GM Dale Tallon really likes Sam Rinehart, but the best player on most team's boards was defenseman Aaron Ekblad. Ekblad is now the newest member of the Florida Panthers and is another big piece of this talented young core moving forward.
Was it the best pick for the Florida Panthers? We'll know in a few years. Fans of this league know that the Panthers are offensively challenged. While Ekblad will help on both ends of the ice as a good skater with great offensive awareness, it will remain to be seen how much he effects the overall offensive production of this club.
But for now it was the safe pick. He is only the 10th player in history to be the #1 overall pick in both juniors and the NHL.
Because of the pressing needs and lack of depth at RW, it would have made more "logical" sense to draft Reinhart with the #1 overall pick. He's a great two way player, but like Jonathan Huberdeau his game leans a bit more towards a "pass first" mentality. No doubt he will have a very fine career with the Buffalo Sabres.
Ekblad is widely considered to be NHL-ready right now. By the looks of his size standing on stage, I believe it. He is a man already. At 6'3", 215 lb., it's almost freakish that he just turned 18 in February.
If Erik Gudbranson and Dmitry Kulikov(if he's not dealt this weekend) turn out to be the players they were projected to be, along with Petrovic, Matheson, Brown, McCoshen and Weegar, the Panthers are set for many years to come with a quality defensive core. Ekblad not only compliments this group, but by the time they arrive he and Gudbranson will be the leaders of this tenacious bunch.
Obviously there is much more to discuss as the draft goes on and free agency soon to begin. But from this point forward one would think Tallon's focus is on RW for the future.
I also think there are a few current roster players that may be used to navigate around in this draft. More on that to come...
Dan Spiegel... Florida Panthers Media Follow me on Twitter Join the Florida Panthers Insiders FB Page Connect with me on Google Plus