Hey all! Welcome to Arctic Ice Hockey's first annual NHL Mock Draft. Over the next thirty days, Ryan, Tim and myself will attempt to telepathically channel the minds of NHL General Managers as they complete their final rankings in preparation for the 2012 NHL Draft being held June 22, 2012 in Pittsburgh, PA.
In some instances, our analysis will require less insight than others *cough* *Edmonton* *cough*.
So without further adieu, we present our loyal readers with the twenty-ninth overall pick of Arctic Ice Hockey's 2012 Mock Draft.
Lou Lamoriello: With the twenty-ninth overall selection in this years draft, the New Jersey Devils are pleased to select…
Rankings: CSS (19 NA), ISS (26), TSN (26), Hockey Prospectus (37)
The Skinny: While it might make sense for the Devils to take a goalie prospect here — especially considering they decided to keep it as opposed to forfeit it as part of the Ilya Kovalchuk signing — it’s difficult to overlook the spare parts they have used in making their defensive pairings.
Hockey Prospectus:
Skjei is quite an intriguing prospect to scout, as while average across the board aside from his size and skating, it’s the latter that is clearly visible every time he plays and generates his value. Skjei is a well above-average to elite skater who moves as well as you’ll find in a 6’3″ player. I’ve seen instances where forwards would get two or three steps behind him and with a few side steps he would catch up to them. His first step is pretty explosive and makes him very dangerous on the rush as he regularly will take the puck out of his own end and bring it up through the opponent’s blue line with ease. Skjei’s puck skills are solid for a big man, but compared to a wide talent pool they’re pretty average. The same can be said for his puck-moving skills as well which is why despite that one high-end ability, I don’t think he has a significant offensive ceiling. In his own end, he uses his mobility well to stay with his checks, but doesn’t use his large frame as much as he could and seems a bit timid at times. Whoever drafts him will be betting on the tremendous physical tools and hoping something else in his game takes a jump forward along the way to really propel his value. – Corey Pronman
AIH Mock Draft
Pick | Team | Player | Pos | Nationality | Amateur Club |
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1 | Edmonton Oilers | Nail Yakupov | LW | RUS | Sarnia Sting (OHL) |
2 | |
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3 | Montreal Canadiens | |
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Sarnia Sting (OHL) |
4 | New York Islanders | |
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Everett Silvertips (WHL) |
5 | Toronto Maple Leafs |
Filip Forsberg | RW | SWE | Leksands IF (Allsvenskan) |
6 | |
Matt Dumba | D | |
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7 | Minnesota Wild | Teuvo Teravainen | LW | FIN | Jokerit Jr. (SM Liiga) |
8 | Carolina Hurricanes | Morgan Rielly | D | CAN | Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) |
9 | Winnipeg Jets | |
C | |
Kitchener Rangers (OHL) |
10 | Tampa Bay Lightning | Cody Ceci | D | CAN | Ottawa 67’s (OHL) |
11 | Washington Capitals (via COL) |
Griffin Reinhart | D | CAN | Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL) |
12 | Buffalo Sabres | Zemgus Girgensons | C | LVA | Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL) |
13 | Dallas Stars | Sebastian Collberg | RW | SWE | Frolunda Jr. (SuperElit) |
14 | Calgary Flames | Jacob Trouba | D | USA | USA U-18 (USNTDP) |
15 | Ottawa Senators | Pontus Aberg | LW | SWE | Djurgardens IF (Allsvenskan) |
16 | Washington Capitals | Tomas Hertl | C | CZE | HC Slavia Praha (Czech Extraliga) |
17 | San Jose Sharks | Brendan Gaunce | C | CAN | Belleville Bulls (OHL) |
18 | Chicago Blackhawks | Hampus Lindholm | D | SWE | Rogue Jr. (U18 Elit) |
19 | Tampa Bay Lightning (via DET)
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Thomas Wilson | RW | CAN | Plymouth Whalers (OHL) |
20 | Philadelphia Flyers | Olli Maatta | D | FIN | London Knights (OHL) |
21 | Buffalo Sabres (via NSH) | Matt Finn | D | CAN | Guelph Storm (OHL) |
22 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Philip Di Giuseppe | LW | CAN | University of Michigan (CCHA) |
23 | Florida Panthers | Slater Koekkoek | D | CAN | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
24 | Boston Bruins | Scott Laughton | C | CAN | Oshawa Generals (OHL) |
25 | St. Louis Blues | Derrick Pouliot | D | CAN | Portland Winterhawks (WHL) |
26 | Vancouver Canucks | Colton Sissons | C | CAN | Kelowna Rockets (WHL) |
27 | Phoenix Coyotes | Tim Bozon | LW | USA | Kamloops Blazers (WHL) |
28 | New York Rangers | Nicolas Kerdiles | C | USA | USA U-18 (USNTDP) |
29 | New Jersey Devils | Brady Skjei | D | USA | USA U-18 (USNTDP) |
Community Draft Board
Pick | Team | Player | Pos | Nationality | Amateur Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Edmonton Oilers | Nail Yakupov | LW | RUS | Sarnia Sting (OHL) |
2 | Columbus Blue Jackets | |
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3 | Montreal Canadiens | |
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Sarnia Sting (OHL) |
4 | New York Islanders | |
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Everett Silvertips (WHL) |
5 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Filip Forsberg | RW | SWE | Leksands IF (Allsvenskan) |
6 | Anaheim Ducks | Teuvo Teravainen | LW | |
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7 | Minnesota Wild | Matt Dumba | D | CAN | Red Deer Rebels (WHL) |
8 | Carolina Hurricanes | Morgan Rielly | D | CAN | Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) |
9 | Winnipeg Jets | |
C | |
Kitchener Rangers (OHL) |
10 | Tampa Bay Lightning | Cody Ceci | D | CAN | Ottawa 67’s (OHL) |
11 | Washington Capitals (via COL) |
Jacob Trouba | D | USA | USA U-18 (USNTDP) |
12 | Buffalo Sabres | Griffin Reinhart | D | CAN | Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL) |
13 | Dallas Stars | Pontus Aberg | LW | SWE | Djurgardens IF (Allsvenskan) |
14 | Calgary Flames | Olli Maatta | D | FIN | London Knights (OHL) |
15 | Ottawa Senators | Sebastian Collberg | RW | SWE | Frolunda Jr. (SuperElit) |
16 | Washington Capitals | Zemgus Girgensons | C | LVA | Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL) |
17 | San Jose Sharks | Brendan Gaunce | C | CAN | Belleville Bulls (OHL) |
18 | Chicago Blackhawks | Hampus Lindholm | D | SWE | Rogue Jr. (U18 Elit) |
19 | Tampa Bay Lightning (via DET) |
Matt Finn | D | CAN | Guelph Storm (OHL) |
20 | Philadelphia Flyers | Slater Koekkoek | D | CAN | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
21 | Buffalo Sabres (via NSH) | Tomas Hertl | C | CZE | HC Slavia Praha (Czech Extraliga) |
22 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Thomas Wilson | RW | CAN | Plymouth Whalers (OHL) |
23 | Florida Panthers | Derrick Pouliot | D | CAN | Portland Winterhawks (WHL) |
24 | Boston Bruins | Scott Laughton | C | CAN | Oshawa Generals (OHL) |
25 | St. Louis Blues | Colton Sissons | C | CAN | Kelowna Rockets (OHL) |
26 | Vancouver Canucks | Henrik Samuelsson | RW | USA | Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL) |
27 | Phoenix Coyotes | Philip Di Giuseppe | LW | USA | University of Michigan (CCHA) |
28 | New York Rangers | Nicolas Kerdiles | LW | USA | USA U-18 (USNTDP) |
Option | Votes |
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Tim Bozon | 0 |
Martin Frk | 1 |
Brady Skjei | 2 |
Malcolm Subban | 4 |
Dalton Thrower | 1 |
Andrei Vasilevsky | 2 |