This should be a fun exercise for you Dots. You have the players that you like, but you also have a lot of faith that the FO is diligent and will pick the right player.

If the pick is Desnoyers or Frondell, (or even O'Brien who I've seen mocked to them) you may have some internal struggles to work through.
- Chunk

Nah, I'm not Elbows where i think i know better than 20 people studying all these players and are able to get their hands on film i can't.

I'm just sharing what my eyes see, i imagine one of the exercises they do is put the draft prospect in the other prospects shoes and evaluate if they would have the same success, better or worse

If it's one of the latter I'll be okay with it, i wasn't all that impressed with Artys tape, but I've been really impressed with his play later on in Rockford and when he was called up.

I'll be shocked if it's O'brien

I'll be shocked if it's O'brien
- BetweenTheDots

You are not alone. To be fair, the mock I saw that had the Hawks taking him, probably can't be found anymore. Just a one-off Hawks-fan site.

Nah, I'm not Elbows where i think i know better than 20 people studying all these players and are able to get their hands on film i can't.

I'm just sharing what my eyes see, i imagine one of the exercises they do is put the draft prospect in the other prospects shoes and evaluate if they would have the same success, better or worse

If it's one of the latter I'll be okay with it, i wasn't all that impressed with Artys tape, but I've been really impressed with his play later on in Rockford and when he was called up.
- BetweenTheDots

Outside of maybe a few posters here, this is everyone else here as well. Some of us are simply louder and more confidently vocal than others.

I'll be shocked if it's O'brien
- BetweenTheDots

O’Brien is very good and there’s the familiarity with Vanacker and Lardis but I can’t see KD selecting him. O’Brien is a strong two way player and a strong playmaker. Martone, Hagens and Frondell are all rated more highly. It won’t surprise me to see O’Brien picked in the top ten, maybe even top five or six, but not as high as three.

It's not that you can't have any small guys to be effective. Guys like Brayden point, Tyler Johnson, Andrew Shaw, etc have all been extremely important playoff performers for their teams. The only thing is that you need a variety of players. You need some d-men that can skate, move the puck and generate scoring as much as you need steady defensive players that can shut others down. You need speed merchants on the forecheck, playmakers, scorers, net front guys, etc.

I like Martone because he seems to bring a lot of different things. Here are his strengths according to the Hockey Writers:

Work ethic, competitive drive and strong mentality
Physical presence
Excellent hands and puck control
Playmaking vision
Excels in tight spaces and in front of the net

Improvements to make include:

Could add more speed and agility
Have slightly better shot selection

I'm not going to be upset by really any conceivable pick that they make outside of them pulling this year's "Barrett Hayton" out of a hat. The really interesting thing over the next 2-3 years is seeing which of their later round picks come through and make a name for themselves.
- Chunk

Here’s my counterpoint on Martone. His best attribute is his size, if he was 5’10” would he be a top five pick? I’m going to guess no. When you have a top five pick you have to draft skill. I’m not saying that Martone is not skilled, just not skilled enough for me with the third pick in the draft. I’d take Schaefer, Misa, Desnoyer or Hagens over Martone, and then hope that Martone doesn’t become a 40 goal scorer for the Preds.

Please explain why Mika Z. His cap hit is $8.5 mill, with four seasons to go. He is 32 years old, and two seasons removed from his high water mark 91 point season. This season's output was 58 points There's also the NMC to deal with, anyway. I don't see him waiving it to come here.

But, would anybody here trade Bertuzzi for him? Could Mika Z be had for half retained? What happened to Mika Z, exactly? Is it a product of Ranger dysfunction? Injuries we don't know about? Or is he in real decline now?
- 333inthe3rd

I don’t want any part of Mika, sure he might turn it around(probably not), however I’ve seen him play about 20 games in the last two years, and the guy is allergic to contact, will cough up the puck rather than take a hit. If the Rangers could give him away at this point of his career, they would.

Here’s my counterpoint on Martone. His best attribute is his size, if he was 5’10” would he be a top five pick? I’m going to guess no. When you have a top five pick you have to draft skill. I’m not saying that Martone is not skilled, just not skilled enough for me with the third pick in the draft. I’d take Schaefer, Misa, Desnoyer or Hagens over Martone, and then hope that Martone doesn’t become a 40 goal scorer for the Preds.
- Angotti

Don’t you think size is a factor in the overall skill set? Martone’s puck handling ability it amongst the best in the draft. He was named team captain, very unusual for a 17 year old CHL player. So there’s a high leadership element to his game. He plays a hard game and plays in all the difficult areas on the ice. And he was very productive scoring at a 1.7 points per game. Skating isn’t his strong suit but he’s not a terrible skater either. Then scouts have to try to determine who will be the best player in 2-3 or 5 years from now.

I watched the Blashill introduction and it sounds like he is very pro forechecking. He gave all the right answers and loves that this team will have speed. He is very high on Anders Sorrenson and Michael Peca, but wouldn't give away who the third assistant coach would be. He knows, but he is not saying.

O’Brien is very good and there’s the familiarity with Vanacker and Lardis but I can’t see KD selecting him. O’Brien is a strong two way player and a strong playmaker. Martone, Hagens and Frondell are all rated more highly. It won’t surprise me to see O’Brien picked in the top ten, maybe even top five or six, but not as high as three.
- paulr

He probably doesn't go #3 but I've seen him ranked ahead of Martone/Desnoyers in some scouting lists and seen a couple times he was mocked to the Hawks at #3. Not likely, but not impossible either. I've seen a comparison made with him to Ryan O’Reilly, which makes some sense. High IQ, 2 way center, maybe not the high end offensive output to be a star 1C, but possibly a very strong 2C. I also don't think likely he goes #3, but probably not a huge gap between him and some of the others, he might be right there on the draft board, depending on the opinion of the Hawks scouts.

I watched the Blashill introduction and it sounds like he is very pro forechecking. He gave all the right answers and loves that this team will have speed. He is very high on Anders Sorrenson and Michael Peca, but wouldn't give away who the third assistant coach would be. He knows, but he is not saying.
- bjphawkfan

He was very confident and he did say his time in Tampa gave him a really clear picture of what it takes to get to the next level. Seems to be pretty focused. I also heard the Hawks liked that he seemed really flexible/adaptable. It will be interesting to see how things go out the gate after camp this fall.

Don’t you think size is a factor in the overall skill set? Martone’s puck handling ability it amongst the best in the draft. He was named team captain, very unusual for a 17 year old CHL player. So there’s a high leadership element to his game. He plays a hard game and plays in all the difficult areas on the ice. And he was very productive scoring at a 1.7 points per game. Skating isn’t his strong suit but he’s not a terrible skater either. Then scouts have to try to determine who will be the best player in 2-3 or 5 years from now.
- paulr

Martone will add value to a team, however I’d rather draft a good skater with a top three pick, that’s just my thought process. Sure his skating could improve, but I would not take that risk with a high pick, this could be the last top five pick for awhile. I’ve been wrong before, heck at home I’m never right.

He was very confident and he did say his time in Tampa gave him a really clear picture of what it takes to get to the next level. Seems to be pretty focused. I also heard the Hawks liked that he seemed really flexible/adaptable. It will be interesting to see how things go out the gate after camp this fall.
- breadbag

Is there really an option other than abject failure?

Is there really an option other than abject failure?
- Chunk

If the Hawks start the year 0-3-0 then I think some fans will blacklist Blashill forever.

O’Brien is very good and there’s the familiarity with Vanacker and Lardis but I can’t see KD selecting him. O’Brien is a strong two way player and a strong playmaker. Martone, Hagens and Frondell are all rated more highly. It won’t surprise me to see O’Brien picked in the top ten, maybe even top five or six, but not as high as three.
- paulr

Depending on where Misa ends up being drafted it's comes down to matone or hagens imo.

Really happy to run across Cam Robinson talking prospects and the draft. Interestingly enough the first 3 questions are about Martone. I'm only a 10-15 minutes in but they hit on Hagens a good bit too.

For my money Robinson is the goods. Hell of an evaluator and a fine hockey mind. No surprise at all to hear Aichenson come out of his mouth. A heat seeking missile, really athletic, big kid who can really skate.... Not the biggest Peter's fan but he does seem to have a better grasp than a few yrs ago.

Start at 5 minutes, that's when the hockey talk starts. https://www.youtube.com/w..._eT4&ab_channel=FloHockey

This should be a fun exercise for you Dots. You have the players that you like, but you also have a lot of faith that the FO is diligent and will pick the right player.

If the pick is Desnoyers or Frondell, (or even O'Brien who I've seen mocked to them) you may have some internal struggles to work through.
- Chunk

Half the BOD will like it, then justify the pick, the other half will be pissed. I still would've taken Demidov or Arty, but getting a very good F at 3 this year will ease some of my pain i'm not over yet.

I watched the Blashill introduction and it sounds like he is very pro forechecking. He gave all the right answers and loves that this team will have speed. He is very high on Anders Sorrenson and Michael Peca, but wouldn't give away who the third assistant coach would be. He knows, but he is not saying.
- bjphawkfan

That was much better than i expected. If you didn't have the Detroit past knowledge, and just watched that press conference, you'd be very happy with the hire

Martone will add value to a team, however I’d rather draft a good skater with a top three pick, that’s just my thought process. Sure his skating could improve, but I would not take that risk with a high pick, this could be the last top five pick for awhile. I’ve been wrong before, heck at home I’m never right.
- Angotti

I heard although his skating is not elite it is NHL level and not really something to be concern with.

I watched the Blashill introduction and it sounds like he is very pro forechecking. He gave all the right answers and loves that this team will have speed. He is very high on Anders Sorrenson and Michael Peca, but wouldn't give away who the third assistant coach would be. He knows, but he is not saying.
- bjphawkfan

Not seen what the love affair with Sorensen is based on?

If the Hawks start the year 0-3-0 then I think some fans will blacklist Blashill forever.
- breadbag

Losing 0-2 after the first period of game one will be his demise.

I really cannot see KFC drafting Martone. His skating is 'just ok' (average NHLer) and he does not contribute at all to the transition game. Those are both key boxes to check for a KFC high draft pick selection.

I feel like some of the folks who cry for Martone have an idealized vision of him based on his height/weight stats. Yes, he is big and uses his size for leverage and positioning. He scores dirty goals but doesn't produce the shot volume to ever be a big goal scorer (see recent critics of Marner). He will finish checks. But he does not really throw his weight around or use his size to dominate a shift and physically intimidate opponents. Martone the playmaker is more a finesse player at heart, not really comparable to a Tkachuk or Wilson.

I'll add that Martone is among the older players in his draft class and he seems to have leveraged that advantage in his past season and a half in the OHL. He also is known to disappear for several games at a time over the course of the season, although this was less pronounced this past year.

Desnoyers, on the other hand, checks the KFC boxes. He has strong skating, great transition player, high IQ, dependable two way player. He brings similar playmaking and physicality as Martone. Martone is an inch taller, and probably 20 pounds bigger at the moment (and six months older). But Desnoyers should end up playing 195-200 at the NHL. Tell me why Martone is superior?

I heard although his skating is not elite it is NHL level and not really something to be concern with.
- HamiltonHawk

If they go with Martone I’m okay with it. I’m just fan that watches a lot of NHL hockey and some clips of prospects. Many here watch much more of these prospects than I do, and obviously the Hawks scouts have much more information as well. Bottom line is that they will get a good player with that pick.

I like the fact Martone went to the worlds, (albeit lost to Denmark ) but have friends that go to OHL games locally routinely .And they tell me he disappears for games at a time .I hope playing in the show would spark his interest on a night to night bases .Have read his desire to win is strong and that's something you cant teach . I don't know were I am going with this as too say I have faith in our scouts .

I really cannot see KFC drafting Martone. His skating is 'just ok' (average NHLer) and he does not contribute at all to the transition game. Those are both key boxes to check for a KFC high draft pick selection.

I feel like some of the folks who cry for Martone have an idealized vision of him based on his height/weight stats. Yes, he is big and uses his size for leverage and positioning. He scores dirty goals but doesn't produce the shot volume to ever be a big goal scorer (see recent critics of Marner). He will finish checks. But he does not really throw his weight around or use his size to dominate a shift and physically intimidate opponents. Martone the playmaker is more a finesse player at heart, not really comparable to a Tkachuk or Wilson.

I'll add that Martone is among the older players in his draft class and he seems to have leveraged that advantage in his past season and a half in the OHL. He also is known to disappear for several games at a time over the course of the season, although this was less pronounced this past year.

Desnoyers, on the other hand, checks the KFC boxes. He has strong skating, great transition player, high IQ, dependable two way player. He brings similar playmaking and physicality as Martone. Martone is an inch taller, and probably 20 pounds bigger at the moment (and six months older). But Desnoyers should end up playing 195-200 at the NHL. Tell me why Martone is superior?
- LetsGoHawks

his skating is fine Matthew Tkachuk us not a great skater average at best Miko rattean is no blazer mark stone below average skating. What does all three of these players. Have high hockey IQ they know how and where to be on the ice and how to get there. Matone doesn't have to be a speed demon above average or average speed he will be fine in the nhl.