2018 Draft Thoughts/Summary/Poster Picks

[AppsSyl]

This was such a weird draft. While I don't mind some of our picks, I felt like we left some really good players on the board at times. Prior to our pick, when Noah Dobson slid to #12 I felt as though we really should have made a move to trade up for that pick considering the NYI had the 2 picks, I also felt we should have looked to move up when Ty Smith started to slide. I felt extremely hopeful when Veleno was on the board, as I think extremely highly of him and think he is going to be a really good C at the NHL, but found myself upset when we passed on him when in my eyes and the eyes of a number of scouts he was by far the BPA. Had Veleno not slid I would have been more happy with the Sandin selection as I do like Sandin as well and think he will be good.

The 2nd round to me was also extremely frustrating, because we had 2 really great options at our pick that really shouldn't have been there in Jake Wise and Calen Addison, and we passed on both for Sean Durzi who is decent, but picked a round too high imho, and is someone we could have had for free at development camp.

I thought the DerArguchintsev was good, but was disappointed we passed on Dudas and Khovanov with the other 3rd.

Thought leaving Blake Jenkins on the board in the 4th was silly.

I really liked the Filip Kral pick and think he was great value where we got him. This was probably my favourite player we drafted this year, aside from Sandin.

The 6th and 7th are always a bit of a guessing game, but I thought there was good value still there with Marcus Wesfalt in the 6th, and Nando Eggenberger and Nathan Dunkley in the 7th, and was disappointed we didn't land any of them. I do think Pontus Holmberg looks intriguing though. Likely this year's Thommie Bergmann special.

I am fully aware that it is rare your team picks the guys you want, but I have to question some of the decisions of the first 2 rounds, especially given what we left on the board. I hope our picks turn out and I am completely wrong, but I was left scratching my head a little on this one.

I think given the board Dubas/Scouts were given, I would have went with something like:

1-29 Joe Veleno C (I do like Sandin a lot, but really like Veleno)
2-52 1) Jake Wise C 2) Calen Addison RHD
3-76 Alexander Khovanov C
3-83 Aidan Dudas C
4-118 Blade Jenkins LW
5-149 Filip Kral D
6-156 Marcus Wesfalt C
7-209 Nando Eggenberger LW/RW
7-211 Nathan Dunkley C

Click to read more...

 

[SprDaVE]

Solid overall. There was a big emphasis on high IQ and skilled players. Dubas said they had their draft list and just picked the best players on them.

Really liked Sandin
Fine with Durzi
Loved SDA --- great upside
Ok with Stotts
Didn't like Hollowell
Loved Kral
I'm ok with Bouthillier

I don't know anything about Holmberg or Kizimov.

 

[Isaac Nootin]

Really like our first 4 picks, Sandin, Durzi, SDA and Stotts. Some great selections.

Not sold on Hollowell and don't know enough about the others to form an opinion at this time.

Overall I liked the Leafs draft.

 

[Isaac Nootin]

Really like our first 4 picks, Sandin, Durzi, SDA and Stotts. Some great selections.

Not sold on Hollowell and don't know enough about the others to form an opinion at this time.

Overall I liked the Leafs draft.

The more I read, the more I like the Kral selection as well.

Like this draft (outside the 1st round) more than 16' and 17'

 

[Nineteen67]

Here is the thing, Dubas convinced Shanny to hire him based upon his plan and his system to implement that plan.
Dubas has identified a skill set that he thinks will build organizational assets. Out of the guys they picked if 2 are on the roster in 3 years it’s a good draft. If they develop 2 more that can be used a currency to acquire different assets, that would make it an excellent draft.

I haven’t seen any of the picks play so I have no idea about their talent but I do like that Dubas tries to find intelligent players.

 

[LaymanX]

Pronman gives us a B- for the draft, with B- being the average grade.

 

[Liminality]

Not sold on all the picks but I don't try and pretend I'm some sort of galaxy brain and push aside all the names I don't recognize.

I like the Sandin pick though that's for sure.

 

[Apotheosis]

Good to great for me. All first 4 picks had huge emphasis on hockey IQ. Durzi for me has a huge ceiling given his offensive output. I think he's also an elite skater and he has a great shot.

 

[LaPlante94]

I can't believe Dubas would prioritize hockey IQ, skating and skill. I don't know how any hockey mind could do that. It's almost like we can't use any of these guys in the future for trades and stuff. Definitely boycotting anything Leafs until he starts drafting players who can't skate and are dumb as hell.

 

[TheMadHatTrick]

Wasn't in love with our draft but I'm old enough and been through this enough not to have a meltdown.
-Sandin wasn't my preferred choice but I can't hate the pick since that's about where he would have gone.
-I had Durzi on my board but closer to the 3rd round. Keane, who's a better overall undrafted player imo went in the 3rd.
-Kral was good value where he was picked.
-Fine with SDA as his youth gives him projection.

My shadow picks would be:

1-29) Jonatan Berggren LW
2-52) Ivan Morozov C or Benoit-Olivier Groulx C/LW
3-76) Blake McGlaughlin LW
3-83) Joey Keane RD
4-118) Yegor Sharangovich C
5-149 Filip Kral LD
6-156) Marcus Wesfalt C
7-209) Austin Wong C/RW
7-211) German Grachyov RW

 

[Voodoo Child]

I like the Sandin pick: yeah another left shot D, but beyond Rielly and Dermott who are on the roster already, who do we have at LHD that projects to a top four guy? Gordeev? Intriguing but a longshot. Greenway? Intriguing but a much longer shot. Anyone else? Who cares. Our two best D prospects before we got him were RHD Liljegren and Rasanen (I would rank him between them but closer to Liljegren).


The Durzi pick is fine in a vacuum but I just ask myself why didn't we sign him last fall for nothing but cash, but at least a year older he's a year closer.


I like the Der-Arguchintsev or however it's spelled pick. Youngest guy in the draft, flashy skill and lots of room to grow. What if this time next year he's 6'1 190? What if he isn't that, but puts up 120 points when he's essentially the same age as most 2019 draftees? Exactly the type of high risk high reward shit I'm all about, and he was a 3rd? You don't want to screw up a top 10 pick, screwing up a 11-31 is unfortunate but forgivable, screwing up a 2nd can be charged to the game, but screwing up a 3rd, who cares? Getting a player out of a third means you're laughing all the way to the bank.


I like the idea of picking a goalie every year even if it's something like 176th overall.


I can't offer comment on anyone else but based on those four picks, I am much more satisfied with this draft compared to 2017, and even 2016 outside of our generational 40 goal grinder (we could have traded Debrincat for Dumba by now!).

 

[biotk]

The Durzi pick is fine in a vacuum but I just ask myself why didn't we sign him last fall for nothing but cash, but at least a year older he's a year closer.

Dubas has said that they simply didn't have enough contract spots last summer. I personally find it unfortunate that the Leafs - who were obviously high enough on him to invite him to their development camp - didn't draft him with one of their late picks last year. (Over O'Connell or McGregor for instance).

 

[Mr Hockey]

I dont think Durzi was eligible to be signed, I am thinking he would have had to be passed over in this draft and he could have been signed... im guessing

 

[Judas Tavares]

I'm not going to place grades, that's silly. What do I know. Not going to classify as a pro or con either, cause again. Who knows?

Likes

Went with Skill and IQ which are needed in today's game
I know you don't go by position, but happy to see D and C taken. We actually have solid depth at D now, so hopefully a couple turn out
Stuck to CHL and Europe - our CJHL, NCAA and USHS picks haven't panned out, take from where we do best

Dislikes

I still wish we had a bit more of an impact C in our pipeline
Not sure if really, really high upside is there for any of the picks, but at the same time, we have our stars, now its about filling out the roster with the picks we have

Don't care about

Size - I'm not stuck in the 90s. We are in a new era. Yeesh with this smurf talk.
The Soo connection - Who cares? Sometimes the devil you is better than the devil you don't

Favourite Picks

Kral
Stotts

Least favourite Pick

Hollowell

 

[bonjovi0308]

Can someone who is knowledgeable about the OHL please give us a comparison and analysis of the three on Sandin, Durzi and Hollowell?

 

[Stigma]

After spending a lot of time reading up on the guys we picked, I have to say that this was a really impressive draft for us (IMO). Sandin was a solid pick. Kral, Stotts, Holmberg, SDA - all seem promising. Durzi - I was initially upset about this one (wanted Wise)....now I'm thinking this guy may end being the surprise of our draft. The others I still know nothing about, but Hollowell is slightly intriguing.

 

[Stand Witness]

This will be my 3rd time attempting to post in this thread because of the servers... so unfortunately it won't be as in depth as my original post was with breakdowns of most of my thoughts on our top players. I might get around to editing this post later with those thoughts.

I noticed two main themes that I addressed in my previous posts.

1) We have a ton of flexibility. Sandin is on loan, Kral I believe is on loan. That means both players can play OHL/AHL/ or their leagues they were loaned from. Durzi and Hollowell can both play the in AHL or OHL next season.

2) We will be able to get our development paths on these players faster than normal but also have to make a decision faster than most teams. This isn't necessarily a bad thing when there is a contract limit. For example, Hollowell basically has to be dealt with asap. Is there a chance he is essentially forced into signing a pro contract with the Marlies and then could be signed to an ELC after performing in the AHL? This is a way to have his rights but also have him play pro without signing in to a contract, allowing a decision to be made quicker without holding him for 3 years.

We also have guys who are 1 or 2 years closer to making it. Should be interesting to see the player placement next season.

 

[SprDaVE]

6'4" RW that was ranked in the top 100 by a few people. Surprised he went undrafted.

 

[SprDaVE]

Pronman wrote a VERY lengthy recap of our draft. He graded the Leafs with a B-, which is average.

Maple Leafs put together solid, talented draft class

For Toronto, I could quibble on who I would have taken at a given slot. Sean Durzi was a little early for me, as was Riley Stotts, but they’re both fine players. I particularly liked the third round pick of Semyon Der-Arguchintsev. Through most of their class, I can say I see talent in Stotts, Mac Hollowell, Filip Kral, Pontus Holmberg and Semyon Kizimov, even if they wouldn’t have been my recommendations. I liked the process, the players they got have talent, it was a solid weekend for the Leafs.

 

[SprDaVE]

I hope Dunkley is invited to the Leafs camp. He was also undrafted.

 

[nuck]

A very small draft. I wonder if Dubas thinks he can win with a 5'11 team or if these were all clear BPA to them and the lightweight collection was just a coincidence? The Leafs are a soft club with a small soft pipeline of talent. If you don't solve that in the draft you do it by trade and that is costly. Maybe KD thinks they are not too soft, who knows. I don't think taking Veleno and Olofsson would have been a reach "for need". Its a C draft for me until those top two picks prove me wrong. Their two 3rds could be the ones to watch though. Hard to be a stud on a doormat team.

 

[aingefan]

This is the time to sign next year’s second and fourth rounders

 

[Spirit of 67]

I like our draft.

I don't get too worked up about who we draft and where. The simple fact is, these players have been scouted live and on film for hours. That should be better than me reading scouting reports and seeing minutes of You Tube highlights.

Feels like this draft could have a little more BOOM than the last couple.

 

[Nithoniniel]

A very small draft. I wonder if Dubas thinks he can win with a 5'11 team or if these were all clear BPA to them and the lightweight collection was just a coincidence? The Leafs are a soft club with a small soft pipeline of talent. If you don't solve that in the draft you do it by trade and that is costly. Maybe KD thinks they are not too soft, who knows. I don't think taking Veleno and Olofsson would have been a reach "for need". Its a C draft for me until those top two picks prove me wrong. Their two 3rds could be the ones to watch though. Hard to be a stud on a doormat team.

I wholeheartedly agree with Dubas on drafting. You have to get prospects that turn into NHL players first and foremost. If that means that you end up lacking some quality, those prospects are actual assets that can be used to get that quality. But if you chase the qualities themselves, you just increase the odds that you get prospects that turn into nothing, and even if they do succeed the quality you targeted might not be a need when they arrive.

 

[aingefan]

I hope Dunkley is invited to the Leafs camp. He was also undrafted.

I’m not a draft junkie, so, who are some of the guys who stand out who went undrafted.
Dunkley....there was a Gegorov (sp?) mentioned in another thread....and a few others.