Article: Who Are Some Early Names Being Mocked To the Wild In the Draft?

[Justin Hein]

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[Backwoodsbob]

Calum Ritchie or Nate Danielson for RHC. We all know that the Wild need help down the middle but if they choose the next best available, I wouldn't mind a look at Quentin Musty . Dmitri Simashev would be a nice addition to the "D" corps. Granted he's a LD, but it's back to the position of the next best available player.

[MNCountryLife]

Whoever they pick... he needs to be 6' 2" or larger.  This team needs size bundled with that skill.

[mnfaninnc]

I will be "rending of garments" disappointed if we choose an LW or small, puck moving defender. If this happens to our first rounder, move me into the fire Brackett column.

I don't believe we will be able to move into the top 10, so I'll leave those guys alone. My top 3 are Oliver Moore, Nate Danielson, and Calum Ritchie. I'd like to have all 3 if trades could be made to accomplish that, but we should be aiming for 2/3 of these candidates.

Generally speaking, yes we should be expecting a role player at 21. We could expect a better prospect at, say, 14. But, this isn't your regular draft, and, really, neither have the last 2 been. This, I think, is the final draft where the Covid closings have affected development. There's a better picture here, but, I think you'll find more busts and more diamonds eventually. This draft is supposed to be a 2 decades' draft, much like the '03 one. 

Tell me, was Ryan Getzlaf at 19 a role player? Brent Burns at 20? Ryan Kesler at 24? 

We need centers, all top picks should be focused not just on guys who can play center, but real NHL projectable centers! We need a minimum of 2 picks here. That means someone on this team will need to be moved for us to accomplish that. 

If we can get those 2 Cs, our rebuild will be declared over. Oh, there will still be a lag in the results, but we will have rebuilt the full projected roster and will only need to make tweaks (like gaining size). 

My hope is that by that time, Mike Modano, Mikko Koivu, yet to be named defensive guru, and Niklas Backstrom will begin to mold these guys into the players they need to be. Bombadir, Hendricks, and McCleod can still do something, but the above alumni need to start taking leads in player development. Those names above are recognizable names that are respected by these kids. The other 3 simply are not, unless there are fighters in the group. 

[Justin Hein]

44 minutes ago, MNCountryLife said:

Whoever they pick... he needs to be 6' 2" or larger.  This team needs size bundled with that skill.

Keep in mind these kids are barely 18 and they're superhuman athletes -- they'll be growing a lot over the next 2-3 years before they make the team. Overall, I'm starting to agree a bit on the size thing though!

[Secord Sucks]

“Gulyayev is not nearly as physically imposing, listed at 5’10”, 170 lbs. – more the size of a hockey blogger than NHL player. ”  🤣

[Justin Hein]

26 minutes ago, Secord Sucks said:

“Gulyayev is not nearly as physically imposing, listed at 5’10”, 170 lbs. – more the size of a hockey blogger than NHL player. ”  🤣

Dude needs a podcast lol. 

[Justin Hein]

1 hour ago, mnfaninnc said:

I will be "rending of garments" disappointed if we choose an LW or small, puck moving defender. If this happens to our first rounder, move me into the fire Brackett column.

I don't believe we will be able to move into the top 10, so I'll leave those guys alone. My top 3 are Oliver Moore, Nate Danielson, and Calum Ritchie. I'd like to have all 3 if trades could be made to accomplish that, but we should be aiming for 2/3 of these candidates.

Generally speaking, yes we should be expecting a role player at 21. We could expect a better prospect at, say, 14. But, this isn't your regular draft, and, really, neither have the last 2 been. This, I think, is the final draft where the Covid closings have affected development. There's a better picture here, but, I think you'll find more busts and more diamonds eventually. This draft is supposed to be a 2 decades' draft, much like the '03 one. 

Tell me, was Ryan Getzlaf at 19 a role player? Brent Burns at 20? Ryan Kesler at 24? 

We need centers, all top picks should be focused not just on guys who can play center, but real NHL projectable centers! We need a minimum of 2 picks here. That means someone on this team will need to be moved for us to accomplish that. 

If we can get those 2 Cs, our rebuild will be declared over. Oh, there will still be a lag in the results, but we will have rebuilt the full projected roster and will only need to make tweaks (like gaining size). 

My hope is that by that time, Mike Modano, Mikko Koivu, yet to be named defensive guru, and Niklas Backstrom will begin to mold these guys into the players they need to be. Bombadir, Hendricks, and McCleod can still do something, but the above alumni need to start taking leads in player development. Those names above are recognizable names that are respected by these kids. The other 3 simply are not, unless there are fighters in the group. 

This is an interesting rebuild plan, which I do like. Given the depth of this draft, I wonder if it would be easier to move up or harder. Another chance to draft from this group in the first round would be awesome if BG can swing it. 

[Backwoodsbob]

4 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

My top 3 are Oliver Moore, Nate Danielson, and Calum Ritchie. I'd like to have all 3 if trades could be made to accomplish that, but we should be aiming for 2/3 of these candidates.

That would be nice but realistically, I believe Moore is out of reach. Unless they do some deals/trades for another 1st rounder, I'd I settle for Danielson or Ritchie. Undoubtedly for sure, 2 of the 3 would be great, but highly unlikely though.

[Backwoodsbob]

Quote

MyNHLDraft took stab at Minnesota's pick, taking Mikhail Gulyayev, another Russian defender. The two defensemen couldn’t be more different. Gulyayev is not nearly as physically imposing, listed at 5’10”, 170 lbs. – more the size of a hockey blogger than NHL player. Gulyayev's size leaves some questions about his ability to defend at the NHL level, but he is also young for this draft class and has years to fill out.

The superpower in his game is skating and hands. Gulyayev loves to jump into the rush and projects as a power play quarterback.

Aren't we working/dealing with a defenseman who likes to quarterback the PP and join the rush already? Addy is a little taller and should be a little heavier but is also "not nearly as physically imposing" 🤔

[Protec]

Remember how mad everyone got when the Wild took Boldy over Caufield?

A couple of Fentonisms weren’t too bad in retrospect.

[Justin Hein]

13 hours ago, Backwoodsbob said:

Aren't we working/dealing with a defenseman who likes to quarterback the PP and join the rush already? Addy is a little taller and should be a little heavier but is also "not nearly as physically imposing" 🤔

All comes down to whether you think Evason has handled that situation correctly, I guess. 

[mnfaninnc]

18 hours ago, Justin Hein said:

Given the depth of this draft, I wonder if it would be easier to move up or harder.

Justin, I really appreciate article authors participating in the comment conversation, thank you for stopping by. 

---------------------------------------------

In addressing your "wonder," I think that it depends upon the team. We've got Washington and Pittsburgh who are older, still win now, types of teams. We've got some others who are about done with their rebuilds like Buffalo who are scratching an clawing to get to the playoffs. They've had several solid drafts already. Then, we've got AZ that is in "who knows what they're doing" category.

Some of these teams may value multiple picks. Some of these teams may value prospects almost ready. Some of these teams may value current rostered players to fill in their gaps. Here's the thing, we've got all 3! We could send a protected 2024 1st to move up, we could give up both 2023 2nds. We could trade from our #1 rated prospect pool, and we could trade some very nice roster pieces. 

The key here is that Shooter will need 2 backup batteries for his phone, and will likely lack sleep through the draft. I don't know how he keeps his thoughts in order, but I'd suspect he'd be juggling about 25 balls in the air. 1 of those balls is with Brackett and how he views the draft rankings and how we can fill the holes we have. Sometimes, BPA is the way to go, but in this case, Center is the way to go! Getting 2 bonafide centers in this draft is the goal......This is the way!

[mnfaninnc]

14 hours ago, Backwoodsbob said:

I believe Moore is out of reach.

Outside of the top 4, the rankings are all over the place. I've seen Moore on a couple going at 13. To get him, he'd need to drop from his #8 spot which could happen, and we'd need to swing a deal with AZ for the 2nd 1st. 

Danielson is not far behind that and we'd probably need to swing a deal with Pittsburgh to get him. Ritchie falls in our area, really, below us. For us, he picked a good year not to light things up offensively. He was injured for a decent portion of the season and through the playoffs. 

Yes, we will need to move up. What does AZ need? I'm going to suggest that they need near ready prospects. I would think a puck moving defender would be a nice start, and maybe a forward who's ready. They've got a lot of skill already developing. I haven't really gone in depth into their system. They still seem to be a dumping ground for salary. 

The good news is that Shooter already has a relationship there with the McBain deal. I think that has worked out well for both sides. McBain finished his rookie season at 12,14,-8. That's really pretty good for his role. They've also got 4 3rds this season and a whole bunch of 2nds the following 2 drafts.

To me, AZ looks like the type of organization that will have too many prospects to keep them all. Carolina had that problem under Francis when they were rebuilding. Several players thought they were blocked and didn't want to sign/resign. 

When the time comes and AZ is on the clock the 2nd time, perhaps that's when Shooter makes his move? Somehow, I don't think it will be just picks that get it done, it will include players. AZ's slot is a good place to try for Moore, but also land Danielson.

[mnfaninnc]

1 hour ago, Justin Hein said:

All comes down to whether you think Evason has handled that situation correctly, I guess. 

As for Addison, as the season wore on, you could tell he was less interested in playing defense. His 1st benching got his attention, but then he slid back again. I believe his 2nd benching and non-use in the playoffs was definitely a message to the player. That message was "pay attention to what we are telling you to focus on." That message was not "I just need to keep doing what I'm doing." 

Was this just Evason? We found out late the season prior that Addison had been reduced to the 3rd pair in Iowa. It was never revealed if Addison was there due to play, or was playing through an injury and just trying to gut it out and stay in the lineup.

There was no question that he knew what he was doing running the PP. There also was not question that he didn't know what he was doing in all other aspects of the game. My suspicion is that in Iowa, Addison was demoted due to his lack of interest in playing defense, something he likely has never been required to do. A telltale sign about how this upcoming season will go for him is how he looks when he is qualified and during the RFA negotiations. If he is notably beefier, the message was received. If he is not, the best thing to do is find a partner, perhaps Pittsburgh. Edmonton might be another interesting destination.

[Up North Guy]

1 hour ago, mnfaninnc said:

Outside of the top 4, the rankings are all over the place. I've seen Moore on a couple going at 13. To get him, he'd need to drop from his #8 spot which could happen, and we'd need to swing a deal with AZ for the 2nd 1st. 

Danielson is not far behind that and we'd probably need to swing a deal with Pittsburgh to get him. Ritchie falls in our area, really, below us. For us, he picked a good year not to light things up offensively. He was injured for a decent portion of the season and through the playoffs. 

Yes, we will need to move up. What does AZ need? I'm going to suggest that they need near ready prospects. I would think a puck moving defender would be a nice start, and maybe a forward who's ready. They've got a lot of skill already developing. I haven't really gone in depth into their system. They still seem to be a dumping ground for salary. 

The good news is that Shooter already has a relationship there with the McBain deal. I think that has worked out well for both sides. McBain finished his rookie season at 12,14,-8. That's really pretty good for his role. They've also got 4 3rds this season and a whole bunch of 2nds the following 2 drafts.

To me, AZ looks like the type of organization that will have too many prospects to keep them all. Carolina had that problem under Francis when they were rebuilding. Several players thought they were blocked and didn't want to sign/resign. 

When the time comes and AZ is on the clock the 2nd time, perhaps that's when Shooter makes his move? Somehow, I don't think it will be just picks that get it done, it will include players. AZ's slot is a good place to try for Moore, but also land Danielson.

I saw on the Athletic by Pronman I think, that he had Moore going at 19. That should be gettable.

[Protec]

The draft stuff is super hokey if you asked me. All sorts of varying opinions and guessing. The last few drafts have been pretty much the opposite of what I expected with the exception of Wallstedt. 

I'm looking at this upcoming draft and just hoping Brackett doesn't get a boner for Euro guys again and miss North American winners.

[Quebec1648]

I think the Wild need two things in this draft, a top 6 center and a successor for Zuccarello. The Zuccarello replacement would serve as Kaprizov's new buddy and linemate once Zuc is gone. Pair that with a new center, and the Wild would be in good shape offensively. 

Other posters discussed drafting two centers, but I favor acquiring a Zuccarello replacement instead of the 2nd center. We all saw how Boldy struggled without a good linemate, so it's important to get one to pair with Kaprizov. Zuccarello has one year left on his deal, so it's best to plan for his future absence. 

[Protec]

42 minutes ago, Quebec1648 said:

I think the Wild need two things in this draft, a top 6 center and a successor for Zuccarello. The Zuccarello replacement would serve as Kaprizov's new buddy and linemate once Zuc is gone. Pair that with a new center, and the Wild would be in good shape offensively. 

Other posters discussed drafting two centers, but I favor acquiring a Zuccarello replacement instead of the 2nd center. We all saw how Boldy struggled without a good linemate, so it's important to get one to pair with Kaprizov. Zuccarello has one year left on his deal, so it's best to plan for his future absence. 

To some degree the Wild have done this. Yurov will likely get a better year in the KHL with more opportunity. It is possible he could be a guy that fits that role. There's a unique dynamic between Kaprizov and the Norwegian Hobbit. Finding a replacement for Zuccarello could be tricky cause little Euro guys who are lizardy aren't easy to find in the draft. I like your forward thinking but the players who emerge as solutions will be anything from prospects to veterans like Nyquist or Johansson types. I think the Wild can find talented wings more easily than top talent center. That's the primary reason we're looking for the Wild to select centers. They've blown the draft for centers since Ek seven years straight.

My main point is that Kaprizov running-mate might have to take second priority to getting a center. Anybody drafted this Summer probably wouldn't be NHL ready when Zuccarello finishes his deal anyway. I'm crossing my fingers Yurov is an alpha-stud Russian phenomenon.

[mnfaninnc]

1 hour ago, Quebec1648 said:

I think the Wild need two things in this draft, a top 6 center and a successor for Zuccarello. The Zuccarello replacement would serve as Kaprizov's new buddy and linemate once Zuc is gone. Pair that with a new center, and the Wild would be in good shape offensively. 

Q- this was done last offseason with the drafting of Yurov. He may be delivered as soon as a year away, as he only signed a 1 year extension. Khus^&* is coming over then too.

[Mateo3xm]

On 5/30/2023 at 11:17 AM, Backwoodsbob said:

Calum Ritchie or Nate Danielson for RHC. We all know that the Wild need help down the middle but if they choose the next best available, I wouldn't mind a look at Quentin Musty . Dmitri Simashev would be a nice addition to the "D" corps. Granted he's a LD, but it's back to the position of the next best available player.

Why would you choose Musty?

he’s a lw?

we have more than enough of those..

[Mateo3xm]

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/608308/david-edstrom
 

David Edstrom has been rocketing up the mock drafts.

on elite prospects he’s ranked around the 2nd round but wheeler and Pronman have him potentially being taken before we get a chance to draft in the 1st.

if he falls to us I really really hope they look at taking him.

hes a 6’3-6’4 center and he had 4pts in 11 games in the SHL.

I believe he was on the top line at WJC tournament too.

[Backwoodsbob]

9 hours ago, Mateo3xm said:

Why would you choose Musty?

he’s a lw?

we have more than enough of those..

Could be used in a trade package down the road.

 

[mnfaninnc]

I am not opposed to the David Edstrom idea. Having another Eriksson Ek on the team, to me, sounds like a good idea. Strength can be gained by the player, he just needs to attend Camp Ek/Ohgren. 

He's got size, but he also appears to check the Brackett boxes of good skating, high hockey IQ, 200 foot game. He would be a lower choice in the 1st round, more like around 30. If we weren't able to get a higher pick to take Moore or Danielson, and took Ritchie at 21, perhaps we could trade back into the 1st round and pick up someone like Edstrom? 

Just out of curiosity, for those who scour over the draft more than I do, if Eriksson Ek were coming into this draft year instead of 2015, how high would he have been ranked? 2015 was a pretty good draft year too. 

[Jon]

Disregard

Edited June 2, 2023 by Jon