2020/2021 Trade Speculation and Rumours

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Does anyone think that Treliving, given Edmonton’s draft picks, would have constructed as a bad a team?

If you draft middle of the pack every year, you get missed of the pack players. Unless you can strike gold (but lost of team have one of those miracle draftees), or if you are in a place to attract top UFAs.

I agree that a top C is a large part of the missing puzzle. It’s pretty hard to draft one, even harder to trade for one, and they are practically never available as a UFA. I don’t think Tavares goes UFA without Toronto hanging around.

That's why it stings so much to see the team's highest ever draft pick basically in bust territory. Oilers get Draisaitl, one pick later the Flames get Bennett. That stings. I loved the pick at the time, but Bennett just never panned out. That's going to hurt an organization.

[CliffFletcher]

The only asset that has even a shot at returning a #1C is Gaudreau. Otherwise it’s miss the playoffs, pray to the lottery gods, and wait 3-5 years.

[Enoch Root]

Bennett was unfortunate, but that was 6 years ago.

And his lack of value would have contributed to the Flames not doing so well in the standings, and therefore getting better picks than they would have gotten if he had panned out.

In other words, the draft is self-correcting for these things.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

That's why it stings so much to see the team's highest ever draft pick basically in bust territory. Oilers get Draisaitl, one pick later the Flames get Bennett. That stings. I loved the pick at the time, but Bennett just never panned out. That's going to hurt an organization.

And I’m convinced the only reason the Oilers picked Draisaitl was because they were trying to get bigger and he’s 1 inch taller (and a few pounds heavier). And he looked terrible in his first year. Everyone figured they should have sent him down before 10 games.

[Erick Estrada]

Draisaitl looked slow in his first season and is one of those rare players that managed to significantly improve his skating as a pro.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Draisaitl looked slow in his first season and is one of those rare players that managed to significantly improve his skating as a pro.

It’s possible Draisaitl was never taught the correct technique and as soon as that happened a huge improvement occurred. Versus being taught the correct strides, etc but just lacking the raw ability. Now Tkachuk is all over the place and his dad was a decent skater so I’m hoping against hope it’s the first one. Monahan I think just can’t skate very fast because his stride looks normal to me.

[Classic_Sniper]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

That's why it stings so much to see the team's highest ever draft pick basically in bust territory. Oilers get Draisaitl, one pick later the Flames get Bennett. That stings. I loved the pick at the time, but Bennett just never panned out. That's going to hurt an organization.

In hindsight, the Flames should’ve pulled a Jarmo Kekalainen and drafted Ehlers or even William Nylander. This is why you pay to have your own trusted amateur scouting staff, to spot the Sam Bennetts, Jake Virtanens and Michael Dal Colles of a draft. To look past the hype and foresee that their ability might just not translate to the next level.

[GordonBlue]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

And I’m convinced the only reason the Oilers picked Draisaitl was because they were trying to get bigger and he’s 1 inch taller (and a few pounds heavier). And he looked terrible in his first year. Everyone figured they should have sent him down before 10 games.

I don't know if it was a joke or true, but wasn't there something about Bennett not being able to do pull ups, and it scared the oilers away?
then Bennett said he was glad the Oilers didn't pick him?

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

And I’m convinced the only reason the Oilers picked Draisaitl was because they were trying to get bigger and he’s 1 inch taller (and a few pounds heavier). And he looked terrible in his first year. Everyone figured they should have sent him down before 10 games.

And he played junior in their backyard. How tragic is it that the one year the Oilers make the right pick at the draft is the year their usual blunder would have been a franchise-changer for the Flames?

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by GordonBlue

I don't know if it was a joke or true, but wasn't there something about Bennett not being able to do pull ups, and it scared the oilers away?
then Bennett said he was glad the Oilers didn't pick him?

He wasn’t able to do pull-ups because of a shoulder condition. I don’t know if it had anything to do with the Oilers backing off of him. I always heard they went for the bigger guy.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Classic_Sniper

In hindsight, the Flames should’ve pulled a Jarmo Kekalainen and drafted Ehlers or even William Nylander. This is why you pay to have your own trusted amateur scouting staff, to spot the Sam Bennetts, Jake Virtanens and Michael Dal Colles of a draft. To look past the hype and foresee that their ability might just not translate to the next level.

Tough to do after the Janko fiasco.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Classic_Sniper

In hindsight, the Flames should’ve pulled a Jarmo Kekalainen and drafted Ehlers or even William Nylander. This is why you pay to have your own trusted amateur scouting staff, to spot the Sam Bennetts, Jake Virtanens and Michael Dal Colles of a draft. To look past the hype and foresee that their ability might just not translate to the next level.

Yes, the Flames should get some scouts with better hindsight

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Classic_Sniper

In hindsight, the Flames should’ve pulled a Jarmo Kekalainen and drafted Ehlers or even William Nylander. This is why you pay to have your own trusted amateur scouting staff, to spot the Sam Bennetts, Jake Virtanens and Michael Dal Colles of a draft. To look past the hype and foresee that their ability might just not translate to the next level.

At the time Sam Bennett was the better prospect. Full stop. On more than one list he was the #1 ranked guy.
This isn't a case of getting caught up in the hype. He was the right choice at the time.

[Classic_Sniper]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Tough to do after the Janko fiasco.

I don’t buy that, I personally think it had to do with Brian Burke more than anything. You had Tod Button who in 2011 had 2 wildcards in Kucherov and Gaudreau who he thought would be NHLers, then Burke takes over the helm and the Flames start drafting plugs like Hunter Smith and Keegan Kanzig. Bennett even in the juniors played with a ton of bite and edge. He was 100% a Burke type of player.

I think if it was up to Tod Button, I bet he would’ve preferred an Ehlers or Nylander instead. I think at the very least he would’ve been all over a Brayden Point instead of Hunter freakin Smith or a Brandon Hickey. Button likes the smaller skilled guys and Ehlers and Point are of the smaller and skilled variety.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Classic_Sniper

I don’t buy that, I personally think it had to do with Brian Burke more than anything. You had Tod Button who in 2011 had 2 wildcards in Kucherov and Gaudreau who he thought would be NHLers, then Burke takes over the helm and the Flames start drafting plugs like Hunter Smith and Keegan Kanzig. Bennett even in the juniors played with a ton of bite and edge. He was 100% a Burke type of player.

I think if it was up to Tod Button, I bet he would’ve preferred an Ehlers or Nylander instead. I think at the very least he would’ve been all over a Brayden Point instead of Hunter freakin Smith or a Brandon Hickey. Button likes the smaller skilled guys and Ehlers and Point are of the smaller and skilled variety.

Ehlers might be smaller than Bennett, but he wasn't more skilled.

You are talking in hindsight. As Jiri said, Bennett was universally ranked higher. It wasn't a case of the Flames targeting a bigger guy, Bennett was the #1 ranked prospect that year by many (and in the discussion by all)

[SuperMatt18]

Yeah.

If it's Treliving and Button managing that draft instead of Burke I do think we likely take Point, he fits the bill of other guys we've drafted in that area.

But there were 4 top players in that draft and Bennett just happened to be the one left at #4 but that was pretty much a consensus. Flames messed up his development IMO and might have rushed him into the NHL and then tried to turn him into a grinder, but he was the guy to pick at that spot with the knowledge we had at the time.

IIRC the worry on this site at the time was actually that if Ekblad, and Bennett were gone by pick number 4 that Burke might go off the board with a Ritchie or Virtanen pick. Since he might not like the softer game of Reinhart or Draisaitl.

[Enoch Root]

With respect to Burke wanting a bigger guy, the concern that year was that they might indeed go off the board and go after Nick Ritchie. THAT would have been a mistake. Bennett was simply unfortunate.

[Bonded]

The hindsight game on the draft is stupid unless it is against a very clear reach, ie Boston not taking Barzal, Connor, or Chabot with one of their 3 back to back picks and taking some reaches. That was a bad draft.

Bennett was always in the conversation for top 5, he was not a reach at all.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Ritchie might have finally figured things out too.
7 goals, 14 points so far this season.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by Classic_Sniper

In hindsight, the Flames should’ve pulled a Jarmo Kekalainen and drafted Ehlers or even William Nylander. This is why you pay to have your own trusted amateur scouting staff, to spot the Sam Bennetts, Jake Virtanens and Michael Dal Colles of a draft. To look past the hype and foresee that their ability might just not translate to the next level.

Sam Bennett was ranked #1 by central scouting and top four by everyone. It was the big 4, 29 teams would have taken Bennett there.