2025 NHL Entry Draft Thread

[LGR4GM]

Michael Misa interestingly enough, only would need 1 more Jr year before becoming AHL eligible. 

[kas23]

20 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

Michael Misa interestingly enough, only would need 1 more Jr year before becoming AHL eligible. 

I know next to nothing about this guy, but if we take him at 3OA, is he one to even go back to juniors? Is he NHL ready? I would think even if he went back to juniors, he would probably make the jump to the NHL the next year. 

[Flashsabre]

29 minutes ago, kas23 said:

I know next to nothing about this guy, but if we take him at 3OA, is he one to even go back to juniors? Is he NHL ready? I would think even if he went back to juniors, he would probably make the jump to the NHL the next year. 

Misa won a Memorial Cup last year and is averaging 2 points per game in his draft year which is very impressive. He’s quickly outgrowing the OHL. He is an explosive skater with a great shot. 
 

If he’s not ready for the NHL then junior is his only option next year unfortunately.

[DarthEbriate]

Going to a T-Birds game tonight to take a look at Gavin McKenna and his first palace Medicine Hatters -- which is not this draft thread. He'll be a facing a poor T-Birds squad. We'll see what Ratzlaff can do to survive.

But, for this thread, a couple T-Birds I'll keep an eye on:

Radim Mrtka - 6'6" 207# RHD

Braeden Cootes - 5'11" 183# C

[LGR4GM]

2 hours ago, kas23 said:

I know next to nothing about this guy, but if we take him at 3OA, is he one to even go back to juniors? Is he NHL ready? I would think even if he went back to juniors, he would probably make the jump to the NHL the next year. 

I pretty much always want to send 18yrs olds back. He'd probably be able to run a 3rd line between Zucker and Greenway as early as October. Hard to say without seeing him in camp. 

[Flashsabre]

54 minutes ago, DarthEbriate said:

Going to a T-Birds game tonight to take a look at Gavin McKenna and his first palace Medicine Hatters -- which is not this draft thread. He'll be a facing a poor T-Birds squad. We'll see what Ratzlaff can do to survive.

But, for this thread, a couple T-Birds I'll keep an eye on:

Radim Mrtka - 6'6" 207# RHD

Braeden Cootes - 5'11" 183# C

McKenna is great .  It looks like a Canadian will go 1OA the next 3 years with Schaefer in 25, McKenna in 26 and DuPont in 27.

DuPont is a special talent. He is a RHD who is tearing it up as an underage in the WHL.

Edited Saturday at 04:31 PM by Flashsabre

[LGR4GM]

5 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

McKenna is great .  It looks like a Canadian will go 1OA the next 3 years with Schaefer in 25, McKenna in 26 and DuPont in 27.

DuPont is a special talent. He is a RHD who is tearing it up as an underage in the WHL.

McKenna is special too (not implying you don't think so, just wanted to talk about him)

Gavin McKenna is 6' and also, is from Whitehorse, just like Cozens. Currently in the WHL at 17, he's got 26g, 60a, in 41gp. That's some pretty crazy numbers for anyone, let alone a D-1 guy. 

[Flashsabre]

1 hour ago, LGR4GM said:

McKenna is special too (not implying you don't think so, just wanted to talk about him)

Gavin McKenna is 6' and also, is from Whitehorse, just like Cozens. Currently in the WHL at 17, he's got 26g, 60a, in 41gp. That's some pretty crazy numbers for anyone, let alone a D-1 guy. 

LOL he is and I originally said he was special but I thought using special twice was too much so I changed the wording to great. McKenna’s hockey sense and vision is elite. Kind of reminds me of Paul Kariya, a LW that dominates the play with his brain and skill.

[DarthEbriate]

14 hours ago, DarthEbriate said:

Going to a T-Birds game tonight to take a look at Gavin McKenna and his first palace Medicine Hatters -- which is not this draft thread. He'll be a facing a poor T-Birds squad. We'll see what Ratzlaff can do to survive.

But, for this thread, a couple T-Birds I'll keep an eye on:

Radim Mrtka - 6'6" 207# RHD

Braeden Cootes - 5'11" 183# C

McKenna is as advertised. He's a beanpole and his shot needs work and strength, but that'll come in time. The rest of his game is fun. Amazing vision and he's operating about 0.5 seconds ahead of his teammates so the passes to space that would lead to 1-on-0 chances went uncaught, with his teammates basically saying, "Good look, but... I'm a teenager who isn't going to be in the NHL." Picked Cootes' pocket effortlessly in the neutral zone. 100% pass-first mentality right now. He was a one-man game of keep away. His goal was on a pass that the D managed to get a stick on, so at full speed and out of space, McKenna collected it from the D's skates and dropped it in the net, while Ratzlaff was still recovering from trying to slide over with the pass. Such quick hands.

Ratzlaff was great. He got beat a couple times in close where he had to sink into the net and his size was a disadvantage, but he also kept the T-Birds in the game for the first 20 minutes. In the shootout he was solid, giving up one beautiful late forehand that I thought the skated had run out of room/angle, and a good backhand.

T-Birds won in an extended shootout, so I'm happy.

Mrtka was solid. I was noting that he skated pretty well for 6'6" and his age/size, and then he had a late 2nd period shift where he went full baby giraffe. Still, I like him overall and can see him in the 9-15 overall range.

Cootes was... fine? He's quick and he took a lot of shots. But overall, I didn't see anything impressive.

Matej Pekar (the other one!) had a nice pick on a pass to McKenna and scored on his ensuing breakaway.

Finally, T-Bird Pawlenchuk was running his mouth in pregame warmups, leading to a little group of players and refs at center ice. Early in the 1st a Medicine Hatter obliged. Pawlenchuk proceeded to get clocked, then get tackled, and leave the ice with one arm dangling while the other arm gestured to the crowd to get it going. Good on him for putting a show, but maybe don't chirp if you're just going to eat fists. But the Sabres could use someone like him in their system.

 

[Flashsabre]

If you look around the NHL there is a real dearth of high end centres. Some teams might have one but few have 2 quality centres.

If everything is even I would 

take the centre if one is available.

[LGR4GM]

So... were gonna win enough to miss out on Misa. Better start talking about Roger McQueen. 

[Thorner]

Who’s the Mittlestatish guy around 8 we are targeting? 

[Mr. Allen]

4 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

So... were gonna win enough to miss out on Misa. Better start talking about Roger McQueen. 

I’m torn as a fan right now.  I swore I would never root to lose like I did for mcdavid.  That was dumb.  Ultimately I’d rather us figure things out, get our stuff together, go on a win streak and play great the rest of the year.  But if we continue to play inconsistent and don’t improve much then I at least hope we don’t fall out of the top 4. 

[LGR4GM]

3 minutes ago, Thorner said:

Who’s the Mittlestatish guy around 8 we are targeting? 

Braeden Cootes is probably the most Mitts like in that range. 

[Thorner]

Coooooooootes

[LGR4GM]

1 minute ago, Thorner said:

Coooooooootes

We'll have better options at 8, I think. 

[Flashsabre]

Hold on they haven’t won this game yet and this is exactly the type of game they collapse In.

[Flashsabre]

Hold on they haven’t won this game yet and this is exactly the type of game they collapse In.

Desnoyers and Jake O’Brien are two interesting centres as well.

[Crusader1969]

2 hours ago, Thorner said:

Coooooooootes

If they draft at 8th again.  Just wow   Trade the pick! 

I believe you want to trade it no matter what, which I'm not in agreement with.  

1 hour ago, Flashsabre said:

Hold on they haven’t won this game yet and this is exactly the type of game they collapse In.

Desnoyers and Jake O’Brien are two interesting centres as well.

Good attempt to cover that you posted in the wrong thread.    No worries , I know I've been guilty more than once !

[Thorner]

1 hour ago, Crusader1969 said:

If they draft at 8th again.  Just wow   Trade the pick! 

I believe you want to trade it no matter what, which I'm not in agreement with.  

Good attempt to cover that you posted in the wrong thread.    No worries , I know I've been guilty more than once !

Cooooooooooooooooooooooo

tes

[DarthEbriate]

I watched Cootes in person last night. Not top 10.

[French Collection]

5 minutes ago, DarthEbriate said:

I watched Cootes in person last night. Not top 10.

I don’t want him either if he chokes because he heard there was a Sabrespace scout at the game.

[LGR4GM]

2 hours ago, DarthEbriate said:

I watched Cootes in person last night. Not top 10.

I'd agree. There are other of players I'd pick before him. 

Desnoyers, McQueen, Eklund, Bear

[Two or less]

On 2/1/2025 at 9:06 AM, kas23 said:

I know next to nothing about this guy, but if we take him at 3OA, is he one to even go back to juniors? Is he NHL ready? I would think even if he went back to juniors, he would probably make the jump to the NHL the next year. 

 

There's been chatter that Micheal Misa will leave junior college for college hockey (Boston University). They recently changed the rules and as noted in this thread, his game might've outgrown the junior hockey.

[Flashsabre]

https://www.sportsnet.ca/juniors/article/landon-dupont-ties-niedermayer-record-in-whl/
 

15 years old. Kid is going to be so good. A couple scouts have said “a better Makar”