2024 NHL Draft Thread

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by TOfan

Has a dr said he’s a massive risk, or is that just something you like to believe?

I am pretty sure with Snuffy it's Iginla or bust. I get the impression that the poster might even have wanted Tij at one over Celebrini if we had it.

[Snuffleupagus]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

I am pretty sure with Snuffy it's Iginla or bust. I get the impression that the poster might even have wanted Tij at one over Celebrini if we had it.

False, it was Celebrini, Catton and Iginla in that order. I'm a little on the fence between Catton and Iginla though.

[Snuffleupagus]

Originally Posted by TOfan

Has a dr said he’s a massive risk, or is that just something you like to believe?

Probably

[cral12]

Originally Posted by cral12

Here. We. Go.

Ahead of schedule, Upside Hockey's Final Rankings just released. I'll add this to the original post here as well.
* >400 prospects featured in our mammoth spreadsheet
* >220 profiles by Sandman!

Direct link:
https://bit.ly/upside2024nhldraft

(Lindstrom admittedly making me a wee bit nervous as well. Our chief of scouting E-Mac covets big skilled centres. My personal preference (and realistic) would at 9th would be Buium, Parekh, Dickinson, Catton, Iginla; I'd also jump on Demigod Demidov should he increduously drop to our slot)

https://twitter.com/user/status/1802069870663684486

If anyone still checks in on the twitter, any likes and reposts would be mucho appreciated!

[Fan69]

Originally Posted by cral12

If anyone still checks in on the twitter, any likes and reposts would be mucho appreciated!

Thanks!

Boy a choice between catton, dickinson, buium? Oof thats tough to pick. Would probably go buium.

Having that second pick though and walking away from this draft with Dickinson and buium patrolling the blue line for the next decade? Awfully enticing.

[Sandman]

Draft Thoughts (Wheaties Edition):

If you were to take a survey of Brandon Wheat KIngs fans asking who their favorite player on the team was, I would bet a fair number of them would say it was C/RW Caleb Hadland, a 5'10",181lb pitbull on skates. Hadland was drafted in the first round, 22nd overall, by the Wheaties in the 2021 WHL Draft, and made his debut in the 2022-23 season, which was shortened to 38 games (with only 7 points) due to an injury suffered at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge where he broke his fibula. This season, with Brandon finishing the regular-season in 9th-place in the WHL, and 13th in goals-for, Hadland registered 12 goals and 39 points in 68 games, to go with 61 PIM. He was the only member of the team to play a full 68-game slate. Hadland finished 7th in team scoring, and had to compete with older players (and 17 year-old future star Roger McQueen) for ice-time on a fairly veteran-laden top-six, stacked mostly with players 19-and-over. Perhaps that's the reason he could only muster 1 goal in 4 playoff games, as the Wheaties were swept by the eventual WHL-Champions, the Moose Jaw Warriors.

Hadland gets time in all situations for Brandon under Head Coach, and former Calgary Flame Marty Murray, and he's responsible at both ends of the rink without any flashiness, and no real dynamic qualities. He gets noticed for his style though, as he seems to think that he's a 6'2" power-forward, but looks at times more like a rabid Wolverine. He loves to stir the pot and drive his adversaries nuts, while renting space in their heads. Despite his diminutive stature, he's difficult to play against, and not at all afraid to muck it up with much larger opponents in the greasy areas of the ice- he's always in the thick of the battle, and usually wins. On the forecheck, he applies supreme pressure on opposing defensemen, causing turnovers and picking pockets- most of his enemies can't contend with his sky-high compete, or his unrelenting motor, and are simply outworked. He fights for every inch of ice, and plays an energetic, but rather disciplined, physical game. Making him even more dangerous is his strong skating ability, with a peppy first-step, quick acceleration, and smooth edgework, augmented by his uncommon workrate. Hadland goes hard to the net, with all of his goals seemingly coming from within ten feet of the crease, using his keen hand-eye coordination, and soft hands to capitalize on rebounds, and finish passing plays. He isn't afraid to use the middle of the ice, and can locate pockets of space in coverage to unleash a wrister that has NHL velocity behind it, or to employ his threatening catch-and-release.

Hadland is intelligent, with the ability to outthink opponents, but while he owns a fair amount of quality distribution skill, true creativity only comes in flashes. He's not a high-end playmaker who can connect through layers of traffic, instead relying on a safe, simple passing game with quick touches- he doesn't often hold on to the puck for too long. He can, however, delay for a moment or two to wait for the better option to arise, and to make the right decisions. There's a good amount of deception in his game to open space, and to work the puck to the middle and to high-danger areas. Hadland also has fairly good puck-skill, with smooth handling, and tight protection. He supports the play well at both ends off the rink, relocating after dishing off to recieve the return pass, and finding the right places to be a playable option. Looking at his metrics, his defensive numbers are excellent, but they show a weakness in his contribution to his team's transition- it seems that he defers a lot to teammates to carry through the neutral zone. On the backcheck however, he applies his work-ethic and physicality to suffocate opponents, and is highly engaged and disruptive. He takes away the middle effectively by angling opponents to the outside. Hadland is a character kid and a leader, and has been so at every level, even wearing the "A" at times for Brandon as a 17-year-old. His stats from this year are rather paltry, but he's a prime candidate for a huge breakout in the coming years for the Wheat Kings. If he's deemed good enough to be drafted, look for him in later rounds.

[ComixZone]

Originally Posted by the-rasta-masta

Give me:

Iggy/Catton
Parascak
Hutson
Zether

Done!

I'd toss Luchanko next to Parascak as an option, and yep!

[cral12]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1801437561396556220

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by ComixZone

I'd toss Luchanko next to Parascak as an option, and yep!

Luchanko has become one of my favourites recently as well. Really hoping one of Luchanko, Parascak, Vanacker, or Mews is available still at #28.

[Royle9]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

Luchanko has become one of my favourites recently as well. Really hoping one of Luchanko, Parascak, Vanacker, or Mews is available still at #28.

I’d wager there’s a high probability at least 2/4 are available

[Jiri Hrdina]

New Button mock:
https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/canadian-nhl-...raft-1.2135788

Note this is different from his rankings. This is his prediction, not his own rankings.

He's got Silayev to the Flames at 9. Sam O'Reily at 28
Iginla to Utah at 6.

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

New Button mock:
https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/canadian-nhl-...raft-1.2135788

Note this is different from his rankings. This is his prediction, not his own rankings.

He's got Silayev to the Flames at 9. Sam O'Reily at 28
Iginla to Utah at 6.

Passing on Catton for Silayev would make be disappointing lol

[Fan69]

Originally Posted by Bonded

Passing on Catton for Silayev would make be disappointing lol

Why not both? If conroy snags ten walking out with catton/sylaev/yakemchuk is a real possibility.

[Monahammer]

I like it.

I'd like it even more if we had 10 to play with too. Silayev will be very good, I think.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

New Button mock:
https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/canadian-nhl-...raft-1.2135788

Note this is different from his rankings. This is his prediction, not his own rankings.

He's got Silayev to the Flames at 9. Sam O'Reily at 28
Iginla to Utah at 6.

Not sure drafting Erik Cernak at 9 (the comparable that Button has) would be the best. Hopefully he has some untapped offensive potential for whatever team takes him.

[Toonage]

Given who would be taken / available after Silayev I'd also be surprised if the Flames went with the Russian.

Though maybe I shouldn't be. Conroy has been on a Russian player kick and seems to be creating an environment, like he has a plan or something.

Also I know next to nothing about these prospects outside of the research I've done since the season ended lol.

[HitterD]

Originally Posted by Fan69

Why not both? If conroy snags ten walking out with catton/sylaev/yakemchuk is a real possibility.

Yeah the second pick (10 or 11) changes everything for me. If the Flames only have #9, I feel they need to prioritize offensive upside (Catton, Iginla, Lindstrom, Parekh, Yakemchuk Buium etc) but adding a second pick in the top 15 allows them to still come away with a offensively gifted player. At that point I might be more open to taking a player like Silayev with one of the pick.

[Bingo Jr.]

I would be a bit disappointed with Silayev. With the Flames current prospect pool I'd hope for a player with more dynamic offense at a top 10 pick.

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by Bingo Jr.

I would be a bit disappointed with Silayev. With the Flames current prospect pool I'd hope for a player with more dynamic offense at a top 10 pick.

Unless some prospect comes out of nowhere, the Flames are picking top 5 next draft.

The Flames were one of the worst teams after the trade deadline, and as of now, nothing has changed except rumors that Markstrom and Mangiapane are out the door.

[Sandman]

Draft Thoughts (Triple H Edition):

If you're looking for a late round sleeper, LHD Artyom Shchuchinov (yup, spelled right) may just be your guy. He's older by first-time draft eligible standards with an Oct.19th, 2005 birthday, but he was one of the youngest players in the KHL this season, putting up a goal and 5 points in 54 games for Traktor Chelyabinsk. Those numbers seem insignificant, but the KHL is notorious for not giving young players ice-time or opportunity, and Shchuchinov averaged less than eight minutes per game. To put it in perspective, his points were 4th in the league for defensemen 18 years-old and under, behind only Mikhail Gulyayev, Anton Silayev, and Dmitri Simashev, and 13th-overall for all players in that age group. Like most youngsters in the KHL, he played very conservatively for most of the season so as not to make mistakes that would get him demoted, but he gradually ventured more and more out of his shell as the year progressed, taking more risks offensively. It's very difficult to evaluate a player his age in the KHL as they aren't playing their true game, and in Shchuchinov's case- he's a lot more slight than most, at 5'11",and only 154lbs.

Shchuchinov won't be confused with Cale Makar, but he has excellent mobility in all 4 directions, with superb edges for extra evasiveness- which comes in handy for a smaller player. He's shifty and slippery, with the ability to spin off of checks, and plenty of slick 1-on-1 moves to get around opponents. His repertoire contains well-developed puck-skills and mechanically sound handling with quick hands, and he displays a confident delay game in breakouts as well as off the rush- he will circle back instead of making an ill-advised play, even in the KHL. Most young D get few opportunities in the KHL to show their offense, but he started to have the confidence to contribute to the attack more as the year progressed, even daring to occasionally activate off of the point, make a break up the boards to open lanes to the slot, and join the rush. Still, he didn't get to really showcase the kind of player that he truly is, but he did show good puck movement and poise under pressure against men, as well as the ability to open space for himself and teammates when carrying. His passing skill is always evident, but any sign of true creativity came only in flashes, with his more high-end playmaking on display mostly in the MHL, Russia's top Junior league, in 2022-23. This is a player that possesses good IQ and vision though, make no mistake.

Shchuchinov is effective in transition, with the confidence to carry through the neutral zone, or work give-and-goes, but will stretch the ice on occasion with a long-bomb. A big strength of his that he is able to flaunt in the big leagues is his performance in retrievals and breakouts, with a high level of patience in his passes to delay against the forecheck to choose the best option possible. He's remarkably poised on retrievals, and unfazed by pressure, using plenty of deception to get around attackers. He pays attention to his defensive duties, but like other areas of his game, his slight build is a hindrance. One positive is that he's quite good good against the rush, making an effort in killing it before it ever reaches his blueline, with solid gap-control and a well-timed stick. He struggles to defend in-zone and against the cycle, and needs to upgrade his engagement and overall awareness in this area. At the other end of the ice, he can sometimes make ill-advised pinches into the zone, leaving his partner hanging out to dry. As stated, Shchuchinov's strength, physicality, and stature are all detrimental to his overall game at this time, and need to be addressed before he has hope of an NHL future. It's hard to say if teams will ignore him on Draft day, but he's got definite potential- it's just difficult to say where he'll slot in to a lineup, and what kind of player he'll be going forward- he would have been much better off playing in the MHL this year, in my opinion. Look for him in later rounds.