Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel headline next week’s NHL Draft.
thehockeynews.com
The NHL Draft is a week away. Set to take place at BB&T Center in Sunrise Florida June 26-27, the league announced the draft order for the big event next weekend. The first round will take place next Friday on NBCSN at 7 PM with Rounds 2-7 Saturday on NHL Network at 10 AM.
Most of the focus centers around top prospects Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel. They’re expected to go 1-2 with the Oilers and Sabres the big winners of last month’s lottery. However, it’s a deep draft that also features Noah Hanifin, Dylan Strome, Mikko Rantanen, Lawson Crouse, Mitch Marner, Pavel Zacha, Ivan Provorov, Oliver Kylington, Gabriel Carlsson and Zachary Werenski.
After Edmonton and Buffalo select, the Coyotes, Maple Leafs, Hurricanes, Devils, Flyers, Blue Jackets, Sharks and Avalanche round out the top 10. They should all wind up with good players. It’ll be interesting to see who the Devils get with the sixth overall pick. Their biggest need is a scoring forward. Depending upon what Arizona, Toronto and Carolina do could help determine who they take. Assuming Strome and top rated defenseman Hanifin are gone, new GM Ray Shero could have a interesting choice between Marner, Zacha and possibly Rantanen or Crouse.
There are some other good D options if they go that route in Werenski, Provorov or Kylington. But the Devils are pretty stacked on the blueline with Adam Larsson and Damon Severson key cornerstones. Jon Merrill and Eric Gelinas are part of the top six with 2013 first round pick Steven Santini close to being ready. New Jersey picks twice in Round 2 at 36 and 41 from Florida.
For the Sabres, they’re expected to select Eichel with the number two overall pick. A potential franchise center, he led Boston University to the championship game of the Frozen Four. The 18-year old won the Hobey Baker Award as a freshman with 26 goals and 45 assists totaling 71 points which led the nation. A superb skater with great finishing ability, Eichel is that classic right-handed center who can score and set up teammates. Think Phil Kessel except with a higher IQ. He still hasn’t decided if he’s going to leave school. Most assume he’ll turn pro which would be great for Buffalo.
The Sabres also have another first round pick from the Islanders for Thomas Vanek. They pick 21st. They’re one of six teams who pick twice in Round 1. The other five are Edmonton, Toronto, Winnipeg, Philadelphia and Arizona. The Oilers own the 16th overall pick from Pittsburgh. However, they’re rumored to be dangling it for Rangers backup Cam Talbot. Talbot has drawn plenty of interest with as many as five teams all looking to upgrade in goal. Would new Edmonton GM Peter Chiarelli really give up a first round pick for Talbot? Granted, the Oilers need a goalie badly. Ben Scrivens is signed one more year and Viktor Fasth is leaving this summer.
Buffalo GM Tim Murray will be quite busy with four picks in the first two rounds. The Sabres pick 31st and 51st from the Islanders in Round 2. Maybe he wheels and deals. The Sabres still need to upgrade in net. Anders Lindback is unrestricted and vet backup Chad Johnson has a year left making $1.6 million. Matt Hackett also is a free agent. Might Murray try to bring Talbot to Western New York? It would make sense. Buffalo has a slew of prospects and picks. Something the Blueshirts are in short supply of.
The Sabres also have plenty of cap space with over $27 million. This year’s free agent class isn’t strong. Next year, Steven Stamkos could be available. Imagine if he decides to leave Tampa due to an already odd relationship with coach Jon Cooper. A 1-2 punch of Stamkos and Eichel would be sick. It’s still a long shot. Anze Kopitar and Jakub Voracek also enter their final years. If the Avalanche are unable to sign Ryan O’Reilly to an extension, he would be high on everyone’s list. The Avs also must lock up Nathan MacKinnon and re-sign Erik Johnson. Either should be available. If Johnson hits the market, he could be joined by Brent Seabrook who enters the final year with the Cup champion Blackhawks due $5 million. Any team would improve their blueline if they land the 30-year old Seabrook.
Carolina has two potential chips in Eric Staal and Cam Ward with both entering their final years. They’re expected to dangle both. Staal still has good value while Ward has been inconsistent since his Conn Smythe. The Sabres lack a number one goalie. They have some options. Talbot, Martin Jones and Robin Lehner could all be available via trade. The Canucks also are looking to move Eddie Lack or Jacob Markstrom. As for other potential big UFA’s in 2016, Mark Giordano, Ryan Kesler and Milan Lucic wrap it up. Giordano should be re-signed by Calgary who boast plenty of room for a player who might’ve won the Norris had he not gotten hurt. Kesler and Lucic are hard nosed forwards who will command big money.
The Rangers don’t have a first round pick until 2018. General manager Glen Sather overpaid for Keith Yandle sending the Coyotes a 2017 first round pick. At least it’s lottery protected. But come on. He throws away first rounders like it’s pre-lockout. A no no in a cap era where it’s harder to keep spare pieces. Yandle has a year left and will likely command between $6-7 million next summer. Given how much Slats has committed, it’s unlikely Yandle will re-sign unless they win a Cup and he takes a discount.
Tampa Bay owns the Rangers’ first round pick in next week’s draft due to the Martin St. Louis trade. After helping the club appear in last year’s Stanley Cup Final, the just turned 40-year old struggled mightily scoring only one goal in the postseason. Both he and the club are moving on. They don’t have room to keep St. Louis. Given the development of J.T. Miller, Kevin Hayes and Jesper Fast, the future Hall Of Famer will sign elsewhere. He wants to stay close to his home in Greenwich, Connecticut. Would the Islanders or Devils be interested? At least the Rangers can breathe a huge sigh of relief with Mats Zuccarello expected to make a full recovery from a brain contusion. Zuccarello is signed to a new four-year contract worth $18 million. Hopefully, he’ll still be a significant player. The Blueshirts have their second round pick which isn’t until number 59. The pick they got from Tampa for St. Louis went to Arizona (number 60) as part of the Yandle deal.
The Islanders don’t have a pick in the first two rounds. The Sabres own both. With basically everyone signed, GM Garth Snow will turn his attention to bumping up key restricted’s Anders Lee and Brock Nelson. Both had good seasons and probably will get bridge deals. Thomas Hickey is also a Group II. The Isles don’t pick until number 72 of the third round. A pick they acquired from Florida. They also have their own pick at 82 assuming Snow doesn’t move up. Captain John Tavares is signed another three years earning $18 million with a cap hit of $5.5 million through 2018. Kyle Okposo enters the final year of a contract that pays him $4.5 million. With Snow having locked up Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy with Travis Hamonic, there’ll be plenty of focus on Okposo, who can become unrestricted in 2016. They can’t let him hit the market.
Kessel On Move? Not only will the stars of tomorrow be on display next weekend. So will trade speculation with Phil Kessel expected to get moved by the Leafs. The 27-year old American sniper still has five years remaining and is owed $42 million including $10 million in ’15-16. His cap hit is $8 million. He is coming off a bad year where he only scored 25 goals and was a minus-34 in 82 games. Kessel had 61 points. His lowest total since ’09-10 when he had 55 with Toronto in his first year after being traded from Boston.
He still got 30 goals in 70 games. He’s scored 30-goals or more five times and hasn’t missed a game the past five seasons. If fully motivated, there’s no reason he can’t become a 40-goal scorer capable of 90 points. Who ever gets Kessel takes a risk. It could either be a home run or strikeout.
New braintrust Ray Shero and John Hynes will take part in their first draft with the Devils this weekend (The Record.com)
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