2011 NHL Entry Draft Watch

That's the mock draft I linked.

Not a chance Couturier drops to 9th. I'll drink a glass of urine if that happens.

Big Ev wrote:That's the mock draft I linked.

Not a chance Couturier drops to 9th. I'll drink a glass of urine if that happens.

well you already drink crosby's so this means nothing

SORRY I HAD TO GO THERE!!

Do we really see teams picking Huberdeau or Strome over Couturier?

I posted a link (in another thread) to an interview done at The Sixth Sens with an SEL blogger. His opinion on Larsson is not quite what I'd expected:

As often is pointed out, the sky is the limit for Adam Larsson. But the limit does not equal the realistic expectations. I think anyone expecting more than a stable defensive d-man that can move the puck with ease and maybe chip in on the second PP unit, is gonna be disappointed. He does not have the offensive flare of a Drew Doughty, Cam Fowler, Erik Karlsson or other yong D-men climbing into the league in the past years. It's more realistic to expect a Chris Phillips-like career than a Nick Lidstrom or Shea Weber-one.

Of course Phillips *did* go first-overall, but I think we can all agree it was not an exceptionally high-end draft.

Here's the link again: http://www.the6thsens.com/2011-articles/april/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-swedish-overlords678567.html

Prager, that's a guy named SteffG, who I've been chatting with for months. That doesn't exactly do Larsson justice, Steff LOVES him and would do almost anything to see him in an Ottawa uniform, he's just tempering people's expectations when they think he can be Lidstrom. Lidstrom is a 60-70 point D-man, while Larsson will quietly get 40 points and be a ROCK in his own zone.

That's what Steffe's been preaching for a while now.

shabbs wrote:Do we really see teams picking Huberdeau or Strome over Couturier?

Huberdeau I can see happening without question. Strome over Couturier I can't see at all.

SpezDispenser wrote:

shabbs wrote:Do we really see teams picking Huberdeau or Strome over Couturier?

Huberdeau I can see happening without question. Strome over Couturier I can't see at all.

Gonna be a very interesting draft... it seems to change every day...

shabbs wrote:Gonna be a very interesting draft... it seems to change every day...

Absolutely. I would have been glued to the TV anyway, but now I'll be...even more glued (?).

SpezDispenser wrote:

shabbs wrote:Gonna be a very interesting draft... it seems to change every day...

Absolutely. I would have been glued to the TV anyway, but now I'll be...even more glued (?).

Super glued!!!!

Are any of you not just a little worried about drafting someone from the Q? The defense in that league is just so horrid, offensive stats are inflated. I mean, aside from Crosby, what high-end Q draft pick has lived up to their expectations? I know there are guys from the Q that have turned out (see Giroux) but of the three guys were are most likely to end up with (Strome, Coutourier, and Huberdeau, I am leaning towards Strome for just that reason.

Vandelay wrote:Are any of you not just a little worried about drafting someone from the Q? The defense in that league is just so horrid, offensive stats are inflated. I mean, aside from Crosby, what high-end Q draft pick has lived up to their expectations? I know there are guys from the Q that have turned out (see Giroux) but of the three guys were are most likely to end up with (Strome, Coutourier, and Huberdeau, I am leaning towards Strome for just that reason.

Definitely. I can't speak for Neely, but I know he was mentioning this very thing.

Just to follow that up...A perfect example is a guy like Derick Brassard. Similar size and stats to Huberdeau when he was in the Q, drafted 6th overall. Not a bad player but not much production at the NHL level.

I'm not afraid of drafting anyone out of the Q. Couturier is a better prospect than Strome by all accounts (head of ISS thinks he is better than Landeskog even) and I don't think you should factor in the league he plays in.

The Q isn't actually that much worse than the other leagues. I read an article comparing all three CHL leagues and there wasn't a huge difference in recent years. Some Q teams even play the trap.

Crosby, Richards, Lecavalier, Giroux, have all panned out from the Q, just to name a few.

If they are picked Top 5, which they should, then to me it says that teams don't care that they play in the Q.

Vandelay wrote:Just to follow that up...A perfect example is a guy like Derick Brassard. Similar size and stats to Huberdeau when he was in the Q, drafted 6th overall. Not a bad player but not much production at the NHL level.

His biggest problem has been injuries, though.

Big Ev wrote:I'm not afraid of drafting anyone out of the Q. Couturier is a better prospect than Strome by all accounts (head of ISS thinks he is better than Landeskog even) and I don't think you should factor in the league he plays in.

The Q isn't actually that much worse than the other leagues. I read an article comparing all three CHL leagues and there wasn't a huge difference in recent years. Some Q teams even play the trap.

Crosby, Richards, Lecavalier, Giroux, have all panned out from the Q, just to name a few.

If they are picked Top 5, which they should, then to me it says that teams don't care that they play in the Q.

Fair enough. I'm a little concerned about that diet though. I mean, is he really getting enough protein, eating twigs and leaves? Then there are the concerns about having to order in custom made neck guards and potential for neck injuries and such...I'm not sold. I guess a neck like that has its advantages as well...like using the defense as a screen and still have clear line of sight at the net...we'll see how it all plays out soon enough!

I must say, Couturier gets the short end of the stick around here - me included - and that's not really fair. The kid has mad skills and battled through mono. Doesn't matter too much which league he plays for, although I'll admit to being slightly nervous about top end prospects coming out of the Q (or lack of).

Big Ev wrote:

marakh wrote:

Big Ev wrote:Sean Couturier is the pick! Same initials as Sidney Crosby and the Stanley Cup...can't be a coincidence!

Murray was at the game last night. Too bad he didn't score!

He was a ghost the entire series and if he played like that since Feb/March no wonder he's slipping in the rankings.

He's the only reason Drummondville was even contending.

He was not a ghost for the entire Gatinieau series. He was still hitting a lot and scoring some goals, but he was definitely drained. Whoever gets him has a steal on their hands because he will be healthy going into next year and he will be able to train and prepare for the season properly, unlike this season due to his mono.

I personally think the Sens would have him 4th in terms of forwards, but who knows.

I get it the guy is drained, but if he still can hit what is stopping him from forechecking or going to the net?
I don't know how the guy got as many points but I suspect it's because he gets Dung of ice time and PP.
He definitely thinks defense first and offense second from what I've heard and seen and from a top 5 draftee he's definitely not driving it enough.
The guy compares himself to Jordan Staal and that's exactly what I see from him production wise in the NHL. Not what I was hoping we would get this year...
I stand by my predictions, Huberdeau is gonna be the best all around player from this draft, 3 years from now.

stempniaksen wrote:

marakh wrote:

Big Ev wrote:Sean Couturier is the pick! Same initials as Sidney Crosby and the Stanley Cup...can't be a coincidence!

Murray was at the game last night. Too bad he didn't score!

He was a ghost the entire series and if he played like that since Feb/March no wonder he's slipping in the rankings.

He's averaged almost 2 PPG since the World Juniors and has carried his team by himself in the 2nd half. There may be reasons to dislike his game, but he definitely hasn't played the dissapearing act for more than 2 games at a time at any point this season.

I still have Couturier ahead of Strome and Huberdeau (although I see the skillset that people like with both these guys).

The guy I actually have flying up the rankings is Dougie Hamilton, this kid is absolutely unreal and reminds me of a Pietrangelo/E.Johnson mix with his 2way ability.

RNH was one of the best Red Deer players against Medecine Hat, and he got 1 point in 5 games. Same with Ryan Strome. The guy is flying out there, and he doesn't have the best stats.
Couturier got 4 goals against Gatineau, and from scouting reports he wasn't a difference maker at all. I know from the game I've seen live he did absolutely nothing offensively. THere's a guy named Pageau on Gatineau that made him his Wing Dang Doodle and the guy is 5'09 and projected in the later rounds...Seriously from a top 5 pick It's unacceptable.