Craig's List 2014 Prospects

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Originally Posted by Beatle17

And how did that work out for him? He only played 3 FULL seasons of games in the NHL once he began playing with men.

Huh? Mike Peca had a very good 12 year career did he not? Not sure exactly what you're trying to get at. Who in their right mind wouldn't want that type of guy on their team?

And surely you realize that Bennett is at least an inch taller than Peca. What exactly are you trying to suggest here?

[icarus]

I really like what I've seen of Bennett on Youtube. Watching the Bennett highlight reels, he strikes me as being more dynamic offensively than Peca. If we can get a Peca-type player with more offensive upside then we better hope Bennett is around when we pick him! A more offensive Peca? Now I understand the Gilmour comparisons.

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Yeah he's WAY more skilled than Peca. I only brought up Peca to show you can survive in he NHL playing a physical style at below average size. Once Bennett fills out he'll be average size.

[Beatle17]

Originally Posted by Flames Draft Watcher

Huh? Mike Peca had a very good 12 year career did he not? Not sure exactly what you're trying to get at. Who in their right mind wouldn't want that type of guy on their team?

And surely you realize that Bennett is at least an inch taller than Peca. What exactly are you trying to suggest here?

He averaged 66 games per year that he was in the NHL. What I was answering to was in response to his great hitting and I said that sure did him a lot of good didn't it. Basically he missed 20% of every season with injuries, wouldn't you rather have a guy play the majority of the season instead of a smaller framed guy getting hurt all the time trying to prove something.

[RyZ]

At the #4 overall spot Im hoping for a whole lot more skill/production than Peca, Brown, Richards and other names being tossed about as Bennett comparables. I wouldnt be very happy if we drafted Bennett and his ceiling was Dustin Brown. That would be an awful oick at #4 unless the whole draft class is a bust.

[Ashasx]

65+ point Mike Richards I'd say is worthy of a 4th overall pick, but I share the sentiment.

[Da_Chief]

If we get Bennett and he becomes Richards/Peca/Brown etc we should be laughing. All these guys have been captain of their team, heart and soul type of guys. Bot to mention 60+ points or as well.

~600 players in the league, only 49 scored 60 or more points last year. If we can get a guy thats one of those 49 with all the intangibles at #4 we should shut up and enjoy that player.

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Originally Posted by RyZ

At the #4 overall spot Im hoping for a whole lot more skill/production than Peca, Brown, Richards and other names being tossed about as Bennett comparables. I wouldnt be very happy if we drafted Bennett and his ceiling was Dustin Brown. That would be an awful oick at #4 unless the whole draft class is a bust.

Well screw the comparables that other people use. Go watch some videos of Bennett and tell us what kind of player you think he compares to. He's more purely skilled than Peca, Brown or Richards IMO. When people are using those are comparables they aren't saying he would be identical to them, they're saying he plays a similar style of game. They're trying to illustrate that his grittiness, feistiness, competitiveness is a key aspect of his game. But I think those comparisons are a little unjust as I think he's more purely skilled than some of those guys and definitely faster than some of them.

Would you happy with a more skilled and faster Brown, Peca or Richards? That's the appeal of Bennett. Skill + grit + speed. Dynamite combo IMO. You just have to patient and not rush him before he's filled out.

[Hackey]

Originally Posted by RyZ

At the #4 overall spot Im hoping for a whole lot more skill/production than Peca, Brown, Richards and other names being tossed about as Bennett comparables. I wouldnt be very happy if we drafted Bennett and his ceiling was Dustin Brown. That would be an awful oick at #4 unless the whole draft class is a bust.

I think your expectations might be a bit high. Go look at the past ten drafts and who was drafted at 4 and I'd say we'd be pretty lucky to land a Dustin Brown. Sure there are some better players but there are also a lot who are not. I just hope we land a serviceable player who doesn't bust. A top 6 forward is my hope. Less than that I'm disappointed. More than that I'm really happy.

[Rick M.]

Originally Posted by Hackey

I think your expectations might be a bit high. Go look at the past ten drafts and who was drafted at 4 and I'd say we'd be pretty lucky to land a Dustin Brown. Sure there are some better players but there are also a lot who are not. I just hope we land a serviceable player who doesn't bust. A top 6 forward is my hope. Less than that I'm disappointed. More than that I'm really happy.

Agreed, anyone from the first round who becomes a top 6 player (or top 4 defenceman) is a successful pick. Top 3 is a home run.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Rick M.

Agreed, anyone from the first round who becomes a top 6 player (or top 4 defenceman) is a successful pick. Top 3 is a home run.

Agreed. There is also still a realistic chance that a top 5 pick can bust, so even a 2nd liner or 2nd pairing should be viewed as a success.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Someone showed the top 5's in previous years a while back proved that there is only a little percentage that are busts. I don't think we'll get one with this pick.

[Spinach]

Originally Posted by the_only_turek_fan

Sean Monahan asked Sam Bennett if Bennett was trying to check him, and he said he was.

[Spinach]

Originally Posted by ForeverFlameFan

Someone showed the top 5's in previous years a while back proved that there is only a little percentage that are busts. I don't think we'll get one with this pick.

Yes.
For every Pavol Brendl, Alexandre Daigle, Thomas Hickey or Brian Lawton, there's an Alex Pietrangelo, Nicklas Backstrom, Ryan Johansen, or even a Joni Pitkanen or Andrew Ladd (all of these successful picks went #4, and that's only scratching the surface).

[Hackey]

Here are the 4th overall picks since 2000. Based on that list I think you'd be pretty happy landing a player like Dustin Brown or Mike Richards. Quite a few quality players but no definitive franchise players really. Since will likely be taking a forward a top 6 forward would be a successful pick in my eyes. A legit first liner would be a home run.

2000: Rostislav Klesla
2001: Stephen Weiss
2002: Joni Pitkanen
2003: Nikolai Zherdev
2004: Andrew Ladd
2005: Benoit Pouliot
2006: Nicklas Backstrom
2007: Thomas Hickey
2008: Alex Pietrangelo
2009: Evander Kane
2010: Ryan Johansen
2011: Adam Larsson
2012: Griffin Reinhart
2013: Seth Jones

[nik-]

I'd say the last 6 years have been great in that slot ... even more so if Peter DeBoer wasn't trying to ruin Adam Larsson.

[ForeverFlameFan]

I think we'll see the same situation with our 4th as Ryan Johansen... Takes a few years until the player really breaks out.

And in a few years we should thinking about playoffs. Getting Reinhart/Bennett/Draisaitl/Dal Colle to produce like Johansen did this year in a few years when we are fighting for a playoff spot will be crucial.

[Hackey]

Jones and Pietrangelo were both great picks at 4 but those were also very strong drafts. Not as confident that this years draft will live up to those. Landing a Johansen or Kane though I'd definitely be happy with.

[Dorkmaster]

Originally Posted by Hackey

Here are the 4th overall picks since 2000. Based on that list I think you'd be pretty happy landing a player like Dustin Brown or Mike Richards. Quite a few quality players but no definitive franchise players really. Since will likely be taking a forward a top 6 forward would be a successful pick in my eyes. A legit first liner would be a home run.

2000: Rostislav Klesla
2001: Stephen Weiss
2002: Joni Pitkanen
2003: Nikolai Zherdev
2004: Andrew Ladd
2005: Benoit Pouliot
2006: Nicklas Backstrom
2007: Thomas Hickey
2008: Alex Pietrangelo
2009: Evander Kane
2010: Ryan Johansen
2011: Adam Larsson
2012: Griffin Reinhart
2013: Seth Jones

It's probably better to look at the 4th-8th overall picks instead of just the 4th overall pick to have a better understanding of the available players in that range. Still though, you're absolutely correct in your analysis. When you look at guys like Kane, Schenn, Niedereitter. They're good players, but not necessarily a top line guy. Even a guy like Landeskog is probably going to be similar to Richards in his prime and that was already an awesome pick.

[Hackey]

Here are the 5th place picks since 2000 which kinda gives similar results. But ya I think the main thing to be taken from it is that if we are able to land a serviceable top 6 forward then were doing alright because the pick is definitely no slam dunk. We don't need to land a superstar we just need to make it count.

2000: Raffi Torres
2001: Stanislav Chistov
2002: Ryan Whitney
2003: Thomas Vanek
2004: Blake Wheeler
2005: Carey Price
2006: Phil Kessel
2007: Karl Alzner
2008: Luke Schenn
2009: Brayden Schenn
2010: Nino Niederreiter
2011: Ryan Strome
2012: Morgan Reilly
2013: Elias Lindholm