Sabres 2023 Draft Class

[Thorner]

5 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Goalies are different.  They often take longer to develop and therefore get drafted later.  Miller was a 5th rd pick, Levi a 7th, Ullmark a 6th and Petersen a 5th.  I also said similar development path as Levi.  I didn’t say as good as Levi.  We’ll know more next season when he is the man in Seattle and hopefully plays for Canada at the U20s like Levi did.  

There's always exceptions.

Just telling you the odds, Han

[GASabresIUFAN]

1 minute ago, Thorny said:

There's always exceptions.

Just telling you the odds, Han

Don’t ever tell me odds!

[msw2112]

 I said in a post yesterday after the first round that I was happy with the Benson pick, IF:

• they drafted a goalie
• they drafted multiple defensemen

Both boxes are checked.  They also added size both at forward and on D.  

I don't know enough about any of these prospects to make a fully eduated judgment.  That said, I like what I see.

[Mr. Allen]

1 hour ago, Thorny said:

I'm counting Levi on the NHL roster and I think Benson is probably the best prospect we have 

It's more so what I've heard, I'm no draft guru 

More of a draft Gru 

You put him ahead of Savoi and Kulich? 

[Thorner]

1 minute ago, Mr. Allen said:

You put him ahead of Savoi and Kulich? 

I'm not quite as high on Kulich as most and while I really like Savoie, too, Benson to me..I'm probably just biased towards his playmaking, high-quality defence blend of game. Obviously he's a competitor too but I just like the mix he brings a little more than Savoie. 

But, again, I don't really know anything about prospects. Mostly it's just my impression from reading 

Benson

Savoie

Kulich

Östlund

Rosen

..are kinda a tier to me. I guess there's a bit of a gap after Kulich but these 5 to me are the A guys at F, and the pool in general 

[sabresparaavida]

2 minutes ago, Mr. Allen said:

You put him ahead of Savoi and Kulich? 

Definitely ahead of Savoie. They played on the same line and Benson outproduced Savoie, while bringing a better defensive game.  
Kulich is a more interesting question, he’s shown a lot of development over the last year, with a great world juniors and a strong. AHL campaign. But I think overall, Benson gets the slight nod. 

[Curt]

16 minutes ago, Mr. Allen said:

You put him ahead of Savoi and Kulich? 

I would say so.  At least in terms of talent level and upside.  Kulich has a bit of extra certainty because we’ve seen him play well in the AHL, but still.

I don’t think a lot of people are appreciating how high of a pedigree Benson comes with.  A year ago he was considered a no doubt top 5 pick from this class, and it’s not like he had a disappointing season.

He is one of only like 10 players ever granted exceptional status to play CHL hockey in their age 15 season.  Benson is really really good.  Drafting him at 13 is a huge deal.

[Thorner]

5 minutes ago, Curt said:

I would say so.  At least in terms of talent level and upside.  Kulich has a bit of extra certainty because we’ve seen him play well in the AHL, but still.

I don’t think a lot of people are appreciating how high of a pedigree Benson comes with.  A year ago he was considered a no doubt top 5 pick from this class, and it’s not like he had a disappointing season.

He is one of only like 10 players ever granted exceptional status to play CHL hockey in their age 15 season.  Benson is really really good.  Drafting him at 13 is a huge deal.

It’s a big deal and I think people appreciate it, but it’s still relative. Part of the reason he fell to 13 is that it was such a loaded draft up top - a lot of teams added a really good player to their systems, too. Benson HAS to be a great player for us to “gain” here, relatively. And sure I do think he’s got a great shot at that, being one of the best in the class. But it’s still a high expectation to level  

Saying this as someone who has him ranked 1 for us. He’s a great prospect.

[kas23]

1 hour ago, Thorny said:

He's a 5th round pick, it's much more likely he never plays in the NHL. We're already comparing Levi to Hasek I don't think I'm ready to call this dude the new, new Hasek

Thank God he wasn’t picked 212th in the 7th round. Then he’d really have no chance in playing in the NHL. 

Edited June 29, 2023 by kas23

[Thorner]

8 minutes ago, kas23 said:

Thank God he wasn’t picked 212th in the 7th round. Then he’d really have no chance in playing in the NHL. 

Yes, Levi, I get it.

Sorry, do you think it’s more likely he DOES play in the NHL, than does not? 

Like he’s a better than 50/50 shot to be a mainstay nhl tender?

I beg anyone to look at the hit rate of 5th round picks, and 5th round pick goalies. It’s not some sort of hot take for me to say it’s more likely he doesn’t meaningfully pan out. It’s not pessimistic it’s just reality.

Of course there are exceptions. But if you could just point at every late round prospect and go “look, Levi again” then Levi wouldn’t be “Levi” as we think of him at all, he wouldn’t be special. At least this far, though unproven as an NHLer, he’s tracking in a very abnormal way relative to his peers 

Edited June 29, 2023 by Thorny

[dudacek]

19 minutes ago, Curt said:

I would say so.  At least in terms of talent level and upside.  Kulich has a bit of extra certainty because we’ve seen him play well in the AHL, but still.

I don’t think a lot of people are appreciating how high of a pedigree Benson comes with.  A year ago he was considered a no doubt top 5 pick from this class, and it’s not like he had a disappointing season.

He is one of only like 10 players ever granted exceptional status to play CHL hockey in their age 15 season.  Benson is really really good.  Drafting him at 13 is a huge deal.

Sabres fans were hoping for size and they weren’t paying a lot of attention to Benson because he was neither a need, nor expected to be available.

I have no problem saying he is a better prospect than any forward taken in 2022 - not just the Sabres trio, that entire draft.

Someone said it earlier: most GMs picking after 4 will be kicking themselves in 5 years for over thinking this one.

This kid can hockey.

[Taro T]

25 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Sabres fans were hoping for size and they weren’t paying a lot of attention to Benson because he was neither a need, nor expected to be available.

I have no problem saying he is a better prospect than any forward taken in 2022 - not just the Sabres trio, that entire draft.

Someone said it earlier: most GMs picking after 4 will be kicking themselves in 5 years for over thinking this one.

This kid can hockey.

Yeah, Benson and Michkov both could really be studs that slid out of the top 5.

Don't follow juniors/the draft nearly enough to have an expert opinion on it, but it sure seems that Adams and crew at a minimum bought the right lottery tickets.  Would be awesome to see 3 or 4 of them hit.

[kas23]

1 hour ago, Thorny said:

Yes, Levi, I get it.

Sorry, do you think it’s more likely he DOES play in the NHL, than does not? 

Like he’s a better than 50/50 shot to be a mainstay nhl tender?

I beg anyone to look at the hit rate of 5th round picks, and 5th round pick goalies. It’s not some sort of hot take for me to say it’s more likely he doesn’t meaningfully pan out. It’s not pessimistic it’s just reality.

Of course there are exceptions. But if you could just point at every late round prospect and go “look, Levi again” then Levi wouldn’t be “Levi” as we think of him at all, he wouldn’t be special. At least this far, though unproven as an NHLer, he’s tracking in a very abnormal way relative to his peers 

Of course any late rounder doesn’t equate to Levi. It’s just the value we assign to draft pedigree is much different for goalies. That is, a goalie picked in the 5th probably has a better NHL chance than a forward picked in the 5th. You just don’t know what you’re gonna get most of the time. That said, the chances of any drafted player playing in the NHL is low. It’s mostly a numbers game. 

[LGR4GM]

57 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Sabres fans were hoping for size and they weren’t paying a lot of attention to Benson because he was neither a need, nor expected to be available.

I have no problem saying he is a better prospect than any forward taken in 2022 - not just the Sabres trio, that entire draft.

Someone said it earlier: most GMs picking after 4 will be kicking themselves in 5 years for over thinking this one.

This kid can hockey.

Hmm... I don't think I can disagree. 

Logan Cooley is .5 inches taller and he's the only one I'd currently rank near Benson. 

[Curt]

1 hour ago, Thorny said:

It’s a big deal and I think people appreciate it, but it’s still relative. Part of the reason he fell to 13 is that it was such a loaded draft up top - a lot of teams added a really good player to their systems, too. Benson HAS to be a great player for us to “gain” here, relatively. And sure I do think he’s got a great shot at that, being one of the best in the class. But it’s still a high expectation to level  

Saying this as someone who has him ranked 1 for us. He’s a great prospect.

I honestly don’t think that anyone outside of the top 4 and Michkov is even close to Benson.  None of those other guys were a reason for Benson to fall to 13.  For him to go after Reinbacher, Simishev, Danielson, But, and Willander is ridiculous in my opinion.  He is a guy who could be the #1 pick in say 25-33% of drafts and should be a top-5 pick in like 85% of drafts.  I think he should have been #6 at the very latest this season.

I feel like a lot of people are not regarding him in that way.  They just regard him as a top 10 option in this draft who happened to be there at 13 and is a pretty good pick.

I don’t think it’s even a question whether or not he is now Buffalo’s top prospect.

[Thorner]

4 minutes ago, Curt said:

I honestly don’t think that anyone outside of the top 4 and Michkov is even close to Benson.  None of those other guys were a reason for Benson to fall to 13.  For him to go after Reinbacher, Simishev, Danielson, But, and Willander is ridiculous in my opinion.  He is a guy who could be the #1 pick in say 25-33% of drafts and should be a top-5 pick in like 85% of drafts.  I think he should have been #6 at the very latest this season.

I feel like a lot of people are not regarding him in that way.  They just regard him as a top 10 option in this draft who happened to be there at 13 and is a pretty good pick.

I don’t think it’s even a question whether or not he is now Buffalo’s top prospect.

25-33%? That’s amazing 

[Curt]

3 minutes ago, Thorny said:

25-33%? That’s amazing 

Yup, exactly 25-33%.  If you need confirmation just ask me, I’ll confirm it.

Seriously though, less than 50% for sure, but more than 10% for sure.

Edited June 29, 2023 by Curt

[Thorner]

11 minutes ago, Curt said:

Yup, exactly 25-33%.  If you need confirmation just ask me, I’ll confirm it.

Seriously though, less than 50% for sure, but more than 10% for sure.

I’m pretty excited about it. My type of player. 

And that list is stacking up 

[Curt]

 

16 minutes ago, Thorny said:

I’m pretty excited about it. My type of player. 

And that list is stacking up 

He is one of only 9 (I believe) players who have been granted exceptional status, giving them a waiver basically to play in the CHL at 15 years old.

As a 15 year old, when most kids are not even allowed to play in the league, he put up 20 pts in 24 games.

As a 16 year old, he put up 63 pts in 58 games and 23 in 15 during the playoffs.

Then this year, as a 17 year old, he put up 98 pts in 60 games.

He has been considered a truly elite talent for years and has fully lived up to the billing, both in terms of raw production and his overall play.  It doesn’t make any sense to me that he dropped to 13.

I don’t mean to beat the point to death.  I just think there are a fair number of people who actually don’t realize this stuff.  I feel like Benson has somehow been flying under the radar of people only paying casual attention to draft stuff because of Bedard’s next level brilliance, Michkov’s drama, and the fact that small winger was not a position of need for Buffalo.

Edited June 29, 2023 by Curt

[Flashsabre]

Joe Dibiase made a comparison that the more I think about it the more I like: Pavel Datsyuk

High IQ very creative playmaker, excellent defensive forward, magician at stripping pucks from opposing players.

[sabresparaavida]

19 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

Joe Dibiase made a comparison that the more I think about it the more I like: Pavel Datsyuk

High IQ very creative playmaker, excellent defensive forward, magician at stripping pucks from opposing players.

If we got a Pavel Datsyuk at 13 OA, the rest of the draft would hardly matter, and I like what Kevyn Adams did with the other high picks.

[RochesterExpat]

2 hours ago, Thorny said:

I'm not quite as high on Kulich as most and while I really like Savoie, too, Benson to me..I'm probably just biased towards his playmaking, high-quality defence blend of game. Obviously he's a competitor too but I just like the mix he brings a little more than Savoie. 

But, again, I don't really know anything about prospects. Mostly it's just my impression from reading 

Benson

Savoie

Kulich

Östlund

Rosen

..are kinda a tier to me. I guess there's a bit of a gap after Kulich but these 5 to me are the A guys at F, and the pool in general 

It’s hard to rate prospects and I think I know where you’re coming from and I don’t totally disagree. With that being said, I think Kulich is further ahead than Savoie and Benson if we’re talking about the floor, but both Savoie and Benson have higher ceilings with Benson having the highest ceiling as he’s a bonafide two way player.

Kulich needs to take the next steps in his defensive game and play a consistent pace for the duration of his shift. If he fixes those issues, he will be a top 6 player. If he doesn’t, he’s destined for VO 2.0.

To put it another way, I think Rosen’s floor is a tweener and his ceiling is a third liner. Kulich’s ceiling is 2nd line and his floor is third line/role player/perennially fan frustration. I’m most confident with these assumptions because I watched the majority of Rochester games. Because Kulich has the higher floor, he’s the highest prospect in my mind.

Savoie could be a top line player but I honestly could see him being a tweener just as easily if he doesn’t adjust his game. The AHL playoffs were a poor sample for him. He is a boom or bust for me. I realize that’s likely not a shared opinion.

Benson’s ceiling could be Jeff Skinner last season. His floor could be Jeff Skinner under Krueger. More appropriately put, I do believe his floor is already that of an NHL player (13th forwards are NHL players after all) which puts him ahead of Savoie.

I don’t have a fair assessment on Östlund from the past year as he doesn’t play in a league I watch regularly.

I’d like to add that Rousek, at least to me, has the ceiling of a third liner and the floor of a 13th forward. That would put him ahead of most on the list. I could make a similar argument for Weissbach as well.

[Weave]

May our magic beans outperform all of the other magic beans selected.

I got nuthin, really.  It sounds like we got a kid with outstanding talent.  He slid to 13, why?  Because he’s not 5’10”?  I hope its that simple.  I like me some outstanding talent.

[Turbo44]

13 minutes ago, Weave said:

May our magic beans outperform all of the other magic beans selected.

I got nuthin, really.  It sounds like we got a kid with outstanding talent.  He slid to 13, why?  Because he’s not 5’10”?  I hope its that simple.  I like me some outstanding talent.

Fortsen, who typically doesn’t BS, said he’ll end up being the best player in the draft. That’s saying a lot given who went #1

[LGR4GM]

1 hour ago, Curt said:

 

He is one of only 9 (I believe) players who have been granted exceptional status, giving them a waiver basically to play in the CHL at 15 years old.

As a 15 year old, when most kids are not even allowed to play in the league, he put up 20 pts in 24 games.

As a 16 year old, he put up 63 pts in 58 games and 23 in 15 during the playoffs.

Then this year, as a 17 year old, he put up 98 pts in 60 games.

He has been considered a truly elite talent for years and has fully lived up to the billing, both in terms of raw production and his overall play.  It doesn’t make any sense to me that he dropped to 13.

I don’t mean to beat the point to death.  I just think there are a fair number of people who actually don’t realize this stuff.  I feel like Benson has somehow been flying under the radar of people only paying casual attention to draft stuff because of Bedard’s next level brilliance, Michkov’s drama, and the fact that small winger was not a position of need for Buffalo.

Bedard and Michkov really overshadowed a lot of others. I find it interesting that many ppl wanted Michkov and he's listed at 5'10" but Benson is somehow deficient. 

I love Benson. I should have mocked him to Buffalo when I did mine but I believed all the Wood hype. I hope Benson gets taller because he's so good that any additional physical help will only push him higher. 

The WHL will be fun to watch this year. 

Edited June 30, 2023 by LGR4GM