2024 Entry Draft

[Ilunga]

I know HOH has joined as MatchesMalone 

Hope you don't mind me starting this thread my friend. 

[Ilunga]

Will post some thoughts on what I think about prospects as the season progresses.

 

This is a Hockey Writers article about their early top 32 ranked skaters

 

https://thehockeywriters.com/2024-nhl-draft-rankings-baracchini-early-top-32/

 

 

[Hammertime]

I think the nux will be going for it this year.  This is now the 3rd year for this mgmt group who promised Aqua another re tool on the fly. I think it's pretty likely that they trade our 1st this year. In the event that we do keep our first the Canucks IMO need to add size with the IQ and hands to play with skilled players.  

 

FWDS

Simon Zether RHC 6'3 Former team mate of Willander. He's got NHL 2/3C written all over him. He will get SHL time this year as he's got good details to his game and 2 way ability. He's also just way too good for the J20 put up a hatty in his first game this season and currently has 4g 5a in 5 games. He's got an October b day which will make him one of the older kids in this draft class but also means as an incredibly young kid in the J20 Nat last season he went PPG and put up 6g in 6 playoff games. What I like most is he pretty much just has his way down low at this level. 

 

Emil Hemming 6'2 RW was a standout at Hilinka his shot is wicked and can score from everywhere. Looks like a very worth while project. 

Michael Hage 6'1 RHC He's got the total package we need in a 2 way C. He missed most of last season due to injury I think his ranking will rise into the top 15 but he's certainly one to watch. Works his butt off at both ends and has enough skill to punish teams stars when they get too cute with the puck. 

Sacha Boisvert 6'2 LHC Skates quite well has NHL size and is slick with the puck on his stick. Ill be paying attention to him.

Matvei Babenko 6'3 RW Not sure where to rank him yet. He had a pretty good year last year in the MHL and has been promoted to the KHL he might be worth keeping tabs on. 

The D's 

Cole Hutson listed  5'8 -5'10 143-160lb LHD IMO he's a top 10 pick with top 5 skill. He's gonna drop due to his small stature  how far I don't know but it better not be past us.  This kid is fire and doesn't shy away when the going gets rough. He's a "difference maker".

Adam Jiricek 6'1  RHD no way he makes it to us but a lot of rankings have him in the bottom half of the class right now so maybe there's a chance?

on to the more realistic targets. 

Charlie Elick 6'3 RHD He's ticking all the boxes I am looking for in a shut down D that can hang with skilled players and log huge minutes. 

John Whipple 6'1  LHD  Puck hound. He battles all over the ice if you're going to get by him you're going to have to earn it. He's got a decent shot from the point too. 

 

My preliminary "late round" watch list.  

Daniil Ustinkov 6'0 LHD playing in the Swiss NL and even laced up in 3 playoff contests last year for the Lions this kid is a late August birthday the Lions coaching staff must reallllly like this kid. 

Adam Jecho  6'5 RW skates pretty well and claps bombs this kid is an absolute beast. We will see if the move to the WHL hurts or helps his draft stock sometimes these kids struggle adjusting to NA. If his stock drops we should snap him up. 

Colton Roberts 6'4 RHD those of you are Giants fans will be familiar he's got some nasty and is excellent in transition. He is tidy with the puck in his own end. 

Arseni Marchenko 6'6 monster LHD. It will be interesting to watch how the former captain of the Belarussian u17 squad adjusts to the USHL. I can't say I've ever seen him play but his stats lead me to believe he is going to be worth checking up on. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Hammertime]

1 more I forgot to mention I don't know how I left him off my list above but it won't let me edit it. 

Anton Silayev. LHD this guy is huge 6'7 207lbs. Has come out of no where and is absolutely crushing the KHL with 6 points in his first 6 games wtf no really who is this kid? he's done relatively little in previous years to garner any attention then all of a sudden goes PPG in his first 6 KHL games. He only needs 14more in his next 24 games this season to beat Michkov. Hes already blown away the next highest scoring u18 D ever in the KHL by 4 points. 

[MatchesMalone]

9 hours ago, Hammertime said:

I think the nux will be going for it this year.  This is now the 3rd year for this mgmt group who promised Aqua another re tool on the fly. I think it's pretty likely that they trade our 1st this year. In the event that we do keep our first the Canucks IMO need to add size with the IQ and hands to play with skilled players.  

 

FWDS

Simon Zether RHC 6'3 Former team mate of Willander. He's got NHL 2/3C written all over him. He will get SHL time this year as he's got good details to his game and 2 way ability. He's also just way too good for the J20 put up a hatty in his first game this season and currently has 4g 5a in 5 games. He's got an October b day which will make him one of the older kids in this draft class but also means as an incredibly young kid in the J20 Nat last season he went PPG and put up 6g in 6 playoff games. What I like most is he pretty much just has his way down low at this level. 

 

Emil Hemming 6'2 RW was a standout at Hilinka his shot is wicked and can score from everywhere. Looks like a very worth while project. 

Michael Hage 6'1 RHC He's got the total package we need in a 2 way C. He missed most of last season due to injury I think his ranking will rise into the top 15 but he's certainly one to watch. Works his butt off at both ends and has enough skill to punish teams stars when they get too cute with the puck. 

Sacha Boisvert 6'2 LHC Skates quite well has NHL size and is slick with the puck on his stick. Ill be paying attention to him.

Matvei Babenko 6'3 RW Not sure where to rank him yet. He had a pretty good year last year in the MHL and has been promoted to the KHL he might be worth keeping tabs on. 

The D's 

Cole Hutson listed  5'8 -5'10 143-160lb LHD IMO he's a top 10 pick with top 5 skill. He's gonna drop due to his small stature  how far I don't know but it better not be past us.  This kid is fire and doesn't shy away when the going gets rough. He's a "difference maker".

Adam Jiricek 6'1  RHD no way he makes it to us but a lot of rankings have him in the bottom half of the class right now so maybe there's a chance?

on to the more realistic targets. 

Charlie Elick 6'3 RHD He's ticking all the boxes I am looking for in a shut down D that can hang with skilled players and log huge minutes. 

John Whipple 6'1  LHD  Puck hound. He battles all over the ice if you're going to get by him you're going to have to earn it. He's got a decent shot from the point too. 

 

My preliminary "late round" watch list.  

Daniil Ustinkov 6'0 LHD playing in the Swiss NL and even laced up in 3 playoff contests last year for the Lions this kid is a late August birthday the Lions coaching staff must reallllly like this kid. 

Adam Jecho  6'5 RW skates pretty well and claps bombs this kid is an absolute beast. We will see if the move to the WHL hurts or helps his draft stock sometimes these kids struggle adjusting to NA. If his stock drops we should snap him up. 

Colton Roberts 6'4 RHD those of you are Giants fans will be familiar he's got some nasty and is excellent in transition. He is tidy with the puck in his own end. 

Arseni Marchenko 6'6 monster LHD. It will be interesting to watch how the former captain of the Belarussian u17 squad adjusts to the USHL. I can't say I've ever seen him play but his stats lead me to believe he is going to be worth checking up on. 

 

Good list. I've barely seen any of Hage or Babenko yet. But I've been looking forward to the Novgorod - Salavat game on Monday. Arguably the two best players in KHL going head to head in Kovalenko vs. Chmelevski. Keeping tabs on Chmelevski and Firstov in particular, who I have in fantasy, and also wanna scout Atanasov, Silayev, Artamonov, Babenko. I'll try to keep an eye out for Babenko especially and share some thoughts, but might not be easy as he's not playing a ton at about six minutes a game so far.

I like that Whipple quite a bit too. A little bit vanilla, but compared to other recent similar two-way D from the NTDP, I think I like him better than Chesley or Fischer based on what I've seen so far. And yeah he seems to have a knack for getting it through from the point.

[MatchesMalone]

I caught the MHL Loko - SKA match last night / this morning. Wanted to see Arseni Ilyin vs. Yegor Surin but got an unexpected bonus as it turns out Daniil But had just been sent down and was playing for Loko. Can't get over what an under-rated playmaker he is. Unreal. Came away with a goal and assist in 19 minutes. He's way too good for that league but not quite ready for KHL. Not sure why they're not sending him to their VHL affiliate Molot Perm.

My first time seeing Arseni Ilyin, who isn't NHL draft-eligible until 2026 as a December 24 birthday 2007. Looking at the stats it seems like he could be one of the best prospects to come out of Russia in recent years. Looked just ok in this one, but he's the youngest player in the entire league, among players up to around 5 years older. Won some battles, forced a couple turnovers, but I was expecting to see a little more flash from him.

But back to the 2024 draft, Yegor Surin is '24 eligible, and the only way to describe him is he's a heat-seeking missile. Listed at just 5'10 but he looks like a stocky young man, and he hits everything that moves. He finished the game credited with nine hits, and not one of them did the stat-keeper have to think twice about. Sure to be a fan-favorite for an NHL team some day. Other than that he looked pretty strong in the corners and protecting the puck down low.

Edited September 18, 2023 by MatchesMalone

[Ilunga]

 

Nice little write up about Demidov 

https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/meet-ivan-demidov-the-2024-nhl-draft-prospect-that-some-think-might-be-better-than-matvei-michkov

 

Some video with analysis 

 

 

 

[snowman955]

Here's to hoping we don't trade our first. As we should(at least I do) look to drafting in the early 20's.

My prediction.

[Ilunga]

 

Bob McKenzies preseason top 16 ranked prospects

 

https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/macklin-celebrini-leads-big-three-atop-bob-mckenzie-s-tsn-pre-season-nhl-draft-ranking-1.2007499

 

 

[Diamonds]

56 minutes ago, Ilunga said:

 

Bob McKenzies preseason top 16 ranked prospects

 

https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/macklin-celebrini-leads-big-three-atop-bob-mckenzie-s-tsn-pre-season-nhl-draft-ranking-1.2007499

 

 

Sounds like Silayev came out of nowhere. It will be interesting to see if he can remotely keep up his current pace in the KHL (6 point in 7 games). He's also a monster at 6'6" or 6'7".

[MatchesMalone]

10 hours ago, Diamonds said:

Sounds like Silayev came out of nowhere. It will be interesting to see if he can remotely keep up his current pace in the KHL (6 point in 7 games). He's also a monster at 6'6" or 6'7".

Couple of things worth noting there. At 16 last year he was stuck down the lineup on the team that would go on to win the MHL championship and was loaded with 19 and 20 year old defensemen, but by the end of the playoffs he was on the clear number one defense pair next to Montreal prospect Bogdan Konyushkov. Also although he only had 2 points in 17 games on that championship run, he was credited with 40 hits and 35 blocks in those 17 games.

[MatchesMalone]

On 9/18/2023 at 4:55 AM, Ilunga said:

 

Nice little write up about Demidov 

https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/meet-ivan-demidov-the-2024-nhl-draft-prospect-that-some-think-might-be-better-than-matvei-michkov

 

Some video with analysis 

 

 

 

I've been trying to come up with my official pre-season rankings for a while now but I'm at a loss. I can't even get past first overall. Looks like one of those drafts that's gonna be really tough to sort. The way I look at the quality of this draft is it's pretty much similar to last year but take out the big three of Bedard, Fantilli, Carlsson. Tons of high-end quality through at least 15 or 20, but just doesn't quite have those couple prodigies at the top really separating themselves. Very different from last year in terms of content though; much more loaded with high-quality defense, but not as many big, talented centers.

Based on Bob's list, there does seem to be a bit of a top tier forming, but a. the separation from number one to two and three is a hair's breadth, and b. after that the separation from two and three to the rest of the top ten or so is also pretty slim so far.

I think the following players will be very much in the mix for the top three, and some may even be dark horses for first overall: Artyom Levshunov, Sam Dickinson, Adam Jiricek, Trevor Connelly, Cayden Lindstrom, Berkly Catton, Konsta Helenius. And of course the Russian factor will come into play but looks like maybe Silayev and Chernyshov could be of that same calibre.

[MatchesMalone]

Thought I'd make some general remarks on KHL Torpedo Novgorod, since I've watched so many of their games so far this season. No surprise they have some top young prospects considering their junior affiliate won the MHL championship last year. And even with some really young players playing key roles, they're first in the KHL so far in point percentage.

 

I've absolutely loved the way Igor Larionov is running that team. They don't call him "the professor" for nothing. It's getting more common to see European GMs in the NHL now days, but not yet coaches. I could see Larionov being a head coach in the NHL someday. He's split their three best forwards up onto three separate lines so each line has a play-driver: Kovalenko on the first, Firstov on the second, and Atanasov on the third. I said last week that Kovalenko was arguably one of the best players in the league. The time for argument is over; Kovalenko is the best player in the world not in the NHL right now. I remember when Guy Boucher used to always play Mark Stone on the Sens' 3rd line and it would create matchup nightmares for the opposition. Wouldn't really matter who else was on the line, just by virtue of Stone being there they were a force to be reckoned with. Kind of the same idea here as Letunov should probably be a 2/3C in the KHL and I'm not convinced Artamonov is all that special a prospect, yet that line can go toe to toe with any line in the league.

 

That said, Artamonov is doing all the right things to keep himself on that line - being in good positions, supporting the puck, making some skilled plays here and there but mostly making the simple, short passing plays. Right now I could see him going anywhere from the 2nd to 5th round. I know, I know, not really saying anything, but seriously anyone could look good playing with Kovalenko so it's hard to get a read.

 

I'm not entirely sold on Silayev yet. Was surprised to see him that high on McKenzie's pre-season list. I think there's little doubt he'll be a good NHL player, but I'm not sure the upside is quite what it seems. Very odd that he already has almost as many points in the KHL as he had all last year in the MHL. They have a very defensive-minded D core outside of Konyushkov, so he's getting 2nd unit PP time almost by default. He does have a heavy shot, but he's downright bad at knowing how and when to use it, often just blasting it from weird angles with no real traffic. In fact last game there was one moment where after his PP unit spent a good amount of time getting set up and working it around and then Silayev just blasted it, before the goalie had even made the clean save and covered it, one of his teammates threw his arms in the air and went straight over to Silayev to have a word.

 

At even strength they're certainly letting him roam free, often getting involved with the play deep in the offensive zone; kinda reminds me of how Boston or Chicago used to sometimes park Chara or Byfuglien in front of the opponents' net, and he sure is a handful down low around the boards. With all Novgorod's talent up front, it's little wonder he's been able to collect some points, but then the question is just why has he been given so much ice time to be able to do so? He's been caught up ice and made some bad defensive  mistakes that have led to at least a couple goals against, but clearly Larionov believes (and the team's success would support) that he's doing more good than harm. If we think there's a good chance he ends up anything like a Chara or a Buff, then that's gotta be worth a top five pick, but right now it's just too soon for me to make that call. I'd probably rank him somewhere in the middle of the first round for now.

Edited September 22, 2023 by MatchesMalone

[Wing]

On 9/18/2023 at 11:30 PM, Ilunga said:

 

Bob McKenzies preseason top 16 ranked prospects

 

https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/macklin-celebrini-leads-big-three-atop-bob-mckenzie-s-tsn-pre-season-nhl-draft-ranking-1.2007499

 

 

Wow 8 of top 16 on Bobs list are Ds. I don't recall the last time a draft that's top heavy with Ds. Not many Cs. 

[MatchesMalone]

4 hours ago, Wing said:

Wow 8 of top 16 on Bobs list are Ds. I don't recall the last time a draft that's top heavy with Ds. Not many Cs. 

 

2021 and 2022 were both considered strong drafts for defense, but 2021 had 4 in the top 8 and 2022 had 5 in the top 12. Nothing quite like the quantity of really good defensemen in this draft. Last time we've seen anything quite like this would have to have been 2008, which was considered one of the best drafts ever for defensemen.

 

It is possible that a few of these smaller, ultra-skilled D - Parekh, Mews, Kiviharju - could fall a little ways to make room for some of the forwards with more NHL-translatable frames like Emil Hemming, Beckett Sennecke and Cole Beaudoin.

 

And regarding the dearth of centers, for sure it's nothing like last year's draft that was stacked with elite Cs, but I do think Cayden Lindstrom and Cole Beaudoin are going to end up going a lot earlier than they're currently ranked. They're not the flashy, super-skilled junior players that tend to stand out for these early  rankings, but they're the kind of heavy, power centers that NHL teams covet on draft day. Also Michael Hage missed most of last season to injury so hasn't really been on people's radars lately, but he's sure to find his way back into the conversation for early first round picks. And I'm not really sure why Konsta Helenius is listed as a wing (maybe people just think he projects better to wing at the NHL level), but I've seen a lot of him at various international tournaments and in Liiga and he's always been a center.

[Warhippy]

58 minutes ago, MatchesMalone said:

 

2021 and 2022 were both considered strong drafts for defense, but 2021 had 4 in the top 8 and 2022 had 5 in the top 12. Nothing quite like the quantity of really good defensemen in this draft. Last time we've seen anything quite like this would have to have been 2008, which was considered one of the best drafts ever for defensemen.

 

It is possible that a few of these smaller, ultra-skilled D - Parekh, Mews, Kiviharju - could fall a little ways to make room for some of the forwards with more NHL-translatable frames like Emil Hemming, Beckett Sennecke and Cole Beaudoin.

 

And regarding the dearth of centers, for sure it's nothing like last year's draft that was stacked with elite Cs, but I do think Cayden Lindstrom and Cole Beaudoin are going to end up going a lot earlier than they're currently ranked. They're not the flashy, super-skilled junior players that tend to stand out for these early  rankings, but they're the kind of heavy, power centers that NHL teams covet on draft day. Also Michael Hage missed most of last season to injury so hasn't really been on people's radars lately, but he's sure to find his way back into the conversation for early first round picks. And I'm not really sure why Konsta Helenius is listed as a wing (maybe people just think he projects better to wing at the NHL level), but I've seen a lot of him at various international tournaments and in Liiga and he's always been a center.

If Kiviharju falls to where we might draft him I'd say a spring to the podium might be necessary

[toochmahgooch]

14 hours ago, Wing said:

Wow 8 of top 16 on Bobs list are Ds. I don't recall the last time a draft that's top heavy with Ds. Not many Cs. 

We need to continue to add D. A lot of centers available summer of 2024, if we want to upgrade 3rd line center - Hello, Mikael Backlund. 

 

It would be nice to add another RHD with top 4 potential. Elick looks like a good candidate. 

[MatchesMalone]

12 hours ago, Warhippy said:

If Kiviharju falls to where we might draft him I'd say a spring to the podium might be necessary

 

Agreed. I've been such a huge fan for such a long time. Always hoped he'd end up a little taller even though I could see on EP his dad was only 5'8. Also not exactly an elite skater, but I do get Nick Lidstrom / Adam Fox vibes a little bit with his hockey sense and overall two-way play. The potential is definitely there that he could end up being the steal of the draft, but the concern is going to be that despite his vision and passing ability his skating prevents him from being a truly elite puck-mover, and despite his exceptional defensive stick and awareness his size will prevent him from being an elite defensive defenseman, so he ultimately ends up  primarily a powerplay specialist.

[Hammertime]

A guy I'm very interested in this season is Tanner Howe. He was certainly a glimmer guy I noticed last year when watching Bedard. I'm excited to see how he does this year. He's already put up 4 pts in the first 2 games as Captain of the Pats. He could shoot up the rankings into the top 10. I love his hustle, the kid's got a big motor he will be a fun one to watch. He's had the benefit of practicing with and playing alongside Bedard for 2 seasons that experience is invaluable. I fully expect his stonk to rise.

Edited September 24, 2023 by Hammertime

[Hammertime]

I'll probably be attending several Rockets games this year looking forward to seeing Tij in action. 

[MatchesMalone]

Alright, here goes nothing. My pre-season ranking for the first half of the first round:

 

1. Trevor Connelly LW/RW 6'1

2. Macklin Celebrini C 6'0

3. Ivan Demidov RW 5'11

4. Cole Eiserman LW 6'0

5. Artyom Levshunov RD 6'2

6. Berkly Catton C 5'11

7. Cayden Lindstrom C 6'5

8. Adam Jiricek RD 6'2

9. Cole Beaudoin C 6'2

10. Igor Chernyshov LW 6'2

11. Emil Hemming RW 6'2

12. Anton Silayev LD 6'7

13. Aron Kiviharju LD 5'10

14. Sam Dickinson LD 6'3

15. Konsta Helenius C 5'11

16. Michael Brandsegg-Nygard RW 6'1

 

[R3aL]

https://www.tsn.ca/top-2024-nhl-draft-prospect-cole-eiserman-decommits-from-minnesota-commits-to-boston-1.2013179?tsn-amp

 

well this makes this season even more interesting for us in multiple ways..

[MatchesMalone]

2 hours ago, R3aL said:

https://www.tsn.ca/top-2024-nhl-draft-prospect-cole-eiserman-decommits-from-minnesota-commits-to-boston-1.2013179?tsn-amp

 

well this makes this season even more interesting for us in multiple ways..

 

Well as far as this season goes Eiserman will still be with the NTDP. Owen Power set a bit of a precedent for 1st overall picks to return to college instead of making the jump immediately to NHL. I wonder if Celebrini would stay another year to get to play with Eiserman there next year. Good Lord can you imagine that Boston rivalry next year if all those guys stick around? James Hagens, Will Smith, Ryan Leonard, Gabe Perreault, Aram Minnetian vs.  Macklin Celebrini, Cole Eiserman, Tom Willander, Cole Hutson...

[Bure_Pavel]

2 hours ago, MatchesMalone said:

 

Well as far as this season goes Eiserman will still be with the NTDP. Owen Power set a bit of a precedent for 1st overall picks to return to college instead of making the jump immediately to NHL. I wonder if Celebrini would stay another year to get to play with Eiserman there next year. Good Lord can you imagine that Boston rivalry next year if all those guys stick around? James Hagens, Will Smith, Ryan Leonard, Gabe Perreault, Aram Minnetian vs.  Macklin Celebrini, Cole Eiserman, Tom Willander, Cole Hutson...

 

I see a good chunk of these guys in the NHL next year. Smith, Leonard, Celebrini, and Eiserman to the show is my guess. Will still be a good rivalry though. 

[R3aL]

2 hours ago, MatchesMalone said:

 

Well as far as this season goes Eiserman will still be with the NTDP. Owen Power set a bit of a precedent for 1st overall picks to return to college instead of making the jump immediately to NHL. I wonder if Celebrini would stay another year to get to play with Eiserman there next year. Good Lord can you imagine that Boston rivalry next year if all those guys stick around? James Hagens, Will Smith, Ryan Leonard, Gabe Perreault, Aram Minnetian vs.  Macklin Celebrini, Cole Eiserman, Tom Willander, Cole Hutson...

I read this so late I got ahead of myself and I thought it meant he was going for this season …

 

 

i wanted that this season!