2021 NHL Draft Rankings

[Flashsabre]

If the Sabres end up with #1 after the lottery and don’t take Beniers then Adams speel about what a Sabre is was a complete load of garbage. The kid looks like a bigger, much better skating ROR. Kid competes all over the ice every shift.  A lot of the scouting reports compare him to Toews at the same age. Slam dunk pick to me.  Wouldn’t be the sexiest 1st OA pick but would have a big impact on the team moving forward.

Edited March 20, 2021 by Flashsabre

[Crusader1969]

31 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

If the Sabres end up with #1 after the lottery and don’t take Beniers then Adams speel about what a Sabre is was a complete load of garbage. The kid looks like a bigger, much better skating ROR. Kid competes all over the ice every shift.  A lot of the scouting reports compare him to Toews at the same age. Slam dunk pick to me.  Wouldn’t be the sexiest 1st OA pick but would have a big impact on the team moving forward.

I’m in!   Plus they can’t wait 4 years for the Dman to develop 

[Curt]

37 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

If the Sabres end up with #1 after the lottery and don’t take Beniers then Adams speel about what a Sabre is was a complete load of garbage. The kid looks like a bigger, much better skating ROR. Kid competes all over the ice every shift.  A lot of the scouting reports compare him to Toews at the same age. Slam dunk pick to me.  Wouldn’t be the sexiest 1st OA pick but would have a big impact on the team moving forward.

This is pretty much how I feel about Beniers.  I have not done enough research to say if I would take him #1 or not though.

[Flashsabre]

5 minutes ago, Curt said:

This is pretty much how I feel about Beniers.  I have not done enough research to say if I would take him #1 or not though.

This year there really isn’t a clear cut#1 and some of the draft sites have him #1. The problem with some of the kids not playing this year is that we don’t know who would have broken out with a huge draft season and establish themselves as a top prospect.  Quinn wasn’t considered a top draft prospect last year and then he had a huge season with 52 goals and really established himself.  That and the fact that there is no McDavid type runaway top pick makes it interesting. 
 

I think Beniers is the guy out of the top group of players that the Sabres really need moving forward.  If he was ranked around 10th then it would be an issue but he is ranked Ming the top guys in the draft.

[Curt]

5 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

This year there really isn’t a clear cut#1 and some of the draft sites have him #1. The problem with some of the kids not playing this year is that we don’t know who would have broken out with a huge draft season and establish themselves as a top prospect.  Quinn wasn’t considered a top draft prospect last year and then he had a huge season with 52 goals and really established himself.  That and the fact that there is no McDavid type runaway top pick makes it interesting. 
 

I think Beniers is the guy out of the top group of players that the Sabres really need moving forward.  If he was ranked around 10th then it would be an issue but he is ranked Ming the top guys in the draft.

Yeah, I think he is certainly one of the top guys, and I like what he brings for the Sabres.  Like you said, it’s not very clear cut this year, which is why I’m not sure yet.

Positive note is that it looks like everyone is going to have some sort of season.  Even though it will be quite a bit shorter than normal for most of the CHL guys.  There will be something to look at though.

[LGR4GM]

2 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

He's a need pick for me. If he was there in the 2nd round he'd be my pick. 

How is he a need?

[PerreaultForever]

1 hour ago, LGR4GM said:

How is he a need?

Big strong D man who can also skate. 

here is one quote from last year:

"Schmidt is a man amongst boys on the ice, and uses his strength to eliminate opposing offensive rushes as well as to hulk his way up the ice for an easy carry-in. However, his hockey sense is also promising, as Schmidt shows innate abilities to read opponent tactics and to shut down any offensive opportunities. He shows intelligence with his stick as well, either through smart positioning or aggressive poke checks to eliminate potential scoring chances."

he also seems to be on a rapid improvement curve which bodes well for the future in a somewhat guessing game draft year.

Now as to the need, RHD. I hate Montour and want him gone. He probably will be. I've also lost faith in Jokiharju. He can skate and move the puck, but can't play D.  Risto might also get traded but even if he doesn't that leaves Risto, Miller and Borgen. Schmidt replaces Miller in 2-3 years. 

Fundamentally our D is a mess due to changing philosophies and mismatched random pairings. We need big stable defenders to pair with the puck moving skaters we've seemed to favour lately. I want to build this team from the goal out, the reverse of the plan(s) over the last 10 or so years. 

In a perfect future world he might pair well with Samuellson as a total shutdown pairing on PK and late games with (gasp) a lead. But that's far away and wishful. 

[LGR4GM]

5 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Big strong D man who can also skate. 

here is one quote from last year:

"Schmidt is a man amongst boys on the ice, and uses his strength to eliminate opposing offensive rushes as well as to hulk his way up the ice for an easy carry-in. However, his hockey sense is also promising, as Schmidt shows innate abilities to read opponent tactics and to shut down any offensive opportunities. He shows intelligence with his stick as well, either through smart positioning or aggressive poke checks to eliminate potential scoring chances."

he also seems to be on a rapid improvement curve which bodes well for the future in a somewhat guessing game draft year.

Now as to the need, RHD. I hate Montour and want him gone. He probably will be. I've also lost faith in Jokiharju. He can skate and move the puck, but can't play D.  Risto might also get traded but even if he doesn't that leaves Risto, Miller and Borgen. Schmidt replaces Miller in 2-3 years. 

Fundamentally our D is a mess due to changing philosophies and mismatched random pairings. We need big stable defenders to pair with the puck moving skaters we've seemed to favour lately. I want to build this team from the goal out, the reverse of the plan(s) over the last 10 or so years. 

In a perfect future world he might pair well with Samuellson as a total shutdown pairing on PK and late games with (gasp) a lead. But that's far away and wishful. 

He's not a shutdown defender. You're 100% overhauling his size. 

[PerreaultForever]

37 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

He's not a shutdown defender. You're 100% overhauling his size. 

going to just agree to disagree on this one. 

[steveoath]

From my readings into prospects thus year it doesn't seem like there are many "defend first" guys out there. That's our need on D IMHO. 

[North Buffalo]

12 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Big strong D man who can also skate. 

here is one quote from last year:

"Schmidt is a man amongst boys on the ice, and uses his strength to eliminate opposing offensive rushes as well as to hulk his way up the ice for an easy carry-in. However, his hockey sense is also promising, as Schmidt shows innate abilities to read opponent tactics and to shut down any offensive opportunities. He shows intelligence with his stick as well, either through smart positioning or aggressive poke checks to eliminate potential scoring chances."

he also seems to be on a rapid improvement curve which bodes well for the future in a somewhat guessing game draft year.

Now as to the need, RHD. I hate Montour and want him gone. He probably will be. I've also lost faith in Jokiharju. He can skate and move the puck, but can't play D.  Risto might also get traded but even if he doesn't that leaves Risto, Miller and Borgen. Schmidt replaces Miller in 2-3 years. 

Fundamentally our D is a mess due to changing philosophies and mismatched random pairings. We need big stable defenders to pair with the puck moving skaters we've seemed to favour lately. I want to build this team from the goal out, the reverse of the plan(s) over the last 10 or so years. 

In a perfect future world he might pair well with Samuellson as a total shutdown pairing on PK and late games with (gasp) a lead. But that's far away and wishful. 

So I disagree... Bryson and Risto seem like a good match.  Borgen when he comes back... Dhalin... Miller yeh Joker is just too small Dhalin needs to get bigger.  D with a solid goaltender not so bad.

Im great if Schmidt there in 2nd

[MODO Hockey]

On 3/19/2021 at 9:46 PM, LTS said:

Do you have any idea what this would do to @MODO Hockey?

He'd likely test the board's ability to embed Peter Griffin GIFs in a single post.

Haha.

Well, my friend. You know me to well 

[Curt]

You guys are trying to apply NHL team needs to a prospect (Schmidt) who probably isn’t going to be NHL ready for 4-5 years.  If you like the guy, that’s fine, but don’t draft him because of what is on the Buffalo Sabres roster today.  Not only is 4 years a long time with regular roster turnover, but I would bet that this team is going to undergo a major roster upheaval in the next 18 months.

Just go for the players who you think are going to be the best NHL players, and also who you want to see in a Sabres jersey one day.

[Sabres Fan in NS]

L’Heureux!!

😎

[Curt]

11 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

He's not a shutdown defender. You're 100% overhauling his size. 

What’s your view on Roman Schmidt and why he can not develop into a shutdown defender?

[Thorner]

2 hours ago, Curt said:

You guys are trying to apply NHL team needs to a prospect (Schmidt) who probably isn’t going to be NHL ready for 4-5 years.  If you like the guy, that’s fine, but don’t draft him because of what is on the Buffalo Sabres roster today.  Not only is 4 years a long time with regular roster turnover, but I would bet that this team is going to undergo a major roster upheaval in the next 18 months.

Just go for the players who you think are going to be the best NHL players, and also who you want to see in a Sabres jersey one day.

Hopefully the plan is to have their cohesive roster set for next season, constructed within the next 6 months. 

Edited March 21, 2021 by Thorny

[PerreaultForever]

6 hours ago, North Buffalo said:

So I disagree... Bryson and Risto seem like a good match.  Borgen when he comes back... Dhalin... Miller yeh Joker is just too small Dhalin needs to get bigger.  D with a solid goaltender not so bad.

Im great if Schmidt there in 2nd

We're not really disagreeing that much but what I think the team has to plan for is a post Risto world. Whether that is sooner because we trade him or at the end of his current contract I would think it unlikely he wants to retire a career Sabre after all the losing he's been through. In any event, when you're drafting D men you need to be thinking 3-4 years down the road. The pipeline has to keep flowing because not every prospect is going to pan out as we all know too well. 

[North Buffalo]

23 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

We're not really disagreeing that much but what I think the team has to plan for is a post Risto world. Whether that is sooner because we trade him or at the end of his current contract I would think it unlikely he wants to retire a career Sabre after all the losing he's been through. In any event, when you're drafting D men you need to be thinking 3-4 years down the road. The pipeline has to keep flowing because not every prospect is going to pan out as we all know too well. 

True, just would go forward first round for that very reason.

[LGR4GM]

2 hours ago, Curt said:

What’s your view on Roman Schmidt and why he can not develop into a shutdown defender?

Sorry, I misread his post. I thought he was talking Powers.

I'll get more into Schmidt at some point. He might be a good 2nd round option but 100% not top 10. 

51 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

We're not really disagreeing that much but what I think the team has to plan for is a post Risto world. Whether that is sooner because we trade him or at the end of his current contract I would think it unlikely he wants to retire a career Sabre after all the losing he's been through. In any event, when you're drafting D men you need to be thinking 3-4 years down the road. The pipeline has to keep flowing because not every prospect is going to pan out as we all know too well. 

Take a forward in the first and a defender in the second. 

[LGR4GM]

The other thing is that the Sabres suck at development. Until they prove otherwise, I'm worried about taking a talented project like Powers when I can take a talented sure thing like Beniers.

[LGR4GM]

I don't love Kent Johnson the way some do. He's not aggressive enough on the boards or in puck retrieval. Anyways, here's a write up. 

 

 

Edited March 21, 2021 by LGR4GM

[PerreaultForever]

7 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

Sorry, I misread his post. I thought he was talking Powers.

I'll get more into Schmidt at some point. He might be a good 2nd round option but 100% not top 10. 

Take a forward in the first and a defender in the second. 

imo it's a mistake to draft immediate need in round 1 of any draft. You take best player available, always, and in this draft, it's likely a D man.

We trade for the forward you want. 

[LGR4GM]

18 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

imo it's a mistake to draft immediate need in round 1 of any draft. You take best player available, always, and in this draft, it's likely a D man.

We trade for the forward you want. 

I think Eklund is the best player in this draft. 

Also BPA is a misnomer because it varies by what you are looking for. Beniers has a non stop motor that Powers doesn't, something that elevates him over Powers. 

[LGR4GM]

21 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

imo it's a mistake to draft immediate need in round 1 of any draft. You take best player available, always, and in this draft, it's likely a D man.

We trade for the forward you want. 

You figure out a way to trade for Seth Jarvis and I will be all on board the Brandt Clarke train. 

[Crusader1969]

3 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

I don't love Kent Johnson the way some do. He's not aggressive enough on the boards or in puck retrieval. Anyways, here's a write up. 

 

 

Thanks for the post.  I don’t see him being drafted by the Sabres 

One of the main reasons they took  Jack Quinn was not only his scoring ability but also his 2 way game.  Doesn’t seem like that’s a strength of Johnson’s.  Again, I’m just going to readings as I haven’t seen him play.  Looking forward to the frozen 4 

Ill be surprised if One of  Berniers or Eklund isn’t a Sabre next season. Both seem to be the exact type of player they desperately need at this time.