, just so smart a goal. Winnipeg has done an excellent job crafting a future defense, but they need to continue chipping away for that offensive catalyst. That guy likely won’t be Eriksson Ek, but he has some strong potential.
NHL Comparable : Mike Fisher
Potential : Second Line Scoring Centre
18. The Ottawa Senators Select Right Winger Travis Konecny from the Ottawa 67’s in the OHL
5’9 173lbs, 18 years old
60gp 28g 40a 68p
It’s kind of interesting to me that the Senators are a team that have really taken some bold routes in the draft. Whether it’s gambling on that undersized Swedish defenseman, to gambling on taking a Swede with an Iranian name 7 spots earlier than expected to picking the falling giant with the bum knee. They’ve had an interesting draft history. They made the big mistake of passing on their backyard in Logan Couture many years ago and recovered by taking Ceci later, so I think they go big with the little pit bull. This has been an up and down season for Konecny, mostly down, but near the end it was getting brighter. He was considered a potential top-5 pick after being the top selection in the OHL draft, a Rookie of the Year Award and a strong U18 performance. This season he struggled with consistency and while the highs were high, the lows were low. He was the MVP of the Top Prospects game and was a dominant force in a relentless display of what makes him such a coveted player. His dynamic skating, his relentless forecheck and willingness to sacrifice his body for the team goes well with a team that has been shown a lot of adversity in recent years. He also had an amazing playoff series against Niagara, playing some of his best hockey of the season. His lows were a terrible start to the year and only really showing his old form in January. Ottawa likes (whether it works or not) to take guys who have fallen in the draft and gamble. I can see this being a good fit.
NHL Comparable : Zach Parise
Potential : Second Line Gritty Winger