according to the last like 20 games in the Q Drouin definely does NOT need Mackinnon....Mackinnon on the other hand clearly plays better with Drouin
- Habitants98

this. although i think any of the three is a safe pick. grabbing whatever is your weakest position would be any teams best bet IMO, i dont think there is a true "number 1" based on skill alone.

Hard to say what he will be he is making great improvement so far so who knows in a year or 2 where he is at. But I am not holding out that he will be pronger. But I love what he brings to the team and will be possibly the future captain of this team.
- Crazycaboose

Yup. Look 2 years down the road at the D and you can maybe figure a little something like this:

Campbell-Kulikov
Gudranson-Petrovic
Robak- Brennan

Mix Caruso and Racine in there, and maybe a year to two after that mix Matheson in. Thats solid.

I completely agree with this. I feel jones is the safer pick mackinnon worries me. What he do without Drouin and vice Vera.
- Crazycaboose

Ummm..ok. I forgot there is nobody in the NHL who MacKinnon can play with better than Drouin...

I completely agree with this. I feel jones is the safer pick mackinnon worries me. What he do without Drouin and vice Vera.
- Crazycaboose

Ummm..ok. I forgot there is nobody in the NHL who MacKinnon can play with better than Drouin...

I agree on Jones, but as far as defense goes, we have a good stable:

Petrovic (AHL)
Matheson (NCAA)
Racine (ECHL)
Robak
Caruso
Bengsston (USHL)
Brennan
Gudbranson
Kulikov

Gudbranson is supposed to be another "Pronger" or Jovo type. He is proof it takes a while to develop as an NHL defenseman.

At forward we look solid, but lacking in true 1st line shine. Corban Knight projects at best as a 2nd line center, Grimaldi might have 1st line talent but its still a big if, Rau is a similar story, and we have yet to see if Bjugstad and Trochek are 1st line NHL guys or 2nd line NHL talent.

I see more question marks at forward....
- clarkey

Sure it takes time to develop a Dman. But Gudbranson wasnt drafted 1st overall. Jones is more NHL ready than Gudbranson was. Gudbranson isnt even NHL ready now. It would be nice to see the Cats get a nice forward to go with that group moving forward. But Jones is def a safe get. Though its known teams dont like to take Dman 1st overall.

Seth Jones has never shown the defensive acumen or physical aggression of Chris Pronger at any level he's played. That comparison is misleading and unfair.

More accurate comparables would be Erik Johnson or Victor Hedman. He may exceed those players overall, but he lacks the offensive upside, and physicality to be considered a Pronger-like generational talent.

I would still take him 1st overall this year, but the hype is starting to inflate perception.

We need Jones, you guys should go for a forward to play with Huberdeau makes more sense but recent drafts show the teams early on picking the best player available rather than what they need most.
- Sufa

Yep, Florida will make their decision based on what's best for Colorado. That makes sense

I completely agree with this. I feel jones is the safer pick mackinnon worries me. What he do without Drouin and vice Vera.
- Crazycaboose

That's much more of a concern for Drouin. MacKinnon has dominated for years without Drouin.

That's much more of a concern for Drouin. MacKinnon has dominated for years without Drouin.
- isles10289

If i had to pick i would go with MacKinnon. potential 1st line centers are way more valuable then right wingers. IMO

But the cats are very deep at center and weakest at right wing so tough choice but i still would take the best available player in the first round then pick by need.

I think Mackinnon still goes first. He's the youngest of the bunch (almost a full year younger than jones) and his raw tools exceed anyone else's, including drouin, IMO. Credit where credit is due tho, drouin played outstanding and deserves first overall as much as Mackinnon or jones. I think Mackinnon is the safest pick. Jones is on a stacked Portland team in a weaker whl Division (from what I've heard). Still a great talent but if I'm picking first it's Mackinnon.

As an oiler fan we NEED barkov or Monahan. If we keep at where we are now maybe gaiuthier or nurse is a good pick.

Save the d-man,give me the goal scorer or the playmaker. We need more elite offensive talent.

Save the d-man,give me the goal scorer or the playmaker. We need more elite offensive talent.
- jacke1ope

Mackinnon for Florida would be ideal IMO.

God I hate this debate, but I love having the problem. First, I wanted Drouin. Then, I took a closer look and liked Jones. I haven't done much research on Mac. I kind of feel like we need offense. We have a ton of prospects at both ends.. and in goal for that matter.. so this one is tricky.

We have a lot of things to look at here; what do we think of Matthias? Will Weiss be back? What will Bjugstad decided to do? Trocheck? Grimaldi? Rau? In my honest opinion, we have to go for Seth Jones or Mac if we have the #1 pick. However, he isn't someone we NEED. Let's say we have the #1 pick and Colorado has #2. The Avalanche do need Jones more than we do for sure... we can swap picks as well, but does Colorado have anything else to give? What I'm saying is, we'll have options. It's either Jones or Mac, in my opinion. Either way, we're set. If I'm Tallon, I go Mac at the end of the day.. maybe swapping picks with someone and try to get an additional prospect out of it.

As for Gudbranson, he is going to be a fantastic NHL defenseman, but he won't be a Chris Pronger. He is going to be a great shut down guy, and will be our captain one day. I love the idea of having him QB our blue line for a long time. We have to find a way to get rid of Kuba.. I'm sorry but he just isn't cutting it. Strachan was also given a one year deal to prove himself... and he hasn't done it. He got beat last night along the boards by Nathan Gerbe... 'nuff said. So next year I wouldn't mind seeing:

Huberdeau-Shore/Mac-Mueller/Versteeg/FA
Flash-Weiss/Matthias/Mac/Bjugstad/FA-Howden/FA
Kopecky-Matthias/Weiss/Goc-Bergenheim/FA/Trocheck
Upshall-Matthias/Smithson/FA-Skille/FA/Trocheck

Campbell-Brennan/Guds/Jones
Guds-Kulikov/Brennan/FA/Jones
Jovo-Robak/FA

Markstrom-Clem/FA

So many options. Next season is something I cannot wait for. Jovo will be back. He has something to proove and you know he will want to get in a full season with the C. I am really hopeful that we don't have Upshall and Kuba on our roster next season, but who knows.

Jovo-Robak/FA
- Panthers88

JOVO?

He is all done...... won't see him no more.

JOVO?

He is all done...... won't see him no more.


- RoddyPiper

I justified my reasoning for having him on the roster. He will have something to prove.

Jones.

If the team is fortunate enough, and there begins to be a glut (yeah right) of quality D getting ready to play, trade for a major missing link to get us to a solid playoff level.

Not Winnin For MacKinnon!!

Also, Check out NHL YOUNG GUNS DAILY on twitter @YoungGunsDaily.
This is good for people who love prospects. They recently posted about Zack Phillips, Oscar Klefbom, Johnny Gaudreau, Stone, Tinordi, M. Subban, Ouellet, Dansk, Trocheck, J. Morrow, Campbell, and T. Johnson

I think Mackinnon still goes first. He's the youngest of the bunch (almost a full year younger than jones) and his raw tools exceed anyone else's, including drouin, IMO. Credit where credit is due tho, drouin played outstanding and deserves first overall as much as Mackinnon or jones. I think Mackinnon is the safest pick. Jones is on a stacked Portland team in a weaker whl Division (from what I've heard). Still a great talent but if I'm picking first it's Mackinnon.

As an oiler fan we NEED barkov or Monahan. If we keep at where we are now maybe gaiuthier or nurse is a good pick.
- ystoil

100% Agree!

Beating buffalo last night didn't help and w Colorado keep losing we might miss out on Jones. That's the Panther way, suck all year then play their best hockey when it only ruins a draft position. Panthers will pick 5th overall. Mark my words, they will miss out on the big three.

Erik Johnson, hedman, gudbranson, bogosian are solid d but were all touted as the next pronger. It's like comparing every top pick center to Crosby: - inaccurate

Erik Johnson, hedman, gudbranson, bogosian are solid d but were all touted as the next pronger. It's like comparing every top pick center to Crosby: - inaccurate
- Paul99

Good point, this happens virtually every year, especially with big bodied defensemen.

If only Florida finished ahead of the Leafs a couple of years ago and took Seguin...and had the Bruins take Gudbranson Would have made the Kessel deal a steal for the Leafs.

If only Florida finished ahead of the Leafs a couple of years ago and took Seguin...and had the Bruins take Gudbranson Would have made the Kessel deal a steal for the Leafs.
- Allstarzz

I guess you don't watch many panther games to do you? Not saying gudbranson is better but d-men take longer to reach their full potential and he is only getting better and better.

I completely agree with this. I feel jones is the safer pick mackinnon worries me. What he do without Drouin and vice Vera.
- Crazycaboose

You do realize if we get mac he will be playing with Huberdeau, right? He played with Huberdeau in world juniors and they played pretty damn good together. So I wouldn't think to hard into the whole "what can he do with out Drouin" theory. And vice versa lol

Yep, Florida will make their decision based on what's best for Colorado. That makes sense
- isles10289