I doubt more than 2 or 3 people will read this as there are few hockey fans, but I thought I'd post it as it's met positive reviews thus far on other sites.
1. New York Islanders- John Tavares: No Real surprise here, I believe he will go first, but with the Isles, you never know. They have Okposo, Bailey and Comeau as well as a number of prospects in the system who are forwards(Petrov, Joenssu, Figren) with fewer D propsects so this one is a bit of a toss up for me, but at the end of the day I go with Tavares for name recognition factor alone, they need to put butts in the seats.
2. Tampa Bay Lightning - Victor Hedman: While I don't know if he goes here or at number one, I know neither of these two slip to three and Tampa's D is pretty awful, so I put him here. No more explanation needed I don't think
3.Colorado Avalanche - Matt Duchene- I've heard arguements of Magnus Paajarvi-Svenson here as another Forsgerg type, but with Sakic leaving they go with BPA(best player available) and take the highly skilled and speedy Duchene to replace him in the near future. Think a little more offensive Mike Richards but not as dominant in his own zone, still reliable there though.
4.Atlanta Thrashers- Evander Kane: from what I hear, Don Waddel is gushing over this kid and believes him to be the BPA at this point. Kovalchuk may be leaving and even if he stays, Kane can go from Center to Wing and play more of a power forward game once he adds more muscle. The kid is already very strong at a low weight, once he gains, he could be a beast.
Los Angeles Kings-Magnus Paajarvi-Svenson- Despite changing the order of his last name every other day, the Kings take the best player available as they are already stacked on defense and solid on forward, they have some grit up front in Dustin Brown and a big strong soon-to-be power forward in Anze Kopitar, so a skilled winger who is strong on his skates seems like a good choice.
6.Phoenix Coyotes- Jared Cowen: This could go either way, they have commited to BPA so if they have Schenn above Cowen they will take him, or trade down one spot with Toronto so they can secure Schenn and the Yotes get Cowen anyway. This could be a great pickup as Cowen was a consensus top 3 up until his injury, it looks like he will bounce back ok and will be an excellent pickup.
7.Toronto Maple Leafs- Brayden Schenn: The only reason I don't like putting him here is because he is here in absolutely every mock draft. Spots 4-7 are really a toss up as they all seem to be very strong prospects with only opinion seperating the best from least of these players. I think the Leafs trade up to ensure they get him so it's a fairly safe assumption he goes to the Leafs as he plays Burkes style of hockey and it may be easier to sign Luke if they can sign his brother.
8.Dallas Stars - Dimitri Kulikov: Kulikov is already in NA, has acclimated to the style and done very well, seems like a safer pick than the next guy to come on the list. They will need an offensive puck mover as Zubov is gone very soon, with injuries plagueing him, I have to think he's gone very soon. They already have a Russian D prospect so he and Kulikov may get along well.
9.Ottawa Senators- Oliver Ekman-Larsson: Brian Murray made it public that he was watching another Swedish defenseman for his pick at 9 and it is widely believed he was talking about Ekman-Larsson who has skyrocketed through the rankings, some has him as high as a top 5 pick. Said to be a slightly poorer version of Nicklas Lidstrom, he is a bit of a boom or bust prospect, but the boom he could make is to tempting to pass up if he falls this far.
10.Edmonton Oilers- Nazem Kadri: This is a tough one as they lack strong physical players, I think thye may drop down a couple spots to take Zack Kassian a rugged power forward type, but if they stay here, Kadri is a good choice as they need a winger to play the other side of Hemsky and Horcoff, with 2 other centerman with great potential, Kadri goes here as he can play C and RW and I believe he will be switched to the wing. Note that it isn't impossible that Kadri falls on draft day, he's not too strong and isn't that tall so it's a bit of a toss up.
11. Nashville Predators - Jordan Schroeder: Another guy who can play RW like Kadri, he may have more skill than Kadri but is very small at 5'8" 168lbs. Nashville takes him because they took a big strong center in Colin Wilson last year so they can afford a smallish skilled winger. A lot of people have him dropping to Minnesota because he is from there, after the top 7 it's more of a guessing game and he could go to Minnesota, but I think Nashville needs skill on the wing now more than ever with the loss of Radulov.
12.Minnesota Wild- Scott Glenie: I had a tough time with this one but I think Glennie is a good choice. Put up good number with Brandon of the WHL playing with Brayden Schenn, the kid has wheels and scoring ability. The Wild are likely losing Gaborik so a fast skater with scoring ability is something they could use I believe.
13.Buffalo Sabres: John Moore- Tyler Myers is a great start on D, but they are losing key defenseman in the comming seasons. Moore is one of the top three players in terms of skating ability in the draft and if a good puck mover, something the Sabres will be in dire need of soon. Hopefully he does come to the Kitchener Rangers this comming season.
14.Florida Panthers- Zack Kassian- A rugged winger, one of the strongest kids in the draft the panthers could you a big more muscle on the wings.
15. Anaheim Ducks- Ryan Ellis: The Ducks will lose either Pronger or Niedermeyer this year and will likely have lost both by the time Ellis can step up. I'm a little bit reluctant to put him here because of his size and the fact he would be playing in the rough Western Conference but his offensive skills are undeniable and the ducks have enough big strong forwards that they should be able to protect him.
16.Columbus Blue Jackets - David Rundblad: Rundblad seems a bit underrated and I believe the Jackets could use a puck moving D so I slot him here.
17.St. Louis Blues- Carter Ashton: Big strong winger who can score, I think the Blues could really use someone like him, maybe to go with Berglund on a second line in the future.
18. Montreal Canadiens- Louis Leblanc: Even though he left Quebec to play in the USHL, I think the Canadiens take him to add a french canadian to the organization, something they've prided themselves on in the past and have been lacking for a while. It doesn't hurt that he's a good offensive player either.
19.New York Rangers: Peter Holland- Relatively big center who's already a solid skater, and it seems to improve each year with the great skating couch they have in Guelph. The Rags could use a center with a bit of size.
20.Calgary Flames: Chris Kreider- He has good size, something the Flames like and he can play C or W,they often have injury problems and versatility is key.
21.Philidelphia Flyers: Jacob Josefson- I put him here because I just don't see him slipping any further.
22.Vancouver Canucks: Stefan Elliot - Average sized puck mover, I take him over Nick Leddy because I think he would fare better in the rough Western Conference than Leddy and the Nucks need a puck mover in the comming years.
23.New Jersey Devils: Nick Leddy- Simply put, NJ needs a puck mover with good skating and offensive ability, they don't really have that right now, unless you count Paul Martin and I don't think he's a legitimate PP QB as I believe Leddy can be.
24.Washington Capitals: Simon Despres-Terrible U-18 caused him to fall in ISS rankings, however I don't think he falls all the way to 30. He's got the skills and has the size, adding him would make the cupboard on D fairly full for the Caps.
25.Boston Bruins: Landon Ferraro- Last two drafts they took centerman with their first rounders, they've got the tough power forward winger in Lucic so I think this year they take a sniper on the wing.
26.New York Islanders(From Ott. originally SJ)Calvin De Haan- They take a forward with there first pick, second pick they take an offensive Dman who has also played with Tavares.
27.Carolina Hurricanes: Kyle Palmieri-He's BPA at this point, don't see him falling further.
28.Chicago Blackhawks: Drew Shore- Not many prospects at Center in the system, Akim Aliu being the best and he's nowhere near a sure bet.
29.Pittsburgh Penguins: Jordan Caron-They have three good centers signed for a while but I think they have to go with what I think is BPA here. Maybe he switches to the wing or they use him as bait for a winger.
30.Detroit Red Wings: Tim Erixon- He seems like he may be a bit underrated, moves the puck well and Lidstrom's career is winding down as is Rafalski's, and they love there Swede's.
Comments welcome and appreciated. Was having trouble finding some of these players postions so it made some choices, especially toward the end, much more difficult.
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