There has been some trade activity leading up to the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, which begins at 8 p.m. Eastern and is broadcast on television on ESPN2.
Arizona-Vancouver blockbuster involves Mass. native
The biggest deal was brokered between the Arizona Coyotes and Vancouver Canucks. Arizona sent veteran Swedish defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson and forward from Scituate, Mass. Conor Garland to British Columbia. The Coyotes will reportedly receive Vancouver’s 1st-round pick in 2021 (9th overall), their 2nd-rounder in 2022 and they also retain 12 percent of Ekman-Larsson’s salary ($990,000 on a $8,250,000 annual cap figure). The Canucks are sending three veteran forwards who will help Arizona reach the NHL’s cap floor, but aren’t expected to contribute all that much in Jay Beagle, former Bruin Loui Eriksson and Anton Roussel.
Vancouver gets the better players, and Garland could make the trade a long-term winner. The smallish, but dynamic winger has been linked to Boston trade rumors for some time, but in the end, he was a trade chip that Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong needed to cash in on. He got that from former Bruins asst. GM Jim Benning, who takes on risk with Ekman-Larsson. His huge cap hit runs through 2027, but his play has declined in the past several seasons, with a minus-36 rating collectively since 2018.
Arizona, who forfeited their first-round pick (11th overall) due to violations of the NHL’s combine testing policy, now actually moves up a couple of spots. Top-ranked Swedish goalie Jesper Wallstedt, the best prospect in net for this class, might be the target for the Coyotes, who recently traded Adin Hill to San Jose for Jozef Korenar, lacks a true blue-chip option at the position.
As for Garland, he gets a fresh start and chance to take his play to a new level after tallying 12 goals and 39 points in 49 games last season for the Coyotes. The fifth-round pick (123rd overall) by Arizona in 2015 was one of the franchise’s bigger hits at the draft. Now, the organization will have to move on.
Beniers a sure thing in 1st but what about Samoskevich?
University of Michigan center Matty Beniers (Hingham, Mass.)Â will be off the board early tonight, and our prediction is second overall to Seattle. But what about Mackie Samoskevich? Could the Newtown, Conn. native become the second New Englander drafted in the opening round?
The case for Samoskevich going at the end of the first is that he has tremendous speed and balance, with NHL-quality cutback ability to create time and space for himself. He has a rocket shot that when he employs it, is highly effective at finding the back of the net or creating rebound chances for teammates for how hot it comes off of the netminder. He’s a crafty, creative forward and a winner. Samoskevich helped the Chicago Steel win the USHL Clark Cup championship this past spring and is going to a top program in Michigan next season.
On the downside, he has average size and his consistency is a work in progress. When he drives hard to the net, he makes a lot of plays, but he spends too much time on the perimeter. That has scouts questioning whether his game will translate at the highest levels.
The feeling at New England Hockey Journal is that Samoskevich has a better than average chance to get into the late first round. NHL teams love winners and he contributed to a team that won nearly 80 regular season games in two COVID-shortened USHL campaigns. He had more than a point-per-game in the 2021 USHL playoffs and his team went all the way. That matters. Even if he doesn’t go tonight, he will be one of the early picks on Day 2.
Dvorak…and more draft names for the Bruins
There were rumors that surfaced today that they are talking to multiple teams about trades, including Arizona, with center Christian Dvorak’s name coming up. Now that the Coyotes have completed their blockbuster deal with Vancouver, they might opt to hold onto Dvorak, but he had some chemistry with Taylor Hall when the latter was with the Desert Dogs.
The immediate assumption when Dvorak’s name came up was that it doesn’t bode well for David Krejci returning, but the feeling here is that this is the B’s doing due diligence on a player that has had success with a key piece in Hall and they are exploring depth, not necessarily at the expense of Krejci. It would be surprising for the Czech native to return home and end his Boston tenure after the way things turned out.
As for other trades, don’t sleep on the B’s looking at trading for a veteran defenseman. There was interest in Nashville’s Mattias Ekholm before. Could that interest be rekindled on draft day?
1st round:Â
Oskar Olausson, LW HV-71 6-2/181- Lanky Swedish winger has nice combination of size, skating and scoring potential, but doesn’t always bring a top-level effort. That has kept him from being higher on a lot of public draft lists.
Simon Robertsson, LW Skelleftea 6-0/189- Another Swede who plays a heavy, Bruins-style game by going north-south and right to the net. He doesn’t have an abundance of skill, but can shoot it.
Day 2:
Oscar Plandowski, RD Charlottetown 6-0/189- Tremendous skater plays a reliable defensive style. He’s not flashy, but presents solid middle-of-the-roster potential.
Red Savage, C U.S. NTDP 18 5-11/180- Not a high-end offensive producer, but has underrated finishing skills and works so hard. Projects as a top fourth-line center and could be a good third-liner at the NHL level. High floor.
Guillaume Richard, LD Tri-City 6-1/172- Lanky lean defender moves well and is superb in the transition game. Providence College recruit needs to be harder, but he’s got a higher ceiling when he fills out.
Carter Mazur, RW Tri-City 6-0/167- Fast skater, does the little things that win you games. Could be a lot more than the sum of his parts and blossom at Denver University.
Cameron MacDonald, C Saint John 6-1/185- Tremendous talent and pro hockey attributes, needs to address consistency. But, could be a homerun pick because he’s skilled enough to work his way up a roster, but big, rugged enough to play on the bottom-six.
Rangers eyeing Boucher?
The New York Rangers pulled off a trade earlier in the day broken by New York Hockey Journal, sending Pavel Buchnevich to the St. Louis Blues for Sammy Blais and a 2022 second-round pick. They currently sit at 16th in the first round, and don’t have a second-rounder, but are believed to be very interested in power winger Tyler Boucher. The former Avon Old Farms star hails from Haddonfield, N.J. and is committed to Boston University.
Because variance for the draft is all over the map, you could see the Rangers take Boucher at their spot in the middle of the round. New GM Chris Drury (Trumbull, Conn.) could also opt to trade down in hopes to get him a little later on while acquiring more assets. However, while Boucher isn’t projected to go as early as 15-16, if a team believes in a player enough, they should draft him rather than roll the dice.
The Rangers are also believed to be intrigued with Windsor Spitfires center Wyatt Johnston, another big, physical forward who is hard to play against. Like Boucher, he doesn’t have a public draft grade near where the Rangers are picking, but if Drury thinks he can move back in the first and pick up a second-rounder in the process to get both, it could pay off as a strategy.
It is time for the draft- watch for some interesting selections today and tomorrow amidst a unique time for NHL teams and their respective processes.
