Our 6th Overall Pick: Elias Lindholm or Sean Monahan?

[clancy]

Originally Posted by Table 5

I'd be satisfied with either, but in the end, I always lean towards the guy with more offensive skill, even if Monahan has more character. Swedes always seem to have a lot of good character too. I mean you never really see a lot of Swedes with controversial comments or huge egos... they are almost boringly reliable.

I'd be satisfied with any of these guys. The only real way that pick would be a huge disappointment is if they draft Nichuskin.

Just to build on the stereotypes.... its amazing how they lose their accent quicker than other european countries. Ever hear Lidstrom or Holmstrom talk? THey sound like they grew up in the prairies.

[moon]

Originally Posted by sun

Hey, well good thing the top 7 from this year all could have gone top 3 last year then, hey? This is the deepest draft since '03. We will be getting an outstanding player at SIXTH overall. The top seven in this draft are as "sure things" as the top three in most other years. Ever seen a top three player bust before? Happens all the time.

Draft the right player. Develop him properly. Don't cry about what could have been if this team threw games. Such a ridiculous opinion considering the players on the board at sixth.

Based on what is this the deepest draft since 2003? Who says top 7 this year could go top 3 last year?

The only time I have heard this is on CP since we fell out of top 3 and people have tried to pass it off as no big deal.

[clancy]

Originally Posted by playmaker

Granlund, Jankowski, Backlund and Reinhart are all very skilled players. Our pipeline needs a gritty, two-way centre, a guy willing and able to occupy the front of the net.

Horak may be, quietly, the most skilled of them all.
My how times have changed. A few years ago we were all grit, no skill. Now.........

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by Tinordi

There was no need to play Kipper lose those four points and we're picking 3rd?

Even if you subscribe to the philosophy that it's acceptable to halfass the gameday roster (and I don't) to deliberately lose games given how terribadly Kipper played this year I don't see how that's all that questionable a decision.

[MarchHare]

I haven't really seen either play so can't make an informed decision, but based on what I've read, I'd be happy with either one. I just really, really, really, really, REALLY hope the Flames' management and scouts don't think they're more clever than everyone else and make an off-the-board pick at #6.

[Tinordi]

Originally Posted by moon

Based on what is this the deepest draft since 2003? Who says top 7 this year could go top 3 last year?

The only time I have heard this is on CP since we fell out of top 3 and people have tried to pass it off as no big deal.

Yeah I have a hard time making myself feel better looking at Monahan and then looking at Mackinnon or Drouin, who are clearly much better prospects. It's pretty rich to say don't worry the top 6 is so deep! There's a big drop from 4 to 6 IMHO.

[The Swedish Flame]

Originally Posted by clancy

Just to build on the stereotypes.... its amazing how they lose their accent quicker than other european countries.

This has started to happen to me

[Tinordi]

Originally Posted by Parallex

Even if you subscribe to the philosophy that it's acceptable to halfass the gameday roster (and I don't) to deliberately lose games given how terribadly Kipper played this year I don't see how that's all that questionable a decision.

Way to quote me out of context, previous sentence I said there was no one to blame the only thing you could question was playing Kipper.

[Walter Reed]

Originally Posted by T@T

One would have to think both Carolina and Colorado would want a stud defenseman, Colorado will take Jones but what scares me is Carolina will do a highest bidder auction between Calgary/Edmonton and Buffalo for their 5th pick.

I think this draft is going to extremely crazy when it comes to trades, Feaster needs to explore a trade with Florida for the 2nd pick, it may take something that most here wouldn't like but to get a potental generation talent like Mackinnon it might be worth the risk.

To make it happen it probably would take something like this.

To Calgary:
2nd overall(Mackinnon)

To Florida:
6th overall, other 1st and TJ Brodie

Thoughts?

In my mind generational talents are the Gretzky, Lemieux, Crosby type players. I don't foresee anyone in this years draft with those compatibles ....

[Swayze11]

Where are you guys getting "gritty" from in regards to Monahan?

Just because hes a two-way forward doesn't mean he is gritty. If you actually watch him, he is not very gritty at all.

[sun]

Originally Posted by Tinordi

Yeah I'm letting it go, just can't help but feel that if you're going to have a crap season at least get a great prospect out of it. At sixth, we might get a great player and we might not.

But would the logical extension of your argument be that picking higher is even more important if the draft is so deep, so that you get the best of the best? I think you're arguing against yourself.

If we assume all the best players 5-10 years from now will be ranked exactly as they are now, then yes of course 1>6. Even if that was true though, we can't pick at 1, so don'tworrybehappy.

Bottoming out last year at 6th would have been more painful than doing the same this year. Say Lindholm and Monahan were drafted last year instead of this year. Maybe they'd be drafted after Yakupov at 2 and 3. Say we finished sixth - we'd be lamenting the fact that we're not picking top three, because look at how awesome those players are. Well now we're able to get one of them at six, so #### yeah!

Jets fans were probably bummed they had to settle for Trouba at 9 instead of the six dmen picked ahead of him. Now he's looking like a total stud. And that was just last year.

That a look at this list and compare the rest of the draft to the top 3. I'd take any number of players from 7 onwards over #1 and #3. Ducks got not one, but TWO franchise forwards at 19 and 28.

Yes, many of the best players in the league were picked 1,2,3,4,5. But we're neither bad enough to pick there (yet) nor do we win trades with the Leafs, so we're "stuck" with sixth.

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by Swayze11

Where are you guys getting "gritty" from in regards to Monahan?

Just because hes a two-way forward doesn't mean he is gritty. If you actually watch him, he is not very gritty at all.

Exactly.. if anything Lindholm is the grittier player (at least from the few clips I've watched of him), Monohan is a skill guy who I guess is defensively responsible. I never really noticed him as a defensive sensation when I watched him either. He's not ultra dynamic so I think these other qualities get attached to him.

[Yoho]

Some Oiler's board thoughts on getting Monahan.

http://lowetide.ca/blog/2013/04/the-...g-to-mact.html

[sun]

Originally Posted by moon

Based on what is this the deepest draft since 2003? Who says top 7 this year could go top 3 last year?

The only time I have heard this is on CP since we fell out of top 3 and people have tried to pass it off as no big deal.

I can only base my opinion on what I've seen here. Like you, I've read it on CP. I don't pretend to have watched any of these players last year or this year outside of youtube and haven't even attempted to rank them myself. If this year isn't deeper than last then my mistake, but it's still not the end of the world picking sixth out of 211.

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by moon

Based on what is this the deepest draft since 2003? Who says top 7 this year could go top 3 last year?

The only time I have heard this is on CP since we fell out of top 3 and people have tried to pass it off as no big deal.

I don't think the top 7 into the top 3 is that outlandish. Griffin Reinhart went 4th last year. I don't think its a giant stretch to say he would go 8th this year. In terms of size and production - G.Reinhart = D.Nurse this year.. with Nurse being a more physical player.

[Swayze11]

I would take a d-man over Monahan. Skating is his number one issue, I can't really think of a prospect who had skating as his number 1 issue and improved it.

I know a center is attractive but the Flames prospect pool at D is a lot worse then our prospect pool at forward.

[Caged Great]

Originally Posted by moon

Based on what is this the deepest draft since 2003? Who says top 7 this year could go top 3 last year?

The only time I have heard this is on CP since we fell out of top 3 and people have tried to pass it off as no big deal.

I do my own scouting, and while it is purely amateurish, the top 7 players seem to have more talent based on what I have seen of them than the same guys from the last two years.

I think both Drouin and MacKinnon are slightly better players at the same age than either Nugent Hopkins or Yakupov, and I think both Nichushkin and Barkov are in the same tier as the former #1's. Lindholm and Monahan remind me in terms of skill as guys like Evander Kane, Zibanejad, Schenn. Not quite, as good, but all guys that have 1st line upside

[looooob]

Originally Posted by moon

Based on what is this the deepest draft since 2003? Who says top 7 this year could go top 3 last year?

The only time I have heard this is on CP since we fell out of top 3 and people have tried to pass it off as no big deal.

I'm not saying it's a true statement ( not enough expertise to judge) but there are non-CP resources making such claims- believe the cover of the current Hockey News Draft edition (and yes I realize this is hardly a bible for this stuff anymore if it ever was) makes a similar statement IIRC

[puckluck2]

Originally Posted by Swayze11

Where are you guys getting "gritty" from in regards to Monahan?

Just because hes a two-way forward doesn't mean he is gritty. If you actually watch him, he is not very gritty at all.

It's draft time where everyone pretends to know every player in the draft like they play for their hometown team while throwing out cliches like "high hockey IQ", "gritty", "defensively responsible", and my favorite "top 6 forward potential".

[moon]

I think the top 3 are certainly better but after them from 4-7 I don't see those guys cracking the top 3 of last year.

Ryan Murray certainly looks better than any of the defensemen other than Jones, not sure any of the centers look to be better than Galchenyuk and Yakupov.

I think it is a fine draft but the 4-7 guys have become very highly rated here since we dropped out of bottom 3 positions.

I haven't seen the Hockey News but other reports I have read is similar to other years where the closer to the drafter the "better" that draft seems to get. Seems to also correspond to the time many sources are trying to get you to buy their reports on these guys, but that might just be a coincidence.