June
26, 2009
2009 NHL Draft: First-Round Recap
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2009 NHL Draft
Coverage
Friday's First Round: Picks
Saturday's Rounds 2-7:
Picks | Notebook
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The first
round of this year's NHL Draft was busier for players with
college ties than 2008, when a scant four players were among
the first 30 selections, but nowhere near as busy as the 2007
first round, when 11 players with college ties were chosen.
Below
is a rundown of the collegiate prospects who were first rounders
in this year's draft. For the complete list of picks, including
major junior and European players, visit ESPN.com.
First
Round
|
NHL
Team |
Player,
Pos., 2008-09 Team (College)
|
|
Minnesota
Wild |
Nick Leddy, D, Eden Prairie
(Minn.) H.S.
(Minnesota recruit)
|
The
first college-bound player picked in the first round was
a bit of a surprise. It wasn't out of the realm of possibility
that a Minnesota High School product and Golden Gopher
star would join the Twin Cities' professional team, but
it was much more likely and expected that pick would be
Jordan Schroeder. Instead, Minnesota's Mr. Hockey, a swift-skating
defenseman who will join the Gophers in the fall, was
the selection by the Wild. He's already started taking
classes at Minnesota and is thrilled to become a part
of an integral part of the state's hockey lifeline. "I
definitely wanted to go to college ever since I was a
little kid and especially growing up in Minnesota,"
Leddy said. "You really want to come home and watch
them on TV every Friday and Saturday night. It's just
kind of the culture here."
NHL Central
Scouting says: "He's such an explosive
skater. It's pretty obvious he's a target of every opposing
team because he's the engine that drives the train.
Really, though, he's a world-class skater. I'd say he's
in the same class as John Moore (Central Scouting's
No. 8 ranked skater) and Josh Birkholz (No. 33) of this
year's class." |
|
Montreal
Canadiens |
Louis Leblanc, F, Omaha (USHL)
(Harvard recruit)
|
When
the Montreal Canadiens made this pick, Director of Amateur
Scouting Trevor Timmins excitedly announced the selection
and the audience's approval was palpable. Leblanc is a
Montreal-area native (Pointe-Claire, Quebec) and said
in an interview with TSN that he hoped the Canadiens would
select him. It's good news for Harvard too, as Montreal
has recently taken college players with first and second
round picks and are absolutely OK with the college game
as a development area. In fact, Timmins was spotted at
the ECAC Hockey championship weekend in March. Leblanc
is described as a competitive player, a determined scorer,
and he is compared to Mike Richards of the Philadelphia
Flyers. Leblanc said on the TSN broadcast that he hopes
to make the jump to stay at Harvard "a year or two
maximum" and then make it to the NHL.
NHL Central
Scouting says: "The most impressive things
about Louis Leblanc are his hands and his evasiveness
with the puck; that separates him from other players
on the ice right away. He needs to fill out a little
bit yet, but he has the frame to be a big center. The
other part of LeBlanc’s game that I noticed was
his vision; his ability to see and dissect a play and
to make the right play. He’s also very competitive
and he gets involved in the play." |
|
New
York Rangers |
Chris Kreider, F, Phillips Andover
(Mass.) Academy
(Boston College recruit)
|
Here's
a bit of a change for Boston College -- a talented forward
with some size. It's not like the Eagles have been eternally
saddled with waterbugs up front ... but it seems that
way. And it's not like Kreider is a lummox, either,
as scouts praise his skating ability. This guy is a
lot more Jimmy Hayes and a lot less Nathan Gerbe. The
6-foot-2, 201-pound forward scored 33 goals and 56 points
in just 26 games for Phillips Andover Academy last season
but, as is the case with just about every prep or high
school prospect, detractors will question the level
of competition Kreider has faced. Those questions will
be answered soon enough at BC.
NHL
Central Scouting says: "Chris is an excellent
skater with explosive speed and acceleration. His short-distance
speed is exceptional. He sees the play ahead of time
and knows what he's going to do with the puck as soon
as he gets it. He is an excellent passer and playmaker.
His foot speed, combined with his anticipation and quick
stick, gives him the ability to create turnovers and
gain puck possession. He is a constant threat to develop
breakaways on the penalty-killing unit. He has both
an excellent wrist and slap shot, which he disguises
well and releases quickly. He can score goals in a number
of ways." |
|
Columbus
Blue Jackets |
John Moore, D, Chicago (USHL)
(Colorado College recruit)
|
John
Moore's favorite NHL player is Mike Green, the offensive-minded
Washington blueliner. Scouts haven't compared Moore,
a Chicagoland native who has committed to Colorado College,
to Green, he has been compared favorably to two names
that should be quite familiar to college hockey fans
-- former Minnesota defenseman and 2002 Hobey Baker
Award winner Jordan Leopold and ex-Wisconsin star Ryan
Suter. Moore's strength is his skating -- Jack Barzee
of NHL Central Scouting compared his first two strides
to those of Hall of Famer Paul Coffey -- which should
be a huge asset on the mammoth ice sheets common in
the WCHA. That's if he decides to go to Colorado College;
Moore is frequently mentioned as a possible defector
to the Ontario Hockey League.
NHL
Central Scouting says: "I watched John
Moore as an underage player and I knew he was a must
see player for this year; he hasn’t disappointed
me one bit. His first two strides are like Paul Coffey
and he has been labeled as a world-class skater. He
is poised with the puck, he gets his shots through to
the net and he has gotten a lot stronger this season.
He resembles (Calgary Flames) defenseman Jordan Leopold
and similar to Leopold at the same age he needs to get
a little bit better at playing more aggressive and more
physical, but John is going to be a one-two defenseman
in the NHL." |
|
Vancouver
Canucks |
Jordan Schroeder, F, Minnesota
|
Minnesota's
Jordan Schroeder slid a bit according to some pre-draft
projections but the Vancouver Canucks were thrilled
when Schroeder was available with the 22nd pick. The
playmaking centerman's stock probably fell a bit due
to his smallish size at 5-foot-8 and 175 pounds. Red
lights behind nets in rinks across the world don't discriminate
against the small, and Schroeder turns on lots of them
as the first-line center for the Minnesota Golden Gophers
and also on the United States at the IIHF World Junior
Championship where he played on a line with fellow first-rounders
Kyle Wilson (BU/Nashville) and James van Riemsdyk (UNH/Philadelphia).
Schroeder said that being drafted is just a step in
the process toward his eventual goal of playing in the
NHL. That might not be great news for the Gophers, as
the Canucks haven't traditionally preferred players
to develop in college – take former BC goalie
Cory Schneider and ex-Ohio State forward Ryan Kesler
as recent examples.
NHL
Central Scouting says:
"He's a dynamic player,
a leader and a type of player that has developed into
a complete offensive and defensive threat every time
he is on the ice. He has a rocket of a wrist shot and
he can beat you by putting the puck in the net, going
around a defender, or freezing the goaltender and passing
it off to one of his wingers. The concern is going to
be his overall size, like there was with Scott Gomez,
with Brian Gionta and with Patrick Kane, but at the
same age he is probably a little thicker and a little
bit more compact than they were. He’s a great
hockey player." |
|
Anaheim
Ducks |
Kyle Palmeiri, F, U.S. NTDP
(Notre Dame recruit)
|
Enough
with the speculation about why Palmieri, who'll suit
up for Notre Dame this fall, was bounced from the U.S.
National Team Development Program this past winter.
If a no-nonsense coach like Jeff Jackson is bringing
him in and an organization like Anaheim and no-nonsense
coach Randy Carlyle are willing to burn a first-round
pick on him, he checks out. Based on the scouts' assessment
of his game — good skater with the potential to
be a game-breaker offensively, decent size, tenacious,
and a strong work ethic — he should fit right
in with the cadre of Irish forwards.
NHL
Central Scouting says: "Kyle's got a little
bit of Chris Drury in him. I look at his passion, his
natural skills and his tenaciousness, and that's what
I saw in Chris. He's a lot of fun to watch because he
has that vision along with a wicked shot. He very seldom
passes up the opportunity to make the right play --
he's in position to shoot the puck and has that insight
into whether to freeze and dish or just let it go." |
|
Chicago
Blackhawks |
Dylan Olsen, D, Camrose (AJHL)
(Minnesota Duluth recruit)
|
Olsen
comes from college hockey stock, as his father played
at Northern Michigan from 1985-89 before going on to a
professional career with the minor leagues and Europe,
with one game played for the Calgary Flames. Dylan showed
offensive flair with the Camrose Kodiaks with 10 goals
and 29 points in 53 games. He also has experience at the
national and international levels with Canada, and had
four points in six games at the IIHF Under-18 World Championships.
The bigger issue is whether or not Olsen will make it
to college hockey, and if so, for how long. His academic
credentials weren't the strongest and he and Chicago might
think that junior hockey is a better option for his development.
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