2026 NHL Draft

[dbr]

Thanks rats! Nice to see you as well

[JelloPuddingPop]

Minny is currently 4th in the league - and just added Hughes. That pick will be in the 30's or high 20's if the loss of Rossi/Zeev B. hurt their depth too much.

FYI the Minny pick could be as high as 17. If they don’t win their division and don’t reach the Conference finals it’s likely between there and mid-20s, so as much as I hate having to root for any other former NW division team… Go Avs.

Good point - and I don't see them winning the div. over the Avs, - and though they have a great defense now, there is a bit of lack of forward depth and injuries might prevent them from getting out of the 1st rd. At this point, it is hard not to see a Dallas/Minny 1st rd. match up - honestly, I can't see Dallas going down in that one.

[Chef Boi RD]

It would be great to snag a Ryan Lin with the Wild pick. Don’t think he will fall that far

[dbr]

Good point - and I don't see them winning the div. over the Avs, - and though they have a great defense now, there is a bit of lack of forward depth and injuries might prevent them from getting out of the 1st rd. At this point, it is hard not to see a Dallas/Minny 1st rd. match up - honestly, I can't see Dallas going down in that one.

Losing in the 1st or 2nd round doesn't affect draft position either, so if they beat Dallas* and lose to Colorado (assuming standings are the same as now) they'd be in the group of non-SC finalists, non-Conference finalists, non-division winners in the draft order - probably among the last of them so early/mid 20s, but still.

*(although the way Rantanen is going I'm not sure Hughes would survive this series)

[JelloPuddingPop]

Good point - and I don't see them winning the div. over the Avs, - and though they have a great defense now, there is a bit of lack of forward depth and injuries might prevent them from getting out of the 1st rd. At this point, it is hard not to see a Dallas/Minny 1st rd. match up - honestly, I can't see Dallas going down in that one.

Losing in the 1st or 2nd round doesn't affect draft position either, so if they beat Dallas* and lose to Colorado (assuming standings are the same as now) they'd be in the group of non-SC finalists, non-Conference finalists, non-division winners in the draft order - probably among the last of them so early/mid 20s, but still.

*(although the way Rantanen is going I'm not sure Hughes would survive this series)

Thanks for the learning dbr - much appreciated. So if, as you suggest - they hit an early/mid 20's pick, and then go on to win big during the lottery (full 10 spots), Van *might* be drafting right at 10th-15th or around there.

You're saying there's a chance!?

[dbr]

LMAO that is inconsistent with what this franchise is and also unfortunately impossible - only teams that miss the playoffs are in the draft lottery - so we'll have to stick to hoping it's our ball drawn and that we can hit a home run in the mid-20s.. not likely, but not unheard of either given guys like Pastrnak,Giroux, Shea Theodore, Boeser, Kempe, Oettinger have all gone around there.

[JelloPuddingPop]

Awww damn.

Too much to hope - but again, cheers for the lessons.

[Carl Yagro]

You unearth a 2nd round gem like 1C Sebastian Aho and you're set for a decade plus. You don't even need PPG for consistent playoffs year after year.

[JelloPuddingPop]

You unearth a 2nd round gem like 1C Sebastian Aho and you're set for a decade plus. You don't even need PPG for consistent playoffs year after year.

Which is the frustrating part of this "non-rebuild" re-build.

Rutherford has both said, that he wants more draft capital - and that the 1st from Minny is in play for a young roster player.

Just put some money into your scouting dept., get them some picks - and let them work FFS.

You might just get an Aho, or a Terry, Bratt, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Quick, Rinne, Robitaille, Hull, Kurri etc. etc.

Rebuilds gotta build through the draft. Need to have picks.

[Carl Yagro]

^ Woo! We agree!

[dbr]

If they flip that pick for an older player (and it's not an obvious step up in terms of asset management, like a Cutter Gauthier-caliber prospect forcing a trade or something) then this is officially a retool and not a rebuild IMO.

Which would be deeply disappointing if I felt like I had any right to expect this franchise to consistently do the right thing.

[donlever]

Consistently?

Fml

How about one time.

[dbr]

Hey if you go back far enough, they bought downtown real estate in the 1990s..

[donlever]

.....and we arrive at the real goal of the AIG.

[Megaterio Llamas]

If they flip that pick for an older player (and it's not an obvious step up in terms of asset management, like a Cutter Gauthier-caliber prospect forcing a trade or something) then this is officially a retool and not a rebuild IMO.

Which would be deeply disappointing if I felt like I had any right to expect this franchise to consistently do the right thing.

D&D were talking to Craig Button a few minutes ago on their show, and they were talking about bouncing back next season