2023 NHL Entry Draft

[HighOnHockey]

Not sure how many people will be interested in the 2024 draft this early, but I noticed a few people talking about it in the past couple days, and thought I'd try my hand at a ranking. Besides, the way the Canucks are going right now, this retool might take a minute. A couple of notes: it looks like a pretty average draft overall. The defense is strong, looks right up there with '21 or '22, certainly better than '20 or '23. So far it looks like the forward class might suffer from a lack of size at the top end, but keep in mind they're 16/17, so heights are not necessarily final. It also suffers because a bunch of the best '06 forwards happen to be late birthdays so not eligible until 2025 - Hagens, Spence, Gavin, Martone, McQueen.

 

1. Aron Kiviharju LD 5'10 - It's actually been a pretty underwhelming year for Kiviharju, but for now I still have him number one based on pedigree. Shades of Nicklas Lidstrom more than a pure offensive dynamo, so I'd feel better about having him first if he was more like 6'1.

2. Macklin Celebrini C/LW 5'11 - Elite skill, crafty, creative, with a power element to his game. I've seen him throw some thunderous body checks too. But his superpower is his play in tight around the net; he doesn't just bat at loose pucks, he has the wherewithal and confidence to look for the quick pass or take the extra split second to lift the puck or pull it around the goalie.

3. Konsta Helenius C/RW 5'11 - Hands down the most purely skilled player in the draft from what I've seen. But he also has very high hockey IQ and plays a fairly mature pro-style game. You wouldn't call him a power forward exactly, but he's never shy about taking and giving bumps.

4. Cole Eiserman LW 5'11 - Reminiscent of guys like Matthews and Miroshnichenko - relentless in pursuit of the puck in the offensive zone, a raging bull driving the net down the wing, and he can score from practically anywhere in the zone with his shot.

5. Zayne Parekh RD 6'0 - An offense-first right shot defenseman, but from what I can tell he looks pretty solid defensively too; can tend to be a little over-aggressive but it usually works well enough for him at the OHL level. Maybe his best asset is his ability to walk the offensive blueline and get shots through.

6. Ivan Demidov RW 5'11 - Left shooting right wing with elite skill and hockey sense. I haven't seen him since the '21 Hlinkas, but he left an impression as an almost double under-ager.

7. Berkly Catton C/LW 5'10 - Maybe the best 200-foot hockey IQ among forwards in the draft. At the U17 challenge he out-witted everyone all over the ice, except when he came up against James Hagens and that USA powerhouse, but to be fair Hagens is a different kind of special.

8. Cayden Lindstrom LW/C 6'5 - I've been so impressed with how smooth and agile a skater he is for a guy his size.

9. Henry Mews RD 6'0 - Not without his flaws but he's a well-rounded right shot defenseman. Another one I've seen throw some bone-crunching hits. Has the tools to go earlier in the draft but I still have questions about some of his decision-making with the puck and lackadaisical effort without it

10. Nathan Villeneuve C 6'0 - Brilliant skater, both in terms of speed and agility. Pays attention to his defensive responsibilities but also shows some skill and offensive creativity.

Edited January 31, 2023 by HighOnHockey

[JustABandwagoner]

56 minutes ago, HighOnHockey said:

Not sure how many people will be interested in the 2024 draft this early, but I noticed a few people talking about it in the past couple days, and thought I'd try my hand at a ranking. Besides, the way the Canucks are going right now, this retool might take a minute. A couple of notes: it looks like a pretty average draft overall. The defense is strong, looks right up there with '21 or '22, certainly better than '20 or '23. So far it looks like the forward class might suffer from a lack of size at the top end, but keep in mind they're 16/17, so heights are not necessarily final. It also suffers because a bunch of the best '06 forwards happen to be late birthdays so not eligible until 2025 - Hagens, Spence, Gavin, Martone, McQueen.

 

1. Aron Kiviharju LD 5'10 - It's actually been a pretty underwhelming year for Kiviharju, but for now I still have him number one based on pedigree. Shades of Nicklas Lidstrom more than a pure offensive dynamo, so I'd feel better about having him first if he was more like 6'1.

2. Macklin Celebrini C/LW 5'11 - Elite skill, crafty, creative, with a power element to his game. I've seen him throw some thunderous body checks too. But his superpower is his play in tight around the net; he doesn't just bat at loose pucks, he has the wherewithal and confidence to look for the quick pass or take the extra split second to lift the puck or pull it around the goalie.

3. Konsta Helenius C/RW 5'11 - Hands down the most purely skilled player in the draft from what I've seen. But he also has very high hockey IQ and plays a fairly mature pro-style game. You wouldn't call him a power forward exactly, but he's never shy about taking and giving bumps.

4. Cole Eiserman LW 5'11 - Reminiscent of guys like Matthews and Miroshnichenko - relentless in pursuit of the puck in the offensive zone, a raging bull driving the net down the wing, and he can score from practically anywhere in the zone with his shot.

5. Zayne Parekh RD 6'0 - An offense-first right shot defenseman, but from what I can tell he looks pretty solid defensively too; can tend to be a little over-aggressive but it usually works well enough for him at the OHL level. Maybe his best asset is his ability to walk the offensive blueline and get shots through.

6. Ivan Demidov RW 5'11 - Left shooting right wing with elite skill and hockey sense. I haven't seen him since the '21 Hlinkas, but he left an impression as an almost double under-ager.

7. Berkly Catton C/LW 5'10 - Maybe the best 200-foot hockey IQ among forwards in the draft. At the U17 challenge he out-witted everyone all over the ice, except when he came up against James Hagens and that USA powerhouse, but to be fair Hagens is a different kind of special.

8. Cayden Lindstrom LW/C 6'5 - I've been so impressed with how smooth and agile a skater he is for a guy his size.

9. Henry Mews RD 6'0 - Not without his flaws but he's a well-rounded right shot defenseman. Another one I've seen throw some bone-crunching hits. Has the tools to go earlier in the draft but I still have questions about some of his decision-making with the puck and lackadaisical effort without it

10. Nathan Villeneuve C 6'0 - Brilliant skater, both in terms of speed and agility. Pays attention to his defensive responsibilities but also shows some skill and offensive creativity.

Its probably WAY TOO EARLY but 2025 another deep draft with Misa? 

[DownUndaCanuck]

I doubt we win the lottery pick (my goodness imagine if NYI do) but top-3 is not out of the question, we have good odds for jumping up and snagging an elite center like Fantilli or Carlsson (so in Allvin's case, Carlsson). Then with a 13-15OA pick surely we take a defenceman like Gulyayev, Reinbacher or Sandin-Pellika (again, Allvin says SP). 

 

That's not a retool, that's a good rebuild. Petey, Carlsson, Raty at center. Hughes and SP on defence. That's a nice young core to build around.

 

Worst case scenario, we pick in the 5-8th overall spot and get a decent future top-6 center like Smith, Dvorsky or Yager. I doubt they'll end up as elite top line material but will give Raty some competition down the line and leave the Canucks as Petey's show. Snagging Fantilli or Carlsson though would get us that much-desired 1-2 punch of elite centers every team wants and Raty may be one of the better 3Cs in the league then.

[HighOnHockey]

5 hours ago, DownUndaCanuck said:

I doubt we win the lottery pick (my goodness imagine if NYI do) but top-3 is not out of the question, we have good odds for jumping up and snagging an elite center like Fantilli or Carlsson (so in Allvin's case, Carlsson). Then with a 13-15OA pick surely we take a defenceman like Gulyayev, Reinbacher or Sandin-Pellika (again, Allvin says SP). 

 

That's not a retool, that's a good rebuild. Petey, Carlsson, Raty at center. Hughes and SP on defence. That's a nice young core to build around.

 

Worst case scenario, we pick in the 5-8th overall spot and get a decent future top-6 center like Smith, Dvorsky or Yager. I doubt they'll end up as elite top line material but will give Raty some competition down the line and leave the Canucks as Petey's show. Snagging Fantilli or Carlsson though would get us that much-desired 1-2 punch of elite centers every team wants and Raty may be one of the better 3Cs in the league then.

All sounds good except Hughes and Sandin-Pellikka does not sound like a defense to build a winning team around. Reinbacher would be ideal but at this point I'm not sure he makes it out of the top ten. If he keeps moving up the rankings as he is, you might need to use the Canucks' own pick on him.

[HighOnHockey]

7 hours ago, Tank4Bedard said:

Its probably WAY TOO EARLY but 2025 another deep draft with Misa? 

Lol yeah, after a bit of a down year in '24, the '25 draft looks loaded again. I know it's going out on a limb, but as I've said before I like James Hagens over Michael Misa from what I've seen so far.

[DownUndaCanuck]

1 hour ago, HighOnHockey said:

All sounds good except Hughes and Sandin-Pellikka does not sound like a defense to build a winning team around. Reinbacher would be ideal but at this point I'm not sure he makes it out of the top ten. If he keeps moving up the rankings as he is, you might need to use the Canucks' own pick on him.

Yeh but he's got Allvin written all over him. I like Reinbacher, Gulyayev or Dragicevic who has over a PPG in the WHL - the rest are tricky to predict and compare, playing all over Europe. RD or LD, we need defensive prospects desperately.

[Isam]

10 hours ago, HighOnHockey said:

Not sure how many people will be interested in the 2024 draft this early, but I noticed a few people talking about it in the past couple days, and thought I'd try my hand at a ranking. Besides, the way the Canucks are going right now, this retool might take a minute. A couple of notes: it looks like a pretty average draft overall. The defense is strong, looks right up there with '21 or '22, certainly better than '20 or '23. So far it looks like the forward class might suffer from a lack of size at the top end, but keep in mind they're 16/17, so heights are not necessarily final. It also suffers because a bunch of the best '06 forwards happen to be late birthdays so not eligible until 2025 - Hagens, Spence, Gavin, Martone, McQueen.

 

1. Aron Kiviharju LD 5'10 - It's actually been a pretty underwhelming year for Kiviharju, but for now I still have him number one based on pedigree. Shades of Nicklas Lidstrom more than a pure offensive dynamo, so I'd feel better about having him first if he was more like 6'1.

2. Macklin Celebrini C/LW 5'11 - Elite skill, crafty, creative, with a power element to his game. I've seen him throw some thunderous body checks too. But his superpower is his play in tight around the net; he doesn't just bat at loose pucks, he has the wherewithal and confidence to look for the quick pass or take the extra split second to lift the puck or pull it around the goalie.

3. Konsta Helenius C/RW 5'11 - Hands down the most purely skilled player in the draft from what I've seen. But he also has very high hockey IQ and plays a fairly mature pro-style game. You wouldn't call him a power forward exactly, but he's never shy about taking and giving bumps.

4. Cole Eiserman LW 5'11 - Reminiscent of guys like Matthews and Miroshnichenko - relentless in pursuit of the puck in the offensive zone, a raging bull driving the net down the wing, and he can score from practically anywhere in the zone with his shot.

5. Zayne Parekh RD 6'0 - An offense-first right shot defenseman, but from what I can tell he looks pretty solid defensively too; can tend to be a little over-aggressive but it usually works well enough for him at the OHL level. Maybe his best asset is his ability to walk the offensive blueline and get shots through.

6. Ivan Demidov RW 5'11 - Left shooting right wing with elite skill and hockey sense. I haven't seen him since the '21 Hlinkas, but he left an impression as an almost double under-ager.

7. Berkly Catton C/LW 5'10 - Maybe the best 200-foot hockey IQ among forwards in the draft. At the U17 challenge he out-witted everyone all over the ice, except when he came up against James Hagens and that USA powerhouse, but to be fair Hagens is a different kind of special.

8. Cayden Lindstrom LW/C 6'5 - I've been so impressed with how smooth and agile a skater he is for a guy his size.

9. Henry Mews RD 6'0 - Not without his flaws but he's a well-rounded right shot defenseman. Another one I've seen throw some bone-crunching hits. Has the tools to go earlier in the draft but I still have questions about some of his decision-making with the puck and lackadaisical effort without it

10. Nathan Villeneuve C 6'0 - Brilliant skater, both in terms of speed and agility. Pays attention to his defensive responsibilities but also shows some skill and offensive creativity.

Good list, but Hage is gonna be on that list by the end of the year.

[Isam]

1 hour ago, HighOnHockey said:

All sounds good except Hughes and Sandin-Pellikka does not sound like a defense to build a winning team around. Reinbacher would be ideal but at this point I'm not sure he makes it out of the top ten. If he keeps moving up the rankings as he is, you might need to use the Canucks' own pick on him.

Not sure if I like both those guys. Would rather let the isles pick slide and maybe use a second or later picks on guys like minnetian.

[AngryElf]

46 minutes ago, DownUndaCanuck said:

Yeh but he's got Allvin written all over him. I like Reinbacher, Gulyayev or Dragicevic who has over a PPG in the WHL - the rest are tricky to predict and compare, playing all over Europe. RD or LD, we need defensive prospects desperately.

I don't like Dragicevic. He plays like he's never seen the defensive zone in his life. I would much prefer Reinbacher in that spot. 

[DownUndaCanuck]

1 minute ago, AngryElf said:

I don't like Dragicevic. He plays like he's never seen the defensive zone in his life. I would much prefer Reinbacher in that spot. 

Rienbacher definitely fits the bill the most for us, big strong stay at home RD but he needs a couple of years to cook. As a 20-21 year old we could throw him into our top 4 and maybe alongside a peak 25-26yo Hughes.

 

If we get the 13oa and he's still available we have to snag him but I worry he'll be gone.

[HighOnHockey]

1 hour ago, Isam said:

Not sure if I like both those guys. Would rather let the isles pick slide and maybe use a second or later picks on guys like minnetian.

I'd rather have the Isles pick this year if possible. The 2023 draft looks stronger than '24 to me. Rather have two firsts this year. Unless we think the Isles are going to implode and it will be a very early pick next year?

 

And I know what the rankings say, but personally I'll be shocked and baffled if Minnetian makes it to the 2nd round.

[Isam]

22 minutes ago, HighOnHockey said:

I'd rather have the Isles pick this year if possible. The 2023 draft looks stronger than '24 to me. Rather have two firsts this year. Unless we think the Isles are going to implode and it will be a very early pick next year?

 

And I know what the rankings say, but personally I'll be shocked and baffled if Minnetian makes it to the 2nd round.

Agreed. Him and simashev should be up there. As for the pick I rather have next year's cuz the isles roster looks like it is gonna age out badly and I really like drafts like 2024 and 2017. They surprise more often then not.

[NHL'er]

A top 3 forward and Reinbacher with our 13th + pick please 

[Isam]

2 minutes ago, NHL'er said:

A top 3 forward and Reinbacher with our 13th + pick please 

Reibacher would be too high at 13. If you want him then the team would have to drop down a few spots.

[Bure_Pavel]

I am fine if the Canucks take two centers with our firsts in 2023 or a center and a power forward. Picks in rounds 2-7 should be very heavy on RD though. 

 

 Dvorsky or Smith + Matthew Wood i could get behind. I would also be ok reaching a bit for Reinbacher or Dragicevic.

[Isam]

45 minutes ago, Bure_Pavel said:

I am fine if the Canucks take two centers with our firsts in 2023 or a center and a power forward. Picks in rounds 2-7 should be very heavy on RD though. 

 

 Dvorsky or Smith + Matthew Wood i could get behind. I would also be ok reaching a bit for Reinbacher or Dragicevic.

Still to high for reinbacher and dragicevic unless we trade down and pick extra picks. Picking up Barlow or wood would be excellent to with our second pick

[Bure_Pavel]

30 minutes ago, Isam said:

Still to high for reinbacher and dragicevic unless we trade down and pick extra picks. Picking up Barlow or wood would be excellent to with our second pick

If we are picking 15 or 16th Reinbacher and Dragicevic arent a big reach imo. I think both will have their stock rise as we approach the draft. Reinbacher is already ranked 20 on Bob's list. 

[Isam]

5 minutes ago, Bure_Pavel said:

If we are picking 15 or 16th Reinbacher and Dragicevic arent a big reach imo. I think both will have their stock rise as we approach the draft. Reinbacher is already ranked 20 on Bob's list. 

They are. Bob's list is media driven and is by a concensus of ten scouts he trusts. Also have you watched both play? Reinbacher has alot of the same problems his brother Tobias has. His skating needs alot of work and dragicevic has been somewhat underwhelming overall in his play this season. He either needs a big playoffs or a hell of a tourney in the u18s to pump his stock past gulyayev to 13.

[Bure_Pavel]

17 minutes ago, Isam said:

They are. Bob's list is media driven and is by a concensus of ten scouts he trusts. Also have you watched both play? Reinbacher has alot of the same problems his brother Tobias has. His skating needs alot of work and dragicevic has been somewhat underwhelming overall in his play this season. He either needs a big playoffs or a hell of a tourney in the u18s to pump his stock past gulyayev to 13.

Ive seen alot more of Dragicevic than Reinbacher. Dragicevic needs to work on his skating but I like his combo of size and smarts, i think he has top 4 potential in the NHL. Reinbacher isnt very flashy but does a lot of little things right on the defensive side of the puck, in the right development program he could blossom into a steady two way Dman. Gulyayev would not be a great fit with Canucks, can only have so many small left handed quarterbacks on the PP, id assume he will drop as well due to Russian factor.

[Isam]

8 minutes ago, Bure_Pavel said:

Ive seen alot more of Dragicevic than Reinbacher. Dragicevic needs to work on his skating but I like his combo of size and smarts, i think he has top 4 potential in the NHL. Reinbacher isnt very flashy but does a lot of little things right on the defensive side of the puck, in the right development program he could blossom into a steady two way Dman. Gulyayev would not be a great fit with Canucks, can only have so many small left handed quarterbacks on the PP, id assume he will drop as well due to Russian factor.

That's the problem. We are trying to draft based off of need and coaching strategy I.e. the Babcock. Most coaches now are dealing better with the offhand then they did back in the day. If you want to look at an rhd that we should, look at minnetian.