Red Wings Prepare for Upcoming Draft
There are a few articles circulating on the upcoming NHL draft which will take place next weekend. Here is an article that looks at Detroit’s needs as far as prospects go.
Although the Wings have some talent up front, none of them are projected to play on the top lines, but their could be one surprise. Adding forwards who have potential to play at an elite level is always a challenge.
Other than Jimmy Howard, they do not have any young netminders with the potential to play in the NHL on a regular basis.
Larsson stops speeding vulcanized rubber like its his job
Starting with goaltender, Daniel Larsson has been compared to Henrik Lundqvist and got off to a very good start last year for Djurgardens. He is likely to get a lot of playing time next year and could make a case to be the #2 goaltending prospect right behind Jimmy Howard. The team could use some better depth but if Larsson pans out the team would have two legitimate NHL-caliber goaltenders. So I am not sure that netminder is a pressing need.
I agree however that forward is probably the biggest need. A quick look at the prospect list over at Red Wings Central shows there are lots of third and fourth line prospects but not many candidates to fill out a wing position on a scoring line. Of course part of that is due to the salary cap, but that just means the team has to develop wingers. They are solid at center as Hank Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk are capable of centering scoring lines. Valtteri Filppula might be as well.
But there isn’t much in the way of young wingers who are a good bet to be high-end forwards. Igor Grigorenko will finally get a chance in Detroit this season but there are doubts about his ability after being in a car accident that nearly claimed his life. Jan Mursak looks like he could be a scoring line winger but he’s only had one year in the system. Next year should give us a better idea of whether he will be a major contributor in Detroit in the near future.
I’m pretty sure one of those images is a team logo
Johan Ryno could be the power forward Detroit has needed since Brendan Shanahan signed with the Rangers. But Ryno is coming off a back injury and as a result had an off season last year. Red Wings European scout Hakan Andersson projects him as a top two line player, but even if both Mursak and Ryno develop the team will need at least two very solid scoring line prospects and those guys don’t appear to be in the system right now.
Billy Sweatt and the Snickers Gang
So with that being said, let’s take a look at some of the mock drafts to see who they have the Red Wings taking next week. The first mock draft I came across is from myNHLdraft. They think the Red Wings will select Billy Sweatt from Colorado College. Here is part of his profile on the NHL Entry Draft webpage.
A skilled forward with the ability to make plays… is a great skater and creates a lot of chances with his speed… is a hard worker and very determined each shift.
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… was named the Top Forward at the IIHF Under-18 World Championship in Sweden where he helped the U.S. win gold…
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… played for the Under-18 National Development Training Program posting 55 points (29-26-55) in 59 games helping his team win their second consecutive North America Hockey League division title in 2005-06…
He’s a left winger with decent size [6 feet] and great speed. It looks like he could develop into a scoring line winger, so he looks like a reasonable choice for Detroit with their pick in the first round.
The next mock draft I came across was this one from an NHL Entry Draft website. There is lots of great information on this website. This website has the Red Wings taking Nick Ross who plays defense. Here is some info from Nick Ross’ profile at the NHL Entry Draft website.
Nick Ross is the 18th highest ranked skater in North America according to Central Scouting, as well as the sixth highest defenseman. He is viewed as a playmaking defenseman that also possesses good size. His strengths include reading the ice, as well as his ability to deliver a big hit.
I’m not sure the Wings would take Ross since he’s similar to his Regina Pats teammate Logan Pyatt, who is already a prospect with the Red Wings. Ross put up 31 points last season but Pyatt put up double that amount with 14 goals and 48 assists.
The Red Wings could take a d-man with their top pick but I don’t think Ross is likely to be the guy they take at #27. However the team could trade the pick to pick up an additional draft pick like they did last year. They could also pick a player who is hidden away somehwere overseas and isn’t even on the radar of draft recruitniks.
2007 NHL Draft Billy Sweatt Nick Ross Red WingsNo Comments
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