LGR4GM

I think you could flip 2 and 3 and there's rumors that Montreal will take Sennecke. Other than that, I actually feel pretty good.

Probably because he's the best player on the Sabres, with good size, great skill, and a physical element that would do well in the playoffs. We should totally trade that out, I mean it would be great. I would know who to bet my house on to win a cup next year aka the ROR, Eichel, and potentially Reinhart special.

Then Kevyn Adams should be fired on the draft floor.

And I am saying "try" seems to be turning into "will" I am saying that I see a shift in that he seems to be seeking changes to his top 6 which is not what he has said. You are arguing with me over top 6 versus top 9. I feel there is a difference. I don't honestly care if others don't, to each their own.

More Russians

He has repeated said that he is looking to fill out his bottom 6. I believe the paraphrasing was wants to fill out the bottom 6 and give them a more physical dimension/identity. Now it is sounding like he will make a move in the top 6 and to me that seem to indicate a shift.

If you want more on the Russians in the draft:

Ah yes, Buffalo and their fans favorite activity. Waiting until a player is the best on the team and then shipping them off for some picks and prospects.

Seems there has been a shift in terms of what Adams said at the end of the season until now, although I won't believe he will trade one of his precocious top 9 until I see him do it.

The player that this board and Sabres twitter would implode over... Let's talk about Justin Poirier, the 5'8" winger who won't be 18 until Sept4th. Why should we talk about him? he scored 69g in 85 QMJHL games this season. That's insane to be quite honest. I am really interested to see if we can get an updated height and weight although it doesn't appear that he is a combine invite which is surprising. Anyways, he's almost a full year younger than some of the other guys being talked about in the first round (Nygard) so that is something to keep in mind. He loves to shoot. I think if Eiserman and Poirier were put on the ice together there would be like 100 shots a game. Now the good news is Poirier has a good shot and there are about 20 videos you can watch to see his goals. The bad news is I am not really sure he is creating enough chances himself and what I mean by that, he does put himself in prime scoring spots but a lot of the time he is asking his teammates to then give him the puck there. There's some decent handling and a good ability to make adjustments that will translate. Skating is solid and he seems to have a physical side to his game but idk how effective that will be. Really you are drafting him because you think he is Cuafield Jr. I am not personally convinced of that. A lot of his shots a facilitated by others, he doesn't seem to make a lot of high level manipulations or passes. He is really lesser Eiserman who I like far more. Still at 43, maybe you get lucky and Poirier ends up as a 2nd line scoring winger and top PP guy. At 43, that would be pretty good. Personally, I would look elsewhere and I think Poirier will slide into late 2nd or even the 3rd.

Let's talk about Dominik Badinka, 6'3" 190lbs RHD out Czechia who played 33 games in the SHL this year. If Stiga is gone, I think I wouldn't mind Badinka at 43. First, the number of clips for a guy who has only 4 SHL points is low, not 0 but low. He reminds me a bit of Mattias Samuelsson in that he is big and physical while being calm without having much offense. Now when I say physical, I don't mean Pronger, he can use his body to get leverage and try and separate others from the puck but I don't read or see that as his go to. I wonder if playing in men's league at 18 has some to do with that. His skating I actually really like as his movement looks fluid and there is a fastness to it. That said, needs to be quicker and needs to add that extra short area burst. I think he is smart but have read other places that would disagree. In the all shifts below, there are time you really see him patiently and effectively get position and under pressure make good plays out or start the rush with his skating. You also see sometimes where his is just a half second behind and I think that isn't processing speed per say but more of the experience and maturity that young guys struggle with. EP has some reports from March when he went back to jrs for a few games and it is all basically he is really good defensively and getting pucks up ice but don't expect a bunch of fancy offensive zone plays. I have seen him tagged anywhere from #2 defender to the more numerous 2nd pairing guy and 1st PK type. At 43, if you get an NHL player in your top 9 or top 6, you've done well and I think Badinka is a solid guy who will probably play NHL games either as a 2nd pairing guy or a really strong 3rd pairing guy. I hope his physical game continues to develop as he gets stronger because there is certainly a willingness to engage that way that could help him carve out a role. Long reach and good skating can go a long way if you have a physical side too. Do we have to take him at 43, no, but he would be an interesting pick. He is #6 in white

They aren't as nice as 47 Brand I know that.

Again, I don't like Pronman. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5538240/2024/06/07/nhl-draft-2024-blackhawks-demidov-levshunov/ I am taking pieces and leaving out context FTR. However, Pronman constantly and repeatedly refers to Ivan Demidov's size as one of his biggest issues. He also at one point talks about Levshunov being Burns or Karlsson (which I do not see and the ppl I read do not see). His evaluation just feels flawed based on his very real size bias. That isn't to say that Levshunov cannot end up better than Demidov but that if your logic is that Demidov is 3inches shorter so he can't be good (which is basically Pronman's point) that just seems like over valuing 1 data point. For example, Pronman ranked Zach Benson 17th overall in his final rankings. In his upside rankings (basically if he were to project every player out to their very best versions) he put Benson 26th. This is all to say that if you really want to understand the draft you need to A. read multiple evaluations from scouts (4-7) and you need to know some of the tendencies of those scouts. For example Pronman who far overvalues size compared to things like IQ and Compete. However if you are under 6ft and are an excellent skater, he ignores other issues and is perfectly good with you. He basically believes all small players have to be elite level dynamic skaters. Just something to keep in mind since I know a lot of ppl read the Athletic.

Sidenote: there are rumblings on the interwebs that Montreal really likes Sennecke. Take it with a grain of salt cuz it's rumor season.

Mock draft I just made. Not rankings.

Well... *****.

Mock draft: 1. Celebrini - Sharks 2. Demidov - Hawks 3. Levshunov - Ducks 4. Silayev - Jackets 5. Iginla - Habs 6. Buium - Utah 7. Lindstrom - Sens 8. Dickinson - Kraken 9. Yakemchuk - Flames 10. Sennecke - Devils 11. Catton - Sabres 12. Greentree - Flyers 13. Parekh - Wild 14. Eiserman - Sharks 15. Nygard - Wings 16. Jiricek - Blues

I felt like I was but events at the job have taken that away.

In what way?

Let's talk about Brandsegg-Nygard Micahel Brandsegg-Nygard is a 6'1" 198lbs RW/LW, #28: A lot of you want a stout, hard to play against, physical, middle 6 guy with skill. Okay, here is Nygard, you're welcome. Easiest one of these I have written yet, moving on. Kidding. Nygard is a physical player with a very hard and accurate shot. He can score from range but also has the physical ability to work in close and hold off defenders to clean up trash around the net. His skating is powerful and pretty good which helps him get to where he wants, aka he is hard to knock off the puck or out of position. He also seems to relish contact, he just physically seems to push guys around and he plays in a men's league, the Swedish AHL equivalent. That said, he isn't going out of his way to make hits or be physical, he just plays that way. If he can hit you, he will. If he can throw a reverse hit, he will. If he can cut your hands and drive on you, he will. He is a straightforward middle 6 guy with a booming shot and the ability to shutdown plays and start or lead the breakout. No complaints. So why isn't our friend from Norway higher? Well, he's not overly creative in any sense of the word. He has some ability to manipulate defenders but it isn't his go to. He takes mostly what he can get either through being physically better (his skating helps here too) or by finding soft spots where he can help teammates. His ability to get in a shooting position or crash the net his great, but this isn't a guy like Tuch or ROR where he has some of those nifty handles that can help him solve problems in the offensive zone. He's a very safe player, by next year (2025) he can probably slot into your bottom 6 and he will do just fine. In an ideal world with his shot, you could pair him with Benson and have a very well rounded line where Benson can be the manipulator and Nygard can maintain possession, shoot, or be a give and go option. He could even get you 25g and 25a down the line. I think in the playoffs, his level of grit and his size would be real assets on the PK and closing out games. The issue? Do you want to spend an 11oa pick on a 50pt middle 6 guy who may only end up as a 15g,20a 3rd line winger? Or do you want to spend it on say Eiserman who might be a 40g scorer and a potential first line player in 5 years? Keep in mind Nygard is going to be 19 in October, so he is old for his class. The decision is what do you want to value as an org? The high floor but most likely lower ceiling, or the high ceiling or lower floor because at 11, all the guys fit those categories whether we talk Nygard, Eiserman, Dickinson, Yakemchuk, Helenius, Connolly, Sennecke etc... all I can say is I agree with everyone, Nygard is going to be an NHL player but how high he can play is my question. If he had more playmaking and stickhandling, I would feel better but he reminds me a bit of JJP in terms of the N/S game but with more physicality and less dangling ability. Hard to gauge but for Buffalo, considering their pool, I might lean into Nygard as a guy who down the road could play with Benson - Östlund - Nygard.

Teddy Stiga 5'10" LW, #8: First, he plays on a line with James Hagens and James Hagens is probably in the conversation for the 1st overall pick in 2025. I mention that because Stiga has help and that includes fellow 2024 options Eiserman, Plante, Hutson, and Ziemer. That all said let's talk about Teddy because I noticed him throughout the year but finally sat down to look at him and I kinda fell a little bit in love. There is a play in the highlights below that blows my mind. It starts at 1:46 mark and Stiga breaks into the zone and drives the net with a defender in front of him. At first I thought he screwed up the shot and it just rebounded to Hagens but nope. Stiga corrals a pass in his skates, fakes a shot, then does this nice little slip pass back to Hagens. I have no idea how he knew Hagens was even there but it is a perfect pass. His shot in underrated IMPO as I think he releases really well. He has some of that Benson battle that I love where he just always seems to end up with the correct leverage to win puck battles. Watch some clips, you will see him win pucks and then drive inside, he does lack the elite layer of manipulation that Benson has and I think his overall handling skills are certainly less. Still, Stiga just seems to end up with pucks on his stick either from his excellent checking or simply because he's really smart. He knows what to do with those pucks as well, again refer to that earlier clip. Now Stiga needs to improve his skating, not because it is bad, he's got good edges and ok balance but if you watch him sprint, you will notice the lack of extension so he is shorting himself more speed. Also his handling is average as in he can handle but this isn't a guy like Sennecke who can just put it on a string and weave through you. Also, he is 5'10"... I think he'll measure 5'11" but either way that means he doesn't have the most weight to throw around so parts of his game may be harder to translate. All that said, I think the brain he has with the rest of his skills, even if not elite, point to a middle 6 player who connects on whatever line you want him. At 43, I think he is more than worth it. He has enough skills that his high end hockey sense will make up for any other short commings especially with his motor. Jett Luchanko 5'11" C, #7: Where Stiga plays with a future top 2 draft pick, Luchanko plays with... umm overager Braeden Bowman? Not a lot of talent left on Guelph after a certain Bruins prospect didn't come back. Good news is that if you watched the U18s, Luchanko was there and did pretty good even as he was used more as a checking line type as opposed to an offensive catalyst. His game is built on his skating, which is quite good. He has good speed, nice edges, decent balance. He is also willing to engage physically and use his body to gain position and then make a play. Making plays is his game as he tends to pass more than shoot and you will see lots of nifty little touch passes or dekes and passes to help him do this. He has a decent shot but nothing special there IMPO and even with his excellent passing, I don't feel he has some spidey-sense level to his reads. He will probably get drafted higher than Stiga and with an August 21 bday, he is only about 3 weeks shy of being 2025 eligible so we should consider that. Still, I question his abilities to a degree. He can facilitate plays for sure but I never really feel he is dictating them in the offensive zone. If you catch some glimpses of his defensive work, that is really good and you can see him cut plays off or win battles and start transitions usually with a nice pass. Overall I find him to be fine but he never really brings that something extra and considering he is a 2nd round option, that isn't overly surprising. Buffalo could do worse in the 2nd and if you believe his young age gives him more runway, take him and let him simmer. In 3-5 years you may get a really good skating middle 6 forward.

Hate my job

Go Dawgs, also, lol Diggs