Trevor Shackles: Draft for Positional Need or Take the Best Player Available? Should the Sens take the BPA or draft for positional need in the early rounds of the draft?

always BPA....anyone who says otherwise should be slapped

Sens need to tank and get top 5 picks at the 2020 and 2021 draft -- THEN, they can talk about being a contender.

Otherwise all these players will form a good team but a team that lacks stars; especially down the middle

....like Carolina, NYI, and Columbus?

Sens need to tank and get top 5 picks at the 2020 and 2021 draft -- THEN, they can talk about being a contender.

Otherwise all these players will form a good team but a team that lacks stars; especially down the middle
- AlfieisKing

Sens don't need to tank. They will lose most nights as long as they show up.

2020 is shaping up as a powerhouse draft. Two guys at the top that will have lasting impact on any franchise. Byfield looks to be a guy that could dominate at the NHL level for years to come.

It can be a great building year for a young Sens team following a rebuild schedule.

Best player available for sure. Position need you’ll need pretty much everything when you’re re-constructing the Sens.

Always BPA.

Always.

Sens don't need to tank. They will lose most nights as long as they show up.

2020 is shaping up as a powerhouse draft. Two guys at the top that will have lasting impact on any franchise. Byfield looks to be a guy that could dominate at the NHL level for years to come.

It can be a great building year for a young Sens team following a rebuild schedule.
- spatso

I understand what your saying, but the Sens can easily draft 5th-7th overall pick next season. What did Ottawa get last time in that position; Mika Zibanejad? I'm sick of seeing this team lack all-stars (1 guy in the top 10-15 of scoring, another in the top 30)

Unlike the NFL draft, needs change by the time most NHL draft picks are ready to play in the NHL. Best available player should be the strategy early on.

However, another debate could be to take the “best available player” or take the player best suited to improve at the NHL level. The Sens love taking two-forwards in the draft who appear to be the “best available” but they may not be the best player to improve at the NHL level to become a star. I’d love to see some more chancy picks with players with undeniable skill rather than the team friendly two-way play mould.

In the NHL you are drafting kids at 18. Even the ones that are ready to make the jump to NHL, still need developing. Take the BPA. It can be 5 years before they hit their prime, by then who knows what needs you'll have.

Best player available is the strategy to follow when there is an appreciable difference in talent.
I would prioritize right defense over the forward positions as defencemen take longer to develop.
If Spencer Knight is available to us, that would be the guy I would like us to take. Elite goaltending prospects are rare. The goaltending position is tougher to predict which may result in a wasted pick but the team is not likely to get a very high end forward/defense at that point in the draft anyways. Elite goaltenders are rare and can carry mediocre teams far in the playoffs.

Best player available is the strategy to follow when there is an appreciable difference in talent.
I would prioritize right defense over the forward positions as defencemen take longer to develop.
If Spencer Knight is available to us, that would be the guy I would like us to take. Elite goaltending prospects are rare. The goaltending position is tougher to predict which may result in a wasted pick but the team is not likely to get a very high end forward/defense at that point in the draft anyways. Elite goaltenders are rare and can carry mediocre teams far in the playoffs.
- SensFan25

funny, goalies are the one position where I would say that BPA shouldn't apply. goalies are far too erratic in terms of predicting how good they'll be. for every Carey Price, there are 30 examples of guys taken in the 1st rd who never even cracked an NHL roster.

a team like Ottawa, who already has a log jam at the position (including 3 guys under the age of 24 who "project" to be NHL calibre players), I wouldn't draft any goalies.....or take some guy in the later rounds who'll probably be in the NCAA for 2-3 years.

funny, goalies are the one position where I would say that BPA shouldn't apply. goalies are far too erratic in terms of predicting how good they'll be. for every Carey Price, there are 30 examples of guys taken in the 1st rd who never even cracked an NHL roster.

a team like Ottawa, who already has a log jam at the position (including 3 guys under the age of 24 who "project" to be NHL calibre players), I wouldn't draft any goalies.....or take some guy in the later rounds who'll probably be in the NCAA for 2-3 years.
- sensarmy_11

I’m sort of in the same frame of mind. I haven’t read anything about Knight being a can’t miss prospect. Wouldn’t he be ranked higher if he was? He sounds like a solid prospect, but when you look at the starting goalies on all 30 NHL teams, it’s all over the place in terms of when they were drafted. Goalies are one offs really.

I would say try to get more goalie prospects if you can (maybe not in the 1st round). Competition is never a bad thing. If you have an abundance of quality guys, then you have some trade bait.

As you know I think bottom is a process and you need to hit a full bottom before you can begin a serious recovery. A full bottom is more emotional than it is intellectual. I have believed for a long time the Sens will likely attain full bottom on draft day. This is good, once you hit bottom other things will start to look positive almost immediately.

But, it may be better than I thought. Yesterday the Simpson's made fun of the Sens implying nothing could be as bad as being a Sens fan. Nowhere to go but up.

Agree about BPA, except goalchie....

Also, Sens don't need all stars to be great. They need good team with good coach.

A good coach with good players can take you a long way. If the Nux or Sens had better coaching for the team during the years where they were legitimate contenders or on their cup runs, they might have actually won the tournament, not just the regular season championship.

As you know I think bottom is a process and you need to hit a full bottom before you can begin a serious recovery. A full bottom is more emotional than it is intellectual. I have believed for a long time the Sens will likely attain full bottom on draft day. This is good, once you hit bottom other things will start to look positive almost immediately.

But, it may be better than I thought. Yesterday the Simpson's made fun of the Sens implying nothing could be as bad as being a Sens fan. Nowhere to go but up.
- spatso

It’s not a fun time to be a fan, let’s be honest. At least when other teams bomb out, they don’t have a clueless/cheap owner, team drama (Karlsson/Hoffman and Ubergate), and trade away franchise players in their prime. The TV show the Simpsons is poking fun at the Sens for crying out loud.

It can’t get much worse, so that is the main upside.

There is skepticism on how much this team can actually improve with the track record of not being able to retain talent.

Depends where the organization projects themselves to be in 1 year then in 2 years. Realistic or not and that will guide their draft plan. Likely best player,maybe a package and move up. Possibly out of the box.
Theres alot of work to be done on this team in all areas.
Heres hoping Duchene signs in CBJ

It’s not a fun time to be a fan, let’s be honest. At least when other teams bomb out, they don’t have a clueless/cheap owner, team drama (Karlsson/Hoffman and Ubergate), and trade away franchise players in their prime. The TV show the Simpsons is poking fun at the Sens for crying out loud.

It can’t get much worse, so that is the main upside.

There is skepticism on how much this team can actually improve with the track record of not being able to retain talent.
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

Being distressed about the current condition of the Sens is a choice. On the other hand, you can simply choose to feel good about the opportunity. Already some very good talent in the fold and boatload of prospects and picks coming.

Melnyk is broke and on his way out.

If we are patient we will be rewarded.

Depends where the organization projects themselves to be in 1 year then in 2 years. Realistic or not and that will guide their draft plan. Likely best player,maybe a package and move up. Possibly out of the box.
Theres alot of work to be done on this team in all areas.
Heres hoping Duchene signs in CBJ
- spazzbot

And Karlsson and the Sharks make the finals.

Unlike the NFL draft, needs change by the time most NHL draft picks are ready to play in the NHL. Best available player should be the strategy early on.

However, another debate could be to take the “best available player” or take the player best suited to improve at the NHL level. The Sens love taking two-forwards in the draft who appear to be the “best available” but they may not be the best player to improve at the NHL level to become a star. I’d love to see some more chancy picks with players with undeniable skill rather than the team friendly two-way play mould.
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

I'm in agreement. If columbus winds up being in the 19 range, that would be a good time to take such a pick.

A brief look at the class says Caufield fits that bill to a tee, and may drop low enough, but he's only 5-7. Which gives me pause, which I admit is probably a little hypocritical

Simmons says, "Vegas has won 16 playoff games in two NHL seasons. The Leafs have won 17 playoff games in the past 15 years." Boy oh boy, Leaf fans are very angry.

And Karlsson and the Sharks make the finals.
- spatso

Forgot all about that. Yes agreed. ... i wonder what E.K value will be this summer.

And Karlsson and the Sharks make the finals.
- spatso

and lose to the BJs...

Forgot all about that. Yes agreed. ... i wonder what E.K value will be this summer.
- spazzbot

11.75mill/ year...

I want to see the Peng Wengs sign Karlsson and have him on a PP with Letang, Crosby, Malkin, and Kessel....