LHH Mock Draft: Atlanta Thrashers
by Mark D on May 25, 2011 11:43 AM EDT
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PrintBefore we get going, let's see who's gone:
1. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins C Oilers
2. Adam Larsson D Avalanche
3. Gabriel Landeskog RW Panthers
4. Sean Couturier C Devils
5. Dougie Hamilton D Islanders
6. Jonathan Huberdeau LW/C Senators
Once again, I hate you Ozzyfan. Truthfully if I was the Atlanta Thrashers and this is how the board went, I probably would have tried to trade up/down. The Thrashers could use a prolific scorer, as two of their top three players in points this year were defensemen. At the same time one of the most promising players left on the board, Mika Zibanejad, is a two way power forward Center. Not only do the Thrashers have Evander Kane already on the team but their top two Center prospects are large two way power forwards.
Unfortunately the next two highest rated Wingers are Sven Bartschi at 10 and Joel Armia at 13. I'd consider taking Bartschi here a stretch, given his size and worries that his stats are inflated from playing on a superbly talented Portland Winterhawks team. Armia, while he was tied for 11th place in LIJA in goals while playing against men, had half of his goals on the Power Play and hasn't grown into his size.
Taking all that into account, with the 7th overall pick the Atlanta Thrashers take Defenseman Ryan Murphy. Yes, I do realize he's a bit undersized at 5'11. But the Thrashers haven't taken a defenseman in the first round since Zach Bogosian in 2008. While they do have some players who might become top pairing guys, the key word is might. Of their top three prospect defenseman, only Paul Postma is known for being an offensive producer.
With Big Buff sticking around with the franchise for the next few years, Murphy can become a great secondary threat. Like a batter who thrives because the guy in the lineup in front of him is that much better, having to use your best defensive forwards to take care of Dustin Byfuglien will open up more of the ice for Murphy in the second pairing down the road. Also as mentioned, the Thrashers have plenty of big defensive defenseman to pair up with Murphy.
The Thrashers need someone who can create offense and score. Last season Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom both had 50 point seasons. If you can't get the offensive forward to help things out, might as well add to what's already working for the team and continue improving the blueline. There's also rumors that former 3rd overall Zach Bogosian may be wearing out his welcome. In 2 seasons in the NHL he has 59 points while racking up a -45, including a -27 this year which was a step backwards.
Ryan Murphy Highlights
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agree
IF he could play wing. The Thrash are really loaded at Center.
"Milbury said he was at the Winter Classic and he was getting heckled by an Islanders fan. He couldn’t understand why an Islanders fan would show up in an Islanders jersey at a non-Islanders game just to heckle him." My New Hero
Contributor to Lighthouse Hockey not sure if I'm the Sniper or the Enforcer.
I'm not sure I like drafting for positional needs
I mean, all things being equal between two players take the one who plays a position you are weak at; but players are never equal and I think a team should draft the best availble player. Drafting for need is how teams end of with goalies (ugh, dont get me started) or McIlraths (again, ugh) with high first round picks.
Murphy is the 2nd best player available
going by ISS ratings for May. Mika is 6th, Murphy is 8th.
"Milbury said he was at the Winter Classic and he was getting heckled by an Islanders fan. He couldn’t understand why an Islanders fan would show up in an Islanders jersey at a non-Islanders game just to heckle him." My New Hero
Contributor to Lighthouse Hockey not sure if I'm the Sniper or the Enforcer.
I was just making a general statement
That I think in most situations team should take the best player available. Just that IF they consider Strome the best available player when they pick, they should take him regardless of their positional needs. There scouting dept. will have their own opinions that may differ from the ISS rankings. Maybe they see Murphy as having more upside than Mika and are willing to take a risk with him. Maybe they see Mika as more NHL ready and as someone who could make an impact right away. I don’t know. I just think that when a team thinks too much about what they need it can lead to dumb picks. I may be eating my words in a few years but I was very puzzled by the McIlrath pick. It seemed like the kind of pick that may have been wise a decade or two ago but with mobility being more important than ever I was surprised the rags took him so high. I’ve posted about it before but I am not a fan of taking goalies with first round picks either. Good goalies are much easier to find on the open market than impact positional players.
This is a good point
plus if they are logjammed at one position trade one of those centers for a winger.
Did someone say Logjammin'?
I’m here to fix deine cable.
Lighthouse Hockey: A flute with no holes is not a flute. A doughnut with no hole is Frans Nielsen.
by Dominik on May 25, 2011 9:29 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Thrashers Depth at Center
Just so you guys know what I was looking at. First you have Evander Kane whose in the NHL now, and is a two way power forward.
Then Alexander Burmistov who was picked 8th overall in 2010, who is smaller at 6’1 but is a talent
Then Patrice Cormier who was 54th overall in 2008 and is described as “While Cormier may not be the most naturally gifted player, he’s a well-rounded a prospect. He possesses both the offensive skill set and defensive acumen to eventually be a two-way force at the next level.”
Then Ivan Telegin who is 6’3 and is said “Long-term he projects to being a second or third line center in the form of former Thrasher Bobby Holik in his prime – though he may not have that type of scoring ability.”
Then Eric O’Dell who "O’Dell projects to being a solid two-way center at the NHL level. He will likely need at least one full season in the AHL to grow "
Then Daultan Leveille who was another first rounder, back in 2008. He was the fastest skater in his draft class
And finally Angelo Espoisito who was the star of the Kovy trade, but has been struggling.
Plus their GM has already given up on one or two Centers this year.
"Milbury said he was at the Winter Classic and he was getting heckled by an Islanders fan. He couldn’t understand why an Islanders fan would show up in an Islanders jersey at a non-Islanders game just to heckle him." My New Hero
Contributor to Lighthouse Hockey not sure if I'm the Sniper or the Enforcer.
O.K. you convinced me
I voted no- thinking I would have taken Strome. But I wanna change to “Y”
NOWHERE Nearly enough defensemen to last through the injury bug
thanks
"Milbury said he was at the Winter Classic and he was getting heckled by an Islanders fan. He couldn’t understand why an Islanders fan would show up in an Islanders jersey at a non-Islanders game just to heckle him." My New Hero
Contributor to Lighthouse Hockey not sure if I'm the Sniper or the Enforcer.
Strome would be mine.
I also would have considered trading down from 5 to 7 for him and picking up a trade chip to add to #50 to get back in the first round, or then all 3 seconds for something in the teens. But Winnipeg taking Stome fits here.
Reading through your dilemma
Reminds me how tough this is going to be when I have to pick. Yikes.
Lighthouse Hockey: A flute with no holes is not a flute. A doughnut with no hole is Frans Nielsen.
Gotta be Manitoba Manitees
They’ll be like the Penguins of the North.
Lighthouse Hockey: A flute with no holes is not a flute. A doughnut with no hole is Frans Nielsen.
Lol, always have a back up plan Webs. I did.
Can’t argue with the pick or thoughts. Trading down wouldn’t have been bad and taking a offensive D-man in Murphy fits because Bogosian isn’t living up to expectations. I would of took Zibanejad though, he’s got 2-way top 6 powerforward written all over him.He was my back-up plan. He’s big, mobile, and has great overall abilities(especially defensively and physically). But good pick and write-up, I don’t disagree.
by OzzyFan on May 25, 2011 2:49 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
Granted I don't get to watch Atlanta all too often
but from what I’ve seen from Bogosian so far he has seemed a little dissapointing. And that draft year was stocked, absolutely stocked with great defenseman. I like the kid St. Louis got- Pietrangelo a lot better. Of course it is hard to really evaluate defenseman on stats alone but he hasn’t been an offensive juggernaut and Murphy has much better projection in that area of the game.
Hindsight is magical, lol. i wonder what's gonna happen with bogo.
I think he was rushed. And I’m not sure on what type of minutes and competitions and situations and partners he’s been playing with/in. He’s still got good potential from what I can see, but no idea if he’ll ever reach it. Bogosian’s situation is very very similar to Bailey’s with us.
by OzzyFan on May 25, 2011 7:40 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Yeah that's a good comparision
and goes to show how much of a crapshoot the draft can be. Around the time I really started following the draft was the big “defenseman are king” year of Berard, Redden and Berg being described as “can’t miss prospects.” Berard was going to be the next Paul Coffey and Redden was gonna be a two-way perennial norris candidate in the mold of Lidstrom. I think that Berard could of been a good offensive d-man if not for the injuries and Redden did have some very good years with Ottawa but neither lived up to the ridiculous hype they carried in that draft year. Berg became a solid middle pairing guy with Toronto for a number of years but didn’t carve out the kind of career you would expect of a third round pick. The 07 draft was seen as kind of similar, the only difference being you had an elite forward mixed in the bunch of very good defenseman. There is no in my mind Doughty will live up to, if not exceed expectations but I agree with you that Bogo will likely never meet his.
Berard
I will always argue this, he was well on his way to becoming something special. It’s just too bad the injury derailed such a promising career. He’s one of 3 defenseman since 1990 to have 150+ points by the time he was 22, the other two being Phaneuf and Hamrlik.
"Milbury said he was at the Winter Classic and he was getting heckled by an Islanders fan. He couldn’t understand why an Islanders fan would show up in an Islanders jersey at a non-Islanders game just to heckle him." My New Hero
Contributor to Lighthouse Hockey not sure if I'm the Sniper or the Enforcer.
Good bigger breakdown.
Funny thing is when you bring up doughty, I just always think about Ryan Murphy’s numbers topping his in his only complete/full year in the ohl. Murphy could be scary, but he just doesn’t fit into our team at all, and then there is the defensive issues….
by OzzyFan on May 27, 2011 2:36 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Is there the option of trading up/down in this mock draft?
Hmmm. Why not?
There's a mountain of buoyant nostalgia under this team and it's going to erupt like Vesuvius when the Islanders are back in playoff contention.... Count on it.
by Nova Scotia Isles Fan on May 25, 2011 3:18 PM EDT reply actions
we'd never finish it.
plus that’s how most other SBN blogs do it.
"Milbury said he was at the Winter Classic and he was getting heckled by an Islanders fan. He couldn’t understand why an Islanders fan would show up in an Islanders jersey at a non-Islanders game just to heckle him." My New Hero
Contributor to Lighthouse Hockey not sure if I'm the Sniper or the Enforcer.
It would just get too complicated, me thinks
How do you agree on value?
I look at it this way: Trading up or down requires a willing partner; we’ll just pretend there were no willing partners.
Lighthouse Hockey: A flute with no holes is not a flute. A doughnut with no hole is Frans Nielsen.
5th overall!!
No way we should use this pick on Holland! We need as many skilled fowards as possible! I’d love Couturier or Huberdeau. Since we cant attract star fowards, we have to draft them! 5th overall guys!!!!
Color me confused
what?
"Milbury said he was at the Winter Classic and he was getting heckled by an Islanders fan. He couldn’t understand why an Islanders fan would show up in an Islanders jersey at a non-Islanders game just to heckle him." My New Hero
Contributor to Lighthouse Hockey not sure if I'm the Sniper or the Enforcer.
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