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Seattle Has Another Successful Draft |
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I wasn't sure if we were going to see Seattle make some trades at the Draft or just make all of their picks. Turns out Ron Francis and his team decided to just go and upgrade their prospect pool. Let's see who they got.
Round 1
Eduard Sale Left Winger #20
Sale! (Actually pronounced Sha-la)
With their first round pick, the Kraken picked smart forward Eduard Sale. Honestly I love this pick for the Kraken. The forward didn't put up massive points but played in one of the most competitive Czech leagues as well against men. He has elite vision and playmaking and is described at being excellent at thinking ahead. His transition game is off the charts and he excels at moving fast from his own end into the offensive end - basically the Kraken's playbook.
This is a guy that was projected by many to be a potential top 10 pick but fell to Seattle at #20. The main reason is less of a knock on Sale and more due to there being so many more flashy high producing scorers in this draft playing in North America.
Round 2
Carson Rehkopf Left Winger #50
With their first second round pick, Seattle selected another left winger in Carson Rehkopf. Standing 6'2 and 193 lbs, the big winger still has an offensive presence, scoring 30 goals for the Kitchener Rangers. Again, this is a player who uses his speed well in transition but also isn't afraid to just wire the puck on net. More of a north south player than Sale. Another excellent pick.
Oscar Fisker Molgaard Centre #52
Two picks later, Seattle went with another forward, this time a centre in Oscar Fisker Molgaard. This is an intriguing pick from what I've dug into. Again, scouts were all over the board with this player with some having him going late in the first round to others seeing him as a mid second round pick or later. Offensively there isn't much to go off of here with Molgaard. The reason he is highly regarded is because of his size and excellent two way game in a highly competitive Swedish league against full grown men.
Molgaard is the type of player that could make the jump to the NHL sooner rather than later but as a bottom six centre with potentially more upside. Will be interesting to see how he adapts to North America.
Lukas Dragicevic Right Shot Defenseman #57
After three forwards in a row, the Kraken went to high octane defender Lukas Dragicevic. Offensively this guy is an absolute stud, the kind of defender you think should be a forward instead of a defenseman. He handles the puck well and puts himself into all the right positions to shoot the puck.
Defensively he still has a lot of growing to do and there are some foot speed concerns. Certainly a feast or famine type of player but the Kraken don't really have someone with his skillset in their prospect pool until he came along.
Round 3
Caden Price Left Shot Defenseman #84
Another offensively minded defenseman. Price put up 40 points in 65 games for the Kelowna Rockets. While he can produce he is far more of a two way transitional player than Dragicevic. If Price makes the NHL he could be a top 4 defender capable of handling 20 or more minutes a game as a solid two way player. Really like his upside.
Round 4
Andrei Loshko Center #116
Not bad picking up a center from the Q in the fourth round who still produced at a ppg clip. With 70 points in 67 games he led the Chicoutimi Sagueneens in points. Another left shot.
Round 5
Kaden Hammell Right Defense #148
This could actually be a steal. Hammell started out the season slow but came on far stronger when traded to the Everett Silvertips and given more opportunity to play. Can't wait to see what he does with another full season under his belt.
Round 6
Visa Vedenpaa Goalie #168
Kraken take their first goalie of the draft in Round 6. 6'2 netminder who players for Kärpät. Don't have much else to say here.
Zeb Forsfjall Center #180
Another European forward who played his season against grown men... I am sensing a pattern here. Bit undersized at 5'9 and 167lbs but a competitive and tenacious player.
Round 7
Zaccharya Wisdom Right Winger #212
The first right shot forward Seattle took was with their final pick. Wisdom played for Cedar Rapids and is an overager who put up 28 goals and 48 points in 59 games. A physical player as well.
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What did we learn from this draft?
Ultimately it was another excellent draft by Ron Francis and his team, drafting players at all positions who play the game with speed and aren't afraid to attack the offensive zone and play smart in transition. There are some really nice picks here that will only continue to improve Seattle's growing prospect pool.
The Sale, Rehkopf, and Price picks are my personal favorites while the Dragicevic one is something that could turn out highly well or as a bust depending on how he adapts to the NHL.
If I had to nitpick something it's the lack of right shots that the organization has drafted. Wright is a right shot as is Firkus but I would've liked to see at least another right winger or even a right shot center selected somewhere higher up.
Again, these are small things and overall fans should be very happy with how Seattle handled this draft.
Free Agency is up next!