GMs start thinking about draft

EURO League general managers, having just digested the Season of Geneva and now feeling the shock of the WSH2 interface, are doing all they can to get their minds back on the next important matter: the Season 2 draft.

Within a couple of weeks, the GMs will be asked to analyze their teams, forecast their future, and figure out what kind of young player they can draft to help them the most.

The draft presents some interesting questions: Go for someone on the draft list whose attributes are known or gamble on a prospect who NHL teams have already banked on but whose attributes in the world of Websim Hockey are yet unknown? A promising goalie or a young defenseman with potential? A flashy offensive dynamo or a balanced, two-way forward? Someone who can fill a whole on the team for the next season and a run for the cup, or a player with more long-term potential?

Added to the mixture this season is the yet-to-be-understood effects of how players’ overall and potential ratings figure into the new financial rules.

Among the top names, according to ISS (International Scouting Service), are some excellent Russian forwards, two talented Finnish goalies, and some promising defensemen.

Here is a little information about players who are candidates to be selected in the top 10:

Kari Ramo, G, who was drafted by the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning, has been playing in Omsk of the KHL for the last four seasons and has a goals against average of about 2.00 and a save percentage north of .920.
Maxim Chudinov, D, a Boston Buins draft pick, the smallish defenseman played four seasons in the KHL before moving to St. Petersburg this season. His point total has increased each season and last season he tallied 9 goals and 35 points in 52 games.
Nail Yakupov, RW, currently playing with the Edmonton Oilers, the former Sarnia Sting forward has 6 goals and 12 points in 23 NHL games after compiling 18 points in 22 KHL games with Nizhnekamsk.
Alexander Galchenyuk, C, has played in 24 games with the Montreal Canadiens and has scored 3 goals and 13 points. He was born in Wisconsin, but his father was born in Minsk.
Staffan Kronwall, D, a Swedish-born Toronto Maple Leaf draftee, Kronwall played in 66 NHL games with Toronto, Washington and Calgary. He is a big boy who plays solid defense and scored 10 goals and 22 points in 50 games in his most recent season in the KHL. Kronwall wears an “A” for the Yaroslav Lokomotiv, the team that suffered the tragedy of a Sept. 7, 2011, plane crash which killed the entire team.
Vadim Shipachov, C, the 6-foot-tall forward plays in the KHL in the city he was born in: Cherepovets. He scored more than a point a game (59 points in 54 games) last season and was a league all-star. His totals are down slightly this season.
Alexander Radulov, RW, the former Nashville Predator is a scoring star in the KHL. In 2012-13, he had 22 goals and 68 points in 48 games with CSKA Moscow.
Niko Hovinen, G, the tall (6-6) Finn has a World Championship gold medal under his belt and has a save percentage that matches Ramo’s. But his goals against average is higher, hovering in recent years between 2.50 and 3.00
Jakub Kovar, G, the native of Pisek, Czech Republic, has numbers very similar to Hovinen’s while playing in the Czech professional league. He won top goalie honors in that league last year and has two World Championships bronze medals.
Griffin Reinhart, D, drafted by the New York Islanders fourth overall in 2012, the 6-4 Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL) captain is a plus 14 with 18 points in 41 games.
Morgan Rielly, D, drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs fifth overall in 2012, is playing in Moose Jaw in the WHL, where he has a minus 1 rating to go with 36 points in 41 games.
Ryan Murray, D, drafted by the Columbus Blue Jackets second overall in 2012, plays a good two-way game, according to scouts and has 17 points in 23 games with the WHL Everett Silvertips. His plus-minus rating is an even zero.
Nerius Alisauskas, D, is a 6-1 Lithuanian stay-at-home defenseman. He has 5 goals and 30 points in 174 games in the professional league in Belarus. He exhibits a decent shot on occasion and had 4 goals in 10 World Championship contests.
Ken Kuusk, D, born in Estonia, the 6-1 Kuusk has had good plus-minus numbers in the Eastonian professional league and the World Championships. While not a great offensive player, his most recent season saw him score 4 goals and 15 points in 31 games while playing in Denmark.
Drew Shore, C, the American who played college hockey at the University of Denver is off to a good start with the NHL’s Florida Panthers. He has 10 points in 22 games.

Seven of the league’s 24 teams have traded away their first-round picks and won’t be participating in the first round unless trades are made to get them in. Three teams – Athens, Paris and Minsk – will have three selections in the first round, while Bratislava will have two. Below is how the draft order would appear if it were to occur today. The draft lottery and any trades could change the order.