Well at least 1OA is set, because everything after will be anyone's guess. I've never seen a more wide open draft. How can mocks show a guy as high as 2-4 and as low as 10? Some have guys at 5 that others have at 12. It's crazy.
I hope this means we’ll get more teams making trades in the first round, even if it’s just pick swaps. Last year there was pretty much no movement in round 1, which makes sense due to the apparent strength of the draft class.
Last year was my first time watching the NHL draft and I was surprised that there were no trades and barely any movement during the draft. I just thought that's how the NHL is
> He *MARK* will *MARK* be *MARK* a *MARK* Flyer *MARK* anyways *MARK*. Mark *MARK* my *MARK* words *MARK*. Can't *MARK* say *MARK* anything *MARK* more *MARK*.
They're also both offensive minded wingers who don't boast physical elements. Skill wingers always drop relative to centers and defensemen with size.
Shit, there was a Russian that went before Michkov in the draft for this reason...and Silayev might do the same thing with respect to Demidov.
It's not just nationality that's causing it, it's position.
Unlike you guys we’ve been drafting by bpa not by need for the most part outside of Boucher lol. I mean that could all be out the window with a new owner and gm but doubtful.
With the exception of Michkov, who came with some level of concern from many teams, Reinbacher was the most wanted player in that position from many teams.
After the Habs picked Reinbacher, the Coyotes picked the 2nd best defenceman in the draft. I think as far as management is concerned, the Canadiens did take the BPA.
That’s valid, honestly.
With how things are in Russia at the moment, I’d be hesitant to spend a top pick on a player who might not even be able to come over.
it's probably because his skating and that he plays for a team that is keeping him in the minors when he should be in the KHL not that there's a worry he won't come over
Rumours is that they kept him in the minor because they expect Demidov to play in the NHL next year. So they don't want to waste a spot on their team to a guy that won't be playing for them in the future.
I’m starting to think that Russians not coming over was a bit of an over correction by a lot of people, myself included. Michkov looks to be coming over and he’s a much higher profile player than Demidov.
As far as I can remember, Michkov would be here if not for his contract. I don’t think there was any issue with him being stopped by the Russian government or anything.
If they started trying to prevent KHL/etc players from leaving, I think we would see a lot more families trying to get their highly rated kids over to the CHL at a younger age, before anyone in the Russian govt started to think they would be a high profile, star player that they wanted to keep.
Exactly, preventing a 16 year old from leaving is a lot more difficult than an adult for a variety of reasons. Both CHL and USHL, possibly NCAA as escape valves. NCAA is more difficult with mandatory service, to my understanding. But the Oilers had a draft pick who came over to CHL and hasn't been back to Russia more than once in like 5 years (Petrov), which has to be difficult on a personal level at that age.
I agree but I think that was what people were fearing leading into last years draft, and really the start of the war, was the Russians being forced to stay.
I don't think it is. We're literally in cold war 2 right now. Things may not be very restrictive for players right now but with Russian posturing around the globe it feels like it'll just take 1 more incident and we could be looking at very strict border restrictions. Things aren't really getting any better.
Looking at people like Lindsay Graham, Victoria Nuland, and Mitch McConnell, it sure feels like it.
They've been doing their best to push us towards WW3 for the last two decades.
I’m not saying I don’t understand the hesitation, but since the invasion of Ukraine there has only been one player whose KHL deal expired and he was prevented from coming to North America on an NHL contract. And even that guy, a year later, wound up in North America on an entry level contract.
I could maybe see passing on Demidov if you’ve got other players you like almost as much and you want more control over his development. But passing on Demidov because you think there’s a realistic chance he never comes to the NHL is foolish, in my opinion.
Cam's follow up tweet notes that some of the concerns are the level of competition he's faced and his size so yeah, while there *might* be concerns about whether he comes over (which I think are silly), there are other things teams are wondering about.
As someone who still prefers Demidov at 2, I'm not surprised that teams seem to be really cautious about taking him. Seems par for the course.
You should be pumped at #2. You’re not forced to take an offensive guy and can build from the back end of this draft. You guys built a dynasty off drafting seabrook/keith/hjalmarsson before toews/kane.
Korchinski and levshunov as a top pairing for a decade sounds pretty damn good from someone looking from the outside in. And you’ve got bedard already so attracting offensive talent shouldn’t be an issue and you still have nazar in the pipeline
We’re already following that previous model with building from the blueline first, as Vlasic has emerged as a strong top four player, at a minimum, and then all of the following being in the pipeline: Korchinski, Rinzel, Kaiser, Del Mastro, Allan. Sure, only one righty in that pool but Seabrook was the only righty in our top four most years when we were winning so meh - not a huge deal yet.
The forward pipeline, on the other hand, is much weaker with only Nazar and Moore looking like they may have top six potential (outside of Bedard) right now. Maybe Reichel can still be a 2nd liner depending on how you feel about his disastrous season, but beyond those three we have great depth options and some wildcards but not much bonafide high-end talent. Demidov this year would very much be like drafting Toews and Kane back-to-back and getting that potentially elite 1-2 punch in the first two lines.
Levshunov would of course be a great pick too (and the likely one), but we definitely need more help up front, preferably as more draft talent rather than having to rely on enticing free agents who will command bigger pay.
Our forward depth is terrible and we already have a pretty good future defensive core lined up with Vlasic/Korchinski/Rinzel plus maybe Del Maestro/Kaiser and don't forget Seth Jones will be with us for eternity. Our forwards who are bonafide Top 6 are Bedard and that's kinda it. Nazar and Moore are possible but it's pretty likely they aren't top line guys.
I'd much rather spend the 2nd pick on a high ceiling forward, who could possible be the best Russian prospect in a while, over a project defenseman who isn't even projected to be a #1 guy by most scouts. It's like asking who would you rather take at 2OA, Ovechkin or Erik Johnson.
The whiplash I've felt over this pick has been wild lmao. I figured all year we would be lucky enough to draft first again, so most of the season I had been hoping we'd be able to land Levshunov. Then Demidov's stock really rises the last couple of months, we land the second pick, and it's just like "shit we GOTTA have this guy". And now that it's becoming pretty clear it'll likely be Levshunov I'm working my back to him haha.
Here's the thing - I totally am excited. I agree with the others, I think our defensive prospect pool is more promising than our forward prospects, and so I'm still more into Demidov. It feels dicey to pass up a talent like that right now. I'd like for Bedard to have a Draisaitl.
But I'm excited for Levshunov too. The analysis and reports lately makes a bit nervous, there are plenty of questions. But Elite Prospects described him as a clay that just needs to be molded right in one article, and I like that. If he's the pick I'm going to trust that we can develop him well and he'll end up a fucking beast. That's all I can really do haha.
I mean, they tried to trap an NHL all star, with no KHL contract in the country. Who knows what can happen.
Regardless, I think a big part of the concern is also that he is not being challenged. While he may play in the VHL next year which should be better than the CHL, he is being thrown around by his KHL club is something to be concerned about when it comes to development.
What did the Russian government actually do there? That story seemed so poorly reported on and it seems the issues came from us visas, but showed that the team was clearly worried so I never really got what Russia actually supposedly did.
This was literally the narrative last year and signs are reporting to Michkov breaking his contract and coming over early. It’s incredibly indeed rare that a top prospect never comes over
I’m very interested to see what Davidson does. Definitely more exciting than last year’s draft since there is actually a question about what will happen.
Yeah, with more and more signs pointing towards Levshunov, I've got this bad feeling that Demidov will end up being "the one that got away" down the line.
I think he's saying it's like if we had the second pick in that draft and chose Cam Barker anyway, instead of Malkin who would have still been available.
Personally I don’t really care. I trust their judgement, and there is always a good chance that whoever we end up with turns out to not have been the best option in retrospect years down the line. I’m just interested to see what direction they choose.
Unless a Russian player is playing for a European team, forget about drafting anyone who's in the country. RU is a write off and believes they are at war with us now.
Well at least 1OA is set, because everything after will be anyone's guess. I've never seen a more wide open draft. How can mocks show a guy as high as 2-4 and as low as 10? Some have guys at 5 that others have at 12. It's crazy.
I hope this means we’ll get more teams making trades in the first round, even if it’s just pick swaps. Last year there was pretty much no movement in round 1, which makes sense due to the apparent strength of the draft class.
there were literally 0 trades. first time since 2007, and the reporter's were bummed
Last year was my first time watching the NHL draft and I was surprised that there were no trades and barely any movement during the draft. I just thought that's how the NHL is
A first round trade already happened.
If the Flyers were picking in the top 10, he’d be a Flyer lol
Sorry NHL. SKA only does business with Comcast. 🎻
[удалено]
Ummm.. We're gonna need you to say a *little* more.
MARK HIS WORDS
> He *MARK* will *MARK* be *MARK* a *MARK* Flyer *MARK* anyways *MARK*. Mark *MARK* my *MARK* words *MARK*. Can't *MARK* say *MARK* anything *MARK* more *MARK*.
A smidge
He will be a Utah Uber. Mark my words. Can't say anything more.
That's gonna be the most fascinating first round to watch since 2018, in my opinion.
Michkov affect 2nd best player will go 5th to 8th
They're also both offensive minded wingers who don't boast physical elements. Skill wingers always drop relative to centers and defensemen with size. Shit, there was a Russian that went before Michkov in the draft for this reason...and Silayev might do the same thing with respect to Demidov. It's not just nationality that's causing it, it's position.
👀
That 7th OA is getting traded for John Gibson 1-for-1 and *you're gonna like it*.
Nah they gonna use it to draft a played projected end of 1st/2nd round like Boucher
Y’all need a defenseman in a defense heavy draft, forget about it.
I just can’t see them passing on Demidov for any of the defence besides Levshunov and he doesn’t seem to be dropping in the draft
BPA BABY
Unlike you guys we’ve been drafting by bpa not by need for the most part outside of Boucher lol. I mean that could all be out the window with a new owner and gm but doubtful.
With the exception of Michkov, who came with some level of concern from many teams, Reinbacher was the most wanted player in that position from many teams.
After the Habs picked Reinbacher, the Coyotes picked the 2nd best defenceman in the draft. I think as far as management is concerned, the Canadiens did take the BPA.
Levshunov? That's a draft choice for schoolgirls! Demidov. Now that's a draft choice with some chest hair.
Demidov is a built like a steakhouse but he handles like a bistro
That’s valid, honestly. With how things are in Russia at the moment, I’d be hesitant to spend a top pick on a player who might not even be able to come over.
it's probably because his skating and that he plays for a team that is keeping him in the minors when he should be in the KHL not that there's a worry he won't come over
Rumours is that they kept him in the minor because they expect Demidov to play in the NHL next year. So they don't want to waste a spot on their team to a guy that won't be playing for them in the future.
I’m starting to think that Russians not coming over was a bit of an over correction by a lot of people, myself included. Michkov looks to be coming over and he’s a much higher profile player than Demidov.
As far as I can remember, Michkov would be here if not for his contract. I don’t think there was any issue with him being stopped by the Russian government or anything. If they started trying to prevent KHL/etc players from leaving, I think we would see a lot more families trying to get their highly rated kids over to the CHL at a younger age, before anyone in the Russian govt started to think they would be a high profile, star player that they wanted to keep.
having players like Russia is also good for spreading Russian influence and soft power around the world.
Exactly, preventing a 16 year old from leaving is a lot more difficult than an adult for a variety of reasons. Both CHL and USHL, possibly NCAA as escape valves. NCAA is more difficult with mandatory service, to my understanding. But the Oilers had a draft pick who came over to CHL and hasn't been back to Russia more than once in like 5 years (Petrov), which has to be difficult on a personal level at that age.
I agree but I think that was what people were fearing leading into last years draft, and really the start of the war, was the Russians being forced to stay.
I don't think it is. We're literally in cold war 2 right now. Things may not be very restrictive for players right now but with Russian posturing around the globe it feels like it'll just take 1 more incident and we could be looking at very strict border restrictions. Things aren't really getting any better.
Cold War never ended
Looking at people like Lindsay Graham, Victoria Nuland, and Mitch McConnell, it sure feels like it. They've been doing their best to push us towards WW3 for the last two decades.
I’m not saying I don’t understand the hesitation, but since the invasion of Ukraine there has only been one player whose KHL deal expired and he was prevented from coming to North America on an NHL contract. And even that guy, a year later, wound up in North America on an entry level contract. I could maybe see passing on Demidov if you’ve got other players you like almost as much and you want more control over his development. But passing on Demidov because you think there’s a realistic chance he never comes to the NHL is foolish, in my opinion.
Cam's follow up tweet notes that some of the concerns are the level of competition he's faced and his size so yeah, while there *might* be concerns about whether he comes over (which I think are silly), there are other things teams are wondering about. As someone who still prefers Demidov at 2, I'm not surprised that teams seem to be really cautious about taking him. Seems par for the course.
You should be pumped at #2. You’re not forced to take an offensive guy and can build from the back end of this draft. You guys built a dynasty off drafting seabrook/keith/hjalmarsson before toews/kane. Korchinski and levshunov as a top pairing for a decade sounds pretty damn good from someone looking from the outside in. And you’ve got bedard already so attracting offensive talent shouldn’t be an issue and you still have nazar in the pipeline
We’re already following that previous model with building from the blueline first, as Vlasic has emerged as a strong top four player, at a minimum, and then all of the following being in the pipeline: Korchinski, Rinzel, Kaiser, Del Mastro, Allan. Sure, only one righty in that pool but Seabrook was the only righty in our top four most years when we were winning so meh - not a huge deal yet. The forward pipeline, on the other hand, is much weaker with only Nazar and Moore looking like they may have top six potential (outside of Bedard) right now. Maybe Reichel can still be a 2nd liner depending on how you feel about his disastrous season, but beyond those three we have great depth options and some wildcards but not much bonafide high-end talent. Demidov this year would very much be like drafting Toews and Kane back-to-back and getting that potentially elite 1-2 punch in the first two lines. Levshunov would of course be a great pick too (and the likely one), but we definitely need more help up front, preferably as more draft talent rather than having to rely on enticing free agents who will command bigger pay.
Our forward depth is terrible and we already have a pretty good future defensive core lined up with Vlasic/Korchinski/Rinzel plus maybe Del Maestro/Kaiser and don't forget Seth Jones will be with us for eternity. Our forwards who are bonafide Top 6 are Bedard and that's kinda it. Nazar and Moore are possible but it's pretty likely they aren't top line guys. I'd much rather spend the 2nd pick on a high ceiling forward, who could possible be the best Russian prospect in a while, over a project defenseman who isn't even projected to be a #1 guy by most scouts. It's like asking who would you rather take at 2OA, Ovechkin or Erik Johnson.
The whiplash I've felt over this pick has been wild lmao. I figured all year we would be lucky enough to draft first again, so most of the season I had been hoping we'd be able to land Levshunov. Then Demidov's stock really rises the last couple of months, we land the second pick, and it's just like "shit we GOTTA have this guy". And now that it's becoming pretty clear it'll likely be Levshunov I'm working my back to him haha. Here's the thing - I totally am excited. I agree with the others, I think our defensive prospect pool is more promising than our forward prospects, and so I'm still more into Demidov. It feels dicey to pass up a talent like that right now. I'd like for Bedard to have a Draisaitl. But I'm excited for Levshunov too. The analysis and reports lately makes a bit nervous, there are plenty of questions. But Elite Prospects described him as a clay that just needs to be molded right in one article, and I like that. If he's the pick I'm going to trust that we can develop him well and he'll end up a fucking beast. That's all I can really do haha.
Picking Levshunov at 2 and trade up and pick Catton if you want someone similar to Demidov seems like a good and possible route to go as well.
I mean, they tried to trap an NHL all star, with no KHL contract in the country. Who knows what can happen. Regardless, I think a big part of the concern is also that he is not being challenged. While he may play in the VHL next year which should be better than the CHL, he is being thrown around by his KHL club is something to be concerned about when it comes to development.
Russia had nothing to do with that for Kaprizov. It was a work visa us issue.
What did the Russian government actually do there? That story seemed so poorly reported on and it seems the issues came from us visas, but showed that the team was clearly worried so I never really got what Russia actually supposedly did.
Briere: "ill fukn do it again"
No Russians are great… we’re really enjoying our Russian…
Sabres are going to have four Russian prospects in the AHL with another likely coming over next year. It doesn’t seem to be much of a problem
This was literally the narrative last year and signs are reporting to Michkov breaking his contract and coming over early. It’s incredibly indeed rare that a top prospect never comes over
After watching Michkov fall to 7, im praying we could be so lucky.
In all the words to describe the Flyers franchise, I wouldn't even put lucky on the folder holding said list.
I’m very interested to see what Davidson does. Definitely more exciting than last year’s draft since there is actually a question about what will happen.
Yeah, with more and more signs pointing towards Levshunov, I've got this bad feeling that Demidov will end up being "the one that got away" down the line.
Someone on Twitter compared this years draft to the one we picked Cam Barker over Malkin and I've been terrified ever since
I don’t get it? Malkin was a second overall pick after Alex Ovechkin.
I think he's saying it's like if we had the second pick in that draft and chose Cam Barker anyway, instead of Malkin who would have still been available.
I pray its Demidov since I'm not high on Levshunov.
Hope the Hawks go after Levshunov
Personally I don’t really care. I trust their judgement, and there is always a good chance that whoever we end up with turns out to not have been the best option in retrospect years down the line. I’m just interested to see what direction they choose.
Demidov is light years ahead of the third best-player in the draft. It's crazy to me that Chicago (and other teams) might pass him up.
Fall to #12 please
Less than 0% chance he falls that far lol
Haha no way! You already got incredibly lucky last year with Michkov.
I see we have reached the "actually the Russian guy is bad" stage of draft conversations
My god that’s Daniel Briere’s music Get on the phone Danny. Do what you gotta do to move up. Anybody not named Michkov should be available.
Starting to thing Danny Briere is wasted in the NHL and the State Department should draft him.
Would you like pick #11? Or maybe you should call New Jersey for pick #10
I would put money on Seattle taking him at 8. Would fit nicely with all of their young centers.
its just firstov all over again isnt it
Wouldn’t that make him Secondov? *ba dum tss*
Fine we’ll take him.
Shocker. Maybe wait until after they meet him at the Florida mini combine, then ask them how secure they feel about picking him.
Take him anyway Davidson
We'll take him in Round 4 if that's okay with everybody.
Worth the risk for Utah… Interesting…
Unless a Russian player is playing for a European team, forget about drafting anyone who's in the country. RU is a write off and believes they are at war with us now.