2025 NHL Draft Thread

[devo22]

Levshunov is 19 and defensemen take a while to develop. Frondell was drafted 2 minutes ago. How are things "trending" in any certain direction here?

hey, I wouldn't be surprised either if those picks didn't end up being the best choice. But at this point, who knows. You're getting way ahead of yourself just to pat yourself on the back on an internet forum.

[FlamesDraftPrognosticator]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

Define "miss"?

Are those guys going to bust? Probably not
Are they going to be important members of their team going forward? Probably
In 5 years will we look back and see that there was a better player that went after those guys? Also probably.

But that's almost always the case.

Jiri, you can’t miss when you draft 2nd overall. He better be a top 5 player in the draft. It’s like Misa this year, if SJ passed on him and went with Frondell like some were saying then that’s a huge miss. When you draft top 3 you better have one of the top 5 players in the draft. Chicago drafted 2nd and 3rd in back to back drafts and neither of those guys will be a top 5 player in their respective drafts.

[Jiri Hrdina]

If he ends up being a top of the line up player that’s not a miss regardless of if there are better players drafted after him

[FlamesDraftPrognosticator]

Originally Posted by devo22

Levshunov is 19 and defensemen take a while to develop. Frondell was drafted 2 minutes ago. How are things "trending" in any certain direction here?

hey, I wouldn't be surprised either if those picks didn't end up being the best choice. But at this point, who knows. You're getting way ahead of yourself just to pat yourself on the back on an internet forum.

100% neither will end up being the best player to draft in their respective position or Ill donate $100 to any CP charity. I’m going to be laughing this one in a few years.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Again that’s an easy bet
Betting the field always has better odds
Nothing impressive about that.

[Finger Cookin]

Originally Posted by FlamesDraftPrognosticator

It will be fun revisiting the debate every year.

"Fun" is trying to do too much heavy lifting in that sentence, and failing.

[FlamesDraftPrognosticator]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

If he ends up being a top of the line up player that’s not a miss regardless of if there are better players drafted after him

No it is a miss, Frondell is not even a top 5 player in this draft class is what I’m saying. It may even play out worse. The hands and high end talent that people were raving about during the draft are not there. His hockey IQ and decision making with the puck is even questionable. How did he get compared to Barkov, I have no clue.

[devo22]

I think everything after 2022 is too early to judge, but:

Andrei Svechnikov hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2018 draft
Kaapo Kakko hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2019 draft
Quinton Byfield hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2020 draft
Matty Beniers hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2021 draft
Simon Nemec hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2022 draft

you get the point. Like Jiri said, easy bet to make.

[FlamesDraftPrognosticator]

Originally Posted by devo22

I think everything after 2022 is too early to judge, but:

Andrei Svechnikov hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2018 draft
Kaapo Kakko hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2019 draft
Quinton Byfield hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2020 draft
Matty Beniers hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2021 draft
Simon Nemec hasn't been the 2nd best player in the 2022 draft

you get the point. Like Jiri said, easy bet to make.

That’s not back to back years and they won’t be top 5 players in their respective drafts. Neither. That’s not good enough drafting.

[FlamesDraftPrognosticator]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

Again that’s an easy bet
Betting the field always has better odds
Nothing impressive about that.

Jiri, Levshunov isn’t even in the top five right now—and in a redraft eventually, he might slip closer to ten. As for Frondell, I’m calling it now: he’s not top-three caliber and won’t be a top 5, and that’ll become obvious. If the Hawks miss on both picks in consecutive years, that’s a clear failure by the scouts and front office. When you have back-to-back top-three selections, you have to land at least one top-five player from those draft classes.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by FlamesDraftPrognosticator

Jiri, Levshunov isn’t even in the top five right now—and in a redraft, he might slip closer to ten. As for Frondell, I’m calling it now: he’s not top-three caliber, and that’ll become obvious. If the Hawks miss on both picks in consecutive years, that’s a clear failure by the scouts and front office. When you have back-to-back top-three selections, you have to land at least one top-five player from those draft classes.

Post your list so at least we have something real to come back and look at years from now. Predicting people to be wrong is easier that actually putting your own list out there.

Or don't. I don't care.

But right now your arrogance isn't matched but your willingness to actually put a real opinion out there. So you will come back a year from now, as you have now, and tell us all how right you are. When in reality you are doing nothing that is impressive.

Here's another one. The Hawks won't win the cup in the next decade. I'll come back a decade from now and pat myself on the back for such an amazing prediction and rename myself "TheCupProrognosticator"

[FlamesDraftPrognosticator]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

Post your list so at least we have something real to come back and look at years from now. Predicting people to be wrong is easier that actually putting your own list out there.

Or don't. I don't care.

But right now your arrogance isn't matched but your willingness to actually put a real opinion out there. So you will come back a year from now, as you have now, and tell us all how right you are. When in reality you are doing nothing that is impressive.

Here's another one. The Hawks won't win the cup in the next decade. I'll come back a decade from now and pat myself on the back for such an amazing prediction and rename myself "TheCupProrognosticator"

I’m not a paid scout, so I don’t have the luxury of watching every single prospect. But I’ve spent plenty of time watching the ones who matter—especially these two, given all the top-3 hype surrounding them in their respective drafts. And based on how they stack up against others around them I’ve followed closely over the last two years, I feel confident saying neither belongs in the top five of their class

[dammage79]

R.E Frondell:
1. He very obviously is a top 5 pick. He went 3rd.

2. Nobody even said he was Barkov. They said Barkov Lite i.e plays a similar game without the size and reach. Which is very accurate. His work rate is near top of this draft class.
His SHL Stateline is top tier historically for his age. That already puts him in the top 5.

3. It's okay to have your opinion on players, but don't confuse opinion with facts. Reality is, nobody knows how draftees end up while paving their career paths. All teams are doing are using the information they've gathered to make the best choice for their team. And not amount of Fan information comes close to what they can gather. They have resources and acess that I certainly do not have or the money to let me have it to make a more informed opinion than them.

I respect the bravado of you trying to enforce your opinion on this draft but it's literally page 2 of their story.

I think Frondell ends up a really exceptional 2nd line center behind Bedard. Only time will tell.

[1qqaaz]

You can judge/evaluate prospects in their D-2 years. That's why they're prospects. DuPont will get more points in the NHL than the 7'0" Moldovan. This isn't a bold prediction, despite their ages.

But it's tough to formulate insightful conclusions on 20 year olds unless the numbers are extreme.

[BagoPucks]

I think he is more critical of the Hawks decision making than of the prospects. Hawks have drafted guys they think will be best for their team and not necessarily the BPA in these cases.

[FlamesDraftPrognosticator]

Originally Posted by dammage79

R.E Frondell:
1. He very obviously is a top 5 pick. He went 3rd.

2. Nobody even said he was Barkov. They said Barkov Lite i.e plays a similar game without the size and reach. Which is very accurate. His work rate is near top of this draft class.
His SHL Stateline is top tier historically for his age. That already puts him in the top 5.

3. It's okay to have your opinion on players, but don't confuse opinion with facts. Reality is, nobody knows how draftees end up while paving their career paths. All teams are doing are using the information they've gathered to make the best choice for their team. And not amount of Fan information comes close to what they can gather. They have resources and acess that I certainly do not have or the money to let me have it to make a more informed opinion than them.

I respect the bravado of you trying to enforce your opinion on this draft but it's literally page 2 of their story.

I think Frondell ends up a really exceptional 2nd line center behind Bedard. Only time will tell.

To address your points.

1. Yes, he was drafted at 3 but he will not end up a top 5 player in this draft when we look back down the road.

2. It’s actually the opposite - ex-players, teammates, scouts, media outlets, and Frondell himself have consistently used Barkov as his comparable.

3. Nobody knows how these kids will end up? But isn’t that a scouts job, to evaluate talent, what would be the point of them then?

I respect your view, but that’s where I disagree. Frondell won’t come close to what people are projecting. He’s not a consistent point-per-game guy, lacks elite skill, and his fundamentals—passing, zone entries, skating even basic offensive awareness and defensive awareness are lacking for a top end player. It’s a lot of things to overcome to be a top 5 player in the draft. Time will tell.

[devo22]

I don't even disagree so much with your points. It's the arrogance with which you claim absolutes at a time where there simply aren't any yet that throws me off, actually. I had him 5th on my list for the CPHL draft (though I didn't do a deeper dive on him and Martone because I drafted 4th and had zeroed in on Hagens/Desnoyers). But I can see the argument for a Barkov lite when you already have Bedard. Time will tell.

As far as back-to-back top 3 picks go, I find Anaheim even more interesting (#2 Carlsson, then #3 Sennecke). I would have never drafted Carlsson over Fantilli, and Sennecke was a surprise pick as well. Will be a few years before you can even start to judge their decisions, but those at least threw me off more than Levshunov/Frondell. And then of course there's the Rangers with Kakko/Lafreniere ... hard to think of a more underwhelming back-to-back top 3 draft.

[Ped]

another example that in time WILL prove that fans can sometimes evaluate talent better than the so-called experts (scouts, draft magazines, nhl media etc).

I’m not a paid scout, so I don’t have the luxury of watching every single prospect.

You're trying to have it both ways, and you can't. If fans can evaluate better than scouts sometimes, than it shouldn't matter if you are are a paid scout or not. So list when you were right (proven to be right, as "trending" is not anything at this point with recent picks) and also when you were proven wrong.


Look forward to you backing up what you say.

[Wastedyouth]

Originally Posted by FlamesDraftPrognosticator

To address your points.

1. Yes, he was drafted at 3 but he will not end up a top 5 player in this draft when we look back down the road.

2. It’s actually the opposite - ex-players, teammates, scouts, media outlets, and Frondell himself have consistently used Barkov as his comparable.

3. Nobody knows how these kids will end up? But isn’t that a scouts job, to evaluate talent, what would be the point of them then?

I respect your view, but that’s where I disagree. Frondell won’t come close to what people are projecting. He’s not a consistent point-per-game guy, lacks elite skill, and his fundamentals—passing, zone entries, skating even basic offensive awareness and defensive awareness are lacking for a top end player. It’s a lot of things to overcome to be a top 5 player in the draft. Time will tell.

In your opinion.

[BagoPucks]

Originally Posted by FlamesDraftPrognosticator

Jiri, you can’t miss when you draft 2nd overall. He better be a top 5 player in the draft. It’s like Misa this year, if SJ passed on him and went with Frondell like some were saying then that’s a huge miss. When you draft top 3 you better have one of the top 5 players in the draft. Chicago drafted 2nd and 3rd in back to back drafts and neither of those guys will be a top 5 player in their respective drafts.

I would challenge your assumption on this one. I actually agree with you but you cant stop stupid with what the teams want to do. Do they want to miss? no. Are they doing the right thing? prolly not. Do they believe they are? yes.