Welcome back! Today we’re going to look at picks 16 through 30! Edmonton, Buffalo, Toronto, Winnipeg, Arizona and Philadelphia all have a second pick in the latter half of the first round. With that said, let’s get to work!
16. Edmonton Oilers – Jeremy Roy (Sherbrooke Phoenix) – D –
The Oilers could go a lot of different directions here. It’s such a perfect spot to have a 2nd pick in first round. They could address size on the wings in Bittner or Svechnikov. Goaltending is an option here with Samsonov and Blackwood available. Or they could fill their “character” cupboard with Konecny or Beauvillier. Ultimately, I think they go with Kris Letang 2.0. The Oilers are stocked to the brim with left-handed dmen and the one right-handed offensive defender they do have now is doing his damnedest to play his way out of town. Roy has the compete and mental acumen to be a top 4 defenceman in the NHL.
17. Winnipeg Jets – Jakub Zboril (Saint John Sea Dogs) – D –
The Jets’ prospect pipeline is still looking as good as ever and even with the likes of Trouba, Scheifele, and Lowry graduating to the big club, there’s still Nik Ehlers, Nic Petan, Joel Armia, Brendan Lemieux and Josh Morrisey coming up. I think they’ll take the crafty Czech here because at some point they’ll have to move on from Tobias Enstrom and Mark Stuart on the left side. Zboril is a mix of skill and sandpaper. He QBs the power play in Saint John and is also one of the players that coaches remind their own players about when entering the Sea Dog’s zone.
18. Ottawa Senators – Travis Konecny (Ottawa 67s) – C –
Konecny to the Sens would be about as good as a Daniel Alfredsson comeback in Ottawa. They say he’s 5’10” but that has to be with his skates on. You’d never know it though given his style of play. I want to say he’s along the lines of Brendan Gallagher or Brad Marchand. Skill to thrill and loves to play it physical.
19. Detroit Red Wings – Yevgeni Svechnikov (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles) – LW/RW –
It was a real toss up here between the Svechnikov and the hard hitting Nicolas Meloche. I know the Red Wings are looking for Nik Kronwall’s heir but the mulit-tooled Russian is too hard to pass up at this point in the draft. Svechnikov has a bit of Nikita Kucherov mixed with a dash of Max Pacioretty. His offensive skills are crazy good and he’s not afraid to mix it up physically if need be. Detroit doesn’t have a gamebreaker on the left wing in their system at the moment. Yevgeni Svechnikov would change that.
20. Minnesota Wild – Denis Guryanov (Togliatti) – RW –
Minnesota could use a highly skilled dynamo on the RW in the mold of a Chris Kreider. Denis Guryanov is a threat anytime he’s on the ice and his speed and huge shot make him an instant target for the opposition. He’s the BPA here and the Wild would be smart to pick Guryanov here.
21. Buffalo Sabres – Thomas Chabot (Saint John Sea Dogs) – D –
The Sabres are stocked at nearly every position but defence. Sure they have Zadorov and Ristolainen on the big squad but coming up through the system things are looking thin. Taking the smooth passing defender out of Saint John would shore up that thinness a bit. Chabot is very agile and can transition the puck from defence to offense in the blink of an eye.
22. Washington Capitals – Joel Eriksson Ek (Farjestad) – C –
The Caps are more or less set at center with Niklas Backstrom and Evgeni Kuznetsov but that no.3 center spot is there for the taking and the big Swede could surely fill that hole no problem. He’s know for his penchant to be in the right place and the right times. He’s a bigger body but he’ll need some time to grow into it. Eriksson Ek is a multi-purpose player with high compete and excellent hockey IQ.
23. Vancouver Canucks – Jake Debrusk (Swift Current Broncos) – LW –
The Sedins aren’t going to be around forever and I’m not completely sold on Hunter Shinkaruk yet. Debrusk put up 42 goals for the Broncos in 2014/15 and he’s known to create chances for his linemates and himself with his direct style of play. He’s a very hard worker and has high character to boot.
24. Toronto Maple Leafs – Paul Bittner (Portland Winterhawks) – LW –
For a guy who is 6’4″ and over 200lbs, Paul Bittner can move! He’s also quite skilled with the puck and he’s been know to throw a crosscheck or two in his day. Toronto’s prospect system isn’t overflowing with size and Bittner would be an excellent flank for William Nylander someday down the road.
25. Winnipeg Jets – Brock Boeser (Waterloo Black Hawks) – RW –
A stocky power forward in the Kyle Okposo mold. Boeser has a Brett Hull-like release but his style of play is quite a bit different than the Golden Brett. He will muck along the boards and create opportunities for his linemates and he’s quite agile. The Jets’ PP could look awfully good with Boeser and Ehlers playing off of Mark Scheifele, Jacob Trouba, and Josh Morrisey.
26. Montreal Canadiens – Oliver Kylington (Farjestad) – D –
A player who was once considered a top 5 selection in the draft has landed on hard times but the potential is still there. His skating is amongst the best in this draft class and apart from PK Subban and an aging Andrei Markov, the Canadiens do not have an out and out offensive defenceman in their stable. I consider Kylington to be Erik Karlsson light.
27. Anaheim Ducks – Jansen Harkins (Prince George Cougars) – C –
Son of former NHLer Todd Harkins, Jansen is a very good two-way center. He’s industrious almost to a fault and is very good on faceoffs. I don’t think he’ll be a no.1 center in the NHL, especially with Anaheim but he could be a very good no.2/3 center due to his understanding of the defensive part of the game.
28. Tampa Bay Lightning – Gabriel Carlsson (Linkoping) – D –
Everything I can gather about Gabriel Carlsson makes me feel like he’s very comparable to Oscar Klefbom. He’s a big (6’4″ 185lbs) cool shut-down defender. Anthony DeAngelo is going to need a reliable partner on defence if he’s going to succeed in the NHL and Carlsson is just the guy. He’s equipped with a heavy shot as well.
29. Philadelphia Flyers – Mackenzie Blackwood (Barrie Colts) – G –
The Flyers are in dire need of some goaltending depth as they have some nice pieces on defence and forward coming through. With that said, I think they’d stay clear of Russian goalies given their rough history dealing with them… Blackwood is an enormous figure between the pipes (6’4″ 204lbs), plays with ice in his veins and has ridiculously quick feet. All of that should be well utilized in Philly given their luck with goalies.
30. Arizona Coyotes – Brandon Carlo (Tri-City Americans) – D –
The Coyotes have 3 picks in the first 32 selections and if they go with my picks they’ll be adding some major size. Strome is 6’3″ and growing, Carlo is 6’5″, and I think if they can get Ilya Samsonov in the 2nd round, he’s 6’3″. But back to Carlo, he’s a towering defender that handles his own end with ease. He’s shown shades of having an offensive element to his game as well.
Well there we have it folks! The 2015 Beer League Heroes NHL Mock Draft is concluded. Thanks for reading and let me know in the comments below if you agree with my selections for each team!
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