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2022 NHL Entry Draft


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7 hours ago, HighOnHockey said:

Looks like one of the better classes in recent decades so far. I'm just gonna mention some top players to watch for in each region. Starting with the North Americans. Feel free to add or beat me to the punch on players.

 

Canada

 

Shane Wright C OHL Kingston

Sturdy power center a la Tavares, Matthews. Can shoot and score from anywhere. Elite playmaker. Probably 1st overall.

 

Matthew Savoie C WHL Winnipeg

Highly skilled with elite foot and hand speed. Inconsistent and overconfident with the puck, but some of the highest upside in the class. Probably top 5.

 

Tristan Luneau RD QMJHL Gatineau

Elite two-way defenseman, at his best in transition but also excels separating pucks from bodies to change possession. Probably top ten.

 

Nathan Gaucher C QMJHL Quebec.

Big 6'3 center put up a p/g at 17 in QMJHL.

 

Conor Geekie C WHL Winnipeg

Another giant {6'4) center, Geekie dominated the Manitoba youth racket, and then got off to a p/g start in WHL.

 

Denton Mateychuk LD WHL Moose Jaw

Smallish (5'10) defenseman plays a mature enough game that he saw minutes for Canada at U18s

 

Mats Lindgren LD WHL Kamloops

More dynamic than Mateychuk, another smallish (5'11) offensive defenseman coming out of WHL.

 

Liam Arnsby C/RW OHL North Bay

Smallish two-way forward at 5'10. Not elite skill but can make good plays in tight spaces.

 

Danny Zhilkin:C OHL Guelph

Highly skilled goal-scoring center at 6'2 was 13th forward for Canada at U18s.

 

Antonin Verreault LW QMJHL Gatineau

Highly skilled with ridiculous hockey IQ, but he's 5'8.

 

 

USA

 

Frank Nazar RW USNTDP

Right there with Savoie for players who pull you out of our seat. Electrifying offensive talent but only 5'9. He's also probably the best defensive forward in the class from what I've seen so far.

 

Isaac Howard LW USNTDP

Not as dynamic as Nazar but uses his teammates better and brings slightly better size at 5'10. Kid just scores goals everywhere he goes.

 

Semaus Casey RD USNTDP

Highly skilled, ultra smooth-skating offensive defenseman who also defends very well at his age group, despite being 5'10.

 

Ryan Chesley RD USNTDP

Smart, skilled two-way defenseman with decent size at 6'0.

 

Rutger McGroarty C USNTDP

Sturdy, powerful center with a good mix of skill. Shifty and agile for his size but not the fleetest afoot. Throws some bone-crushing body check. High upside but inconsistent.

 

Devin Kaplan C/RW USNTDP

Power forward with some size at 6'2.

 

Logan Cooley C USNTDP

Doesn't have Howard's offensive instincts or Nazar's skill and pizazz, but his 200 foot hockey IQ could make him a top American player for this draft.

 

Jack Hughes LW USNTDP

And one from this past year's U18 team, a late birthday. Plenty of skill and smarts. Projectable frame at 6'0 but listed at 165 lbs.

 

Vinny Borgesi RD USHL Tri-City

Had to include someone not from NTDP. Borgesi is a small but skilled, unexciting two-way defenseman.

 

Jackson Dorrington LD NCDC Boston Jr. Bruins

NCDC is a newer branch of US minor hockey; a development league for USHL and NCAA tiers I and III. Dorrington had an unheard of season for the league's 4 years in existence.

Nemic is a serious name to watch in this draft.

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9 hours ago, BobSacamano said:

Lose every night, draft Shane Wright? … Sure as hell hope not. This rebuild should be in the rear view mirror by now. Time will tell but I am jumping off the team tank bandwagon and would really like to see some good hockey being played. 
 

Appreciate you kicking things off! Looks like some pretty good prospects, even if it is a year out. 
 

I think for the betterment of the franchise, they should hold onto the first rounder next year. Let’s hope it’s a late first :)

Amen dude. Such a stacked draft there will be good players to be found late in the first.

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8 hours ago, Bertuzzipunch said:

Heard there will be a lot of good RHD in this draft but i dunno but pretty sure i heard that.

Lol might have been from me? But yeah absolutely stacked with RHD like you've never seen. Luneau, Nemec, Salomonsson are all RHD and all look like top ten picks. Then there's Seamus Casey, Ryan Chesley, David Jiricek are all likely first round options, and then Vinny Borgesi, Michael Mastrodomenico and Kasper Kulonummi could be sleepers so far.

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54 minutes ago, HighOnHockey said:

Lol might have been from me? But yeah absolutely stacked with RHD like you've never seen. Luneau, Nemec, Salomonsson are all RHD and all look like top ten picks. Then there's Seamus Casey, Ryan Chesley, David Jiricek are all likely first round options, and then Vinny Borgesi, Michael Mastrodomenico and Kasper Kulonummi could be sleepers so far.

Nice

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On 7/23/2021 at 10:29 PM, HighOnHockey said:

Looks like one of the better classes in recent decades so far. I'm just gonna mention some top players to watch for in each region. Starting with the North Americans. Feel free to add or beat me to the punch on players.

 

Canada

 

Shane Wright C OHL Kingston

Sturdy power center a la Tavares, Matthews. Can shoot and score from anywhere. Elite playmaker. Probably 1st overall.

 

Matthew Savoie C WHL Winnipeg

Highly skilled with elite foot and hand speed. Inconsistent and overconfident with the puck, but some of the highest upside in the class. Probably top 5.

 

Tristan Luneau RD QMJHL Gatineau

Elite two-way defenseman, at his best in transition but also excels separating pucks from bodies to change possession. Probably top ten.

 

Nathan Gaucher C QMJHL Quebec.

Big 6'3 center put up a p/g at 17 in QMJHL.

 

Conor Geekie C WHL Winnipeg

Another giant {6'4) center, Geekie dominated the Manitoba youth racket, and then got off to a p/g start in WHL.

 

Denton Mateychuk LD WHL Moose Jaw

Smallish (5'10) defenseman plays a mature enough game that he saw minutes for Canada at U18s

 

Mats Lindgren LD WHL Kamloops

More dynamic than Mateychuk, another smallish (5'11) offensive defenseman coming out of WHL.

 

Liam Arnsby C/RW OHL North Bay

Smallish two-way forward at 5'10. Not elite skill but can make good plays in tight spaces.

 

Danny Zhilkin:C OHL Guelph

Highly skilled goal-scoring center at 6'2 was 13th forward for Canada at U18s.

 

Antonin Verreault LW QMJHL Gatineau

Highly skilled with ridiculous hockey IQ, but he's 5'8.

 

 

USA

 

Frank Nazar RW USNTDP

Right there with Savoie for players who pull you out of our seat. Electrifying offensive talent but only 5'9. He's also probably the best defensive forward in the class from what I've seen so far.

 

Isaac Howard LW USNTDP

Not as dynamic as Nazar but uses his teammates better and brings slightly better size at 5'10. Kid just scores goals everywhere he goes.

 

Semaus Casey RD USNTDP

Highly skilled, ultra smooth-skating offensive defenseman who also defends very well at his age group, despite being 5'10.

 

Ryan Chesley RD USNTDP

Smart, skilled two-way defenseman with decent size at 6'0.

 

Rutger McGroarty C USNTDP

Sturdy, powerful center with a good mix of skill. Shifty and agile for his size but not the fleetest afoot. Throws some bone-crushing body check. High upside but inconsistent.

 

Devin Kaplan C/RW USNTDP

Power forward with some size at 6'2.

 

Logan Cooley C USNTDP

Doesn't have Howard's offensive instincts or Nazar's skill and pizazz, but his 200 foot hockey IQ could make him a top American player for this draft.

 

Jack Hughes LW USNTDP

And one from this past year's U18 team, a late birthday. Plenty of skill and smarts. Projectable frame at 6'0 but listed at 165 lbs.

 

Vinny Borgesi RD USHL Tri-City

Had to include someone not from NTDP. Borgesi is a small but skilled, unexciting two-way defenseman.

 

Jackson Dorrington LD NCDC Boston Jr. Bruins

NCDC is a newer branch of US minor hockey; a development league for USHL and NCAA tiers I and III. Dorrington had an unheard of season for the league's 4 years in existence.

Great write up; but given the current moves the Canucks had made there is no chance the team will ever be competing to draft in the top 5 in this draft or any draft in the foreseeable future - unless it is by accident.   Also, I had resigned myself to accept, that for these next few years the Canucks will not have any picks in the first till second rounds - at the very least; so finding late round gems is what we can really expect, as a fanbase.

 

This year they had concentrated in Gradins' neck of the woods (one of the the Canucks better scout) and I wonder where they go next year ?

Edited by ShawnAntoski
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1 minute ago, ShawnAntoski said:

Great write up; but given the current moves the Canucks had made there is no chance the team will ever be competing to draft the top 5 in this draft; unless it is by accident.   Also, I resigned myself for these next few years that the will not have any picks in the first till second round - at the very least, so finding late round gems is what we can really expect.  This year they concentrated in Gradins' neck of the woods and I wonder where they go next year ?

Well, you never know what might happen. Probably not getting Wright or Lambert of Miro but beyond that, who knows. Some players who are considered top prospects right now might fall. My next post will be on the rest of Europe (including Sweden) and by then I will have mentioned at least 40 prospects, so some of those will end up falling to the 2nd and 3rd rounds and beyond.

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2 hours ago, HighOnHockey said:

Well, you never know what might happen. Probably not getting Wright or Lambert of Miro but beyond that, who knows. Some players who are considered top prospects right now might fall. My next post will be on the rest of Europe (including Sweden) and by then I will have mentioned at least 40 prospects, so some of those will end up falling to the 2nd and 3rd rounds and beyond.

Look forward to all your write ups - as the forums go to when it comes to prospects.

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On 7/24/2021 at 9:01 AM, HighOnHockey said:

Lol might have been from me? But yeah absolutely stacked with RHD like you've never seen. Luneau, Nemec, Salomonsson are all RHD and all look like top ten picks. Then there's Seamus Casey, Ryan Chesley, David Jiricek are all likely first round options, and then Vinny Borgesi, Michael Mastrodomenico and Kasper Kulonummi could be sleepers so far.

Draft this guy!  I want to see how they fit his name on the back of the jersey.

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Sweden

 

Elias Salomonsson RD J20 Nationell  Skellefteå AIK

An August 31 birthday makes him one of the youngest players in the draft and as a young under-age he looked just OK at U18s this spring. But his 1.07 p/g in J20 ranks best all time for defenseman, ahead of Erik Karlsson, Adam Boqvist, Rasmus Dahlin, Victor Hedman at the same age. Could conceivably go as early as top 3.

 

Noah Östlund C J20 Nationell Djurgårdens IF

Smallish at 5'10 and 163, but with 15 points in 10 J20 games only Robert Nilsson, Daniel Sedin and William Nylander put up better p/g at the same age.

 

Filip Bystedt C J20 Nationell Linköping HC

Big 6'4 center had 12 points in 15 games.

 

Ludwig Persson LW J20 Nationell Frölunda HC

As a late birthday I thought he was Sweden's 2nd best forward at 2019 U17s after Lysell, but hasn't quite progressed the way I'd hoped, falling down the depth chart at U18s this spring. Still plenty of skill and upside.

 

Simon Forsmark LD J20 Nationell Örebro HK

2003 late birthday, 6'2 defenseman was a top four defenseman for Sweden at both the U17s and U18s.

 

Finland

 

Brad Lambert C/RW Liiga JYP

Not much I can say here that people don't already know. But for anyone not particularly familiar, he is an elite skater with elite puck skills who is a wizard carrying the puck through the neutral zone, often circling back into his own zone to wait for an opening and then beating multiple forecheckers. When I first saw him at U17s he was listed at 5'10 and tended to play far too much on the perimeter; he's now listed at 6' and seems to have made major improvement in that regard. Is widely considered a consensus top 3 pick so far.

 

Joakim Kemell RW U20 Sarja JYP

I talked about Savoie and Nazar as the players in this draft who will lift you out of your seat. Kemell is not as explosive as Savoie, not as electric as Nazar, and not as powerful as Trikozov, but he would be my next ranked player in the class for most entertaining to watch. His stick skills are completely bonkers; ridiculously crafty and creative, and he's eager to challenge defenders.

 

Elmeri Laakso LD U18 Sarja TPS

Would be easy to write Laakso off since he played in the U18 league last year. If a Canadian was playing midget at 16 we wouldn't consider him a  top prospect, but the difference here is that in Europe each age group is a feeder team for the next age up, and unfortunately for Laakso, the U20 team was simply stacked with good 19 and 20 year old defensemen. Needs to be more responsible with the puck, better in his own end, you know the drill, but one thing is for certain: this kid is dynamic. Rushes the puck end to end with a flair, and walks the offensive blueline with a very rare confidence.

 

Kasper Kulonummi RD U20 Sarja Jokerit

Was the captain of Finland's YOG team, and played for the U18 team under-age, he's more of a reliable two-way defenseman than Laakso, but also has some pretty good skills.

 

Germany 

 

Julian Lutz F DEL EHC München

Canadian Francesco Pinelli went over to play in AlpsHL this year, Austria's second tier league, and was drafted 42nd overall. Lutz was a full year younger and put up almost identical p/g. Lutz also saw 7 games in the top league, ICEHL, and his 3 points in 7 games puts him best ever fr p/g by a U17 in that league by a wide margin, far ahead of Michael Grabner's 2 points in 14 games. Lutz will be playing in the DEL next year.

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40 minutes ago, NUCKER67 said:

I expect the Canucks to pick between 20 - 25, but they should still get someone good in that spot.

Love the confidence man. I think it is somewhat warranted with the addition of OEL and Garland, plus another year of development from Demko, Pettersson and Hughes. I think this will be the draft the Canucks get their sought after bluechip RD prospect, even if it is in the back third of the first round.

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On 7/23/2021 at 10:29 PM, HighOnHockey said:

Looks like one of the better classes in recent decades so far. I'm just gonna mention some top players to watch for in each region. Starting with the North Americans. Feel free to add or beat me to the punch on players.

 

Canada

 

Shane Wright C OHL Kingston

Sturdy power center a la Tavares, Matthews. Can shoot and score from anywhere. Elite playmaker. Probably 1st overall.

 

Matthew Savoie C WHL Winnipeg

Highly skilled with elite foot and hand speed. Inconsistent and overconfident with the puck, but some of the highest upside in the class. Probably top 5.

 

Tristan Luneau RD QMJHL Gatineau

Elite two-way defenseman, at his best in transition but also excels separating pucks from bodies to change possession. Probably top ten.

 

Nathan Gaucher C QMJHL Quebec.

Big 6'3 center put up a p/g at 17 in QMJHL.

 

Conor Geekie C WHL Winnipeg

Another giant {6'4) center, Geekie dominated the Manitoba youth racket, and then got off to a p/g start in WHL.

 

Denton Mateychuk LD WHL Moose Jaw

Smallish (5'10) defenseman plays a mature enough game that he saw minutes for Canada at U18s

 

Mats Lindgren LD WHL Kamloops

More dynamic than Mateychuk, another smallish (5'11) offensive defenseman coming out of WHL.

 

Liam Arnsby C/RW OHL North Bay

Smallish two-way forward at 5'10. Not elite skill but can make good plays in tight spaces.

 

Danny Zhilkin:C OHL Guelph

Highly skilled goal-scoring center at 6'2 was 13th forward for Canada at U18s.

 

Antonin Verreault LW QMJHL Gatineau

Highly skilled with ridiculous hockey IQ, but he's 5'8.

 

 

USA

 

Frank Nazar RW USNTDP

Right there with Savoie for players who pull you out of our seat. Electrifying offensive talent but only 5'9. He's also probably the best defensive forward in the class from what I've seen so far.

 

Isaac Howard LW USNTDP

Not as dynamic as Nazar but uses his teammates better and brings slightly better size at 5'10. Kid just scores goals everywhere he goes.

 

Semaus Casey RD USNTDP

Highly skilled, ultra smooth-skating offensive defenseman who also defends very well at his age group, despite being 5'10.

 

Ryan Chesley RD USNTDP

Smart, skilled two-way defenseman with decent size at 6'0.

 

Rutger McGroarty C USNTDP

Sturdy, powerful center with a good mix of skill. Shifty and agile for his size but not the fleetest afoot. Throws some bone-crushing body check. High upside but inconsistent.

 

Devin Kaplan C/RW USNTDP

Power forward with some size at 6'2.

 

Logan Cooley C USNTDP

Doesn't have Howard's offensive instincts or Nazar's skill and pizazz, but his 200 foot hockey IQ could make him a top American player for this draft.

 

Jack Hughes LW USNTDP

And one from this past year's U18 team, a late birthday. Plenty of skill and smarts. Projectable frame at 6'0 but listed at 165 lbs.

 

Vinny Borgesi RD USHL Tri-City

Had to include someone not from NTDP. Borgesi is a small but skilled, unexciting two-way defenseman.

 

Jackson Dorrington LD NCDC Boston Jr. Bruins

NCDC is a newer branch of US minor hockey; a development league for USHL and NCAA tiers I and III. Dorrington had an unheard of season for the league's 4 years in existence.

Enjoy, reading your post; and with the Canucks - always, in contend mode: can you perhaps list a few late round gems to keep an eye on (?) cause the likelihood, of JB trading our top two picks to fill current needs is very high.

 

 

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