2020 Calgary Flames NHL Draft

[Thebrewcrew]

I know that we are in the midst of a playoff push and our attention is largely being directed at NHL action, but the junior and college season is winding down as well. 

 

As it stands, the Flames could have picks in all 7 rounds, caveat being Neal needs to score 2 more goals if he ever comes back. This will be an important draft, the scouts can start re-stocking the cupboards. Flames were ranked as the 31st prospect pool by Cory Pronman. 

 

I know the mandate is always BPA at the draft, but the Flames have essentially zero D prospects, last one they picked was Valimaki. I would be very surprised if they don't come away from the draft without 3 or 4 picks spent on D. 

 

Realistically, I think the Flames pick in the 13th to 20th range, whether they make the playoffs or not. Should be able to get a quality player

 

http://www.mynhldraft.com/2020-nhl-draft/mock-draft/

https://www.draftsite.com/nhl/mock-draft/2020/

 

Looking through some mock drafts a few names catch my eye that could be available when the Flames pick;

 

Defence

William Wallinder- great skater, good size. Might be a bit too much like Hanifin for some though

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/482190/william-wallinder

 

Braden Schneider- great skater and puck mover. RHS. Probably projects as a stay at home D like a Hamonic

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/351820/braden-schneider

 

Jeremie Poirier- no relation to Emile. Offensive D, needs to work on his defensive play

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/201907/jeremie-poirier

 

Forwards

 

Dawson Mercer- RHS version of Mangiapane from scouting reports. Relentless on the puck, plays bigger than he is. Also sounds a bit like Pellerter

http://www.mynhldraft.com/2020-nhl-draft/player-profiles/Dawson-Mercer

 

Jacob Perrault- RHS C, known for a heavy shot and goal scoring prowess. Son of former NHLer Yanic

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/418243/jacob-perreault

 

Hendrix Lapierre- Biggest wildcard of the draft. Very well rounded C, but the injuries are a concern for some.

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/201904/hendrix-lapierre

 

Jack Quinn- similar to Jacob Perrault, high end finisher, he plays the wing though. 

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/336828/jack-quinn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Horsman1]

quite a slant there on french -canadian players.. I always steer away from them.. too much flash.. not enough trucelence.. I prefer a heavier choice .. these types of all flash players are a dime a dozen.. We need Players that have led championship teams.. not top players on meh teams.. look at the top 4-6 teams in each league.. and tthen the top depended on 3-4 players of those tea,\ms.. Are any of them available??

 

 

[sak22]

42 minutes ago, Horsman1 said:

quite a slant there on french -canadian players.. I always steer away from them.. too much flash.. not enough trucelence.. I prefer a heavier choice .. these types of all flash players are a dime a dozen.. We need Players that have led championship teams.. not top players on meh teams.. look at the top 4-6 teams in each league.. and tthen the top depended on 3-4 players of those tea,\ms.. Are any of them available??

 

 

[Thebrewcrew]

55 minutes ago, Horsman1 said:

look at the top 4-6 teams in each league.. and tthen the top depended on 3-4 players of those tea,\ms.. Are any of them available??

 

 

The Flames have done that before and it’s failed miserably.

 

Hunter Smith- big and tough just as you would like. Benefited from a stacked Oshawa General team. Couldn’t play the pro game at all

 

Sven Baertschi and Tyler Wotherspoon- huge factors on the Portland Winterhawks teams of the early 2010s. Baertschi has  been an NHLer although not a very good one. 

 

Really poor idea to just look for players playing on good teams. More often than not it doesn’t translate to the next level

[Sarasti]

1 hour ago, Thebrewcrew said:

The Flames have done that before and it’s failed miserably.

 

Hunter Smith- big and tough just as you would like. Benefited from a stacked Oshawa General team. Couldn’t play the pro game at all

 

Sven Baertschi and Tyler Wotherspoon- huge factors on the Portland Winterhawks teams of the early 2010s. Baertschi has  been an NHLer although not a very good one. 

 

Really poor idea to just look for players playing on good teams. More often than not it doesn’t translate to the next level

 

The only thing the Baertschi pick was good for was that it got us Andersson.

[Sarasti]

Mercer could be a solid pick.

Mangiapane is one of the few players that brings it every night.

We need more like him.

[Sobieit]

Jack Quinn would be a stud on the right side of Mony and Jonny.

[Thebrewcrew]

11 minutes ago, Sobieit said:

Jack Quinn would be a stud on the right side of Mony and Jonny.

I have a feeling BT takes a D, but I really hope they take a RHS forward like Quinn. When's the last time the Flames have drafted an impactful RHS forward? I can't remember. I fully get the BPA mandate, but the Flames have 10 LHS forward prospects. They have very few RHS forwards in the system, Gawdin, Phillips, Zavgorodny, Philp, none are bonafide top prospects.

 

In general RHS are hard to acquire, so perhaps it's time to start drafting some

[travel_dude]

52 minutes ago, Thebrewcrew said:

I have a feeling BT takes a D, but I really hope they take a RHS forward like Quinn. When's the last time the Flames have drafted an impactful RHS forward? I can't remember. I fully get the BPA mandate, but the Flames have 10 LHS forward prospects. They have very few RHS forwards in the system, Gawdin, Phillips, Zavgorodny, Philp, none are bonafide top prospects.

 

In general RHS are hard to acquire, so perhaps it's time to start drafting some

 

Zav was near the top of the Q in points before he was injured.

In 36 games this year, he has 26g and 37a.

Pelletier is another one that was near the top.

While neither is a household name or a standout in the WJC (neither played), they are performing really well.

How do you rate them as not bona fide?

 

I would also suggest that both Phillips and Gawdin are having good pro careers to date.

Going from high scoring junior to pro is tough.

They might be Mangiapane's in the making.

 

[ABC923]

Looking outside the draft, maybe take a flier on Brady Lyle? No longer draft eligible, but a right handed defenseman whose point production almost doubled since last year to more than a point per game. Currently plays for Owen Sound.

 

Also Ryan McCourt. Left D, 60 points in 60 games in the ohl. Minus player, passed through the draft last year. Could be a good late round pick. Another dark horse might be Ilya Solovyov. Also passed through the draft, playing his first season in North America right now. Also left D, bigger guy, plus 37 on the year with some point production.  Another late round pick maybe.

 

Other possible late round picks could include Justin Bergeron. Again passed through the draft. Not really sure why though, put up 57 points in 65 games with a plus 56 rating playing in the QMJHL. Currently has 41 points in 53 games with a plus 30, so not a ton of growth year over year. Could be a project.

 

Finally, Samuel Johannesson could be intriguing for a mid-late round pick.  He’s 19, but plays in the SHL, the top Swedish hockey league. He’s a right shot D, 11 points in 39 games with a -2 rating.  Doesn’t sound great, but he is essentially a rookie playing in a men’s league (not a junior league). He’s a bit on the small side (5 11, 176 pounds), but still solid.

 

 

 

 

[The_People1]

It's going to be a LHS LW.

[robrob74]

1 hour ago, The_People1 said:

It's going to be a LHS LW.

 

 

or a LSC

 

We don’t have a lot of either of those 🤣

[Thebrewcrew]

8 hours ago, travel_dude said:

 

Zav was near the top of the Q in points before he was injured.

In 36 games this year, he has 26g and 37a.

Pelletier is another one that was near the top.

While neither is a household name or a standout in the WJC (neither played), they are performing really well.

How do you rate them as not bona fide?

 

I would also suggest that both Phillips and Gawdin are having good pro careers to date.

Going from high scoring junior to pro is tough.

They might be Mangiapane's in the making.

 

Pelletier is a LHS.

 

Zavogorodny is putting up points but who’s on his line.... Lafreniere. We will never know if he’s worth getting excited about until he plays a pro. 

 

Gawdin profiles as a bottom 6 forward.

 

Phillips probably needs a top 9 role to be an NHLer

[travel_dude]

3 hours ago, Thebrewcrew said:

Pelletier is a LHS.

 

Zavogorodny is putting up points but who’s on his line.... Lafreniere. We will never know if he’s worth getting excited about until he plays a pro. 

 

Gawdin profiles as a bottom 6 forward.

 

Phillips probably needs a top 9 role to be an NHLer

 

My bad about Pelletier, for some reason I thought he was RW.  I am assuming he can play either wing.

 

Zav played without Lefrenier a lot and played with him a lot.  I know some of his numbers may have been tilted by playing with him, but he puts the puck in the net regardless.  And if Lefrenier is impacting his points so much, why is Zav's assists total higher?  Why is Lefrenier's goal total only 6 more than Zav's in 12 more games played?  Both are listed as LW.  Regardless, he showed very strong in Russia's games in the Subway series this winter.  5 points in 2 games.  He was relentless.

 

I would say that he is by far the most exciting prospect we have right now.  Pelletier could become a NHL player, but he has more hurdles than Zav.

Phillips is small, like Mangiapane.  He needs to add a bit more bulk, as he is not afraid to go to the net.  My point is that between Gawdin and Phillips in the AHL and Zav in junior, we do have top prospects.  No less proven than a lot of players people got excited about in the past.

[cross16]

Seth Jarvis is a player I think will be a riser come the draft process and a guy I would imagine the Flames will have their eyes on as he checks a lot of boxes. He's ranked towards the end of the first round right now, which i personally think is low to begin with, but he's almost the RW RS version of Pelletier. He is on the smaller side but he's still very strong on his skates, very competitive and can play in all 3 zones. Very good hockey sense from what i've seen so far. His size will keep him out of the top 15, but in terms of his skill that's probably where he should be. He is destroying the WHL this year. 

 

Connor Zary is another name i'd put out there. As much as people will point to D, I actually think Center is the biggest positional need in terms of prospects. Zary's offensive game is coming around (albeit i'm not sure it's high end) but he's a pretty sound player from what i've seen so far. 

[JTech780]

The one thing I am noticing with this draft and especially with the mid to late first round talent and going into the 2nd is the lack of size upfront. If we are taking a forward in the 1st round we are most likely getting a player 6' or under. On the back end there is a bit more size at the end of the 1st with guys like Grans, Wallinder and Barron.

 

Two guys I like, but will come with a bit of risk are Hendrix Lapierre and Justin Barron.

 

Lapierre is a really smart C who plays a strong two way game and has a lot of skill. The risk with him is that he has had 3 concussions in the last 8 months. I might not take him in the 1st but if he falls to the 2nd I would scoop him up, because there is a lot of upside there.

 

Barron is having a tough draft year, and some of that comes with the fact that he had blood clots this year, and has missed quite a few games. He has some size and is a RHS D. He is a smooth skater and can be a factor at both ends. Before this season started I would have thought he would have been a top 15 pick.

[Thebrewcrew]

Askarov would be a good target in the 1st round if he’s still available.

 

It can be argued the Flames still don’t have a #1. This stretch drive will likely determine that.

 

Gillies will be an AHL lifer

Zagidulin, some will disagree with me but I feel like be will be one and done in NA

Parsons- is still a ways away if ever he makes it. He’s battled health issues his whole career. This year he has been good although in the ECHL

Schneider- hardly considered a prospect

Wolf- could be a steal, one of the best goalies in the CHL, but still a ways away

 

Goalies tend to be like running backs in the NFL draft, you need them, but nobody wants to take one early. I like Askarov more than I liked Spencer Knight last year 

[JTech780]

If the draft goes in June we could be drafting at 15 or 16 depending on how they do the draft.

 

One guy I have seen fall in recent draft rankings is Dylan Holloway, if he is available at our pick, he would be a great get. He is a very good skater, has a good skill set, plays a strong 200 foot game.

 

Another guy I like in that area is Noel Gunler. RHS RW with good size, good shot, and good hockey IQ. 

[The_People1]

1 hour ago, JTech780 said:

If the draft goes in June we could be drafting at 15 or 16 depending on how they do the draft.

 

One guy I have seen fall in recent draft rankings is Dylan Holloway, if he is available at our pick, he would be a great get. He is a very good skater, has a good skill set, plays a strong 200 foot game.

 

Another guy I like in that area is Noel Gunler. RHS RW with good size, good shot, and good hockey IQ. 

 

We not drafting RHS RW.  Dream on bro.

[JTech780]

1 hour ago, The_People1 said:

 

We not drafting RHS RW.  Dream on bro.

 

There are a few guys I would take before Gunler at 15 or 16, but I wouldn't be disappointed if we drafted him either.

 

I like Holloway if he falls. I also like Justin Barron though he might be a reach at that spot, but I think a lot of his falling down the rankings is because he started the season with a blood clot and it threw off the rest of his season. I still think there is a lot of ypside there. He is a very smooth skater and defends well.

 

I also like Kaiden Guhle great skater, plays with an edge and defends well.

 

There are a lot of forwards outside the top 10 where I am not sold on their offensive upside or they have othee risk factors such as health.

 

If Hendrix Lapierre stayed healthy this season he would be in the top 15, but he has had all kinds of injury troubles. You can take a risk on him because he has the skill and abilitt to be a top 6 forward.

 

On the flip side there is Conor Zary, who is a very solid player, I am just not convinced that he has top 6 upside offensively, I see him more as a 3rd line guy who can move up the lineup if needed.

[robrob74]

3 hours ago, JTech780 said:

 

There are a few guys I would take before Gunler at 15 or 16, but I wouldn't be disappointed if we drafted him either.

 

I like Holloway if he falls. I also like Justin Barron though he might be a reach at that spot, but I think a lot of his falling down the rankings is because he started the season with a blood clot and it threw off the rest of his season. I still think there is a lot of ypside there. He is a very smooth skater and defends well.

 

I also like Kaiden Guhle great skater, plays with an edge and defends well.

 

There are a lot of forwards outside the top 10 where I am not sold on their offensive upside or they have othee risk factors such as health.

 

If Hendrix Lapierre stayed healthy this season he would be in the top 15, but he has had all kinds of injury troubles. You can take a risk on him because he has the skill and abilitt to be a top 6 forward.

 

On the flip side there is Conor Zary, who is a very solid player, I am just not convinced that he has top 6 upside offensively, I see him more as a 3rd line guy who can move up the lineup if needed.

 

When I think of reaches, I think of Jankowski. Was Jankowski a first rounder? I feel like reaching could be ok if it's not too much of one. When Pastranak was drafted, in a re-draft, where does he land? Hindsight doesn't do any good, but if he went higher in the draft, people would have thought he was a reach and yet, to Boston, he may not have been. 

[travel_dude]

13 hours ago, robrob74 said:

 

When I think of reaches, I think of Jankowski. Was Jankowski a first rounder? I feel like reaching could be ok if it's not too much of one. When Pastranak was drafted, in a re-draft, where does he land? Hindsight doesn't do any good, but if he went higher in the draft, people would have thought he was a reach and yet, to Boston, he may not have been. 

 

The problem with that draft was it was a key year for us, and we took a 5-10 year project.

You do that in late stages of a rebuild, not the beginning.

Looking back at that draft, the remaining player from round 1 do not exectly excite you.

Pearson was probably the best choice at forward.

BPA there were some other choices, Skjei being about the best.

 

That draft was one of the worst from where drafted onward.

Who even jumps out at you from the list?

 

https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl2012e.html

 

Couple of later round goalies that have been key, but we took Seiloff and Gillies

[robrob74]

2 hours ago, travel_dude said:

 

The problem with that draft was it was a key year for us, and we took a 5-10 year project.

You do that in late stages of a rebuild, not the beginning.

Looking back at that draft, the remaining player from round 1 do not exectly excite you.

Pearson was probably the best choice at forward.

BPA there were some other choices, Skjei being about the best.

 

That draft was one of the worst from where drafted onward.

Who even jumps out at you from the list?

 

https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl2012e.html

 

Couple of later round goalies that have been key, but we took Seiloff and Gillies

 

yup! I think it is why going into a rebuild you kind of have to plan it properly with the quality of draft. Maybe back when it started the ability to predict the quality of draft wasn’t a thing, but now there seems to be the ability to? Or it’s lucky. Like Edmonton got good players and guys that can get points, but not full game changers but they’ve shown that they couldn’t draft deeper than round one. While teams like Chicago and Pittsburgh got good with better quality draft years in their rebuild. Even getting Mallon would have been decent for a team. He can be a franchise player if he wanted to be, but lives in Crosby’s shadow and awakens when he needs to. 
 

I guess what I am saying is that a quality of draft year can kill teams rebuilds. Look at Buffalo. Good players, but not great, until they got Eichel.

 

we ended up with Baertschi, Poitier and Klimchuk, and like you said, drafted a five Plus  year project the year before.

[sak22]

48 minutes ago, robrob74 said:

 

yup! I think it is why going into a rebuild you kind of have to plan it properly with the quality of draft. Maybe back when it started the ability to predict the quality of draft wasn’t a thing, but now there seems to be the ability to? Or it’s lucky. Like Edmonton got good players and guys that can get points, but not full game changers but they’ve shown that they couldn’t draft deeper than round one. While teams like Chicago and Pittsburgh got good with better quality draft years in their rebuild. Even getting Mallon would have been decent for a team. He can be a franchise player if he wanted to be, but lives in Crosby’s shadow and awakens when he needs to. 
 

I guess what I am saying is that a quality of draft year can kill teams rebuilds. Look at Buffalo. Good players, but not great, until they got Eichel.

 

we ended up with Baertschi, Poitier and Klimchuk, and like you said, drafted a five Plus  year project the year before.

Interesting fact with Edmonton: the most productive NHLer that they have drafted outside the first round in the cap era is Tobias Reider who never scored a goal for the team.

[cross16]

This is not specific to the Flames draft but a general comment about the draft process. After watching the NFL draft over the weekend I really hope the NHL finds a way to host the draft and do it as it is regularly schedule in June. 

 

if you did not watch it was a very, very cool experience. Having GMs and players at home was cool to see. The moments with family were genuine and you constantly had kids jumping in and out of the picture with various coaches/GMs. There were no delays or technical glitches and while it lacks a bit of excitement because you don't get the crowd noise with the picks, after a while you don't miss it that much. The trade off of moments of seeing in side people's homes, including Bill Belichick putting his dog at his table like he was making the pick, was worth it. Several good pieces written since are commenting about how much GMs and scouts enjoyed being able to be at home and that there was no real change in the process for them. 

 

I know they'll have to work out timing (ie can you have a draft when the season isn't done yet?) but based on this weekend and the NFL I would be pushing for it if I were the NHL.