S43 Entry Draft Preview [Final 6/6]

S43 VHL Entry Draft Preview

Although the Season 43 VHL Entry Draft has yet to take place, I feel it is proper to start drumming up some excitement for the cause. Mr. Kendrick does a fabulous job with the weekly entry draft rankings for which I will surely use to steal a lot of content for this piece. The ranking can be found over here:

http://www.vhlforum.com/index.php?/forum/237-vhl-entry-draft-rankings/

This draft is said to be weaker than previous drafts over the past five seasons, though there are certainly some excellent depth picks to be had. Notably, the top-end talent all come with question marks compared with the usual drafts with at least one homerun player. With the space below I’m going to go through what I expect to happen on Saturday. I’m most certain to be incorrect, but it’s still fun to look at while we can. Feel free to leave your commentary, if desired.

The Draft is tentatively set for Saturday at 8:30 EST. The order of the draft is expected to be the following:

Round One

1. NEW YORK AMERICANS: (from Davos via Stockholm):

I fully expect New York General Manager Chris Miller to pick one of the two powerful forwards at the top of the class. With the recent addition of Jericho from Stockholm, they have their goalie of the next generation in tow. Therefore, I wouldn’t be surprised to see New York take Bronson Faux first overall as Faux is seen as a more secure first overall selection than Delicious. Faux is represented by re-create player agent Jamie who recently put together her first Hall of Fame player in power forward McQueen.

2.    RIGA REIGN: 

The Reign may be the barest cupboard in the entire VHL and it’s no secret that GM Jim Gow has a lot of work cut out for him in Latvia. The only active player on the team is goalie Bernie Gow. Therefore, I’d expect Riga to select the best player available, which at this time would be Muffins’ E’Twaun Delicious. You can't deny Muffins' ability to create excellent players in the league, though activity has been questionable in the past few years compared to his heyday. Who knows where Gow will go here though. I could see them picking one of the elite defenders also.

3. CALGARY WRANGLERS:

The other, likely more annoying Gow, picks third overall. Calgary is also a fairly bad team at this point, but they do have some piece to play around with. Of note, they seem to be compromised of some middling talent from Season 40. Another Gow namesake stands as the GM recreate, this time a centre TebowGow. I would be surprised if Austin didn’t take the best player available here which happens to be goalie Hans Wingate. He does have goalie prospect Coca Cola, but his activity is questionable at best (not to mention he loves cats).

4. SEATTLE BEARS:

If I were Bears General Manager Bushito, I’d likely select the best defenseman available. I see the Bears as an above average team entering Season 43. They have a really solid core of members on the team and what looks to be a make or break season. The team has their goalie; they have their forward core for the most part. That’s why I’d suggest the Bears pick former Ottawa Lynx defenseman Francis York Morgan with the fourth pick. I think he’ll be a solid all-around player for the organization.

5. STOCKHOLM VIKINGS:

I’d be surprised to see Stockholm use this draft pick as opposed to trading it, but if they do keep the pick they’ve got to take the next best player. In this instance, that player would be Pablo Escabar who would nicely round out the Vikings’ defensive core. Another former Ottawa Lynx player, he seems intent on playing another season down in the VHLM, though this may be out of reach. If the Vikings do trade the pick, I’d expect Seattle, Quebec or Helsinki to be the likely destinations for a swap.

6. TORONTO LEGION:

Mostly inactive General Manager Edgar comes up to pick next. I’d expect the Legion to select the next best player here which to me would be Jorma Ruutu from the Ottawa Lynx. Jorma is a power forward who will most certainly need another season down in the VHLM, but he appears to be a good member with a lot of potential to learn and move quickly. Toronto would be a good environment for the youngster.

7.   RIGA REIGN (from Helsinki):

Riga comes back again here being the first team with their second selection in the draft. Again, they’ve got to take the best player available, which would be Thomas Duddy, a winger from Ottawa (again). Duddy is an interesting newer member who has come out of the gates strong. I think Gow would be fortunate to latch onto this guy who I could see as being an excellent first gen talent in the VHL. Perhaps Riga will also look at drafting a defenseman here.

8. NEW YORK AMERICANS:

New York comes back with another pick and this time I’ve got to think General Manager Chris Miller will take a defenseman. With Michael Clardy just recently coming back, he could be a potential steal or a huge gamble for the Americans, but if you look at it from a perspective of the team already having one sure-fire top prospect out of the draft, you’re probably far more inclined toward the risk/reward that McClardy could provide as he showed impressive activity before disappearing for some time.

9. CALGARY WRANGLERS (from Quebec):

The other Gow comes back and again this time I think a defenseman will come off the board. A good defenseman being leftover to the 9^th pick is somewhat of a rarity these days. I’d pick defenseman Golden Jedtsson here and hope he returns to the form of his previous players in the league. He could certainly become a star for the Wranglers down the line, which isn’t bad for a 9^th overall selection. After all, the Wranglers did pick one of their most notable defenseman ever toward the end of the first round of the draft.

10. TORONTO LEGION (from Cologne via Calgary):

 Toronto comes up again with what could be a decision pick. Do you take a promising looking first gen player or do you go with a long-time veteran? In this instance, I think we may just see Josh Merica end up in Toronto. The player agent was a former General Manager of the Legion during the first era of the league. His activity has never been superb, but he offers a lot of experience no doubt. The winger was previously higher up the board, which may be some cause for concern.

Round Two

11.    STOCKHOLM VIKINGS (from Riga):

To Stockholm I see former Ottawa Lynx player Souryuu Kaminogi here. The Japanese winger has thus far kept a fairly low profile. Though of note, he has had a previous player in the league, though he wouldn’t qualify for welfare. This young man will hopefully become a solid role player for the Vikings, but I can’t see future star potential here. He’d be a solid pick none the less for a team that can afford to develop some raw prospects in the system.

12. CALGARY WRANGLERS:

The annoying Gow comes up again here to pick for the third time hoping to re-stock his cupboard a tad. Here I’d take defenseman MC Hammer who has shown some good activity from a first gen member thus far. He’s another raw prospect who will require some more development time, but Calgary is practically the best place for a raw member to land. The younger Gow will inspire the best out of his younger prospects. This is a guy who could definitely be a steal for the Wranglers.

13.   COLOGNE EXPRESS (from Davos):

I see General Manager Ryan Power picking fairly new member Chuck Goody here. This is another guy who will require development time and the contending Express can likely afford it for the next few seasons. Here’s a guy who could also become a real steal as not much is known about him so far. He’s shown good spurts of activity thus far, but who knows how he’ll pan out. The Express should be seen as a desirable destination for any first gen member.

14.    RIGA REIGN (from Seattle):

Lucky for Riga, there’s one more good, promising defenseman at the backend of this draft. If I were Riga, and this guy still available, I’d take Theo Matsikas who is represented by first gen member Individual. Individual is new to the league (in theory), but he’s shown great promise so far (jumping up the draft board in no time. I wouldn’t be surprised to see this individual prospect move up a few slots come Saturday. And like before, he’ll require some maturation time in the VHLM in Season 43.

15.   STOCKHOLM VIKINGS:

Perhaps the Vikings can get lucky here and select defenseman Erik Hedman who has so far shown some raw promise. Landing with the Vikings would be a good fit for the defenseman as the team could use some prospects in the system to make up for their recent blockbuster to acquire aging veterans. We don’t know much about the guy right now, but he could certainly become a real steal in the middle of the second round of the draft.

Don't see hammer falling to 12

Don't see hammer falling to 12

Perhaps. There does seem to be a run of people/members who are all in the same ballpark. Depends on GM preference I suppose.

Very interesting. Curious you had Faux at #1. I was leaning the other way in my thinking.

That's what I heard from Chris, he'll probably shock you all though

Tell you one thing for sure. We won't be taking Morgan over Escabar and that is a fact.

I marvel at the depth of this draft and the quality of first gens pushing through here

I marvel at the depth of this draft and the quality of first gens pushing through here

I remember when u were just a little first gen :'3

Clardy won't go in the top ten picks, you can book that.

You're all banned. I can tell you that.

I was already banned, just posting from Zimmers account now.

Clardy won't go in the top ten picks, you can book that.

This

I was already banned, just posting from Zimmers account now.

Good, he's a good dude.

Good, he's a good dude.

Upstanding gentleman with great choice in charities.

The annoying Gow brother approves this article

The annoying Gow brother approves this article

R u guyz ewen bruthas

Basically everyone saying you suck sterling

I marvel at the depth of this draft and the quality of first gens pushing through here

I do it for you Phil .

You guys just wait lol. NYA is my team

You guys just wait lol. NYA is my team

Not if i kidnab u first

You guys just wait lol. NYA is my team

clardy for 1st overall?

Content 3/3 That kaminogi guy is pretty awesome i hear   also don't the NYA have 11th oa now

Grammar 2/2 Looks good couldn't find anything 

Appearance 1/1 Yup looks good

Overall 6/6

Escabar, Morgan, Duddy, Ruutu, every other Lynx hot as fuck. 

clardy for 1st overall?

You better fucking believe it