1st shot at '23 draft.

Forums/Mock-Draft

Page 1 of 1

Draft Class: 2023

Created By: benjgc

Published: Mar. 1, 2023 at 2:58 p.m.

Description

Lottery conducted here on CF. 1st-round picks outside the lottery (i.e. 17-32) assigned based on The Athletic's odds for playoffs finishes.

Lottery Winners:

Columbus Blue Jackets (1→1)
St. Louis Blues (9→2)

DRAFT

TEXT-EMBED

Lottery winners
1. Columbus Blue Jackets
2. St. Louis Blues
Round 1
1. Connor Bedard (Columbus Blue Jackets) (Details: Columbus stays put in the lottery and drafts the franchise player they've lacked since Rick Nash. Massive karmic payoff for this team, and Bedard gets Johnny Gaudreau on his wing. Should be a lot of fun.).
2. Adam Fantilli (St. Louis Blues) (Details: The Blues hit the lotto and get their future ROR replacement. Fantilli is a tremendous fit for them. Nice bonus that it's an American team that gets to draft Fantilli.).
3. Leo Carlsson (Anaheim Ducks) (Details: No-brainer here for the Ducks in this spot, IMO. Carlsson gives them size and skill down the middle, and will be a nice middle-6 guy already when the Ducks move on from Henrique in a couple years. Only question is if the Ducks want to roll the dice on Michkov coming over when Zegras/McTavish/Drysdale are nearing their ceilings.).
4. Matvei Michkov (Chicago Blackhawks) (Details: If there's a single NHL team for which Michkov fits into the timeline, it's the Blackhawks. They're not gonna contend anytime before he comes over, so this suits them just fine.).
5. Zach Benson (San Jose Sharks) (Details: Benson goes to a team that has depth down the middle for the next several seasons but could use more skill on the wing. However, I think the Sharks need a left-shot D far more; too bad there aren't any great ones in this year's crop.).
6. Will Smith (Arizona Coyotes) (Details: Even after going with Cooley and Geekie last year, Arizona still needs more depth down the middle. Smith makes a ton of sense here.).
7. Dalibor Dvorsky (Vancouver Canucks) (Details: Sale is a temptation here, but the Canucks lack anything resembling center depth in the system, and they took Lekkerimaki last year, so I think they go with Dvorsky.).
8. Eduard Sale (Philadelphia Flyers) (Details: Tough spot here for the Flyers, who I think would prefer a center to address the lack of depth in the system, or even a top-flight defender. Absent that, though, they go BPA with Sale. Could see a trade down here, somewhere between 10 and 13.).
9. Andrew Cristall (Montreal Canadiens) (Details: Montreal doesn't need to reach for a center, and they've got enough in the pipeline at D as well. Plus, we've seen MSL get the most out of undersized wingers before, so Cristall seems a good fit. Wonder if they package their two picks to move up for Benson or Michkov if either falls out of the top 5.).
10. Matthew Wood (Washington Capitals) (Details: The Caps tend to like size in their forward group, and Wood offers that in spades. If he can move back to the middle, so much the better.).
11. Oliver Moore (Detroit Red Wings) (Details: With young talent all over the place, Yzerman doesn't truly have a single position of need, so he can go with a BPA approach here. Moore has a Detroit-style game; his ceiling isn't the highest of the players left on the board, but he's got a high floor.).
12. Axel Sandin Pellikka (Ottawa Senators) (Details: The Sens are likely less than thrilled that most of the top centers are off the board here. But they have a greater need at right-shot D anyway in their pipeline, and ASP represents a good option. Could be a trade-back candidate.).
13. Lukas Dragicevic (Nashville Predators) (Details: Snagging Schaefer in the deal with Edmonton helped build up the wing strength for the Preds, but they are CONSTANTLY in need of more help down the middle. Given that, you'd probably expect a center pick. But the aging group on D needs reinforcements badly. I think Nashville goes D and grabs Dragicevic, hoping he can partner and learn from Josi by 2025 or 2026.).
14. Mikhail Gulyayev (Montreal Canadiens from Florida Panthers) (Details: Pick number two for Montreal, and they've already hit the wing once. For balance, let's give them a defenseman who can move the puck and rack up the points. Gulyayev fits the bill.).
15. Riley Heidt (Buffalo Sabres) (Details: Ah, to be a Sabres fan for the next several years. You've got tons of young D talent, tremendous skill at center locked up for the long term, and exciting talents coming on the wing, too. I think they go with their BPA on their board here, and I'm betting that's Heidt; after all, you can never have too much depth at center.).
16. David Reinbacher (Calgary Flames) (Details: Well, someone has to fall just short of the playoffs, and this year it's Calgary. The Flames need help at D long-term, and especially at RD. So Reinbacher is a great fit in their system.).
17. Colby Barlow (Pittsburgh Penguins) (Details: Canucks pick here, after the Isles fall in the first round of the playoffs. They snag Barlow from a skid after they tabbed Dvorsky earlier. Not bad.).
18. Brayden Yager (Vancouver Canucks from New York Islanders) (Details: Pittsburgh picks here after a first-round exit. Pittsburgh needs help everywhere. Brayden Yager is the BPA on the board for me here, and is a nice prospect for a system that sorely needs it.).
19. Calum Ritchie (Winnipeg Jets) (Details: Winnipeg picks here after a first-round exit. No need to reach for a D, but with PLD likely leaving sooner than later, I think they need more center depth. Calum Ritchie just FEELS like a Jet already, so that's my pick for them.).
20. Nate Danielson (Nashville Predators from Edmonton Oilers) (Details: Nashville picks here after Edmonton falls in the first round of the playoffs. After grabbing a defenseman at 13, they get their center here. Danielson's a hard worker and a good fit.).
21. Quentin Musty (Seattle Kraken) (Details: Seattle picks here after a first-round exit. Kraken need to fill out their pipeline basically everywhere, but I don't think they reach for one of Price or Lindstein here; maybe they try to trade back. If they can't, Musty seems like a fit for what Francis is building.).
22. Gavin Brindley (Colorado Avalanche) (Details: Wild pick here after a first-round exit (tough luck facing the Avs). The Wild need center depth, and likely would have wanted Danielson if he fell here. Gavin Brindley is super talented, and has a high motor to boot. I think that makes him the guy for Minnesota if they don't trade this one away.).
23. Charlie Stramel (Minnesota Wild) (Details: St. Louis picks here after a first-round exit for the Rangers; the East is BRUTAL this year. After hitting the jackpot for Fantilli, the Blues still need more depth in the middle, so Stramel's the guy.).
24. Otto Stenberg (New York Rangers from Dallas Stars) (Details: Chicago picks here after Tampa exits in the first round (congrats, Toronto fans!). Chicago needs more center depth, and Stenberg fits their timeline.).
25. Ryan Leonard (Columbus Blue Jackets from Los Angeles Kings) (Details: Columbus picks here, after the Kings fall in round two to Vegas. After grabbing tons of skill with Bedard, the Blue Jackets want a little more grit and grind on the wing, and Ryan Leonard is a great fit for that. (If this pick is traded for Jakob Chychrun, I think Arizona takes him anyway, so let's say he's the pick either way.)).
26. Gabe Perreault (Vegas Golden Knights) (Details: The Rangers pick here after the Avs bounce the Stars in round 2. BPA time for the Rangers, who grab Gabe Perreault. They don't need him soon, and he'd be a great developmental guy who could learn a ton from Bread.).
27. Samuel Honzek (St. Louis Blues from New York Rangers) (Details: St. Louis picks again here after the Leafs fall in round 2 to the Bruins. At this point, they are just going BPA, so let's give them Honzek, who looks like a real player on the rise.).
28. Caden Price (Chicago Blackhawks from Tampa Bay Lightning) (Details: The Sharks pick here after the Devils fall to the Canes in Round 2 (again: the East is BRUTAL this year). San Jose got a nice winger earlier, so here they go for the LD that their system needs more of. Caden Price seems like a good fit here.).
29. Ethan Gauthier (St. Louis Blues from Toronto Maple Leafs) (Details: Colorado picks here after exiting in the WCF. Colorado is paper-thin in their prospect pool, and need help all over the place. Ethan Gauthier seems like the BPA for them; good scoring ability and does the little things right.).
30. Oliver Bonk (San Jose Sharks from New Jersey Devils) (Details: Carolina picks here after exiting in the ECF. No-brainer for me here taking the gloriously-named Oliver Bonk, since the Canes could use more help on the blue line in their pipeline than up front.).
31. Bradly Nadeau (Carolina Hurricanes) (Details: Vegas picks here after losing in the SCF. After trading away Zach Dean for Barbashev, the Knights need another top-notch forward prospect IMO. Bradly Nadeau competes and scores, and that'll be good enough for Vegas here.).
32. Maxim Strbak (Toronto Maple Leafs from Boston Bruins) (Details: Toronto picks here after the Bruins hoist the Cup. BPA situation for the Leafs, but their D corps is aging after the trade of Sandin. So they grab Strbak, who can be a 3rd-pair guy down the road.).

Round 2
33. Mathieu Cataford (Columbus Blue Jackets) (Details: Time to take a swing for Columbus to start the second round. One more center prospect makes sense, since they're thin there, so they grab Jordan Dumais' teammate from the Q.).

CapFriendly.com User-Generated Mock-Draft

ROUND 1	TEAM	ORIGINAL	PLAYER	DETAILS

1	-	Connor Bedard	Columbus stays put in the lottery and drafts the franchise player they've lacked since Rick Nash. Massive karmic payoff for this team, and Bedard gets Johnny Gaudreau on his wing. Should be a lot of fun.
2	-	Adam Fantilli	The Blues hit the lotto and get their future ROR replacement. Fantilli is a tremendous fit for them. Nice bonus that it's an American team that gets to draft Fantilli.
3	-	Leo Carlsson	No-brainer here for the Ducks in this spot, IMO. Carlsson gives them size and skill down the middle, and will be a nice middle-6 guy already when the Ducks move on from Henrique in a couple years. Only question is if the Ducks want to roll the dice on Michkov coming over when Zegras/McTavish/Drysdale are nearing their ceilings.
4	-	Matvei Michkov	If there's a single NHL team for which Michkov fits into the timeline, it's the Blackhawks. They're not gonna contend anytime before he comes over, so this suits them just fine.
5	-	Zach Benson	Benson goes to a team that has depth down the middle for the next several seasons but could use more skill on the wing. However, I think the Sharks need a left-shot D far more; too bad there aren't any great ones in this year's crop.
6	-	Will Smith	Even after going with Cooley and Geekie last year, Arizona still needs more depth down the middle. Smith makes a ton of sense here.
7	-	Dalibor Dvorsky	Sale is a temptation here, but the Canucks lack anything resembling center depth in the system, and they took Lekkerimaki last year, so I think they go with Dvorsky.
8	-	Eduard Sale	Tough spot here for the Flyers, who I think would prefer a center to address the lack of depth in the system, or even a top-flight defender. Absent that, though, they go BPA with Sale. Could see a trade down here, somewhere between 10 and 13.
9	-	Andrew Cristall	Montreal doesn't need to reach for a center, and they've got enough in the pipeline at D as well. Plus, we've seen MSL get the most out of undersized wingers before, so Cristall seems a good fit. Wonder if they package their two picks to move up for Benson or Michkov if either falls out of the top 5.
10	-	Matthew Wood	The Caps tend to like size in their forward group, and Wood offers that in spades. If he can move back to the middle, so much the better.
11	-	Oliver Moore	With young talent all over the place, Yzerman doesn't truly have a single position of need, so he can go with a BPA approach here. Moore has a Detroit-style game; his ceiling isn't the highest of the players left on the board, but he's got a high floor.
12	-	Axel Sandin Pellikka	The Sens are likely less than thrilled that most of the top centers are off the board here. But they have a greater need at right-shot D anyway in their pipeline, and ASP represents a good option. Could be a trade-back candidate.
13	-	Lukas Dragicevic	Snagging Schaefer in the deal with Edmonton helped build up the wing strength for the Preds, but they are CONSTANTLY in need of more help down the middle. Given that, you'd probably expect a center pick. But the aging group on D needs reinforcements badly. I think Nashville goes D and grabs Dragicevic, hoping he can partner and learn from Josi by 2025 or 2026.
14		Mikhail Gulyayev	Pick number two for Montreal, and they've already hit the wing once. For balance, let's give them a defenseman who can move the puck and rack up the points. Gulyayev fits the bill.
15	-	Riley Heidt	Ah, to be a Sabres fan for the next several years. You've got tons of young D talent, tremendous skill at center locked up for the long term, and exciting talents coming on the wing, too. I think they go with their BPA on their board here, and I'm betting that's Heidt; after all, you can never have too much depth at center.
16	-	David Reinbacher	Well, someone has to fall just short of the playoffs, and this year it's Calgary. The Flames need help at D long-term, and especially at RD. So Reinbacher is a great fit in their system.
17	-	Colby Barlow	Canucks pick here, after the Isles fall in the first round of the playoffs. They snag Barlow from a skid after they tabbed Dvorsky earlier. Not bad.
18		Brayden Yager	Pittsburgh picks here after a first-round exit. Pittsburgh needs help everywhere. Brayden Yager is the BPA on the board for me here, and is a nice prospect for a system that sorely needs it.
19	-	Calum Ritchie	Winnipeg picks here after a first-round exit. No need to reach for a D, but with PLD likely leaving sooner than later, I think they need more center depth. Calum Ritchie just FEELS like a Jet already, so that's my pick for them.
20		Nate Danielson	Nashville picks here after Edmonton falls in the first round of the playoffs. After grabbing a defenseman at 13, they get their center here. Danielson's a hard worker and a good fit.
21	-	Quentin Musty	Seattle picks here after a first-round exit. Kraken need to fill out their pipeline basically everywhere, but I don't think they reach for one of Price or Lindstein here; maybe they try to trade back. If they can't, Musty seems like a fit for what Francis is building.
22	-	Gavin Brindley	Wild pick here after a first-round exit (tough luck facing the Avs). The Wild need center depth, and likely would have wanted Danielson if he fell here. Gavin Brindley is super talented, and has a high motor to boot. I think that makes him the guy for Minnesota if they don't trade this one away.
23	-	Charlie Stramel	St. Louis picks here after a first-round exit for the Rangers; the East is BRUTAL this year. After hitting the jackpot for Fantilli, the Blues still need more depth in the middle, so Stramel's the guy.
24		Otto Stenberg	Chicago picks here after Tampa exits in the first round (congrats, Toronto fans!). Chicago needs more center depth, and Stenberg fits their timeline.
25		Ryan Leonard	Columbus picks here, after the Kings fall in round two to Vegas. After grabbing tons of skill with Bedard, the Blue Jackets want a little more grit and grind on the wing, and Ryan Leonard is a great fit for that. (If this pick is traded for Jakob Chychrun, I think Arizona takes him anyway, so let's say he's the pick either way.)
26	-	Gabe Perreault	The Rangers pick here after the Avs bounce the Stars in round 2. BPA time for the Rangers, who grab Gabe Perreault. They don't need him soon, and he'd be a great developmental guy who could learn a ton from Bread.
27		Samuel Honzek	St. Louis picks again here after the Leafs fall in round 2 to the Bruins. At this point, they are just going BPA, so let's give them Honzek, who looks like a real player on the rise.
28		Caden Price	The Sharks pick here after the Devils fall to the Canes in Round 2 (again: the East is BRUTAL this year). San Jose got a nice winger earlier, so here they go for the LD that their system needs more of. Caden Price seems like a good fit here.
29		Ethan Gauthier	Colorado picks here after exiting in the WCF. Colorado is paper-thin in their prospect pool, and need help all over the place. Ethan Gauthier seems like the BPA for them; good scoring ability and does the little things right.
30		Oliver Bonk	Carolina picks here after exiting in the ECF. No-brainer for me here taking the gloriously-named Oliver Bonk, since the Canes could use more help on the blue line in their pipeline than up front.
31	-	Bradly Nadeau	Vegas picks here after losing in the SCF. After trading away Zach Dean for Barbashev, the Knights need another top-notch forward prospect IMO. Bradly Nadeau competes and scores, and that'll be good enough for Vegas here.
32		Maxim Strbak	Toronto picks here after the Bruins hoist the Cup. BPA situation for the Leafs, but their D corps is aging after the trade of Sandin. So they grab Strbak, who can be a 3rd-pair guy down the road.

ROUND 2	TEAM	ORIGINAL	PLAYER	DETAILS

33	-	Mathieu Cataford	Time to take a swing for Columbus to start the second round. One more center prospect makes sense, since they're thin there, so they grab Jordan Dumais' teammate from the Q.
34	-
35	-
36	-
37	-
38	-
39
40	-
41
42	-
43	-
44
45	-
46	-
47	-
48	-
49	-
50	-
51
52	-
53	-
54
55	-
56	-
57	-
58
59
60
61
62	-
63	-
64

Mar. 1, 2023 at 5:00 p.m.

benjgc

Joined: Mar. 2019

Posts: 1,704

Likes: 888

With the trade between Detroit and Vancouver, I'm comfortable still projecting Barlow to Detroit in the 17th slot.

Mar. 1, 2023 at 10:46 p.m.

Rob32sjsharks

Joined: Apr. 2020

Posts: 11,202

Likes: 4,659

San Jose just added Mukhamadullin Thurn and othotiuk plus knyzhov is finnaly back from LTIR what they need is wings RD and G. and with Couture being 34 if we get a top 3 pick his replacement would be nice as well.

Mar. 2, 2023 at 8:56 a.m.

IconicHawk

Bedard23

Joined: May 2021

Posts: 9,297

Likes: 4,476

If Chicago lands at 4 and can’t get any of the big 3 centres we’re just better off trading down at that rate to find our 1C

And before you say oh but you have Nazar, well yes we do but I’m more then confident he’s going to play on the wing when he gets to the nhl

Mar. 2, 2023 at 12:18 p.m.

benjgc

Thread Starter

Joined: Mar. 2019

Posts: 1,704

Likes: 888

Quoting: IconicHawk

The rarity of top-5 picks getting traded is staggering, and I didn't do trades in this mock, so I stuck with BPA.

Mar. 2, 2023 at 12:18 p.m.

benjgc

Thread Starter

Joined: Mar. 2019

Posts: 1,704

Likes: 888

Quoting: Rob32sjsharks

Good call! Do you think they'd go with Oliver Bonk at that spot instead?

Mar. 2, 2023 at 1:37 p.m.

Rob32sjsharks

Joined: Apr. 2020

Posts: 11,202

Likes: 4,659

Quoting: benjgc

Good call! Do you think they'd go with Oliver Bonk at that spot instead?

It’s a toss up between Him and Strbak, i wouldn’t touch Drgicevic before the 3rd round personally but people have him as high is the early 20’s.
and I like Benson but if the sharks fall out of the top 4 I would assume Will Smith or Drvorsky would be the sharks main targets. they have a history of drafting C and moving them to the wing.

benjgc liked this.

Mar. 3, 2023 at 6:43 p.m.

benjgc

Thread Starter

Joined: Mar. 2019

Posts: 1,704

Likes: 888

Post TDL thoughts:

Following the Chychrun trade, I am less than certain that Arizona would take ASP, but I could see them going for a D after undoubtedly grabbing a forward with their first pick.

Detroit would probably jump at Barlow with their second pick, but I don't know for sure.

Page 1 of 1

DISPLAY SETTING

BETTING ODDS

LOCALE

ARCHIVE

CBA

CALCULATORS

FANTASY HOCKEY TOOLS

TOOLS

PLAYERS

WESTERN CONFERENCE

EASTERN CONFERENCE

INTERACTIVE FEATURES

Forums/Mock-Draft