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McDavid Injury A Blessing in Disguise? |
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After the initial wave of indignation, horror and subsequent "whatever" over the coverage of the broken hand of the heavily favoured first overall selection in 2015, I had a thought. Two thoughts actually, but I already wrote a long rant about thought one earlier. The second thought was something not seemingly touched on by most. How will this injury effect the draft? Not McDavid's position in the draft such as three hilarious articles came out to talk to their readers like they are toddlers about how he won't slip due to the incident. Gee really? You think? But I digress. The second thought was how this will effect the positions of 4-10, a much more murky area of this draft after the much lauded over McDavid-Eichel-Hanifin trio.
Dylan Strome has been in heavy contention for that fourth overall slot usually slotting between 4-7, though the majority of this buzz has come from his play on McDavid's wing this year. Last season, in his rookie year he was solid and played primarily a 2nd/3rd line centre role. He had 39 points in 61 games, a respectable season for a 16-17 year old expected to go in the first round. This year though, his production has skyrocketed, not shockingly playing sidekick to McDavid. He had 41 points in 18 games prior to the injury. Being shifted back to centre isn't a major deal, but this is the best opportunity for Strome to make his mark on this draft. There are always concerns when you play with the expected first overall pick, just look back at 2013 where the biggest question was "Does MacKinnon made Drouin better, or the other way around?" In the first three games Strome has stepped up big time. With 3 goals and an assist he isn't slowing down and taking the pressure of being the offensive catalyst of his team well. Should he falter or continue his success, it begs the questions surrounding his placement in this draft. Can Dylan go before his talented brother Ryan (5th in 2011)? As a fellow Mississauga boy myself, can't help but cheer all three of the brothers Strome on.
With that said on Strome, here are a few others who could help make this a dog fight for that fourth overall spot.
Oliver Kylington - Kylington is poised to become the second non-Scandinavian Swede to be drafted (to my knowledge only Mika Zibanejad was before), Kylington is a dual Eritrean/Swedish citizen born in Stockholm. Outside of Hanifin, Kylington is getting the most praise among defenders, though Rasmus Andersson has been putting on a show in the OHL and Zach Werenski is almost a PPG in the NCAA himself. Kylington had an amazing rookie season in the Elitserien, showing poise and maturity rarely seen by a 16 year old. This season he was well on his way to top his rookie campaign before being loaned out to the Allsvenskan for more ice-time...and it's looking good. He has 2 goals and 3 points in as many games averaging 19 minutes a night. Really impressive for a 17 year old. Smooth skating, offensive instincts that are really high and good defensive posture make the comparisons to Oliver Ekman-Larsson very apparent. Obviously with Adam Larsson's struggles, David Rundblad developing into a 6th dman and Tim Erixon still not finding his role in the NHL, one has to wonder if the gloss on the Swedish style "Two-Way" defender has been wiped off a little.
Nick Merkley - The leading scorer of the WHL has seen his draft stock rise immensely with his excellent play to start the year after showing signs that big things were to come in the playoffs last season. With 42 points in 24 games he leads the league in assists and has formed the most dangerous duo with Rourke Chartier (Sharks). While he wasn't breathtakingly great for Team Canada at the Ivan Hlinka, his season thus far has been far superior to several expected top prospects who outperformed him in that short tourney. Size is the one concern for Merkley as he stands only 5'10 (though from what I've seen he's fairly stocky and hard to knock off his feet). With elite vision and playmaking skills, he could be a surprise selection at 4.
Mitch Marner - If Strome has some accusations of "leaching," then Marner probably comes closest to reaching that level of individual skill and excellent linemates. Instead of McDavid and 2016 sniper DeBrincat he has a final OHL season Max Domi (Coyotes) and more recently a 19 year old Mike McCarron bent on destroying the world. Marner is currently sixth in OHL scoring and while taller than Merkley, he is a lot less filled out. Thin is a bit of a harsh word for such a talented athlete, but there it is and it isn't surprising considering he was drafted into the OHL at 5'7 145lbs and two years later is 6'0 163. Nobody can deny the skills though. He's a noted playmaker and a gifted breakout starter making quick smart passes often rather than going for dangles and other "junior" gimmicks. This season he's shooting more with a playmaker like Domi on his line and is fifth in goals scored with 14. Evolving his game from "pure playmaker" to an all around threat has really impressed me and shows versatility and adaptability. Oddly enough he reminds me more of Ryan Strome than his brother. Both talented playmakers with lanky builds in need of filling out that generate massive speed on zone entries and developed their shooting skills extremely quickly.
Why isn't Mat Barzal on this list? Mostly because he just was injured himself (knee) and unlike a generational talent like McDavid he still had things to prove this season. He was never a lock for the top-5 anyway, so this doesn't help. Still a very interesting two-way centre.
Also kept Svechnikov off here because I've written about him so much it borders on an obsession.
Thanks for reading.
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