Jan Levine: Hockey Buzz Mock Draft moves on: Kings pick in, Red Wings on clock A mild surprise at #5

I think Caufield is going to be a huge disappointment.

I think Caufield is going to be a huge disappointment.
- nyrangers9479

soft?

I think it's very possible Caufield does indeed go 5

he just scored 14 goals in 7 games in the WU18's

he had 101 goals in 92 games this past season before that

DeBrincat has proved a guy his size can be a star

he's going early brah

"in all honesty, we haven't ruled it out"



no matter how you feel about buyouts, the Rangers are definitely thinking about them

"in all honesty, we haven't ruled it out"



no matter how you feel about buyouts, the Rangers are definitely thinking about them
- jimbro83

This will be a crazy next two weeks.

This will be a crazy next two weeks.
- airjan23

I think Caufield is going to be a huge disappointment.
- nyrangers9479

Well, yeah, obviously. He’s not 6’3” so he’s not willing to “mix it up”. He’ll be bad for sure.

Well, yeah, obviously. He’s not 6’3” so he’s not willing to “mix it up”. He’ll be bad for sure.
- Bean_Dip

this guy gets fixated on something and never ever lets it go, it's his trademark

Solid pick but probably could have traded back to a couple of spots...then again you never know what will happen so a "reach" for a player in the 5-10 range is not really a reach.

this guy gets fixated on something and never ever lets it go, it's his trademark
- jimbro83

Very true. I don't agree with him, but it doesn't mean he's wrong...

this guy gets fixated on something and never ever lets it go, it's his trademark
- jimbro83

That's his style of play in Division 4 of Hockey Long Island.....one of the toughest guys that ever payed to play at midnight on Wednesdays.

Opinions aside, why would you even want a guy like Hughes (or Kakko for arguments sake) to even be fighting? You have other guys on your team to do that. Not your 80+ pt first liner who’s going to burry the puck because he’s disciplined.

I'm going to apologize in advance for the long post. Custance wrote an article for the Athletic that compares current NHL players to 24 of the top players available in the draft. Best part: he compares Moritz Seider to Anton Stralman.

The Americans
(Breakdown by John Wroblewski)

Jack Hughes

NHL player comparable: Connor McDavid

The breakdown: “Both great skaters. Connor is more of a north-south guy, and Jack will beat you east-west. His edges are so good. The similarity for me is how brave both are to bring pucks into the hard areas of the ice. For being burners they’re also both manipulative on the power play. … They can slow things down too.”

Alex Turcotte

NHL player comparable: Sidney Crosby with a hint of Brad Marchand

The breakdown: “A lot of people are trying to compare him to (Jonathan)Toews. Toews is much sturdier and simpler. (Turcotte) has that pestering ability like Marchand does. Not to that end but I’m not sure that won’t be Turcotte in 10 years when guys have been playing against him for a long time. We get a small sample size of three or four games against Youngstown and those guys hate him. … Sid’s goals come in tight. Turcotte and he also have that similar skill set, like ‘How did that go in the net from two feet away?’ They both have that capability. And that mentality to win. That’s something that burns.”

Trevor Zegras

NHL player comparable: A mix of Clayton Keller and Patrick Kane

The breakdown: “(Zegras’) defining elements are that creativity that bubble up out of nowhere. Kane would be the closest to that. They make the almost impossible plays, they make it look routine. Their improvisation, the saucer passes and spin-o-ramas that happen on a whim. It looks like something that’s been orchestrated or set up. It happens all the time.”

Cole Caufield

NHL player comparable: Alex Ovechkin

The breakdown: “He’s a miniature version of Ovi. He’ll score every single way but they both have that campout spot on the back side. If you leave them alone any other spot, they’re equally as dangerous. They’ll both score back door. The difference is 120 pounds or something. But you’ve got a mini-Ovechkin. The similarity is how the puck explodes off their stick. Once you get Cole into the dots and hash marks, they’re similar.”

Matthew Boldy

NHL player comparable: Marian Hossa

The breakdown: “It’s perfect. It’s a great throwback reference to a guy who plays a modern game but is supremely dedicated to 200 feet and works that transition game to his overall attack. His seek and destroy mentality is very unique – the way that he lifts sticks and goes the other way and catches teams off guard. There must be a dozen clips of us scoring off his backcheck in two years.”

Cam York

NHL player comparable: Morgan Rielly

The breakdown: “There’s hardly anything that catches Rielly off guard. He seems to turn in flux situations into offensive opportunities. On the power play, he’s so natural to delegate – when the shot is there, he takes it. He’s efficient at using his flanks on the power play and keeping pucks alive. Yorkie has the same abilities.”

Alex Vlasic

NHL player comparable: Colton Parayko

The breakdown: “He’s a mix between Victor Hedman and a guy like Colton Parayko. Big. Sturdy. Athletic up and down the sheet. Can log huge minutes. … (Vlasic) has got a cannon. He changed his stick lie after last season. It was night and day with how he could operate with it. He’ll continue to get better He’s used that same stick for seven or eight years and now he changes. His hands and shot will continue to get better.”

Henry Thrun

NHL player comparable: Ryan Suter

The breakdown: “There is such a unique subtlety to Thrunner’s game and every now and then something pops. It’s simple, simple, simple and then all of a sudden there’s a remarkable stretch pass in the middle of the ice. He’s like a QB in the West Coast offense – a bunch of seven-yard passes, clipping along at 70 percent and then there’s the play action and it’s down the field. He’s a simple, calculated player.”

Drew Helleson

NHL player comparable: Matt Niskanen

The breakdown: “There’s an undervalued competitor there. Hardly ever gets beat out of the line rush or in the corner. There’s a steadiness to his activity in the offensive end. He knows how to activate, when to join the rush. He’s an above average shot. Very sneaky skill set. If there ever was a sleeper in the draft, I’d say it’s him.

John Beecher

NHL player comparable: Chris Kreider

The breakdown: “Kreider or a young Patrick Marleau. He has speed to burn. He can absolutely fly. Guys would always talk about Marleau, how good his first two or three strides were and then it was top speed. Beecher is the same way. He can fly. His speed is undeniable. Flying around, crossing the net. It’s a real simple game but fun to watch.”

Spencer Knight

NHL player comparable: Tom Barrasso

The breakdown: “Everyone wants to go with Carey Price but with the way (Knight) plays the puck, you almost have to go back to Tom Barrasso, with his steadiness. He was another guy labeled as a prodigy, in the NHL at 18 (years old), tons of expectations. They have prowess playing the puck and their confidence is very similar.”

The Rest of the Field
(Breakdown by an NHL amateur scout)

Kaapo Kakko

NHL player comparable: Peter Forsberg

The breakdown: “When you watch him play at whatever level, he uses his body and his power. The way he comes out of corners, the way he attacks the net – there’s a lot of similarities with the way he plays and the way Peter Forsberg plays.”

Bowen Byram

NHL player comparable: Drew Doughty

The breakdown: “He’s got swagger like Doughty does. He’ll stick you behind the play. He has that fierce look in his eyes. He’s an elite defenseman. That edge is what you want to have. If you look at all the top players around the league, they all have that edge and killer instinct. It doesn’t have to be dirty, but when the game is on the line, they’re stepping up and making the play.”

Dylan Cozens

NHL player comparable: Patrice Bergeron

The breakdown: “He’s a hard one. I would say he’s got quiet skills. Great skater. He does everything well. Bergeron is so smart, he has skill but you don’t sit there and go ‘he has top-five skill in the league.’ Cozens has a lot of underwhelming qualities that equal a really, really good player.”

Philip Broberg

NHL player comparable: Brady Skjei

The breakdown: “I don’t see him as a one or two, I see him more as a four or five. I know people love him, though. You’d love for him to be Victor Hedman, but I think Brady Skjei is more of what you’re going to get. Broberg is such a polarizing player. People either love him or question some of his things. I think his hockey sense can get him in trouble at times, but if you’re big and can skate, you can play.

Kirby Dach

NHL player comparable: Ryan Getzlaf

The breakdown: “It’s going to take time to grow into his big frame, but with the way he shoots the puck, I see a lot of Getzlaf. His consistency was in and out but he’s also a kid. Comes from a great hockey background. He’s got No. 1 center, power forward skill set – that whole package.”

Alex Newhook

NHL player comparable: Cam Atkinson

The breakdown: “He’s an interesting one because he’s in the middle of the ice and can shoot and score. He’s a good player. He’s his own player. I think he can score like Atkinson. He has that quick release. He can get himself in and out of traffic to score goals and can shoot the puck.”

Vasili Podkolzin

NHL player comparable: Vladimir Tarasenko

The breakdown: “It’s his willingness to go to the net to score goals. Everywhere he’s played this year, he’s produced. He’s powerful, he’s strong. He’s fearless when it comes to going to the net and he has a great shot.”

Arthur Kaliyev

NHL player comparable: Phil Kessel

The breakdown: “He just scores. Kaliyev has some holes in his game. He doesn’t love to play D. Doesn’t always look like he’s working. If he has a split second to score a goal, he’s going to score a goal. He knows how to score.”

Ryan Suzuki

NHL player comparable: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins

The breakdown: “He’s a second-line center. Doesn’t love to go to the hard areas. He does a lot of stuff on the perimeter. Unreal hockey IQ and can make plays. I would like him to be a little more competitive. Skill and sense, there’s a lot of good here and he’s a No. 2 center if everything goes well.”

Philip Tomasino

NHL player comparable: Claude Giroux

The breakdown: “He’s so good at stripping pucks. He’s skilled, smart, elusive, sneaky skill. I think he could be a No. 1 center. He’s a good player. A really good player.”

Thomas Harley

NHL player comparable: Thomas Chabot

The breakdown: “I like him a lot. Chabot fell in his draft year because he wasn’t always hard to play against and wasn’t always engaged in battles. But now, it doesn’t really matter. The offense, the way (Harley) surveys the blue line, the way he walks the line – there’s a lot of similarities.”

Moritz Seider

NHL player comparable: Anton Stralman

The breakdown: “He’s top four. Right-handed shot. Mobile. Is he offensive? I’m not sure. Can he make a good first pass? Yes.”

Victor Soderstrom

NHL player comparable: Roman Josi

The breakdown: “He’s another offensive player. He’s not Erik Karlsson. How offensive is he going to be? Who knows? He’s reliable. He’s dependable. He could be top 10 in the draft. He could be the second D off the board. Josi is a pretty good all-around defenseman who has some offense, too.”

Opinions aside, why would you even want a guy like Hughes (or Kakko for arguments sake) to even be fighting? You have other guys on your team to do that. Not your 80+ pt first liner who’s going to burry the puck because he’s disciplined.
- Bean_Dip

if we end up with Jack Hughes I want him to become a 100 point player, that's all I care about

I'm going to apologize in advance for the long post. Custance wrote an article for the Athletic that compares current NHL players to 24 of the top players available in the draft. Best part: he compares Moritz Seider to Anton Stralman.
- TheMessiah94

Based on the comparisons this should be the greatest draft class of all time

Based on the comparisons this should be the greatest draft class of all time
- TPC

Yes it will!

I don't care, but if Kakko turns out to be like Peter Forsberg, that is awesome!

Jason Myrtetus
@jasonmyrt

Source: Kevin Hayes and his agent Bob Murray were in town today and met with the Flyers brass. Discussions have ramped up considerably. Flyers would like to get a deal done well ahead of the draft and things are now getting serious. Stay tuned.

Jason Myrtetus
@jasonmyrt

Source: Kevin Hayes and his agent Bob Murray were in town today and met with the Flyers brass. Discussions have ramped up considerably. Flyers would like to get a deal done well ahead of the draft and things are now getting serious. Stay tuned.
- jimbro83

- mdw7413

Not going to lie, its gonna be weird seeing him in orange

Not going to lie, its gonna be weird seeing him in orange
- TPC

little bit like this

little bit like this


- jimbro83

The dude taking the pic was holding a king size kit kat bar in this

The dude taking the pic was holding a king size kit kat bar in this
- TPC

- jimbro83

- jimbro83

Also only 9 days til the draft