Imagine your favorite team had scouts that could see the future and know how players would do in one particular draft. Instead of picking based on past performance, they get all the guys who will do the best in the NHL. Build the team, three years after the draft, to give your new draft picks time to make the NHL.
I picked the Capitals in 2008, a year they did really well in the draft, coming up with John Carlson and Braden Holtby, but they had a lot of other picks
IRL 21st overall, Gustafsson, 27th Carlson, 57th Mestery 58th Kugryshev, 93rd, Holtby, 144th Broda, 174th Burke, 204th Della Rovere. No, not that Gustafsson, Broda, or Burke. The ones that didn't play in the NHL.
Redo: 21st overall: pass on Jordan Eberle (22nd) to trade back either with Stl for picks 33 and 34, or with Anaheim for 35 and 39. Either way, pick Roman Josi and Derek Stepan. 27th overall, still John Carlson. 57th Adam Henrique 58th TJ Brodie 93rd Cam Atkinson 144th Jared Spurgeon 204 Anders Lindback (career GAA and spct very similar to Holtby's. With a less effective starting goalie, the Caps keep Neuvirth a little longer, then start Grubauer. Don't they need Grubauer to dump Orpik? This team does not overpay Orpik or Niskanen in 2014, because it already has better defensemen on cheap, long term contracts, at the time. They also don't trade for Shattenkirk, keeping two good prospects.
In 2011-12, instead of Bruce Boudreau losing his job because of an ineffective defense featuring Karl Alzner, Jeff Schultz, Dennis Wideman, John Erskine, an injured Mike Green, and an aging Roman Hamrlik, the Caps' defense of Josi, Brodie, Carlson, Orlov, Spurgeon and Eriskine (ineffective at defense, but he was the team's enforcer) keeps them in playoff position.
With Atkinson, Henrique and Stepan in the bottom six, there is secondary scoring behind Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Semin. They make the conference final and stay in playoff position for several more years, with Bruce Boudreau as head coach.
They don't fall out of playoff position or retool or draft Wilson at 16th overall. They win their division and draft Brady Skjei, instead. McPhee does not panic-trade Forsberg to Nashville and is still GM in Washington. McPhee does not gamble on big name UFA defenders Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen because his own defense is doing fine. Boudreau is still coaching Washington today. Trotz enjoys a little leisure time before joining the Islanders. Trotz, Orpik, Niskanen, and Wilson do not lead the Capitals to the 2018 Cup.
40% for forwards
20% for defense
5% for goalies (by sv%)
I did a study on every draft from 1967-2015
I did exactly that and ended up with the player talent to produce a 70 win team yearly (brendan Gallagher as 13th forward) and sometimes maybe more 😳
The late 90s team has prime hasek (league average sv% in his draft year in Czechoslovakia) backing up a literal all star team, if a team could go 82-0... 😯
The kicker is because you have so many hotshots on ELCs constantly flooding in the money works out pretty good, maybe two cost saving trades a year
Anyhow
If we used pts/60 and Corsi and various ancillary metrics, context, etc. then... good god almighty... and people say the draft is a crapshoot 😉
McDavid, Connor
$250,000)
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