Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperMatt18
My generally theory on the importance of building a team is C > D > W.
It just happens to me that I think the two most impactful players that have the chance of being true elite talents are wingers in McKenna and Stenberg.
So even though I think it's the least valuable position, I think this team really needs elite offensive talent, so those two go to the top.
After that though I think it becomes a bit of a toss up between Verhoeff and Lawrence. My heart wants the offensive center, but my head says you can't pass up the 6'4" Dman that is an all-round d-man already. But I also worry that his size is causing him to be overrated a bit.
I feel like if you look at top 5 picks in the salary cap era that big d-men tend to be the the most consistent trend where teams get a good player, but not a true difference maker.
Looking at guys that were 6'2"+ and taken top 5.
Erik Johnson
Alzner
Bogosian
Pietrangelo
Schenn
Hedman
Gudbranson
Adam Larsson
Griffin Reinhart
Seth Jones
Ekblad
Hanifin
Juolevi
Heiskanen
Dahlin
Sanderson
Power
Luke Hughes
Reinbacher
Levshunov
Schaefer
You hope you get a Hedman or Heiskanen type, but those guys tended to combine size with the elite offensive talent at the draft too.
So if you're taking Verhoeff you have to make sure you're sold on the complete package of his skating and offensive skill too, and don't just end up getting a big defensive d-man.
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Good post. Agree with you. McKenna and Stenberg have the skill to be absolute game breaker superstars. I feel McKenna 1 and Stenberg 2 on talent.
Verhoeff is going to be an NHL defender, and I think having him come in with Reschny could be good for both of them, so I can see the love for him, but defence is a low need for the prospect base.
Lawrence is starting to really grow on me. Having a couple of skilled, two-way responsible team-focused centres in him and Reschny centreing the top two lines into the next competitive window could be incredible. The team also has a bunch of winger prospects that could really break out with skilled centres like them.
So surprisingly as I think about it, I think it's Lawrence right now for me at 2.