-The Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup, winning the series 4-2 and the game 3-2. I didn’t have strong feelings over who should win the final, but stylistically I’m glad it was Chicago.
-As expected, RFA Louie Caporusso is the only player the Sens did not qualify.
–Travis Yost talks about Milan Michalek getting the same treatment for his knees that helped NBA star Kobe Bryant.
-Speculation continues over whether Daniel Alfredsson will return for another season or not, but to me it has always seemed like a foregone conclusion that he’ll be back. Alfie has promised the decision by Friday.
-The names of two prospects invited to Ottawa have come out (Adam Erne and Kerby Rychel), but four were invited.
-A pile of Sens draft-related videos have come out and Nichols has transcribed what interests him and starts with Bryan Murray (discussing bringing in a player via trade or free agency):
(A player) that can come in and play and contribute. Not just fill a spot. Not just be there because he’s a veteran hockey player that has been around. A guy that can come in and play in a definite role with this hockey team and contribute in that role.
Nichols see’s this as Murray finally giving up on cheap or broken down fill-ins, but his track record for the latter is quite long so I’m not so sure. Next up is Tim Murray who had a lot of interesting things to say, beginning with what the team is looking for:
The same as every year – the best player available. We think we’re pretty deep in most positions. At seventeen, if you look back at past drafts, it’s tough to get an impact defenceman at that point, so I’ll let you guys figure that out. I would say that the percentages says that it will be a forward, but maybe a (defenceman) drops. Every year, a good (defenceman) is dropped, as we’ve seen in the last couple (of drafts), so (we’ll take) the best player available.
Goaltenders are not mentioned, so I don’t think we’ll see one taken with the Sens first pick. As for the quality of the draft:
I don’t think it’s as deep as I’ve been told by you guys. But in saying that, I think the top end is good. I think the first couple of rounds are decent. I think at the top of the first round is very good, obviously. I think it’s a decent draft. This year, you could say there is the three top guys and then there is another five, and then there is another five and then another six.
So that’s four tiers in the first 19 players (with the Sens near the back of the fourth). Could the Sens make a deal to move up?
There are teams out there that need NHL players – and they’ve stated it. There are teams out there that are very thin. We feel that we are very, very deep. We feel that we have a lot of young depth that we have drafted, we’ve developed that we like a lot, but we’re not shopping them. But, if that scenario came up, we feel comfortable helping another team out with NHL players.
This is a pretty clear distinction that the organisation is willing to give up roster players but not their top prospects. Tim also talked about the process of deciding on their list (Nichols does not quote him, but his interview is up on the Sens website) and he said that there’s broad consensus through the first few rounds, but beyond that regional scouts make those decisions. Next up is Pierre Dorion who talked about how long their list is this year:
This year, it’s 1 to 150, I think. And sometimes there are healthy discussions between 78 and 79 because maybe that’s our third round pick or maybe that’s our fourth round pick and we have to be prepared for that scenario.
–Sylvain St-Laurent wonders if the 17th overall pick really matters since the player won’t be ready for two or three years. I think that sentiment is pretty common among journalists who cover hockey, but for fans the answer is obvious: of course it matters. It effects organisational depth and provides a look at what element will be added to the team down the road.
-There are rumours out that the Sens are looking to draft Samuel Morin in the upcoming draft.
–Elliotte Friedman floats the idea that the Sens could pursue Marian Hossa, whose six remaining years on his contract might as well be a NTC (Travis Yost looks at the idea without deciding one way or another, but I just don’t see it happening).
-Speaking of rumours, the Hemsky for Smith deal has been shot down by Bruce Garrioch.
-Here’s my look at Bob McKenzie’s look at the 2013 NHL draft.
–Eric T does an excellent job illustrating how quality of competition and player usage can be derived from the minimal stats (compared to the NHL) that the CHL, KHL, and other leagues provide.
This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)
eyeonthesens 