We’ve been talking about the NHL draft since about November, when it became clear that Edmonton would once again be a bottom team. It’s funny, because months of projections, debate and excitement was all gone after less than 24 hours this past weekend.
For the Oilers, it lived up to the hype. Edmonton walked away with Connor McDavid, and made a number of trades to address holes on the NHL roster. While things still need to be done, let’s remember that free agency is right around the corner, and the summer is just beginning.
The best way to put this draft? It was a solid start to what is a very important summer in Edmonton. Some things were done, while some holes remain.
The Picks:
Connor McDavid is a franchise level talent. He’s been called the best prospect since Sidney Crosby, and called a generational player. For Edmonton, he could be the best player to wear the jersey since the glory days. That, my friends, is high praise. I’m not going to try to break his game down, we’ve done it before. All I’ll say is this, this is a homerun pick.
With the 117th pick, Edmonton took D Caleb Jones, the younger brother of Seth. He’s a decent prospect who has a great work ethic. I don’t think he’ll ever be the stud that Seth is, but he could certainly be an NHL’er down the line. Competitive player with a mean strike and some puck-moving skills.
Ethan Bear was a great pick at number 124, arguably my second favorite pick of the draft. He’s built well, has good puck-moving skills, a massive shot and faced the tough opposition in the WHL.
John Marino was selected 154th, and he compares to Jones in a few ways. He’s a prospect that is a while away, however, as he is slated to go to the NCAA. Decent puck-mover and good on the power-play. Oh, and he’s a Boston area boy, so I’ll be pulling hard for him!
Edmonton traded a 7th rounder in 2016, previously acquired for Shawn Horcoff from Dallas, to Tampa Bay in exchange for pick 208, which they used to pick G Miroslav Svoboda. He’s a big boy, 6’3”, and was decent in the Czech junior league. That said, we don’t know much about this player.
Lastly, the Oilers took D Ziyat Paigin with pick 209. He’s a 20 year-old Russian defender with size and some physical ability. He’s also already played in the KHL, and is slated to play there again next season. Might never pan out or come to North America, but he seems like a fine risk late in the 7th and final round.
Grade for picks: B: McDavid is a home-run and Ethan Bear a solid selection. No pick outside of McDavid is an impact prospect, and Edmonton moved all of their second and third round picks. They had a chance to add some significant prospect depth, but elected to make trades. That’s fine, but it’ll impact the grade here.
Considering the picks that they had, I think Edmonton did well here. I can see Bear, Jones and Paigin joining McDavid in the NHL at some point. That would be a good haul.
Trades:
Edmonton began by shipping picks 16 and 33 to the New York Islanders for prospect Griffin Reinhart, a massive defender who was a horse for the WHL’s Oil Kings during his junior career. MacT never provided a bold trade, but Peter Chiarelli went bold with his first move as Oilers’ GM. Honestly, I was caught off guard by this move.
There were a lot of good players left on the board at both 16 and 33, so Edmonton will always be subject to some criticism here.
As for Reinhart, he just finished his first AHL season and struggled to a degree. Personally, I think this is a a massive risk and that the Oilers overpaid for the player. That said, he’s got NHL size and plays a perfect style. He’s physical, solid defensively and has a high hockey IQ. If he can correct his footspeed, he has a chance to be a pillar in Edmonton’s top-four.
That said, there’s a big chance he never gets his foot speed to an adequate level, thus he is a big risk.
Edmonton moved three picks to the Rangers for G Cam Talbot (57th, 79th and 184th) on Saturday. Talbot was solid for the Rangers when Henrik Lundqvist went down this past season, and we’ve broken him down many times before. He’s got a chance to be Edmonton’s starter moving forward.
Talbot is another risk, but a much safer one. I, personally, loved this trade. Edmonton didn’t give up too much for arguably the best goalie on the market.
The Oilers also traded D Martin Marincin to Toronto in a move I hated, getting F Brad Ross and pick 107 in return. The team then flipped 107 to Ottawa for D Eric Gryba, who is a third-pairing defender. Gryba will bring the toughness level fans love, and has handled difficult zone starts, but he’s a number five or six D, nothing higher.
Grade for trades: C+: I love the Talbot trade, think Edmonton did very well here. Hate the Marincin trade, I think the Oilers gave away a solid young player for scraps. That bothers me, because it is the exact same thing that they did with Jeff Petry. The Gryba trade is fine by me, while the Reinhart trade is a massive risk.
I give the Oilers an average grade right now, but it could shoot up to a B or B+ if Reinhart develops into that top-four defender. If his footspeed keeps him from the NHL, this grade could fall down to a D. A lot of risk on the trade front this past weekend.
Overall Draft Weekend Grade:
Peter Chiarelli started his first draft weekend by making a massive push for Dougie Hamilton from Boston. When that imploded, plan B had to be put into effect. In came Griffin Reinhart and Eric Gryba on defense, and in came Cam Talbot in net.
Like I said, I love Talbot as a goalie, and like Gryba as a depth defender. If Reinhart pans out? Then Edmonton had their best weekend in years.
Obviously the McDavid pick is a massive moment, while the late picks have some real potential. This draft certainly looks better than last season’s. Early days, but I like the body of walk.
Final Draft Grade: B-
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
