The 2011 NHL Entry Draft’s first round will take place tonight at the Xcel Energy Center, with the Boston Bruins holding the ninth overall selection.
Boston Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli met with media Thursday evening to briefly discuss where the 2011 Stanley Cup champions sit, possessing a pair of non-playoff picks in the opening two rounds.
“I don’t think there will be any magic for us. I think after the first three or four (prospects) there is another group of eight that we’ll be picking through,” said Chiarelli. “There is a good batch of defensemen, wingers and centers. Oftentimes players you have ranked below your pick can creep in ahead of your pick, and good players can fall right into your lap.”
Chiarelli also mentioned that even though the Bruins have an identified need at upgrading the organization at the defense position, the team would not alter its traditional draft philosophy of taking the best player available regardless of position.
The Bruins are in the enviable position of picking twice in the top-40 and three in the top-90 (81st in the third round by virtue of Derek Morris trade with Phoenix), where had the team kept its own first- and second-round selections, would be 30th, 61st and 91st respectively. While the scouting staff still has to hit on those picks, the team is uniquely positioned to come away with a cluster of talent that could set the Bruins up as contenders for well into the current decade.
NOTEBOOK
Philadelphia made two earth-shattering deals yesterday in dealing away offensive leaders Mike Richards and Jeff Carter to Los Angeles and Columbus respectively. The Blue Jackets deal was seen coming, but the Richards deal was not. Obviously, there were leadership and dressing room issues when the captain was moved to the West Coast, but the immediate implications of this trade is that while the Flyers now have a legitimate netminder in Ilya Bryzgalov in the fold, they may have robbed Peter to pay Paul by shipping out such crucial pieces of their offense. We shall see.
Northeast Division rumblings
The Montreal Canadiens are rumored to be hot on the trail for defenseman Nathan Beaulieu, but he won’t be there at 17 for the bleu, blanc et rouge. High-flying Peterborough Petes scoring winger Matt Puempel could end up being the guy for the Habs if they stand pat. Although Puempel missed the end of the season with a hip injury, the NHL Scouting Combine revealed it was not a chronic problem for the 2010 CHL Rookie of the Year.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are looking to swing a deal and Brian Burke (Providence, R.I.) has the draft currency to pull it off. With two late firsts, an early second to bandy about, Burke may sacrifice quantity for quantity to try and get the player the team desires. Is power center Mark McNeill the type of player the Leafs will target? The talk at the draft is that the Leafs have tried to quietly follow him, but the cat may be out of the bag with him as an object of desire.
One of the key swing picks for the first round which will determine Boston’s player at nine is Ottawa, who sits at six and it is believed GM Bryan Murray will have an interesting choice between Sean Couturier, Dougie Hamilton, Ryan Strome and possibly Swedish center Mika Zibanejad, whose stock and popularity is surging. If Couturier gets skipped, he could fall all the way down to the Bruins, which would present them with an interesting decision when their turn comes.
One off-the-grid pick that isn’t beyond the realm of possibility for Boston is Barrie center Mark Scheifele, who was Canada’s best forward at April’s World Under-18 Championships. He was a point-per-game player on a terrible team, is extremely bright (was originally bound for Cornell before changing his mind) and has the natural size and upside teams crave. Nine might be a stretch for Scheifele, but scuttlebutt here is that he won’t be too far away from being a top-10 pick and could be this year’s Ryan Johansen as a player who goes much higher than where he is being projected.
Boston Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli met with media Thursday evening to briefly discuss where the 2011 Stanley Cup champions sit, possessing a pair of non-playoff picks in the opening two rounds.
“I don’t think there will be any magic for us. I think after the first three or four (prospects) there is another group of eight that we’ll be picking through,” said Chiarelli. “There is a good batch of defensemen, wingers and centers. Oftentimes players you have ranked below your pick can creep in ahead of your pick, and good players can fall right into your lap.”
Chiarelli also mentioned that even though the Bruins have an identified need at upgrading the organization at the defense position, the team would not alter its traditional draft philosophy of taking the best player available regardless of position.
The Bruins are in the enviable position of picking twice in the top-40 and three in the top-90 (81st in the third round by virtue of Derek Morris trade with Phoenix), where had the team kept its own first- and second-round selections, would be 30th, 61st and 91st respectively. While the scouting staff still has to hit on those picks, the team is uniquely positioned to come away with a cluster of talent that could set the Bruins up as contenders for well into the current decade.
NOTEBOOK
Philadelphia made two earth-shattering deals yesterday in dealing away offensive leaders Mike Richards and Jeff Carter to Los Angeles and Columbus respectively. The Blue Jackets deal was seen coming, but the Richards deal was not. Obviously, there were leadership and dressing room issues when the captain was moved to the West Coast, but the immediate implications of this trade is that while the Flyers now have a legitimate netminder in Ilya Bryzgalov in the fold, they may have robbed Peter to pay Paul by shipping out such crucial pieces of their offense. We shall see.
Northeast Division rumblings
The Toronto Maple Leafs are looking to swing a deal and Brian Burke (Providence, R.I.) has the draft currency to pull it off. With two late firsts, an early second to bandy about, Burke may sacrifice quantity for quantity to try and get the player the team desires. Is power center Mark McNeill the type of player the Leafs will target? The talk at the draft is that the Leafs have tried to quietly follow him, but the cat may be out of the bag with him as an object of desire.
One of the key swing picks for the first round which will determine Boston’s player at nine is Ottawa, who sits at six and it is believed GM Bryan Murray will have an interesting choice between Sean Couturier, Dougie Hamilton, Ryan Strome and possibly Swedish center Mika Zibanejad, whose stock and popularity is surging. If Couturier gets skipped, he could fall all the way down to the Bruins, which would present them with an interesting decision when their turn comes.
One off-the-grid pick that isn’t beyond the realm of possibility for Boston is Barrie center Mark Scheifele, who was Canada’s best forward at April’s World Under-18 Championships. He was a point-per-game player on a terrible team, is extremely bright (was originally bound for Cornell before changing his mind) and has the natural size and upside teams crave. Nine might be a stretch for Scheifele, but scuttlebutt here is that he won’t be too far away from being a top-10 pick and could be this year’s Ryan Johansen as a player who goes much higher than where he is being projected.
