The draft of just about every major professional sport is its own spectacle, their entry draft. The National Hockey League’s Entry Draft is slightly different from the rest. In the NFL and NBA, the league’s commissioner; either Roger Goodell or David Stern respectively, walk up to the microphone and announce the selection. In the NHL, it is a member of the respective team that makes the selection. The entourage that often includes scouts, general managers and their assistants, as well as owners, players or team presidents often walk up to the stage with a precisely folded jersey so as not to give away hints as to who they are going to select. Sometimes the team official decides to give the host city for the draft some props, or some kind words to the current Stanley Cup Champion. They will also sometimes sort of give a quick shout out to a team sponsored draft party and then make their selection. Other teams dispense with all of those staging comments and simply walk to the microphone and make the selection. However if your team happens to be the draft host you can expect to hear a little chest pounding and working of the crowd to try to drum up some excitement for their selection. The player that is selected makes his way to the stage and is greeted by congratulations from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and a warm handshake as he walks up to meet the organization that appears as though they’re a family meeting a new baby for the first time. The jersey is presented along with an obligatory ‘draft hat’ and the player puts on his new sweater and hat and poses for a picture with all of those involved. Its certainly a culminating moment for the player who has worked his whole life for this achievement. After the picture the player makes his way to the TSN draft booth where he is interviewed along with the respective team’s general manager and whirlwind of interviews and congratulations after that. I have little doubt the experience is quite surreal but this really only marks the beginning of their careers. Despite being selected in the 1st round they may not even make it to the NHL, but for 30 fortunate hockey players they get the honor of hearing their names called on Friday night.
Unlike the NFL and NBA drafts, the only time NHL commissioner makes his way to the podium is to give a short introduction to start the draft and the occasional trade and this is one of the few moments where you’ll hear cheers at Bettman’s arrival because for a brief moment everyone hopes their team has made some kind of a deal. I remember last season distinctively, when the Minnesota Wild hosted the draft and Mr. Bettman made his way to the podium and does his part to play up the suspense with this 6 word statement that is always met with anxious cheers, “There is a trade to announce” and then as he announces the trade their are gasps of excitement or dismay along with a collective oooh and aahhh. I can remember that moment as if it was yesterday when the commissioner announced that the Wild had traded Brent Burns to the San Jose Sharks for Devin Setoguchi (cheers) AND Charlie Coyle, AND a 1st round pick (28th Overall) in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft (that would eventually become Zack Phillips) to use the proper emphasis used by Bettman as sort of tried to buoy the dismay of some fans at the news. Will we hear another big trade like that again? Maybe, then again maybe not. Its all a part of the spectacle and for fans like myself its a waiting game that we all look forward to each year. So who did the Wild select with its 1st round pick?
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1st Round (7th Overall) Defenseman – Matt Dumba ~ Red Deer (WHL)
Height: 6’0″ Weight: 183lbs Shoots: Right
NHL Central Scouting’s ranking: 11th (North American) The Hockey News‘ ranking: #5 ISS’ ranking: #8
2011-12 Stats: 69GP 20G 37A = 57pts 67 PIM’s -6
Talent Analysis: Dumba may not be the biggest defenseman available in this draft but just about everything he does carries a major impact. He plays an energetic game which features big open ice hits and a booming shot that is quite accurate from the point. The Calgary-native is a terrific skater and has tremendous mobility and quickness which he can use to win races to loose pucks as well as helping get the rush going. There is definately a swagger to the way Dumba plays the game and his high-risk, high-reward style sort of goes against the trends of previous Wild selections where the emphasis was more on a safe and steady type of player. Dumba is raw excitement, but even this season he showed he can change his game to fit his team’s needs. Red Deer was ravaged by injuries in the 2nd half of the season, and thus Dumba moved up the Rebels lineup to where he was logging major minutes on their top pairing and thus they could not afford him to play his typical, hyper aggressive game. Instead he stayed back and played more of a traditional stay-at-home style and while he wasn’t producing as much offensively during this portion of the season it was more of a reflection of the role his team needed him to play rather than waning confidence. The player who looked up to a young Dion Phaneuf as a model, gets rave reviews from scouts for his outstanding work ethic and the momentum he can give a team by scoring or setting up a goal or delivering a huge hit makes him a gamebreaker. Dumba had a fantastic showing at the Ivan Hlinka U-18 Tournament where he was the tourney’s top scorer with 5 goals and 12 points in 7 games. Did I mention he was selected as the tournament’s top defenseman too, and the 1st star for Team Canada as chosen by their coaching staff? International Scouting Services rated Dumba as having the hardest shot, as well as being the best offensive defenseman available in this year’s draft. Some have questioned his hockey intelligence, but overall his instincts on the ice rarely fail. He will need to continue to add strength, especially if he wants to still play his bombastic style.
What I think of the selection: I am fairly pleased with this pick. Dumba adds 3 new elements that the Wild’s blueline currently lacks, and does not seem to have in their system. 1. His physical play is more than just finishing checks, this kid is a bit of a kamikaze and delivers the big hit that both his teammates and fans draw energy from, 2. His offensive skills are tremendous. He is a high octane player who uses his speed very effectively when he joins the rush and his huge shot terrorizes goaltenders because not only is it high velocity but its quite accurate. 3. Dumba brings a bit of an attitude and a swagger on the Wild’s defense that has never really been there before. He almost has a P.K. Subban like swagger (remember Subban’s first game against the Wild where he became the first defenseman to ever record a hat trick against Minnesota). The Wild’s defense has been more or less an anonymous chain of pluggers and stay-at-home types with one exception in Brent Burns who struggled at times when he tried to be flash and dash. When Burns tried to be this offensive guy it came at the expense of his defensive game and his physical play which looked good right after the lockout shriveled up and died. Dumba IS flash and dash, but also bash. He’s a kid who loves to hit, and that separates him greatly from any other defenseman the team has really had in its lineup. He’s likely 2-3 years away before being with the Wild, but he has loads of potential and most scouts seem to believe he’s a future top pairing defenseman. I think a lot of Wild fans are like myself and see that he may someday be paired with Jonas Brodin to create a nice blended pairing of great defense and offensive potency. Solid pick.
Are you excited yet, I know I am! What do you think? Leave a comment below!
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