Quote:
Originally Posted by Oling_Roachinen
Drouin established himself pretty early in the year as part of the Big Three with Jones and Mackinnon. Barkov rounded out the top four.
Nichushkin was a wildcard due to the Russian Factor but was expected to be right there in the next tier with Monahan and Lindholm, with many considering him the best hockey player of the bunch but an added risk. Ristolainen and Nurse were considered solid defensive picks in that tier. Maybe with the occasional mention of Zadorov.
Horvat was actually considered a reach at the time, not a ton mind you, but there wasn't many mock drafts having him at 9 or better. He was also considered more of a safe pick and expected to go in that 10-15 range (but you could find mock drafts with him in the 20s).
Domi was another player mentioned to be a top 10 pick. And finally, Shinkaruk was usually hyped and was expected to go in the top 15.
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I guess my point was that the "busts" of that first round weren't in the top half and the high end predicted for the players took a massive drop after, say, Nikushkin.
You are correct about Drouin - he was right up there with Jones and MacKinnon in discussions.
I recall Barkov being more in the Lindholm/Monahan grouping, but I'm probably wrong about that. It was, I recall, quite a shock that he was picked over Jones. Lots of people were ranking Jones and Mackinnon fairly even and it was a C versus D choice.