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ForeverFlameFan · 06-05-2023, 08:41 AM

For me, IIRC the consensus top 4 was Ekblad, Reinhart, Draisaitl, and Bennett. Lots of lists were mixed, with Bennett listed as 1st on a couple of them but the majority still having Ekblad as 1st. I don't think there was a distinct #1 that year, just a top 4 and then a decent gap from Dal Colle at 5.

For me, Florida picked Ekblad because they needed a franchise D man after picking Barkov the year before. For Buffalo, they went with who they thought was the better player of the 3. For the Oilers, it was between Draisaitl and Bennett. If my memory serves, I think some Oilers fans were pretty pissed that Bennett was passed up too. My guess is they went with Draisaitl for the size factor. His skating was poor though, he had to really work on his skating after getting demoted from Edmonton back to junior. McDavid also played a huge factor in revitalizing his career. His coming out party was the 2017 playoffs.

Bennett was the obvious choice at 4. I remember we as Calgary fans were happy with whoever dropped to 4. I was just fine with Draisaitl, as I thought Bennett for sure was going to go 2 or 3. I was ecstatic when he dropped to us. Yes, dropped. He imo was the better player than Draisaitl at the time. He was everything you wanted in a player. Skilled, tenacious, gritty, can fight, the ultimate power forward. Also played center, something Calgary sorely needed. Lastly, the Gilmour comparison was warranted and a big reason why I think us Flames fans were excited to see if Bennett could amount to that caliber of player. Unfortunately, it was the incompetency of Calgary management, coaching, and Bennett's lack of ability to be a play driver that caused him to never reach his potential here.

Anyone that thinks Draisaitl was the "clear #1" is wrong. He wasn't even the top prospect from anyone's list IIRC (someone can correct me if wrong). It's even possible that Calgary would have passed on him and went for someone like Nylander if Bennett was selected by Buffalo or Edmonton. I think I remember Toronto wanting to aggressively trade up for Bennett but we declined knowing that the drop off from 4 to 8 at the time was significant.

06-05-2023, 08:41 AM	#4025
ForeverFlameFan Franchise Player Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: NC Exp:	For me, IIRC the consensus top 4 was Ekblad, Reinhart, Draisaitl, and Bennett. Lots of lists were mixed, with Bennett listed as 1st on a couple of them but the majority still having Ekblad as 1st. I don't think there was a distinct #1 that year, just a top 4 and then a decent gap from Dal Colle at 5. For me, Florida picked Ekblad because they needed a franchise D man after picking Barkov the year before. For Buffalo, they went with who they thought was the better player of the 3. For the Oilers, it was between Draisaitl and Bennett. If my memory serves, I think some Oilers fans were pretty pissed that Bennett was passed up too. My guess is they went with Draisaitl for the size factor. His skating was poor though, he had to really work on his skating after getting demoted from Edmonton back to junior. McDavid also played a huge factor in revitalizing his career. His coming out party was the 2017 playoffs. Bennett was the obvious choice at 4. I remember we as Calgary fans were happy with whoever dropped to 4. I was just fine with Draisaitl, as I thought Bennett for sure was going to go 2 or 3. I was ecstatic when he dropped to us. Yes, dropped. He imo was the better player than Draisaitl at the time. He was everything you wanted in a player. Skilled, tenacious, gritty, can fight, the ultimate power forward. Also played center, something Calgary sorely needed. Lastly, the Gilmour comparison was warranted and a big reason why I think us Flames fans were excited to see if Bennett could amount to that caliber of player. Unfortunately, it was the incompetency of Calgary management, coaching, and Bennett's lack of ability to be a play driver that caused him to never reach his potential here. Anyone that thinks Draisaitl was the "clear #1" is wrong. He wasn't even the top prospect from anyone's list IIRC (someone can correct me if wrong). It's even possible that Calgary would have passed on him and went for someone like Nylander if Bennett was selected by Buffalo or Edmonton. I think I remember Toronto wanting to aggressively trade up for Bennett but we declined knowing that the drop off from 4 to 8 at the time was significant.