draft

[Mr. T]

Well Sharks get all around praise for their draft.

I feel they will severely regret not taking Mitchkov. But that is just a feeling.

Hopefully Smith is very good. Really like the Musty pick. Hopefully Grier can start to put together a tougher lineup. Hoping Musty turns out to be a guy that scores 15+ goals and is a real pest. He looks like he could add 5-10lbs on his frame easily.

We'll see about Halttunen. I guess they thought he was best available and reached for him, worried he wouldn't be there. Seems like a good time to take a D, with an aging defense that needs a lot of help. They didn't get much of that this draft.

Which brings us to Cagnoni. Seemingly everyone loves this pick in the 4th. Like he was on everyone's sleeper list. Not sure how excited to get about an offensive defenseman at 5'9". Maybe he'll be Boyle-like. Draft time is time to hope.

They did load up on 3 D total right in the late 4th, early 5th. Need to hit on one of them, to be a top 4 guy at least.

All in all seems like a good haul. Most notably is under Grier we didn't have the endless trading multiple picks to move up a few spots and draft someone off the board. He shut down that nonsense.

[googz]

It'll be interesting to see how these picks, from this year and last, pan out in comparison to DW's picks. Time will only tell.

Mitchkov had a lot of risk and from what I have seen of Smith, I think the Sharks got their poster child for years to come. Hopefully, he will rekindle the fanbase. I was really shocked, and relieved at the same time, that the Ducks didn't pick Fantilli. I think that's going to be the one that haunts them.

I also was curious about why they didn't draft D-men in the 2nd round, but I'm guessing they're putting a lot of faith in the two blueliners they got in return for Meier. Plus it looks like the Sharks might pick up a blueliner in return for the inevitable EK65 trade.

[tack]

And, they did this: https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/37946784/san-jose-sharks-add-scoring-punch-acquire-anthony-duclair

Not sure what to think. At least he meets my criteria of not getting anybody over 27 years old.

[googz]

Duclair doesn't seem like a consistent offensive threat and is a defensive liability from what I've read about him. Had a great 21-22 season, but not sure who he was paired with to get those numbers. He might be a good 3rd line winger but for $3M? For the same amount of money or less, they could have signed Wheeler, OReilly, Duchene, or a bunch of others. I know some don't meet your age criteria, and chances are these players don't want to join a rebuilding team, but they would have brought in some veteran leadership. Instead, GMMG is looking for "tenacity"

[poldy]

On 6/30/23 4:43 PM, googz wrote:
> On Friday, June 30, 2023 at 3:35:52 PM UTC-7, Mr. T wrote:
>> Well Sharks get all around praise for their draft.
>>
>> I feel they will severely regret not taking Mitchkov. But that is just a feeling.
>>
>> Hopefully Smith is very good. Really like the Musty pick. Hopefully Grier can start to put together a tougher lineup. Hoping Musty turns out to be a guy that scores 15+ goals and is a real pest. He looks like he could add 5-10lbs on his frame easily.
>>
>> We'll see about Halttunen. I guess they thought he was best available and reached for him, worried he wouldn't be there. Seems like a good time to take a D, with an aging defense that needs a lot of help. They didn't get much of that this draft.
>>
>> Which brings us to Cagnoni. Seemingly everyone loves this pick in the 4th. Like he was on everyone's sleeper list. Not sure how excited to get about an offensive defenseman at 5'9". Maybe he'll be Boyle-like. Draft time is time to hope.
>>
>> They did load up on 3 D total right in the late 4th, early 5th. Need to hit on one of them, to be a top 4 guy at least.
>>
>> All in all seems like a good haul. Most notably is under Grier we didn't have the endless trading multiple picks to move up a few spots and draft someone off the board. He shut down that nonsense.
>
> It'll be interesting to see how these picks, from this year and last, pan out in comparison to DW's picks. Time will only tell.

I guess William Eklund, chosen #7 in 2021 hasn't really panned out?

Only has played 17 games in the NHL.

Wyatt Johnson was picked #23 in that same draft. But looks like 21
other NHL teams missed on him


Looks like most of the players from that 2021 draft who've gotten a lot
of playing time in the NHL were chosen ahead of him.


.

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Serenity Now!

[Mr. T]

That's a good point. If you're Eklund watching this draft you realize you are now on bust-watch

[googz]

On Monday, July 3, 2023 at 12:05:39 PM UTC-7, poldy wrote:

I wouldn't pay attention to those stats right now. The Sharks are one of the worst teams, while Wyatt has the luxury of fitting into a really good one. Culture, success, and stability of a team needs to be considered in deciding when they bring in the new crop. Give 5 or 6 years before passing judgement on drafts

[poldy]

I realize that some of these prospects are young teens, who will be
playing against men who are bigger and stronger.

I presume when they draft these 17 and 18 year olds, even at the top of
the draft, they expect them to train and develop to be stronger?

Not to the extent in the NFL but at least like the NBA if not more since
hockey is a more physical sport.

So maybe an 18 or 19 year old 180-pounder may not be quite ready for the
NHL.

But the top pick, listed at 185 pounds, was being compared to Connor
McDavid on ESPN.

Can Bedard have big impact in his rookie season? Presumably he'll have
to adjust to more physical play, maybe protected by vets and officials.


--
Serenity Now!