FWIW, I remember reading some opinions at the start of the season that had Lawrence as a '2nd line center', and that there may not be any 1st line centers coming out of this draft.
With that being said, If the Flames are drafting 5th or later, I would be fine with it. I have the 'tiers' like this:
Tier 1:
McKenna
Stenberg
Tier 2:
Verhoeff
Tier 3:
Reid
Carels
Smits
Tier 4:
Lawrence / Malhotra
I am not necessarily sure I have Malhotra in front of Lawrence right now. So many similarities, but Malhotra has the bigger body. Either way, if the Flames finish 5th or lower, and Lawrence or Malhotra are available, I would be fine taking them, even if I had some of the D ahead of them at this point still. I think around the 5-7th pick, it can really open up, as a case can be made for a number of options. That's just my opinion of course, and I am not the draft expert as some other posters are here.
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