MINNESOTA WILD
The prospect pool has flourished for the Wild under GM Chuck Fletcher and his Assistant GM Brent Flahr. Last season, the Wild received a lot of help from rookies Jonas Brodin, Charlie Coyle, and Jason Zucker. Names to keep an eye out for are Mikael Granlund, Darcy Kuemper, Johan Gustafsson, and Matt Dumba . They all look primed to make a play for a roster spot within the next few seasons.
As far as the draft goes, most fans are expecting Flahr to make a splash again. It will be difficult without a first round pick, but according to Mike Russo, Fletcher and Flahr have been working on getting the Wild back into the first round. However, the Wild have had a lot of success with their second and third round draft picks in
recent years so regaining a 1st round pick is not
a necessity.
- Emilie Wiener, Managing Editor/Writer at HockeyWilderness.com
MONTREAL CANADIENS
With less than a week before the NHL Entry Draft that will be held at Prudential Center on June 30th, 2013, Montreal Canadiens fans have every reason to get excited about the next Habs' draft. While the team doesn't have a top-three selection like last year when they drafted talented forward Alex Galchenyuk from the Sarnia Sting, the teams holds eight draft picks this season, six of which are in the first three rounds.
With a very deep core of young defensemen such as Nathan Beaulieu, Jarred Tinordi, Morgan Ellis, Marcus Nygren, Dalton Thrower and Darren Dietz, everyone expects Trevor Timmins and his scouting staff to draft a forward with his first-round pick. Will the organization keep their 25th overall pick to draft that forward or will the team try to move up or down the draft to get the player they want?
One thing I can tell you for sure is that Timmins told GM Marc Bergevin that he would very much like to move up in the top 12 of this particular draft in order to land a quality power forward to add to an already potent group of young and talented forwards, namely Sebastian Collberg, Tim Bozon, Danny Kristo, Charles Hudon, Michael Bournival, Brady Vail and Patrick Holland. While the above group of forwards is very talented, it lacks a true power forward and that's the kind of player the organization is looking to select in 2013.
In order to do so, Bergervin would need to package one or two 2nd or 3rd picks with the team's 25th overall draft pick to accomplish this feat. The team is also shopping center David Desharnais, who has become redundant with the emergence of youngster Lars Eller, who is now ready to become the team's #2 center behind Tomas Plekanec. Don't forget that while he was mainly used as a winger this season, Alex Galchenyuk is also a natural pivot.
Timmins and his staff will most likely draft on of the following forwards: Sean Monahan, Valeri Nichushkin, Hunter Shinkaruk, Max Domi, Bo Horvat, Anthony Mantha, Frederik Gauthier, or Curtis Lazar.
Finally, you can also expect the Canadiens to finally draft a goaltender in the second or third round as the cupboard is pretty bare after Carey Price and Peter Budaj. With career AHLer Dustin Tokarski and unproven Robert Mayer are the team's goaltenders of the future, Montreal really needs to address that weakness through the draft.
- Frederic Poulin is Contributing Writer at The Hockey Writers & at HabsAddict.com
NASHVILLE PREDATORS
After a disappointing season, the Nashville Predators will have the 4th pick in the 2013 Entry Draft. There is no secret that the Predators need impact players at the forward position, and the early picks in this draft provide the opportunity to add that kind of player.
If the draft order plays out as many expect, Nathan Mackinnon and Jonathan Drouin will be off the board. If one of those two players should be available, I would expect the Predators to make them their selection.
The more realistic scenario will be that the Predators will have a choice of one of three players that can come in and quickly contribute to the much needed scoring the Predators lack. Those players that should be available and from which the Predators will make their selection are: Valery Nichushkin; Alexsander Barkov; and Elias Lindholm.
Each player is intriguing and has the potential to add much needed scoring. The question for the Predators is which of these players is most NHL ready and can earn a roster spot and begin contributing quickly.
Nichuskin is a strong power forward that skates well, has good hands, and has a nose for the net. His speed, coupled with his size (6'2" 195 lbs), and his scoring touch make him an intriguing selection. There are some that believe that the Predators will shy away from the young Russian because of their less than favorable experience with Alexander Radulov. I don't think that will be the case. Nichushkin has demonstrated that he can play against older players and tougher competition as he played for Traktor Chelyabinsk of the Russian Super League and performed well. Dynamo Minsk holds his rights, and will probably not relinquish them without a fuss, but Nichushkin has said that he is coming to North America to play in the NHL, and I expect to see him on an NHL roster quickly.
Barkov is another dominating power forward that could benefit the Predators. Like Nichushkin, he has good size (6'2" 205 lbs) and has excellent hockey sense and vision. He is not the explosive skater that Nichushkin is, but has good hands and an excellent shot. The concern about Barkov is a shoulder injury that he suffered, an injury that has held him out of some of the combine activities. If there is a concern that the damage to his shoulder is extensive or could take some time from which to recover, I would expect Barkov to fall off the Predators draft board.
Lindholm is a good skater, strong on the puck, and a play maker. Lindholm is the smallest of the three prospects (6' 0" 180 lbs) but has shown that he can handle the physical rigors of the game. Lindholm has tremendous upside, but his game is not as advanced as either Nichuskin or Barkov.
Look for the Predators to add a player that is NHL ready and can contribute immediately. Given those requirements, I expect the Predators to draft Valery Nichushkin with the 4th pick.
IN THE SYSTEM
Austin Watson is a big body that is continuing to develop his game in Milwaukee. He is rugged, skates well, and has shown that he can score. Watson had a brief visit with the Predators late in the season as injuries forced his call up. Watson took some time to adjust to the speed and physicality of the NHL game. I project Watson as a third line center in the NHL.
Daniel Bang is a big winger that showed he enjoys the physical aspects of the NHL game in his brief late season stint with the Predators. He skates surprisingly well for a big man but has yet to develop a scoring touch. If he can add that aspect to his game, Bang could be a welcome addition to the Predators line up.
Filip Forsberg was acquired in a trade with the Washington Capitals, and he could be a special player. He had a brief late season run with the Predators and he demonstrated good hands, great hockey sense, and the ability to get himself in good scoring position. Forsberg is 18, and as he continues to mature, could be a highly skilled scorer that the Predators desperately need. He will not be the most physical player on the ice, but his skill set shows the potential to be an elite player.
The Buffalo Sabres have two first round draft choices in the 2013 NHL Draft, their own pick(8th overall) and the Minnesota Wild’s top selection(16th overall) acquired at the trade deadline in the Jason Pominville deal. GM Darcy Regier may be very busy on the draft floor in Newark next weekend, with potential trades of veterans Ryan Miller and Thomas Vanek that could give the Sabres more picks. Barring a packaging of their two top selections to move into the top five, the Sabres hope that Sean Monahan of the Ottawa 67’s or young Swede Elias Lindholm fall to the #8 pick, but would not be disappointed to snag big Sault-Sainte Marie blueliner Darnell Nurse.
The Sabres appear to be entering an organizational rebuild with Regier and coach Ron Rolston at the helm. 2010 first rounder Mark Pysyk played extensively at the end of the regular season, 2011 top pick Joel Armia is expected to come to North America after completing three seasons in the Finnish SM-Liiga and 2012 selections Mikhail Grigorenko and Zemgus Girgensons are both expected to get serious consideration towards making the big club in 2013.