Keep in mind, those ratings on West don't take into account his size, or his age- those assets are a big reason why he's getting so much buzz, and rightfully so.
As I said months ago West is work in progress, but once he choose hockey over football the game changed, with the new training and coaching his crazy natural hockey skills should pop, the eyes I had on him in Fargo think he's going to be an absolute beast in a few years, those numbers I posted on him weren't from my viewings they were from a scout with 35+ years of global experience that I trust more than anyone in hockey.
I think someone is going to take him in the 1st round.
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So with West, there is also the worry about going NCAA to free agent if you are projecting him to be 3-4 years away from going pro. If he does develop into a blue chip prospect, he could (like Fox) force a trade to a team of his preference.
Using a 1st round pick on him mitigates the risk because the CBA will give you a compensatory 2nd round pick if a 1st rounder refuses to sign.
The compensatory pick is also not a bad consolation prize if he completely busts out.
Last edited by sureLoss; 06-14-2025 at 08:14 PM.
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So it makes sense he should be taken with a late 1st. Depending on how that all shakes down. He has St.Lpuis Blue written all over him IMO. West that is.
__________________ "Everybody's so desperate to look smart that nobody is having fun anymore" -Jackie Redmond
So with West, there is also the worry about going NCAA to free agent if you are projecting him to be 3-4 years away from going pro. If he does develop into a blue chip prospect, he could (like Fox) force a trade to a team of his preference.
Using a 1st round pick on him mitigates the risk because the CBA will give you a compensatory 2nd round pick if a 1st rounder refuses to sign.
The compensatory pick is also not a bad consolation prize if he completely busts out.
The one that comes to mind for me is Blake Wheeler. He was really raw in his draft year, but Arizona still took him with the number 5 pick. He never was a point per game player in College or the U.S.H.L in the 4 seasons after he was drafted. Never played for Arizona either, as he signed as a free agent with Boston. Eventually he did go on to play 1172 games and score 943 points. But the Coyotes got little benefit out of it and the Bruins traded him for Rich Peverly. Peverly did contribute to them winning the cup and played two more years in Boston in a bottom 6 role.
So in time he was an effective NHL player. But you can argue that with the CBA and the way it works that it's not really prudent to go for these long term projects.
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Some players for our late first / second round pick:
Quote:
Theo Stockselius
Best quality? One of the better playmakers in this draft.
Why is Stockselius must have? Stockselius enjoyed a great second half of the season on a team in which Frondell gets the attention. Teams looking for two-way centers with some offensive upside will prioritize him. He’s up to 6-foot-3 and just short of 200 pounds as of the Combine.
Quote:
William Horcoff
Best quality? Strong, physical two-way center.
Why is Horcoff must have? Horcoff was one of the standouts at the Combine setting a new record on the long jump. In addition, he jumped over 20 pounds from what was listed for him. At near 6-foot-5 and over 200 pounds, he has the potential to be a shutdown center in the NHL who is a pain to play against. He plays a game that fits what’s expected in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Quote:
Alexander Zharovsky
Best quality? Offensive skill.
Why is Zharovsky must have? One of the fastest risers in the entire draft, Zharovsky dominated in the MHL. While he has obvious questions about other parts of his game, if you’re a team outside the first round looking for pure skill, he is likely your best option. There’s not many in this draft that can turn defenders inside out in tight spaces.
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This is THN's top-64 from their Draft Preview:
The brackets are who they compare them to "Best Case"
1) D Matt Schaefer (Roman Josi)
2) C Mike Misa (Jack Eichel)
3) RW Porter Martone (Matt Tkachuk)
4) C James Hagens (Jack Hughes)
5) C Anton Frondell (Robert Thomas)
6) C Caleb Desnoyers (Dylan Strome)
7) LW Victor Eklund (Jesper Bratt)
8) C Roger McQueen (Tage Thompson)
9) D Kashawn Aitcheson (Jacob Trouba)
10) D Jackson Smith (Thomas Harley)
11) C Jake O'Brien (Nick Suzuki)
12) C Brady Martin (Travis Konecny)
13) C Braeden Cootes (Anthony Cirelli)
14) D Radim Mrtka (Colton Parayko)
15) LW Carter Bear (Adrian Kempe)
16) D Logan Hensler (Rasmus Andersson)
17) D Cameron Reid (Filip Hronek)
18) LW Lynden Lakovic (Roope Hintz)
19) LW Malcolm Spence (Zach Hyman)
20) C Jack Nesbitt (Kirill Marchenko)
21) RW Justin Carbonneau (Ryan Donato)
22) C Ivan Ryabkin (Sam Bennett)
23) LW Jakob Ihs-Wozniak (Tyler Toffoli)
24) C Milton Gastrin (Elias Lindholm)
25) LW Cullen Potter (Seth Jarvis)
26) G Josh Ravensbergen (Sam Montembeault)
27) C Ben KIndel (Jonathan Marchessault)
28) C Cole Reschny (Mikael Granlund)
29) C Bill Zonnon (Dylan Holloway)
30) RW Shane Vansaghi (Ivan Barbashev)
31) D Henry Brzustewicz (Samuel Girard)
32) RW Cameron Schmidt (Alex DeBrincat)
33) D Blake Fiddler (Gustav Forsling)
34) C William Moore (Barrett Hayton)
35) LW Jack Murtagh (Jake Neighbors)
36) D Simon Wang (Esa Lindell)
37) LW Vojtech Cihar (Nick Foligno)
38) RW Eddie Genborg (Will Cuylle)
39) C Luca Romano (Blake Coleman)
40) C Eric Nilson (Vincent Trocheck)
41) C Will Horcoff (Andre Burakovsky)
42) D Jacob Rombach (Joel Edmundson)
43) RW Ryker Lee (Conor Garland)
44) C Matthew Gard (Marcus Foligno)
45) RW Theo Stockselius (Nino Neiderreiter)
46) RW Ben Kevan (Jonathan Drouin)
47) RW Vaclav Nestrasil (Mason Marchment)
48) LW Tomas Poletin (Bobby McMann)
49) LW Zachary Morin (Christian Dvorak)
50) C Cole McKinney (Jake Evans)
51) D Kurban Limatov (Justin Holl)
52) D Charlie Trethewey (Josh Manson)
53) LW Kristian Epperson (Luke Evangelista)
54) LW Viktor Klingsell (Max Domi)
55) D Sascha Boumedienne (Mike Matheson)
56) D Theodor Hallquisth (Olli Maatta)
57) C Adam Benak (Mats Zuccarello)
58) G Alexei Medvedev (Stuart Skinner)
59) D Peyton Kettles (Matthias Samuelsson)
60) G Pyotr Andreyanov (Lukas Dostal)
61) C Conrad Fondrk (Owen Tippett)
62) G Lucas Beckman (Joseph Woll)
63) D Francesco Dell'Elce (TJ Brodie)
64) C Mason West (Ryan McLeod)
I see some parallels between their list and mine, but there's plenty of surprises too. Some of their player comparisons are spot on, and others make me shake my head, lol.
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