Flames 2014 NHL Entry Draft selections: observations & preliminary verdicts?

[Maritime Q-Scout]

I just want to say I find it funny that people are arguing that trading a 3rd for Bollig was too much (which implies we would have drafted a better asset than Bollig with the pick) and then people are arguing that outside of Bennett we did a poor job drafting.

Meaning we likely would have drafted poorly with our 3rd round pick that we sent to Chicago, but that poorly drafted asset would be better than an everyday NHLer.

I love the interwebz.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Freeway

4: C Sam Bennett
Great pick.

34: G Mason McDonald
Little early for a goalie, but they probably wouldn't have gotten a comparable goalie at 54 (or later).

54: RW Hunter Smith
He's older but he's bigger. Gotta see his skating before I judge.

64: D Brandon Hickey
Heard he's decent. Going to college, so a longer-term project.

LW Brandon Bollig
He's inexpensive but is merely a role player. Would've preferred a prospect here but he's an upgrade over Westgarth.

175: D Adam Ollas Mattson
Like the pick, but need to see his skating/mobility.

184: RW Austin Carroll
Wouldve been available as a UFA. Would've rather seen the team grab a younger project player here.

People keep saying this.

He is one month older than Draisaitl. He is one month older than Monahan was at his draft.

He is 18 years old and he is 6'6' 220.

[kn]

Bennett - potentially the top forward in the draft

McDonald - potentially the top goalie in the draft

Smith - potentially another Lucic

Hickey - already has world class skating

That's enough right there to make this a good draft.

[nik-]

1st round: obvious home run
2nd round: not so excited, really would have preferred D-men for this round
3rd and on ... it's all a crap shoot anyway

[Arsenal14]

4: C Sam Bennett
Glad we didn't overthink it. I kind of preferred Reinhart but not by much. Should be a star.

34: G Mason McDonald
I'm not a fan of taking a goalie here, too many good defencemen available and that's more of a need. McKeown would have been my choice. I do like McDonald though - the few times I watched Demko it looked like he was blocking shots rather than saving them and I think he was overrated because of how strong Boston College was.

54: RW Hunter Smith
I was hoping we'd pick Smith. May not have a ton of upside but we've never really had a player like him. A big body that can cause problems in front of the net.

64: D Brandon Hickey
Don't know much about him. I like that we took a defenceman, but Jack Glover would have been my preference.

LW Brandon Bollig
Good pickup. He'll be an upgrade on Westgarth and will almost certainly provide more than most late third round picks. His salary/contract is pretty much irrelevant with where Calgary is right now.

175: D Adam Ollas Mattson
Seems like a solid choice here. Like most sixth round picks there is a good chance he never reaches the NHL but big D are worth trying out.

184: RW Austin Carroll
Meh. Overage winger who didn't really dominate the WHL. He'll fill a spot with Adirondack or Alaska but that's probably it.

Overall I'm pretty positive on it. Not as defence heavy as I'd like but a couple of guys that will definitely be NHLers (Bennett/Bollig), a couple more that have a good chance of contributing (McDonald/Smith) and some projects.

[Calgary4LIfe]

Too early to say 'great draft', and WAY too early to be overly negative and have meltdowns.

What I liked is that the Flames went out and got who they felt were the best players available at their slots. I was expecting a D with the 34th, but they go and take perhaps the best goalie, and probably someone they consider to be the best prospect left in the draft. It seems they just went out and did not pay attention to needs, but focused on the BPA - and I have always agreed with this approach in a draft.

You trade players and sign UFAs based on need, but you have to draft the prospects you feel are the best regardless of needs and position. Lots can change very quickly organizationally.

[FlameZilla]

Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe

Too early to say 'great draft', and WAY too early to be overly negative and have meltdowns.

What I liked is that the Flames went out and got who they felt were the best players available at their slots. I was expecting a D with the 34th, but they go and take perhaps the best goalie, and probably someone they consider to be the best prospect left in the draft. It seems they just went out and did not pay attention to needs, but focused on the BPA - and I have always agreed with this approach in a draft.

You trade players and sign UFAs based on need, but you have to draft the prospects you feel are the best regardless of needs and position. Lots can change very quickly organizationally.

We now have significant depth at C, when factoring in *potential* top 6 C's Monahan, Bennett, Backlund, Granlund, Jankowski, Colborne & Knight. Hopefully we can deal from this position of strength & sort out some of the team's weaknesses like top-flight Dmen.

[Aarongavey]

Austin Carroll is not an overager, he will be playing for the Royals this year. He also would not have been available as a free agent. The good thing is that he is Usain Bolt compared with Kanzig. He is a decent player who put up good numbers in his 18 and 19 year old years in the dub, he will likely be over a PPG guy this year as a 20 year old on a good Victoria team. I am hoping drafting him and Kanzig will mean the Flames get a good long look at Hicketts next year as he is a very talented hockey player.

As for the rest of the draft, Hickey was a good pick he is a solid player, he was really good in his first junior A yr, he was injured more this year. Smith was a disappointment but to be expected. Goalie was probably needed from a depth perspective in the system, and the Matson seems like a decent 6th round pick.

Bollig was a disappointment just because guys like him are a dime a dozen for a team that will not come close to the cap over the next 3 yrs. It seems to me that this is a case of the Hawks selling high as I doubt the guy will ever be worth more than a 3rd round pick.

[JJ1532]

Will these lads go back to the Junior teams which they were drafted from, or will the Flames ask for them to go to different places? I assume the former, but not sure.

What about Mattsson? Will they send him to a CHL junior team?

What about Hickey? He played in Junior A last season, the step below the CHL. Will he move up a level into the WHL/OHL/QMJHL?

[getbak]

Originally Posted by JJ1532

Will these lads go back to the Junior teams which they were drafted from, or will the Flames ask for them to go to different places? I assume the former, but not sure.

What about Mattsson? Will they send him to a CHL junior team?

What about Hickey? He played in Junior A last season, the step below the CHL. Will he move up a level into the WHL/OHL/QMJHL?

Hickey is committed to attend Boston University in the fall. That plan shouldn't change.

Ollas-Mattsson could potentially come over to play in the CHL. That will likely depend on if and where he gets picked in the CHL Import Draft next week. Otherwise, he will stay in Sweden.

Because he's already 20, Carroll could play in the AHL next season. He could be a big body presence patrolling the wing opposite Gaudreau or Baertschi (if they get sent down). He could also go back for his overage year in Victoria. Based on the radio interviews with Button and Treliving, it sounds like they'd like him in Adirondack.

Bennett could play his way onto the Flames, but likely won't because he needs to bulk up a little more.

Bennett, along with McDonald and Smith, will likely return to their CHL teams. The Flames can't really dictate which teams they play for in the CHL once they're sent back. They would go back to their former teams, unless they get traded.

[Bourque's Twin]

Arguably, the Flames got the #1 forward and #1 goalie in the draft.

[killer_carlson]

Originally Posted by JJ1532

Seems steep to me. And do you think, in your opinion, that that deal would have seen us get a pick, and which one? Who do you think would have taken that deal?

I think teams against the cap or with an internal cap would have been the targets. Wideman at 50% retained is a $7 Million savings for a team

nyi, toronto, carolina

My preference would have been Virtanen, but if it was the nyi pick you have to take Del Colle. Ritchie would have been nice as well

[JJ1532]

Originally Posted by killer_carlson

I think teams against the cap or with an internal cap would have been the targets. Wideman at 50% retained is a $7 Million savings for a team

nyi, toronto, carolina

My preference would have been Virtanen, but if it was the nyi pick you have to take Del Colle. Ritchie would have been nice as well

Can't say about Carolina, but there is no way the other 2 give up those picks. The Islanders gave up their 2015 first to keep this one, why give it up, even for those assets you mention?

As for Toronto, they tanked hard to get that 8th spot, again I don't see them taking Wideman/Hudler, a prospect and a 2nd in return for their first, especially not when they were trying to trade up to #1 yesterday.

Don't get me wrong, I'd have loved to add a 2nd top 10 pick, but I just think the price we'd have had to pay to get one(if indeed any of them were even available) would have been worth the return.

[JJ1532]

Originally Posted by getbak

Hickey is committed to attend Boston University in the fall. That plan shouldn't change.

Ollas-Mattsson could potentially come over to play in the CHL. That will likely depend on if and where he gets picked in the CHL Import Draft next week. Otherwise, he will stay in Sweden.

Because he's already 20, Carroll could play in the AHL next season. He could be a big body presence patrolling the wing opposite Gaudreau or Baertschi (if they get sent down). He could also go back for his overage year in Victoria. Based on the radio interviews with Button and Treliving, it sounds like they'd like him in Adirondack.

Bennett could play his way onto the Flames, but likely won't because he needs to bulk up a little more.

Bennett, along with McDonald and Smith, will likely return to their CHL teams. The Flames can't really dictate which teams they play for in the CHL once they're sent back. They would go back to their former teams, unless they get traded.

Cheers for the response. I expected our top 3 lads, if they didn't crack the roster, to go back to their pre-draft teams. I'd like to see Carroll thrown in at the deep end so to speak, see how he shapes up in the AHL.

Do we reckon Mattsson will be picked up in the import draft? Hope so, would like to see him in the CHL next year.

[devo22]

personally, I have been very disappointed with the second day. I think Bennett was a home run and you have to thank the hockey gods that he fell to 4th. I think he has the potential to be the best player of this draft and I can't wait to see Monahan-Bennett in the middle for us once they hit their prime. So even if day 2 totally busts, I still feel that this draft is a big win for the Flames.

that being said, I didn't like a lot of things the Flames did in the other rounds. I understand the need for size and grit, but honestly, when does the quest for truculence become unhealthy? Today, there's been a few moments where I basically thought "I know you love truculence, but come on ... seriously?". Personally, I think that if it comes to the most pressing needs, the Flames did check some of the most important boxes but I think they could have done a lot better.

I really like the Smith pick and the Mattson pick. Smith fills an organizational need and is built like a truck ... can't complain here. I hope he develops into a top 6 forward, but even if he doesn't, he has the size to become an everyday NHLer nonetheless. And with Mattson, you simply can't go wrong at that point of the draft ... saw him much higher on various lists. Other than that, I'm not too impressed. I understand that they wanted a goalie, but it's a tough pill to swallow when you can choose between a couple good RH defensemen at the time of that pick. And of course, L.A. makes a trade to draft McKeown ... the rich get richer all the time. Also really don't get the Bollig trade. As I said above, I think the affinity for truculence (I hate the word, but it fits) gets in the way sometimes. Bollig is what he is - a 4th liner. He'll never be more than that. There's quite a number of guys like that available at free agency, why trade a 3rd for a guy like that? And the Carroll pick ... well ... talk about wasting a pick. I know it's only a 7th, but why not use it on a project and sign Carroll as a UFA afterwards if you like him that much? Mind-bottling, really.

2nd, 34th - D Roland McKeown
2nd, 54th - RW Hunter Smith
3rd, 64th - D Jack Glover
3rd, 83th - RW Keegan Iverson
6th, 175th - D Adam Ollas Mattson
7th, 184th - C Axel Holmstrom

I'll happily eat crow if the Flames' draft turns out better than this one. I hate to be a debbie downer ... those who know me know that my glass is usually half full. I'll happily eat crow if I'm wrong about the guys we picked, but today ... you know the feeling when a good friend tells you about this band he really loves and all you can say is "well ... they're okay, I guess"? Because that's how I feel about this draft (outside of Bennett).

[Enoch Root]

^ nothing wrong with being disappointed, or a dissenting view - it was your (valid) opinion

(it's the perpetual and relentless whiners that irritate people)

[getbak]

After watching the Burke post-draft interview on the Flames site, it sounds like they had their sights set on one of the guys who ended up getting chosen in the first three picks of the second. When the guy they wanted ended up not being available, the goalie was Plan B. They wanted to be the first to pick a goalie, if they could, because they knew they'd fall like dominoes once the first one went and they really liked McDonald.

The three guys who went before the Flames' pick were Lemieux, Hawryluk, and Barbashev. My guess is that Lemieux was the guy they wanted.

[Lanny'sDaMan]

Originally Posted by Wastedyouth

Because they just aren't very good.

[IliketoPuck]

Originally Posted by Wastedyouth

What an absolute dud of a second day. I had high hopes Treliving was gonna be a decent GM. Turns out, he's more of a Burke pawn than I could ever imagine. Small comfort that the Oilers draft was even worse than the flames.

Lol.

I take it you've extensively scouted each of the players the Flames picked? Please enlighten me as to how you can pass a definitive judgement of the draft, on draft day. I would love to hear some form of logical explanation.

This type of attitude is a complete joke.

[IliketoPuck]

Originally Posted by AC

Oh good, the immediate review of players basically no one here have ever seen play.

Hell, look back at the 2009 draft we still don't know what Joni Ortio is at this point. The idea that we can critique a draft that is 15 minutes old is hilarious.

That's quite enough AC. How dare you bring logic into this thread.