NHL Entry Draft
That Kadri kid is pretty good isn't he? Back when Brian Burke stepped up to the podium at the 2009 NHL Draft in Montreal, I imagine this was the player he was envisioning that night: slick, slippery and drenched in skill. That was an absolute clinic Kadri put on out there against the Lightning, displaying all sorts of offensive creativity, patience and ingenuity with the puck. This is a player who is gaining confidence and progressing by leaps and bounds - a player on the verge of making a lasting imprint in this star-starved market. But before we get too far of ourselves thinking ahead, why don't we take a step back and briefly peruse the timeline that has led him to the "now" (and enjoy a few memorable quotes along the way).
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Before getting into the meat and potatoes of the blog, I (keon) want to give a shout out to Cameron. He made a post of few days ago about the Leafs effectiveness in drafting since the 2004-05 Lockout and it was that post that inspired me to look into this topic in greater detail. The thought of which team or teams are the best at evaluating junior age talent, and vise-versa, has always intrigued me, so when Cameron broached the subject I thought maybe it was a good time to finally look into it. [more…]
So now that the Maple Leafs have settled into the fifth overall selection (barring any major surprises from the draft lottery), the draft picture becomes a little bit clearer and the list of draft candidates becomes a little narrower. Today, let's talk about Everett Silvertips' captain Ryan Murray, a tremendously skilled defenseman earning comparisons to the likes of Scott Niedermayer.
The Basics: All-around defenseman with top notch mobility for the Everett Silvertips; 31 points in 46 games played.
Strengths: It's not easy living up to a comparison to a Hall of Fame calibre player, but Ryan's doing a pretty good job so far. His resume speaks for itself. Murray was the Canadian captain for the gold medal winning U18 Ivan Hlinka tournament team and was also named the Silvertips' captain at the tender age of 17. He is an absolute horse on the Everett blueline, touching a ridiculous 30+ minutes/game and is a difference maker at both ends of the ice. Red Line Report commended Murray on his superb defensive play, describing him as virtually "flawless positionally". The offensive statistics a bit misleading due to a weak team, but Murray possesses high level poise, vision and rushing ability. He's mature beyond his years, has all the tools to become a future captain and is likely ready to step onto an NHL blueline next season. [more…]
It's that time of year again... when the bitterness of another bottom five standing turns into optimism towards a potential top five draft pick. Maple Leaf hockey in March. Gotta love it. Let's start off this year's MLHS Draft Profile Series with centre Brendan Gaunce of the Belleville Bulls. He's one of those classic Canadian born, OHL trained two-way centres. Brendan's well-rounded skillset projects him anywhere between 6th and 12th on draft day.
The Basics: Classic two-way centre for the Belleville Bulls; 27 goals and 37 assists for 64 points in 63 games played. [more…]
Toronto Maple Leafs General Manager, Brian Burke should have uttered one phrase to explain the situation, one simple little phrase to envelope the reasoning for the Phil Kessel trade;
“Our picks in our vision of where we ended up are overvalued in accordance to the available crop of prospects.â€
But in Toronto, to admit that in what’s deemed as a ‘rebuild’ would have been a PR disaster.
Despite popular opinion, he wasn’t wrong.
The world is no longer flat, it’s round .. like a full-cirle
It was a quiet Day One at the 2010 NHL Draft for the Maple Leafs, but the team stepped up its game in a big way on Saturday afternoon. The club wheeled and dealed its way into the 2nd round of the draft and through some crafty maneuvering in the later rounds, managed to add seven new players into the organization.
The Leafs were able to significantly upgrade their depth up front, by grabbing six forwards to go with one defenseman. Surprisingly, Leafs' Swedish scout Thommie Bergman had a big day, selecting three players from the Swedish leagues. [more…]
For those of you who missed it, the Leafs were very active on Day 2 of the draft, swung a couple trades, and ended up [more…]
Rough Friday night for Leaf fans, but that's in the past now. Rounds 2-7 of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft kicks off today at 1pm ET on NHL Network. The Maple Leafs are slated pick once in the 3rd round (62nd), once in the 4th round (112th), twice in the 5th round (122nd and 144th) and twice in the 7th round (182nd and 202nd).
Rumors are circulating that the Leafs will attempt to trade into the 2nd round if the price is reasonable.
This live blog will be updated with thoughts and pick analysis throughout the afternoon. [more…]
Less than 36 hours to go until start of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, so here are some links to start your day:
- The [more…]
The NHL announced this morning the full order of selections for the 201o NHL Entry Draft. Â While it is widely known that the Toronto Maple [more…]
As you are no doubt well aware, the NHL draft lottery will be held tonight in New York to determine the order of the 14 non-playoff teams heading into the June 25-26 draft in Los Angeles. You can catch coverage of the lottery at 8pm on TSN.
Update
And the winner is ... Edmonton. Â Leafs fans, prepare yourselves to endure "Kessel Trade" debates for the better part of the next decade.
