Sunday, June 17, 2012

Clean-Up and Re-Stocking: Part 2

Here is part two:

EDMONTON OILERS: Recent drafts have yielded some promising players in Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Jordan Eberle.  Of course, finishing at or near the bottom every year does have its advantages.  However, the times before that haven't been so kind, as players such as Alex Plante, Jesse Niinimaaki, and Riley Nash have not panned out.

FLORIDA PANTHERS: The draft for most of the ten year span has not been kind to the Panthers.  For every Jay Bouwmeester and Nathan Horton, there have been players like Rostislav Olesz, Kendal McArdle, Keaton Ellerby, and Anthony Stewart.  Recent drafts show some promising returns, though, as the likes of Jacob Markstrom and Erik Gudbrandson are waiting to show their skills.

LOS ANGELES KINGS: Pre-lockout results were not so kind to the Kings, though Dustin Brown did come from the 2003 class.  Post-lockout, Anze Kopitar and Jonathan Quick in 2005 and Drew Doughty in 2008 were instrumental in the Stanley Cup run this year.

MINNESOTA WILD: Like their Expansion era counterparts in Columbus, Minnesota has not been very good in the draft.  A.J. Thelen, Benoit, Pouliot, James Sheppard, Tyler Cuma, those are just some of the players to have made a negligible impact in the NHL.  Brent Burns has been the best of a bad lot, and Mikael Granlund is ready to make one.

MONTREAL CANADIENS: For what it's worth, the Canadiens can develop players, but the problem is sustaining that success (see: Kostitsyn, Andrei from 2003).  Carey Price (2005) and P.K. Subban (2007) are the cornerstones to the franchise, but what else is there for the Canadiens?

NASHVILLE PREDATORS: In stark contrast, the Predators have been the definition of "money" when it comes to the draft.  Shea Weber and Ryan Suter in 2003, Pekka Rinne in 2004, and even going back to their beginnings with David Legwand, the first ever draft pick, still with the team.  While scoring hasn't been the team's strong suit, they more than make up for it on the back end.

NEW JERSEY DEVILS: They still need to identify a future starter in goal, but it looks like Adam Larsson (2011) and Adam Henrique (2008) will be cornerstone players for years to come.  The question is will it be with Zach Parise (2003) and Travis Zajac (2004)?

NEW YORK ISLANDERS: For every John Tavares (2009), there has been a Ryan O'Marra (2005) and Josh Bailey (2008).  Poor management by the team is partially to blame, but it's about time the likes of Kyle Okposo (2006) and Nino Niederreiter (2010) seize control and play to their potential.

NEW YORK RANGERS: Without mentioning the debacle from 2003, the Rangers have done fairly well post-lockout, with Marc Staal (2005), Michael Del Zotto (2008), and Chris Kreider (2010) all figuring into the team's future plans.  The black marks post-lockout?  Bobby Sanguinetti (2006) and Alexei Cherepanov (2007, he died in 2008 after collapsing on the bench during a game in Russia).

OTTAWA SENATORS: It begins with Erik Karlsson (2008) if you're looking for success stories in Ottawa.  Zack Smith (2008) and Nick Foligno (2006) also play regular roles in the Senators system.  Brian Lee (2005) and Jim O'Brien (2007) are some of the players that haven't played to full potential, though not for lack of opportunities.

1 comment:

  1. NJ will be trading in this draft why do think they kept the 29pick, this would of been the year to forfeit.

    Oilers #1 for Adam Larsson and the 29th pick of NJ

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