Draft Lottery - Live Blog

"THESE LOTTERY BALLS REPRESENT POWER."

Jesus, what a panel of experts they have at TSN.ca HQ… Mike Bossy, Al Macinnis, Pete Mahovlich, Luc Robitaille, and Dave Andreychuk. All Cup winners, all Hall of Famers.

Man, I love this stuff…

B.

…so… how long is this show? It’s already 2.10 am over here… on a weekday.

marcus- i think it’s only supposed to be half an hour. i figure they have to draw the number towards the middle of the show so they can analyze it for a few minutes.

damn, i forgot to purchase my case of molson for the event. big oversight on my part.

Bossy, unlike Robitaille, has aged very, very badly.

Not 5! this is good

4!

I still say that, if the Blues don’t get the first overall pick, they should think about going for Boedker with their first pick, and going after two of the highly-rated “second-tier” d-men with their two second-round picks.

Boedker’s stock has risen phenmenally in the last few weeks.

B.

wow, stamkos looks thrilled he’s going to the lightning

no 4 it is. …oh well…

Cut to Stamkos. He looks not excited. Quickly cut back.

It’s the ’Ning…

B.

So the Blues pick 33rd and 34th in the second round… I like that. A lot.

B.

I’m off to bed again. See ya.

the order of picks is the same as the finalized standings. O_o they’re opening envelopes like it’s some damn mystery or something

Trade our three top picks and a defenseman for the no1? No?

i was on the phone, has bettman made his appearance or is he m.i.a.?

Oh well! We’ll get a good player at No. 4.

NOW I’m off.

Dooks, so where did Atlanta finish in relation to the Blues? The Blues finished 27th, and Atlanta finished 28th, no?

B.

Bettman is m.i.a. thus far, Jessica

damn people calling me while the nhl draft lottery is on, what the hell are they thinking? by the way, is there some kind of 12 step program that we should be looking into? live-blogging draft lottery?

5. NYI
4. StL
3. Atl
2. LA
1. TB

Marcus wrote:

“Trade our three top picks and a defenseman for the no1? No?”

—————

Nicht nein, aber ficht nein…

Non.

Nega-fucking-tory.

The Blues will get one of Bogosian, Doughty or Pietrangelo… with an outside shot at reaching a little but for Boedker. I’m quite pleased with this outcome.

B.

I was expecting each team rep picking a ball out of a big-ass spinner. I guess the envelope thing was it, and the pickings were pre-determined as of air time. lame

Bettman’s been MIA for about 15 years, hasn’t he? ;-)

B.

gallagher wrote:

“Cut to Stamkos. He looks not excited. Quickly cut back.”

—————

I don’t know… I can think of a hell of a lot worse places to spend my winters than in Tampa…

Getting to play with Lecavalier and St. Louis wouldn’t be so bad, either.

B.

Be back shortly, folks… I’m in the middle of tallying up the undrafted college seniors that the Blues could think about signing for depth in Peoria. I’ve found a few rather intersting prospects…

Your GTPD’s work is never done. ;-)

B.

i think it’s true that live blogging the draft lottery means you can liveblog anything. it’s definitely more interesting than the cardinals game (especially since wellemeyer just coughed up a homerun). i can’t wait for the next unconventional liveblog! : )

So erm like that’s it? We’re exactly where we finished in the regular season standings Well that’s erm thrilling

back-to-back homers…I hate Minute Maid Park.

How is this not in the Otto von Bismarck category?

Sorry, Gifty. I’ll try to fix that.

Brad,

Let’s say that Tampa takes Stamkos, as expected. LA takes Bogosian or Doughty, and Atlanta takes the one that LA doesn’t pick.

At fourth overall, would you go for Pietrangelo, who’s out right now with mono? Remember, Nick Drazenovic had mono last year during the summer, and it took him until December to really get going with the Rivermen.

Or would you go with Boedker (or Colin Wilson) at fourth overall, and figure that you’ll be able to get two of Jyri Niemi, Kristoffer Berglund, Viacheslav Voinov, Tomas Kundratek, U. of Wisconsin star Cody Golubef, or Calgary Hitmen stud Michael Stone?

Most of those guys would be late first-round picks in most other drafts.

Personally, I want Bogosian. Pietrangelo would be an OK consolation prize, for sure, but I really think I’d rather have Boedker than Pietrangelo… and there are at least six defensemen that should be available in the second round, and would add significantly to the Blues’ prospect depth at that position.

I say, if Bogosian’s gone, and Doughty’s gone at fourth overall, go with Boedker and two of the less-hyped d-men.

B.

Having mono means he can’t play in the NHL next year? So what. Take the best player available. There isn’t a need to draft a kid for next year, we need a kid for the next 10 years.

With a lottery pick, I think you take the kid you feel best about. Later in the round, or in later rounds, you reach. You take kids that are boom-or-bust (which usually means bust). At 4 you take the kid you have the most confidence in to be an impact NHLer. If there isn’t one there, trade down and go for your ‘reach’ pick.

hey, you never know who could trade up with #2 or #3 to get Pietrangelo and the Blues could still get Bogosian

What? No one wants to take the Russian?

Um…Brian, now I really worry about you…

“Personally, I want Bogosian.”

What abput Kyle Beech? Does this team need a big center?

Dear God,

Please pick a foward.

JGB

Obviously, if we had got the number one you take Stamkos…but it seems like all the other best forwards are Centers. The wingers all seem like a shot in the dark. With Berglund and Oshie on the way up, and McDonald around for another couple of seasons at least, even a solid bet Center seems like a waste. Take the D, and use the later picks wisely. There is supposed to be some depth in this draft.

yeah rich this year will be mcdonald’s final year of his contract. you take the best player available to you with your top pick. there’s always a chance of either a bust or boom and what pads the odds is talent. some guys can play center at lower levels of the game but will not play that position in the nhl. backes for one. so taking a center’s not a waste, not as much as say putting tkachuk at center.

boed’s looking real good right now and that speed’s no joke. but as i’ve said before i am high on bogosian, colin wilson, and doughty. imagine having another erik johnson type on the blue line. that said one has to be careful of drafting russians too high and never seeing them come to your team. cause there’s a few great russian talents lurking in this draft. if the blues end up with a defenseman, having two picks in the second round makes it a great idea to draft one of the russians that should be around about that time.

of course, if you can package some prospects and/or players and pick up another first rounder that’s not a bad idea either. mcdonald, stempniak, i highly doubt tkachoke but he would be a great player to move. and you know one of brewer or mckee has got to go.

don’t expect to see walker again.

the blues top dmen in order of ranking:

1)erik johnson 2) jackman 3) steve wagner 4)polak 4) mc kee 5) brewer 6) wyowitka 7)miki dupont

i think you jettison brewer b/c of his lack of consistency and his huge price tag. with mc kee you get consistency and a better penalty killer. when you throw out wagner and polak you get players of varying offensive capabilities. while wagner excells there and does well to slow down in the d zone he doesn’t check very hard, while polak does. while polak has a booming shot, he moves the puck well in his zone, is a great skater but does seem to read the o-zone with the same apptitude as wagner.

wyowitka makes a decent seventh dman b/c of his inconsistency you never know if you’re getting a stud or a dud. when he doesn’t show up you hardly know he exists which isn’t too bad of a situation, compared to brewer where you usually notice either good things or bad things in a glaring light, though even in most bad games he does some things decetly. but the way brewer shot the puck over the net in the last game in close on that break screams to me he needs to move on. that’s ridiculous to say he plays in the nhl touches the ice and pucks as much as he does and he can’t put that puck on goal at the very least.

gallagher wrote:

“Having mono means he can’t play in the NHL next year?”

No, having mono means that he might NEVER be as strong or as effective again. Mono’s nothing to fool with…

—————

gallagher wrote:

“So what. Take the best player available. There isn’t a need to draft a kid for next year, we need a kid for the next 10 years.”

I completely agree; my question is, is Pietrangelo the kid the Blues need for the next ten years, or is Boedker the kid the Blues need for the next ten years?

Or Filatov?

I guess what I’m saying is, I’m convinced about Doughty or Bogosian, and if LA or Atlanta reaches for Filatov (as I think Atlanta might just do, to team with Kovalchuk), then the Blues will definitely have a shot at one of them.

I don’t get the same warm-and-fuzzy feeling about Pietrangelo, and not just because of the mono.

If neither Doughty or Bogosian is available when the Blues pick, I would prefer Boedker or Filatov to Pietrangelo, as I think some of the less-hyped d-men — Niemi (and his 98 MPH slapshot) and Berglund in particular — have every bit as much potential as Pietrangelo.

—————

gallagher wrote:

“With a lottery pick, I think you take the kid you feel best about. Later in the round, or in later rounds, you reach. You take kids that are boom-or-bust (which usually means bust). At 4 you take the kid you have the most confidence in to be an impact NHLer. If there isn’t one there, trade down and go for your ‘reach’ pick.”

Again, we agree… I just think that Boedker and Filatov have more potential to be impact NHLers than Pietrangelo.

Bogosian is the guy I want to see pulling the ‘Note over his head in Ottawa; if they can’t get him, and they can’t get Doughty, and the Blues don’t have the same good feeling about Bodeker that I have, then fine, go ahead and trade down if you can pick up a solid prospect or a couple of first-rounders by doing so.

I have always seen Boedker as a “Kekalainen pick,” just as I saw Eller as a “Kekalainen pick” last year. You put Boedker and Eller together with an Oshie, or a Perron, or a Lemtyugov, and you’ve got tons of speed and skill on a Kid Line.

B.

Chris D,

I don’t disagree with you about Brewer at all… but you and I both know that as long as Andy Murray is behind the Blues’ bench, Captain Roboto is going N-O-W-H-E-R-E.

B.

maybe we trade it, i was starting to look, at about 4th you got spleen boy, several solid d-men, and a few flashyu euro scorers.

that isnt a klot different than what you have at 10th or 14th. the draft is relatively deep and its “star” will not be a blues.

I think a d-man with the first pick is pretty enevitable if they don’t trade. Al, Jd, Murray, pleua= d man, kik limonen= eruo forward.

Getting rid of Brewer isn’t going to be easy because of his salary. Finding a replacement to eat his minutes is going to be even harder. Never mind the inconsistency, the inability to play off his backhand, the apparent reluctance to use his strength in the defensive zone, the slow shot release…

You could dump him and eat his salary.
You could get a 3rd rounder in exchange. (McKee is older and has the same salary, so he’d probably net you a 4th round pick)

Who is capable of taking Brewer’s minutes next year, especially with Murray behind the bench? Erik Johnson is going to be a 27-30 minute defenseman next year, and so will Jackman. Who’s on the second PK unit in that 24-27 minute slot? McKee’s lack of speed is going to make him a relic in the new NHL before his contract expires. Same for Matt Walker, even though he’s a free agent, I would not want him except as a #7 or #8 injury replacement (Sorry Sean). Woywitka has NHL speed and skill, but I don’t know if he’s got NHL toughness, especially in the defensive zone. Steve Wagner started out like he belonged in the NHL, but then got hurt in the AHL during his seasoning stint, so I have no idea where he is developmentally.

Roman Polak should be here to stay next year. Miki Dupont shudder reminds me of Wideman, smaller, with a little less offensive talent. Suddenly that vaunted defensive depth doesn’t look so hot.

All that said, you go with the best player available at #4.

I had mono when I was 17 and it’s made me nothing but stronger. Like superhero strong. Shit, for a while I was known as MonoBoy.

But as for these guys, I’ll freely admit that I don’t know one from the other. I just think that immediately discounting a guy because of mono seems shortsighted.

As for Brewer, you can’t eat his salary short of releasing him. The new CBA prevents teams agreeing to pay for partial salaries. Some GMs want to change that, but I don’t believe it’s been approved yet.

What would MonoBoy’s super power be?

“Stop, dastardly villain or I will touch you with my toxic tongue!”

for some reason “toxic tongue” makes me think of Answer Man’s season-finale column: “Kiss me where it smells funny”

and mono boys powers come from special records made from 1964-1971?

he carries a close-n-play to active them

his sidekick: a female nerd know as Polly Sci?

catchphrases:

listen carefully i will say this only once.

licked again!

known weaknesses: moldy bread, isolation, mike kitchen andcotton eye joe- even the mono version!

origin: kissed by a radioactive spider which had been dosed with gamma radiation from a moon rock found by a blind lawyer.

can i be black humor guy? not to be confused with humous black guy or the good humor man?

Depends, CT, can you wear the tights?

actually you have to know gms. and with a number of teams coming into this season with cap issues, and by that i mean they need to spend a lot more money to be compliant with the bare minimum side of the cap a player like brewer becomes interesting to teams like columbus, atlanta. he’s still got that supposed upside to a lot of gms. most gms are behind the times at the moment for whatever reason. so you can trick a lot of them. yeah jay mckee does not make as much as brewer. the only figure i care about is the cap hit. brewer hits it at $4.25, while mckee hits it at a staright $4mill.

so yeah most likely mckee is gone. while mckee doesn’t have the greatest speed he doesn’t hurt you as much because he’s a smart player. thankfully also not a lot of teams in the west are terribly fast besides maybe a line and a player here and there. mc kee proved once again he is a solid player. in my dream of dreams i get rid of both of them.

and if miki dupont is a smaller version of wideman bring him on immediately!!!!!!!! this is what happens when people don;t watch other games in the nhl. i watched a lot of boston this season and wideman has become a stud. he plays all situations and hell most of the game. if we would have traded brewer for boyes it would have been a steal but that trade is longer a steal. miki dupont has decent offensive skills and is a godd skater. he played well his two games this year with the blues and actually hit well in those games. plus he moves the puck.

some times people get all exicited. look, ej and jackman take the majority of the ice. wagner’s a kid and now we start baptizing by fire and feeding the young ones the ice time. wagner and polak can eat up minutes. christ last i checked there’s only sixty minutes in a game and you have six defensemen. so top pair eats up thirty, that’s half the game. the two other pairs need to eat up thirty between them.

what most likely will happen is that mckee will be moved this off season though. i remember thinking the same thing about adam foote before the season began. he’s too slow for this game, the game’s passed him up. but he was dealing with injuries apperantly and now he looks strong. so don’t start freaking out.

i also stronging agree about this pieterangelo kid. when did all this bull shit about him being an offensive talent start coming out? before they mentioned him and they said shut down d-man. well the blues if this is there only choice pass on this guy. as i’ve said for months now bogosian is my man. doughty’s pretty sweet(with that name probably should be in nashville), but after that i’m high on boedakker as well as colin wilson. fialotov i also figure atlanta to snap up to make a russian duo. i’m hoping. i hope the blues stay the fuck away from kyle beech. whl players tend to be undisciplined and take bad penalties and cost their teams. yeah barret jackman has done that in the past.

also note, thank god we didn’t get the number one over all. i don;t know if i mentioned it here but i have a strong feeling from watching him play that stamkos is overrated. if kane was in this draft i’d take kane way before stamkos. the thing is another us born defenseman should be number one over all and that’d break the canadians’ hearts so their pumping up a kid with a lot of talent but who has some holes in his game come time he steps on nhl ice, you’ll see them exploited.

i rank wilson higher than stamkos. but if anybody’s capable of making an average player looking great i guess if you play with leclavier and st. louis then life will be roses.

I agree with you on DuPont. He has been overlooked (because of size probably) by the teams he has signed with. He had a late AHL start and finished 7th in points for Defencemen. The next closest Defencemen Jeff Woywitka (big leagues now) was 34th. His speed and ability as a leader were key for him. DuPont has always done well in the AHL and in Europe…he just needs a chance.