The Confluence
Oh yeah, there’s a Draft coming up…..
by Tony on 06/17/09 at 10:53 AM ET
Comments (0)
Time sure flies when your team is busy winning a Cup.
Don’t look now, Penguins fans, but now that the Cup has been hoisted and the parade is done, it’s time to start focusing in on the NHL Draft and the start of free agency. I’ll take a look at the UFA’s in the coming days.
Much like the Steelers have gotten used to in recent years, it’ll be a little bit of a wait in the first round for the Pens, picking 30th.
Look at it this way, at least the Pens have a 1st round pick this year, since last year’s was part of the trade package the Pens gave to Atlanta in the Marian Hossa trade at the deadline last season.
Here are the seven picks for the Penguins as it stands right now:
Round 1, #30
Round 2, #61
Round 3, #63 (acquired from Tampa Bay in the Ryan Malone/Gary Roberts rights deal. Malone’s signing with Tampa was the condition of the Pens getting this pick)
Round 4, #120
Round 5, #122 (acquired from Tampa Bay in the trade that sent Michal Sersen to the Lightning)
Round 6, #180
Round 7, #210
The Penguins also traded two of their picks away, they are:
Round 3, #91 (to New York Islanders in the Bill Guerin trade. The Penguins making the playoffs, then advancing past the first round of the playoffs and Guerin playing more than 50 percent of the games was the condition changing this pick from a 5th to 4th to a 3rd round pick.)
Round 5, #150 (to the New York Rangers via Toronto in the Hal Gill trade. Pick originally went to Toronto, the Leafs then sent this pick to the Rangers in the Ryan Hollweg deal.)
Observations:
- I’m not going to speculate at all in terms of individual players. Instead, I’m going to defer to my colleague at the Faceoff Factor, Jesse Marshall. Jesse is without a doubt the best evaluator of prospects among Penguins bloggers. Jesse has already posted some possible Penguins’ draft picks here. He plans on updating that list soon, as well.
- If you’re Ray Shero with that #1 pick, do you go for a winger ?? A defensive defenseman ?? I’ve seen several mock drafts, and they run the gammit in terms of positions. I’ve even seen one where they predicted the Penguins would select goalie Mike Lee in the first round. Wow.
- I like the fact that the Pens not only have the #61 in the second, but another at a high third rounder at #63. Most likely will still be good prospects at that point of the draft. That also goes, to a lesser extent of the #120 and #122 picks in the 4th and 5th picks, as well.
- Naturally, all of this is very tentative, pending any trades. Who knows if Shero will roll the dice and try to move up in the first round.
Filed in: Pittsburgh Penguins | The Confluence | Permalink
Tags: NHL-Hockey, Pittsburgh+Penguins,
Comments
Be the first to comment.
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.
Most Recent Blog Posts
Turn Out The Lights, The Party’s Over: I’m Stepping Down
Bill Cowher’s Daughter to Marry Kevin Westgarth
Penguins Sign Forward Steve MacIntyre
Penguins Re-Sign Forward Dustin Jeffrey to Two-Year Deal
Crosby Donation Leads To Renovation at Children’s Hospital
About Kukla’s Korner
Kukla’s Korner is updated around the clock with the work of our own talented bloggers, plus links to the best hockey writing around the internet. We strive to bring you all the breaking hockey news as it happens.
The home page allows you to see the latest postings from every blog on the site. Subscribe here. For general inquiries and more, please contact us anytime.
Get the top online sports betting bonuses available to sports betters!
Kukla’s Korner is always a free service for readers, but it costs some money to maintain. If you’re ever in a position to donate a few dollars to help out, we’d be very appreciative.