[bigrangy]

Bigrangy's long awaited 2017 First Round NHL Draft Rankings

1 Patrick
Patrick is the best prospect available. High ceiling, high floor. All the talent of a smaller centre in a big guy's body, he should be a good #1C for a long time.

2 Heiskanen
Smooth and ultra composed, Heiskanen controls the flow of the game when he's out there. He plays with the poise of a 10-year veteran and he always makes the right play.

3 Hischier
Hischier is a very, very good prospect, and while having him at #3 might raise a few eyebrows, it's mainly because of love for Heiskanen rather than a dislike for Hischier. He can play fast and he can also slow it down, he's the full package in a bigger-than-you-think frame and he should be good for a long time.

4 Vilardi
Vilardi plays hockey the right way. His skating isn't the best but it's thought to be correctable, and the rest of his skillset is all top-notch. He's young for his draft as well.

5 Pettersson
The latest Swedish super-talent. W. Nylander and Forsberg have showed that there can still be star Swedish forwards after a bit of a dry spell, and Pettersson should continue the trend. The main question with him will be whether he develops physically or not.

6 Glass
The top 5 picks all have elite talents in at least a few areas, but Glass is more of an all-rounder without any single elite attribute. He's very solid and ticks all the boxes that you want a strong centre to tick.

7 Makar
Some people think he's the next Erik Karlsson. If he is, then NJ will really regret missing out on him at #1OA. However, I don't think he's Karlsson. I still think he'll be a very, very good defenseman, but I don't expect him to be a regular Norris contender, think Josi as a talent comparison. He could even end up being the best RW in the draft, who knows?

8 Suzuki
A tremendous player. Super smart, super responsible. Size limits him a bit, but he's very young for this draft so maybe he can grow a little bit. I wouldn't laugh at someone who picked him top 5.

9 Vesalainen
The best pure winger in the draft. Vesalainen combines incredible tools with an incredible toolbox. Don't let a supposedly "underwhelming" draft year fool you on this one.

10 Andersson
One of the safest players in the draft yet also one with some of the highest upside. Andersson was a tremendous junior scorer in his draft-1, putting up some of the best u18 #'s of all time in the SuperElit. He followed it up with a great season in the SHL. He's safer than Kostin while also being as skilled as Necas so I'd take him here.

11 Hague
Hey look, it's a big defenseman that's ranked too high because hurr durr size is bad now. Hague is more than just a fridge. His 18 goals was 3rd among OHL defensemen and he is more than competent defensively. On top of that, he's not a big softy like a Colborne or Hamilton, Hague can be straight up mean at times. (Not that soft is necessarily bad, but it's better to know how to be mean than not)

12 Kostin
The token Russian for this draft is a very intriguing package. He can slow the game down with some great passing, and he can protect the puck like few others can. His draft year was marred by injury but there is still some serious talent here. I won't be surprised to see him fall on draft day and I can't blame teams for passing on him but someone will get a very good player later than they should.

13 Necas
The talented Czech should end up being an above average #2C, somewhere around current Backlund. He's speedy and skilled, but he doesn't excite me like some other guys do. However, I do see some solid potential here.

14 Tolvanen
Tolvanen is a guy who could be quite a bit higher on most lists and I wouldn't really question it, it's just a matter of liking other guys more. He's quick and he's got a hell of a shot and he has performed very well internationally. He did measure in under 5'10" at the combine though, which will never be a great sign for anyone's draft stock. However, I still have him in the top 15, so I definitely think he'll still be a player.

15 Tippett
While it may just be the Virtanen circlejerk, people seem to be very wary of Tippett. His production was good and his playoff play was good and I've liked him when I've watched him. He can be very dynamic at times though his low assist totals on a talented team point to a guy that probably isn't the best at using his linemates. He's not quite complete enough to go ahead of the previous guys for me.

16 Robertson
The last guy on this list that I feel has a strong chance to be a strong top 6/top pairing contributor is Jason Robertson. What a neat coincidence that this dropoff falls at #16! The universal knock on Robertson is that his feet don't work. They're not just NHL bad, they're OHL bad. Despite this, Robertson still carried an awful Kingston team (40% GF% at 5v5 without Robertson on the ice) to the second round of the OHL playoffs. If you can look past his skating, Robertson has top 10, maybe even top 5 pick written all over him.

17 Valimaki
Valimaki had a heck of a draft season in Portland and he's been great everywhere else in his young career both internationally and for his clubs. He's the full package, but I don't quite see a top pairing guy. He is the best of the rest though and that's why he's as high as he is.

18 Mittelstadt
Mittelstadt would be a guy on my do-not-draft list, but I have to recognize that he does have a great amount of skill and it would be pretty silly to leave him off of my rankings list. Mittelstadt is talented, but his drive has to be questioned since he did not really push himself this season (Poehling is younger and already in the NCAA) and he didn't prepare for the combine as much as a player should have. Combine a late birthday, not super special production, and the fact he came in nearly two inches shorter at the combine than most thought he would and you've got a recipe for a bust.

19 Liljegren
I get a serious Kylington vibe from Liljegren. Now, obviously most people will know me as a huge Kylingon supporter, but he hasn't exactly proved that his #60 overall selection was a huge miss by many of the previous 59. Like Kylington, Liljegren will have a long road to the NHL and he will have to take a while to get used to NA hockey and the NHL's fun-sucking defensive systems. His underwhelming draft year would be a fantastic draft year for someone who wasn't hyped to go #2. If mono did actually derail his season then he'd have a case to go much higher on this list, probably just ahead of Suzuki.

20 Brannstrom
I like Liljegren a lot more than I like Brannstrom but at the same time, I like Brannstrom a lot more than I like the rest of the defensemen. He had an excellent draft season (funny how a great draft season by Brannstrom is looked at so positively compared to Liljegren's when they were very comparable) and projects to be an impact defenseman on the offensive side of the puck. However, his 5'9" frame will be a hindrance in the NHL and that's why he's down here at 20 instead of sneaking into the top 10.

21 Foote
His defensive zone play is polished and his size is very appealing, but the most impressive thing about Foote is how well he facilitates offensive zone play. His breakouts are solid and he holds the offensive line very well. He doesn't score many goals, so he likely won't be a PP guy in the NHL, which limits his upside. I wouldn't blame anyone for taking him as the third d-man in the draft but I do prefer other guys.

22 Rasmussen
Big centers who produce are the most valuable assets in the league. Rasmussen fills both criteria but some of it may be a little misleading as you may have heard. His 5v5 production in the WHL doesn't indicate a future PP player in the NHL, though with his unique skillset he could very well find his way onto one like Brouwer has. He did have a great draft-1 and he did have some injury issues this season, so there could be cause to think that he'll become more dynamic as he ages. There is top 6 upside here but he's most likely a bottom six option. However, the risk is definitely worth taking here.

23 Timmins
I see Timmins as a lock to be a top 4 defenseman in the NHL. He's smooth, steady, and does everything right. He doesn't have the offensive upside of the previous d-men but he's a safer bet than all of them (minus Foote, because name value, and Heiskanen, because incredible skill) to carve out a long career.

24 Vaakanainen
Old but not quite a late brithday, Vaakanainen played all season in Liiga and put up respectable numbers. He's a full package d-man, with skills on all sides of the puck. He's been good internationally as well. He's not as dynamic as Liljegren and Brannstrom, and he's not as safe as Foote and Timmins, so I slot him in here.

25 Yamamoto
I think Yamamoto is a little over-rated due to the reverse size fetish that seems to be taking hold of people lately. Of course, Yamamoto is super talented and has shown very well in international tournaments. However, he is a late birthday and came in under 5'9" at the combine. His age adjusted production isn't exactly on another level compared to a guy like Matthew Phillips or Dillon Dube like you'd want from a pint-sized guy in the first round, but his talent level suggest a guy who should be capable of being a 2nd line winger on a contender.

26 Thomas
Thomas is all around solid and you (usually) can't go wrong when picking players out of London. He was stuck behind Cliff Pu in terms of offensive opportunity this season but he still managed to put up a point per game. His projection would be very similar to Martin Necas, but Thomas lacks the elite high gear that Necas does.

27 Ratcliffe
Another big and talented player going in the first round, Ratcliffe showed well at the u18's and he was probably the main reason why Guelph didn't finish last in the OHL this season. He can create offense by himself and he's responsible defensively. Not super dynamic though. Think Colborne but a little scrappier.

28 Poehling
I don't see what Button sees in Poehling but I do definitely see a guy worth taking in the first round of this year's draft. He's got solid tools and a solid toolbox but I don't see anything that leads me to believe there's top line potential here.

29 Lind
Lind is a player I've seen a little more than usual of due to watching the Rockets and Dube. Lind led the Rockets in scoring this season but faded a bit in the playoffs as Gardiner, Thurkauf, and Dube took over primary scoring duties. He's got a solid skillset and he plays a heavy game which is nice to see in such a talented prospect. His draft season compares similarly to Poirier's from 2013 but Lind has vision that Poirier doesn't and can find people with some pretty passes.

30 Anderson-Dolan
A point per game as a nearly 2018 eligible center in the WHL and you've gotta be ranked in the first round, even after a very underwhelming u18 and an awful hockey name. JAD is 358 days younger than Nolan Patrick and while he doesn't have the full package that you want in a center, he still displays some dynamic qualities from time to time. Some of his production might be explained by playing mostly with Yamamoto, but he's certainly talented in his own right as well.

31 Turkulainen
My ultra hipster pick of the first round, Jerry Turkulainen has been a guy I've been hyping for a while. His production in the Liiga is almost special and he scores his goals in the right way. He's consistently around the net and he displayed some great vision and patience in the video that I've watched, not to mention some great speed and solid hands as well. I don't think he's very far off of Yamamoto in terms of projectable skill. If the grease pick this guy I'll be even more disappointed than when they took Puljuajrvi last year.

HM's

Rasanen
Big Finnish defenseman should be a lock to play 200 games. He's big and has offensive skill, although his defensive game is not great.

Phillips
OHL D-man scores very well in all statistical categories and I loved his play last year at the u18's in his u17 season. He wasn't available for Canada this year because Owen Sound went deep but he certainly would have raised his draft stock had he gone.

Lipanov
The Russian forward has been alongside 2018-eligible supertalent Andrei Svechnikov in all my viewings this year, but even without him, he put up a fantastic year in the VHL for a u18 player. Ivan Chekhovich, the third piece of Russia's top line, is also a good player but plays much more north-south than Lipanov does.

Salo
The Finnish defenseman put up numbers in Liiga that make you question why he isn't ranked near Heiskanen, but the total package isn't quite there with him. He's not as safe handling the puck but he'd generally skilled and should be a very solid pick in the early 2nd.

Boqvist
Boqvist put up a tremendous draft-1 in the SuperELit last season and followed it up with a solid pro campaign in the Allsvenskan this year. He should probably be ranked higher, but I haven't really watched him. He's here because his numbers indicate a future solid NHL guy.

Heponiemi
The diminuitive Finn put up a great season in the WHL this year. He's not as tenacious as Yamamoto and his hands aren't quite as good, and those a two qualities that small guys need to succeed. He'll be an exciting prospect to follow for the next few years.

Mismash
Grant Mismash put up a very respectable year for the USNTDP all while playing a gritty, physical game. He had a great u18s and he's headed to North Dakota in the fall. He's the type of player that I could see a GM reaching for but for best value I'd take him after 25 for sure.