2014 Draft Discussion

[Heavy Jack]

^^ I'd be happy with any three of them but I would hope the Flames choose the big bodied top 2 potential D-man in Ekblad. They are as hard to come across as a top center so really either of Reinhart or Ekblad at this point would be a win but with us having Monohan in the system I would like to see us get Ekblad somehow.

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

Corey Pronman has been saying that the only 2014 draftee that should be playing in the NHL next season is Reinhart.

I think at 3/4 we'll probably get a player of similar caliber to Monahan. Dal Colle and Bennett probably have higher offensive upside.

I would think Ekblad would play in the NHL too.. mainly just because he's already had two years of juniors and already dominated as a 16 year old. Not sure that another two years of that is any benefit to him... he'll already have put in 3 years by the draft comes and he's either NHL or OHL for 2 more years after it.

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by Heavy Jack

Just taking a quick look at their CHL stats, I don't really see how they compare.





I think numbers wise paired with style of play his ceiling projects to more like a Shea Weber with less of an edge at the CHL level, but Weber's game seemingly has taken on less PIM's as he's been relied on more as a top guy for Nashville:

Have to keep in mind with these stats is that Ekblad started in junior at 15 a year younger than all of those guys. So that 29 point season he put up in his rookie year was while all these other guys were still playing midget hockey.

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Originally Posted by The Original FFIV

Ekblad's skating and decision making look questionable in today's game. I get the love for big defensemen but his play in the first period raised some question marks for me. Reminds me of Dana Murzyn with his stride (not in a good way) and had a bad pinch and a bad giveaway.

We'd be drafting Ekblad for how good he'll be in the NHL at age 23+ not how good he is in junior at age 17. Most players see some improvement in their skating after being drafting.

That said I haven't had a chance to watch the WJC games yet so I can't weigh in on his skating in particular.

[Calgary4LIfe]

Originally Posted by Heavy Jack

If the Flames can somehow get another pick in the top 20 he's a guy I would like to look at, we need a super pest who isn't a liability out there and can put up solid minutes but I want the Flames to somehow obtain Ekblad.

If we can come out of this draft with another 2 first round picks that would be 5 in the last 2 years which would be a huge success IMO. It's just too bad we went with Janko over Terivainen (spl??) and even Maatta who is having a really good rookie season in Pitts.

Poirier might just be that pest you have described above. He agitates and fights, and is putting up terrific points.

As for Teravainen - wait until he makes the NHL and performs. There are many kids who have shown themselves really well in the WJCs, only to barely even get a sniff at the NHL level. Scouts are saying he will not be a center at the NHL level, and it isn't a guarantee that he will break into the NHL any time sooner than Jankowski would. I do agree that he is ahead of Jankowski, but TT is not a big guy in the least, and Jankowski could very well indeed be having a much better career than TT.

Sometimes you just have to wait and see how things develop. There have been a lot of "Can't miss" prospects that miss for whatever reasons, and there are some surprise hits from the "He will never make it in the NHL" side of things as well (though obviously, really low numbers on that one). I will wait until both (or either, or neither) make the NHL and see their impacts before really passing judgement. There is legitimate question marks as to how well TT's 5'10" frame and skills translates into the NHL, so it isn't like he is a 'guaranteed impact player'.

[Badgers Nose]

Crazy thought, what if the Flames have no picks until the 4th round?

Maybe they will load up for next year, and will get some valuable current nhl assets and more picks for our picks because of where we project to finish this year. Then Burke converts a pile of the assets we loaded up on in 2015 for McDavid.

Idk if either of the first two guys this year is going to change Calgary's future much.

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by Badgers Nose

Crazy thought, what if the Flames have no picks until the 4th round?

Maybe they will load up for next year, and will get some valuable current nhl assets and more picks for our picks because of where we project to finish this year. Then Burke converts a pile of the assets we loaded up on in 2015 for McDavid.

Idk if either of the first two guys this year is going to change Calgary's future much.

Pretty much a pipe dream.

1. NHL GMs know what is at stake in the 2015 draft, any 1st round pick given up will more than likely be lottery protected. Going by the 2012 and 2013 drafts top 10 picks were given up only for potential franchise players (Staal and Schneider) and if the Flames have potential franchise players for 1st rounders, why wouldn't they keep them?

2. There is no guarantee that any picks acquired for 2015 would be better than the a first 5 pick in any of the 2014 rounds. Granted they could be better but they also could be worse. Lets say for the sake of argument the 2015 draftees will be equal or slightly better than the 2014 draftees. You lose a year of development time.

3. You would need a top 4 pick just to increase your chance at McDavid by more than 10%.

[strombad]

Originally Posted by Badgers Nose

Crazy thought, what if the Flames have no picks until the 4th round?



Maybe they will load up for next year, and will get some valuable current nhl assets and more picks for our picks because of where we project to finish this year. Then Burke converts a pile of the assets we loaded up on in 2015 for McDavid.



Idk if either of the first two guys this year is going to change Calgary's future much.

I'm almost positive that if Calgary doesn't end up last or win the lottery, they won't get McDavid. Same goes for every team out there.

Anyone who has McDavid in their grasp isn't going to trade that pick. It would take an insane deal.

[Badgers Nose]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

Pretty much a pipe dream.

1. NHL GMs know what is at stake in the 2015 draft, any 1st round pick given up will more than likely be lottery protected. Going by the 2012 and 2013 drafts top 10 picks were given up only for potential franchise players (Staal and Schneider) and if the Flames have potential franchise players for 1st rounders, why wouldn't they keep them?

2. There is no guarantee that any picks acquired for 2015 would be better than the a first 5 pick in any of the 2014 rounds. Granted they could be better but they also could be worse. Lets say for the sake of argument the 2015 draftees will be equal or slightly better than the 2014 draftees. You lose a year of development time.

3. You would need a top 4 pick just to increase your chance at McDavid by more than 10%.

Originally Posted by strombad

I'm almost positive that if Calgary doesn't end up last or win the lottery, they won't get McDavid. Same goes for every team out there.

Anyone who has McDavid in their grasp isn't going to trade that pick. It would take an insane deal.

Probably right, but it sure would be a spectacle.

I'd like to see Calgary try something bold. Sutter style, but with better results.

[Poe969]

No, it's time for the flames to just draft and develop a team. No magic trades, no quick fixes, and no best player not in the NHL. Draft good players like Ekblad or Reinhart and take time developing them, don't rush them and then do the same nest year and probably the year after that and the. Have a good team

[strombad]

Originally Posted by Badgers Nose

Probably right, but it sure would be a spectacle.



I'd like to see Calgary try something bold. Sutter style, but with better results.

Oh hell yeah, if somehow the Flames traded up to get McDavid it would mean huge things for the franchise.

[handgroen]

i have a suspicion that teams will be tempted to tank pretty early into next season in hopes of increasing their mcdavid chances. *cough edmonton

the flames are not poised to bottom out next year, unfortunately this is the year for that, and the expectation that we should continue the spiral for a swing at mcdavid is foolhardy.

my point is that with some of the leagues lesser-lights throwing in the towel early it could be a good time for the fledgling flames to push for a spot and have some young guys play relevant games. Could greatly benefit the development of the brodie, monahan, gaudreau, poirier types that will likely make up much of our team.
let's never look to lose at the start of the season people, good god there's enough of that in this province w/o us.
and look where it's got them btw

[Jason14h]

the flames are not poised to bottom out next year

We're not? How do you see us being much better if at all then our current team next season?

[Poe969]

It's funny because some are saying we won't be bad next year when most if iur best players will be on other teams. Sure, our rookies will all come in and be hidden gems and carry us to respectability after a one year rebuild...

The flames won't have to try and tank next year, it'll happen on its own without them having to try

[Hockey_Ninja]

Originally Posted by handgroen

the flames are not poised to bottom out next year,

Lol have you SEEN this roster? I don't care how good Ekblad and Reinhart are they ain't turning this team into a contender. Expect much of the same, if not worst in 2014-2015.

[dammage79]

To predict how any team will fare (besides the Oilers) the next season before seeing which trades and signings and draft picks they make is a stretch. Save those bold statements for the pre-season. Not saying they'll contend for a playoff spot or suck as much as the consensus leads us to believe. But lets see a body of work laid out for next season before hand.

[handgroen]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

We're not? How do you see us being much better if at all then our current team next season?

you see us doing worse? bottoming out means lowest point. we're third last right now in front of edmonton with 34pts, buffalo has 28pts with a game in hand. Not far to fall IMO. Can we have a weaker roster? yes. can we finish lower in the standings? i don't think so. This is rock bottom.
Look how bad the sabres are determined to be, and that's not with the mcdavid hope to fuel them.
We as hardcore fans can't start viewing a tank-job as an improvement. and while I agree the flames should be a full on seller at the deadline, i still want the team to improve it's record next season, regardless of the lineup.
God forbid the names on the roster improve as individuals, or was that not the point of all the youth we've found ourselves with?

[Badgers Nose]

Originally Posted by Poe969

No, it's time for the flames to just draft and develop a team. No magic trades, no quick fixes, and no best player not in the NHL. Draft good players like Ekblad or Reinhart and take time developing them, don't rush them and then do the same nest year and probably the year after that and the. Have a good team

Nope, it's time for them to find the straightest line between current state a desired state. Maybe that ends up being what you described, but I am open to anything if it works.

It's not not black and white. You seem to only recognize a binary set of choices in your posts. Old guys at the expense of youth or a full 5 year rebuild. Maybe there is something in-between like like building around some youth and also some 4-5 year NHL vets. There are probably lots of ways to do this that civilians like us can't conceive of.

And that is coming from someone that fully enjoys the rebuild and watching the kids.

I don't think Burke would talk about accelerating the build unless he had a pretty clear plan. My guess is that he presented this to ownership just prior to firing Feaster.

[djsFlames]

Agreed. No tricks, no big offers, no need for all that. We'll already have a decent chance if we just take the 2015 1st round pick we have already and gamble with that.

Let's just focus on building a team. Let the chips fall where they may. We could stockpile three or four 1st rounders for next year and offer them all for the 1st overall and the team holding it likely wouldn't budge. Dumb idea. Either we get super lucky or we don't. No other way around it, I don't think. And outside of McDavid I'm not sure others would be much better than Reinhart/Ekblad (Eichel? Dunno) but fact is we have a legitimate shot at the big two for this year, and unlike some here, I do think they could make a difference. Every draft seems to produce at least a couple higher end NHLers, whether it's considered generally strong or weaker. Just don't put ALL your chips in the McDavid basket, only to be disappointed and have to take scraps instead, meanwhile not picking up anything meaningful in this draft.

[YogiBerra]

Originally Posted by strombad

I'm almost positive that if Calgary doesn't end up last or win the lottery, they won't get McDavid. Same goes for every team out there.

Anyone who has McDavid in their grasp isn't going to trade that pick. It would take an insane deal.

I would not be too dissapointed if we got Eichel instead of Mcdavid in the draft he is looking quite impressive himself. I would not trade much to move up in the draft. He does not have quite the tools that mcdavid has (i love Mcdavids' speed; looks as good or better than mackinnon). I just do not see crosby like characteristics from mcdavid. He is patently better than any first overall since Tavares but i would be suprised if he is as good as the panelists say he is.

Way off topic but man i was always wondering what your avatar was supposed to be; my sister showed me that song today. That song is hilarious he is so serious in the beginning. Pretty sure a fox barks though haha not do do do or whatever he was saying.