So! The NHL Draft Lottery has come and gone and…uh….
Yeah, for the first time since 2010, nobody moved at all. The Kraken will pick 8th overall this year at the Sphere in Las Vegas.
Huh.
Well that’s kinda boring. Oh well.
While yes, I too would’ve loved Macklin Celebrini; the fact is that I don’t think the Kraken can get a shocking drop in the draft again, and thus I think we may be stuck with the 8th overall pick unless Toronto wants to get real silly with Mitch Marner or something and we should instead embrace it, and take a few minutes to familiarize ourselves with the players who the many prospect watchers around NHL circles like at this particular position. There’s a heavy bias for defenders, but even in this defense-heavy part of the draft, there’s some names that could be potentially big for the Kraken long term.
So! With that in mind, let’s take a bite-sized preview into these players before I start writing more comprehensive draft profiles, and ask a question about each!
8th by EliteProspects
An All-Rounder Defensive Prospect; Defender Sam Dickinson
Usually the thing that dings guys Dickinson’s size is something like skating or stickwork or that he’s 6’4 and doesn’t like hitting. Dickenson…is not that. In fact, it’s kind of hard to think of something he doesn’t immediately excel at; his relentless work ethic has turned him into a great skater, a great defender, a good stick checker, an absolutely hellacious hitter, and in general a good hand to have while backchecking.
The question we’ll attempt to ask and answer in his profile is this: Is there even a reason for him to stay in Junior this year? What could be holding him out of the top 5?
8th by TSN’s Bob McKenzie and McKeen’s Hockey
An All-Rounder Forward Prospect: Konsta Helenius
A dude who’s been noted for his consistency at all levels of play won the jackpot in being a few letters away from being named “Konstant”, because most of the discussion I’ve seen so far on this kid has been strong praise, and the criticisms feel more like nitpicks than anything else.
The question we’ll ask and try to answer is this: When your floor is so high, does that mean your ceiling is low?
8th by ISS Hockey
The Gigantic Speedy Defender, Anton Silayev
The answer to the question “What if we fed Zdeno Chara Pixie sticks?” is probably Anton Silayev; a 6’7 stay-at-home defender who impresses scouts not just because he’s a real life giraffe on skates, but because he’s able to move like a forward while doing it. He’s honestly kind of a pattern interrupt; big players just don’t have those kinds of skating mechanics and tools 90% of the time. It’s why the average size of the league is around 6’1 and not 6’4; those big guys need to do just as much as the really little guys to both stand out and be useful. Silayev stands out because he can do all the things a big man defender can do but at almost 2x speed.
The question we’ll try to answer in his profile is this: when your skating is so good and your play is so sound, what could have you drop down to 8th?
8th by FC Hockey
The Prospect with Championship Pedigree and awesome name, Defender Zeev Buium
Zeev Buium is one of the coolest names in this draft, and there are some pretty cool names in this draft. It helps that, in a draft year, Zeev decided to give that name one of the most comically productive seasons the Denver Pioneers have ever gotten from their blueline, being well over a point-per-game at the College Hockey level, getting the World Juniors gold with Team USA, and then winning the NCAA national title by shutting out Boston College; not too shabby whatsoever for this young man. His presence as a calming force of good for his defense has turned him into a steady, smooth option for his teammates, and his teammates get some of the silkiest, smoothest passes anyone could ever ask for.
The Question we will try to answer with him, is how far “Hockey IQ” can take a guy like him?
8th by TSN’s Craig Button and FloHockey’s Chris Peters
The Prospect I can’t even pretend to be impartial about; Forward Cole Eiserman
I want Cole Eiserman on the Kraken. I want that more than anything on planet earth.
I do not care about his stats, although his prolific scoring makes him enormously attractive to a team that struggles with that. I super don’t care about him actually being open about caring about stuff. I’m glad he cares. Aside from like, breaking the law or being a shitty person in a way that I wouldn’t know behind closed doors, there is effectively nothing you can do to convince me there is a better pick.
The reason is simple: This kid is a local to my hometown of Newburyport.
I likely know the rink he started playing on. I know the reservoirs and ponds he likely went to before he went off to the prep school system and then the USHL. I went to elementary school with his brother. I cannot pretend in good conscience I want him to be anything other than a Kraken because I can’t bear the thought of a kid from my community not making it.
The question that will be asked here is can I overcome that bias to acknowledge that he still has some growing to do?
This is, of course, just a taste of what awaits in the NHL Draft this year. There’s still so much that this pick could do for Seattle this year and this doesn’t even scratch a comprehensive surface.
Our draft profiles will begin VERY soon, and we’ll get to know these kids a lot better!
Leave a tip to support our writers and staff!