Tank-a-thon, who do you like? Plus who goes?

[moose-and-squirrel]

fun read to go back thru lol

[STL fan in MN]

The Blues don’t need to “tank”. They’re just bad. That said, if they lose a few more games and end up drafting 5th instead of 8th or 10th, I won’t be sad about it. Those few games difference on a lost season doesn’t instill a “losing culture”.

Overall, this is shaping up to be a pretty mediocre draft. As of now, I see about 20 players I’d give a 1st round grade to. So plenty of guys will go in the late 1st that would typically go in the 2nd round in most years. That said, the top 9 or so is decently strong. There’s no Bedard or Celebrini at the top but there’s some decent players available.

It’s still pretty early but here’s how I see it as of today:

1. Matthew Schaefer - 6’2”, projects to be a #1 LD. He’s been nothing short of fantastic this season. Do former d-men going #1 overall and not living up to the hype give me a bit of pause (EJ, Ekblad, Power etc)? Yes. But he’s been that good that I’d still rank him #1.

2. Michael Misa - 6’1” C/LW. Should be a top line player. Some see him more as a wing but I think he’ll be able to stick at C. Very talented and smart.

3. James Hagens - 5’11 C. Also projects as a #1 C. Came into the year as the consensus #1. He hasn’t fallen so much IMO but more that Schaefer and Misa passed him a bit. These 3 are the cream of the crop IMO though.

4. Caleb Desnoyers - 6’2” C. He’s been tearing up the Q, has size, projects as a C and brings a very solid two-way game. He's not as dynamic as a few others but he just gets it done and is simply a super complete player.

5. Jake O’Brien - 6’2” C. A little more dynamic but lacking the two-way game of Desnoyers a bit.

6. Anton Frondell - 6’0” C. Has dealt with some injuries but when he’s playing, he’s been good in the Allsvenskan. Very talented. I’d like to see more of him. Hopefully he can play in the U18s this year. He missed last year’s tourney bc of injury.

7. Porter Martone - 6’3” RW. Very skilled, has size and works his butt off. I bet he’ll go in the 4-6 range but I have him a tad lower. He has slow feet and just alright hockey sense. That gives me a little pause with him.

8. Roger McQueen - 6’5” C. Very skilled, huge, has a bit of a mean streak. But has barely played this season due to a back injury. Also a bit of a hot head.

9. Victor Eklund - 5’11” LW. Very slick winger. Younger brother of the Sharks’ William Eklund. Similarly talented IMO. Looked pretty good for the Swedes at the U20s.

This is where I see a drop off as of now…

10. Jackson Smith - 6’3” LD. Big and mobile. I’d say he likely projects as a 2nd pairing two-way d-man.

11. Logan Hensler - 6’2” RD. Another guy I’d project as a top-4 d-man.

12. Kashawn Aitcheson - 6’1” LD. He’s tough as nails. See him as someone that’s very likely to make it as a 2nd to 3rd pairing d-man that brings a lot of intangibles. Perhaps not a needle mover but a likely fan favorite.

13. Radon Mrtka - 6’6” RD. Huge, plays the right side, putting up points, he’ll go high. I’m not sure he really projects higher than the others though. Questionable puck skills.

14. Ivan Ryabkin - 6’0” C. Had a horrible start to the season in Russia (was in conversation for #1 overall preseason) and has now moved to the USHL to get his season on track. He’s been his team’s leading scorer since the switch. I need to see more of him to get a better opinion on him still. But the skill is obvious. What I’ve yet to determine is why he’s not putting up points this season like he has in the past.

Carter Bear, Malcolm Spence, Braeden Cootes etc…these are guys I’d see at late 1st rounders most years but they’ll go around 15-20 this year peobably.

So not a great crop this year but if the Blues can get one of those top guys, I’d be happy. One of the top-3 (would likely take a lottery win) would be fantastic. But the 5-6 guys after them are quite good too.

Great write up on this year's draft.

Um…thanks! It’s from February though. But I still have the same top-9 (slightly different order now) and added Brady Martin to it to make it a solid top-10. But of course, what’s changed is the Blues were looking at a top 5-10 pick back then. Now they’ll be picking 19th. That’s not a complaint but we’re not getting any of those 10 guys now though.

[dhsux]

fun read to go back thru lol

Aside from the usual troll bashing the Blues as a matter fact without an ounce of proof the thread proved many wrong.

The Blues were not bad players in February who needed to be discarded...they were just struggling getting Monty's system down and the belief in each other which takes time.