Corey Pronman

Forums/Mock-Draft

Page 1 of 1

Draft Class: 2023

Created By: Reason

Published: May 20, 2023 at 1:33 p.m.

DRAFT

TEXT-EMBED

Round 1
1. Connor Bedard (Chicago Blackhawks) (Details: Bedard is the consensus No. 1 for good reason. There is no need to overthink this one; Bedard will be in Chicago.).
2. Adam Fantilli (Anaheim Ducks) (Details: The Ducks finished 32nd in the NHL and thus have had a good idea of the small pool of players they would be picking from. I think they will have to entertain the ideas of Leo Carlsson or Will Smith here, and I don’t think this pick being Fantilli is a gimme yet, but ultimately I do think this is where they will land.).
3. Will Smith (Columbus Blue Jackets) (Details: Smith’s stock has been on the rise throughout the draft season and I do think no matter who picked here, he would be the slight betting favorite to be the No. 3 pick. Leo Carlsson obviously should strongly be in the mix here as well.).
4. Leo Carlsson (San Jose Sharks) (Details: In our staff mock draft, Corey Masisak took Matvei Michkov at No. 4 here. I have the Sharks going in a somewhat different direction taking Carlsson. I’m doubtful currently that any NHL team will take Michkov over the consensus premium names in this draft.).
5. David Reinbacher (Montreal Canadiens) (Details: In the staff mock, Michkov going No. 4 led to Reinbacher getting to Arizona at No. 6. In this scenario, I think Montreal jumps at the top defense prospect in the class. Either way, I don’t think Reinbacher lasts very long on draft day.).
6. Dalibor Dvorsky (Arizona Coyotes) (Details: After getting Logan Cooley and Conor Geekie with high picks last season, I’m sure Arizona would love to add Reinbacher to their mix. In this situation, though, a forward becomes the best player available. It could be Michkov here, but I think Dvorsky is considered a premium name by enough people in the league that he could go ahead of him.).
7. Ryan Leonard (Philadelphia Flyers) (Details: Leonard’s stock is high right now with NHL teams. It’s not uncommon to hear team sources discuss him in the same light as teammate Will Smith, and I suspect he will be gone quite early. Michkov is still part of the consideration here, but my lean is that Leonard goes over him if the draft were held today. Boston College teammates Leonard and Cutter Gauthier could form a line one day.).
8. Matvei Michkov (Washington Capitals) (Details: I think this is the alleyway where a Michkov pick becomes realistic, plus or minus one or two picks. In very early discussions with people around the league on him, Washington or Detroit are considered the betting favorites for his landing spot. Does anyone really have a clue though? No. He could be long gone by this pick, or possibly he could drop further.).
9. Samuel Honzek (Detroit Red Wings) (Details: This is the point where the draft opens up and a lot of different options present themselves. Honzek checks a lot of the boxes the Wings look for in a prospect while also being a player who is highly thought of around the league.).
10. Tom Willander (St. Louis Blues) (Details: I have a hard time seeing St. Louis walk away from the No. 10 pick without getting a center or defenseman, something their system desperately needs. Willander’s stock is way up right now and he could be a top-four defenseman in the league for a while.).
11. Nate Danielson (Vancouver Canucks) (Details: I think the Canucks ideally would like to add a defenseman, but if Willander goes at 10 it becomes tougher. Axel Sandin Pellikka is very good, but is he what a team with Quinn Hughes needs right now? There is an organizational need for centers as well and Danielson is a very good center to get at 11.).
12. Matthew Wood (Arizona Coyotes from Ottawa Senators) (Details: Wood’s stock has ticked up in the second half and after a strong U18 worlds. I’m sure Arizona would like to leave this draft with a defenseman; I can see Willander here if available, Sandin Pellikka or Dmitri Simashev. I think Wood just goes higher in the draft order, though, and he would provide a lot of scoring and size to Arizona.).
13. Zach Benson (Buffalo Sabres) (Details: This is a tough pick to mock. I think the Sabres would prefer a player with size, especially a defenseman. I don’t know if there’s an obvious choice based on the board though. This organization values skill high in the draft and Benson is full of it — especially at 13 it could be too much to pass up.).
14. Gabe Perreault (Pittsburgh Penguins) (Details: I think Perreault could go higher than this based on what I’m hearing from teams right now, but I have to slot him somewhere, and he ends up at 14 to Pittsburgh in Mock 1.0. He adds an elite skill type to the wing that hopefully can get to the NHL in time to help out Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.).
15. Axel Sandin Pellikka (Nashville Predators) (Details: Once known as a defensemen factory, Nashville hasn’t invested a premium pick in a blueliner in a while. That trend ends now with the addition of the highly skilled and intelligent Sandin Pellikka.).

CapFriendly.com User-Generated Mock-Draft

ROUND 1	TEAM	ORIGINAL	PLAYER	DETAILS

1	-	Connor Bedard	Bedard is the consensus No. 1 for good reason. There is no need to overthink this one; Bedard will be in Chicago.
2	-	Adam Fantilli	The Ducks finished 32nd in the NHL and thus have had a good idea of the small pool of players they would be picking from. I think they will have to entertain the ideas of Leo Carlsson or Will Smith here, and I don’t think this pick being Fantilli is a gimme yet, but ultimately I do think this is where they will land.
3	-	Will Smith	Smith’s stock has been on the rise throughout the draft season and I do think no matter who picked here, he would be the slight betting favorite to be the No. 3 pick. Leo Carlsson obviously should strongly be in the mix here as well.
4	-	Leo Carlsson	In our staff mock draft, Corey Masisak took Matvei Michkov at No. 4 here. I have the Sharks going in a somewhat different direction taking Carlsson. I’m doubtful currently that any NHL team will take Michkov over the consensus premium names in this draft.
5	-	David Reinbacher	In the staff mock, Michkov going No. 4 led to Reinbacher getting to Arizona at No. 6. In this scenario, I think Montreal jumps at the top defense prospect in the class. Either way, I don’t think Reinbacher lasts very long on draft day.
6	-	Dalibor Dvorsky	After getting Logan Cooley and Conor Geekie with high picks last season, I’m sure Arizona would love to add Reinbacher to their mix. In this situation, though, a forward becomes the best player available. It could be Michkov here, but I think Dvorsky is considered a premium name by enough people in the league that he could go ahead of him.
7	-	Ryan Leonard	Leonard’s stock is high right now with NHL teams. It’s not uncommon to hear team sources discuss him in the same light as teammate Will Smith, and I suspect he will be gone quite early. Michkov is still part of the consideration here, but my lean is that Leonard goes over him if the draft were held today. Boston College teammates Leonard and Cutter Gauthier could form a line one day.
8	-	Matvei Michkov	I think this is the alleyway where a Michkov pick becomes realistic, plus or minus one or two picks. In very early discussions with people around the league on him, Washington or Detroit are considered the betting favorites for his landing spot. Does anyone really have a clue though? No. He could be long gone by this pick, or possibly he could drop further.
9	-	Samuel Honzek	This is the point where the draft opens up and a lot of different options present themselves. Honzek checks a lot of the boxes the Wings look for in a prospect while also being a player who is highly thought of around the league.
10	-	Tom Willander	I have a hard time seeing St. Louis walk away from the No. 10 pick without getting a center or defenseman, something their system desperately needs. Willander’s stock is way up right now and he could be a top-four defenseman in the league for a while.
11	-	Nate Danielson	I think the Canucks ideally would like to add a defenseman, but if Willander goes at 10 it becomes tougher. Axel Sandin Pellikka is very good, but is he what a team with Quinn Hughes needs right now? There is an organizational need for centers as well and Danielson is a very good center to get at 11.
12		Matthew Wood	Wood’s stock has ticked up in the second half and after a strong U18 worlds. I’m sure Arizona would like to leave this draft with a defenseman; I can see Willander here if available, Sandin Pellikka or Dmitri Simashev. I think Wood just goes higher in the draft order, though, and he would provide a lot of scoring and size to Arizona.
13	-	Zach Benson	This is a tough pick to mock. I think the Sabres would prefer a player with size, especially a defenseman. I don’t know if there’s an obvious choice based on the board though. This organization values skill high in the draft and Benson is full of it — especially at 13 it could be too much to pass up.
14	-	Gabe Perreault	I think Perreault could go higher than this based on what I’m hearing from teams right now, but I have to slot him somewhere, and he ends up at 14 to Pittsburgh in Mock 1.0. He adds an elite skill type to the wing that hopefully can get to the NHL in time to help out Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
15	-	Axel Sandin Pellikka	Once known as a defensemen factory, Nashville hasn’t invested a premium pick in a blueliner in a while. That trend ends now with the addition of the highly skilled and intelligent Sandin Pellikka.
16	-
17
18	-
19
20	-
21	-
22
23	-
24
25
26
27	-
28
29
30
31	-
32	-

May 20, 2023 at 1:52 p.m.

drambui

Joined: Feb. 2022

Posts: 3,842

Likes: 2,515

pronman was the first top source to out wright at #4 last year and everyone called him crazy. i wouldbt be surprised if that end up being the top 5.

OldNYIfan liked this.

May 20, 2023 at 7:50 p.m.

NHLfan10506

Joined: May 2019

Posts: 41,236

Likes: 18,751

Like him or not, Pronman has been fairly spot on recently. Bob McKenzie’s list is still probably the gold standard, but Pronman, who uses a similar approach by getting info from scouts, is not far behind.

OldNYIfan liked this.

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

Corey Pronman

Corey Pronman

Question:

Options: