Quoting: JK74
This draft is defenseman top heavy. I still like Howe but his stock has fallen since last season where he was routinely part of the consensus top 5. Artyom Levshuno is someone who can learn on the job under Richardson and be at the top of his game when this team is relevant again. Which forwards do you see as top 5-10 material?
I see forwards all throughout the top 10. There are a lot of Dmen that could go there too. So some are gonna get pushed out simply because... math. haha. But, Lindstrom, Demidov, Helenius, Eiserman, and Catton could all go top 10. Also, there are a bunch forwards and dmen more than capable of sneaking their way up the rankings by draft day. The great thing about this draft being heavy on Dmen, is that we can wait and still get a great dman or even multiple great dmen.
There are also some really exciting forwards, though, that should be going later as well. Parascak, Iginla, Misa, Artamonov, Masse, Basha, Gridin, Humphreys, Stiga (who I think could be a real sleeper pick), Letourneau, among many others. Some of the dmen that will likely go outside of the top 10 through the 2nd round are Yakemchuk, Hutson, Jiricek, Emery, Elick, Wallenius, Kiviharju, Buium, Solberg, and also many more. This draft is deeper than it's getting credit for, simply because it doesn't have the hype of Bedard, Carlsson, and Fantilli.
Also, I think I might like Hagens more than anyone in the 2024 draft, including Celebrini. Hagens is on the short side, but he is strong and solid against much bigger players his age. I think he is gonna be really special.