Courtesy: Brendan McDermid/Reuters
Sunday’s NHL Draft was rather tame compared to years past, however there was one unexpected and shocking move done by the Vancouver Canucks. For the past 14 months, the Luongo saga in Vancouver has all but destroyed a once amicable and friendly relationship. Lou has been nothing but professional throughout the ordeal, waiting very patiently to be either traded or bought out. “My contract sucks,” he told reporters during the last trade deadline, and he’s right, it does indeed suck, which is why no team wanted to make a move on him. GM Mike Gillis however did finally make a move, however it wasn’t exactly what anyone expected. The New Jersey Devils, hosts of this years draft, held the 9th pick overall, and, in classic Lou Lamoriello style, he flipped it to Vancouver and landed goaltender Cory Schneider. The Canucks were firm in making Schneider their number one goalie, he even signed an extension. No one saw this coming and by the looks of almost every GM in the building, every was shocked. Especially the Oilers, who had offered up a Kings ransom to Vancouver when they heard Schneider was in play – but the Canucks couldn’t deal their former starter to a rival. So, Luongo seems to be back where he started, but there is no doubt a lot of ill will between him and GM Mike Gillis. Should be an interesting season.
Other trades of the day were Dave Bolland being shipped off to Toronto. Bolland scored the Cup clinching goal for the Blackhawks, but was a victim of the lowered salary cap. The Blackhawks also sent Michal Frolik to Winnipeg for a couple draft picks. Cal Clutterbuck was traded from the Wild to the Islanders for former first rounder Nino Niederreiter, and the Sabres sent Andrej Sekera to the Hurricanes for Jamie McBain.
Nathan MacKinnon was selected first over all by the Colorado Avalanche. The Florida Panthers surprised everyone by taking forward Aleksander Barkov while the Lightning grabbed Jonathan Drouin. With Florida taken Barkov at #2, Seth Jones, son of former NBA player Popeye Jones, fell into the lap of the Nashville Predators. Jones was touted as the best player in the draft by multiple scouts and GM’s.
The Washington Capitals didn’t make any moves, save for a swap of a few late draft picks. They picked up Swedish forward Andre Burakowsky with pick 23 who played for Malmo in the Swedish-2 league. He’ll probably stay in Sweden or even head to the KHL – he was drafted St. Petersburg last year. That makes 7 Swedes and Russians taking by the Caps in the first round of the last 10 drafts.
The other Caps picks included:
Courtesy: CSN Washington
2nd RD, 53rd Madison Bowey – two way defender. Kelowna – WHL
3rd RD, 61st Zach Sanford – center. Middelsex- EJHL. Boston College in the fall of 2014.
5th RD, 144th – Blake Heinrich – defenseman. Sioux City – USHL. Univ. of Minnesota-Dulth in the fall.
6th RD, 174th – Brian Pinho – center. St. John’s Prep (Mass). Providence College in fall of 2014.
7th RD, 204th – Tyler Lewington – defenseman. Medicine Hat Tigers – WHL.
The Caps have always drafted well, with a few busts in the 90’s. This new crop of players might never see a Caps sweater, let alone a Bears one, but the draft is a crap shoot. 14 players on last years roster were original Capital draft picks, including Tom Wilson, who made his debut in the playoffs. This is how you build a team, not by buying players, but by developing them. However, the time for the Caps to win a Cup has to be now.
Free Agency starts on July 5th, and that’s where the real wheeling and dealing will begin as there are a ton of superstars looking for new homes. The Caps are trying one more time to talk with Mike Ribeiro, but the two sides are still far apart. If they can’t re-sign him, they have to trade his rights before July 5th otherwise we risk letting him walk for nothing – we gave up Cody Eakins to get him.
The Draft did have some rather touching moments as many former NHLer’s watched their sons get drafted. Max Domi, son of infamous tough guy Tie Domi, got picked up by the Phoenix Coyotes in the first round. Domi is an outstanding player who also has Type-1 diabeties, but has overcome the obstacle. Kerby Rychel, Tyler Wood, Ryan Fitzgerald, Brendan Burke, Cole Cassels, Adam Tambellini and even Tyler Bertuzzi (nephew of Todd Bertuzzi) will keep the NHL bloodlines going.
There was, however, a more emotional pick late in the 7 round by the New Jersey Devils that made the building erupt. GM Lou Lamoriello, knowing he didn’t have a late pick, swapped with the L.A. Kings in order to draft future HoF goalie Marty Brodeur’s son, Anthony Brodeur in the 7th round at pick 208. Anthony is also a goaltender, and while he may not be a highly touted prospect, he’s still a legit dratee. Marty was able to be there as well, having the honor of calling his son’s name in the final minutes of the draft. The two will most likely never see the ice together, but it was a classy move by a classy organization.
More to come…
