WHAT IF… DISPERSAL DRAFT
By Jason Gregor
10 years ago
The fate of the Phoenix Coyotes could be decided within the next two weeks. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly mentioned yesterday that it is possible that Phoenix could relocate. "It certainly means that it’s possible that the team won’t play there next year. We’re in the short strokes in Phoenix now," said Daly.
The Coyotes saga has gone on way too long, but yesterday Daly and Gary Bettman spoke openly about relocation, something they’ve been loathe to do. Many feel Seattle would be the obvious destination, but what if Seattle or Quebec aren’t viable, could we see a dispersal draft?
It is unlikely, but if it happens some teams would get some pretty good players.
If they had a dispersal draft, they would most likely do a reverse draft based on last year’s standings, so Florida would get the first pick. For fun here is what I think the first round would look like.
If they had a dispersal draft, they would most likely do a reverse draft based on last year’s standings, so Florida would get the first pick. For fun here is what I think the first round would look like.
1. Florida: OIiver Ekman-Larsson. His new six-year, $27.5 million deal starts next season. He’d be a huge boost to the Panthers backend.
2. Colorado: Keith Yandle. The Avs need help on their blueline. Yandle has three years left at $5.25 million. He, along with Seth Jones, could quickly change the outlook for the Avalanche.
3. Tampa Bay: They need help on the blueline, and would want to trade down, but that makes a mock draft way too hard to predict, so I’ll say they keep their pick and take Zbynek Michalek.
4. Nashville: The desperately need offence and take Shane Doan. He’s got a farm/cowboy background so he’ll love NashVegas.
5. Carolina: They like Hanzal, but need help on their blueline and take Brandon Gormley (13th pick in 2010 draft), and hope they can develop him.
6. Calgary: The Flames gladly snatch up Martin Hanzal, and Jay Feaster immediately claims the Flames will make the playoffs.
7. Edmonton: The Oilers debate over Mike Smith, but since he’s a UFA they take Henrik Samuelsson instead. Some will quesiton the pick because he’s not in the NHL, and he plays for the Oil Kings, but he’s the exact type of forward they need in the organization.
8. Buffalo: The Sabres take Mike Smith and within hours of making the pick, they annonce they’ve traded Ryan Miller.
9. New Jersey: The Devils need more offence and they grab Radim Vrbata. He puts up some solid PP numbers in NJ.
10. Dallas: Jim Nill loves veterans and chooses centre Antoine Vermette.
11. Philadelphia: The Flyers try desperately to make a trade, just because they like to make a lot of trades, but they don’t find a partner and since they can’t afford any big salary they choose Connor Murphy (20th pick, 2011 draft).
12. Winnipeg: Initially the Jets asked for a special exemption to pick first since Phoenix stole their team two decades ago, but Bettman said no. The Jets need offence and take RFA forward Mikkel Boedker, and they sign him for six million over three years.
13. Columbus: The Jackets want young offence, and they go off the board and select Chris Brown (36th pick, 2009 draft). Brown had 29 goals and 47 points in his first AHL campaign in 2012/2013 and the Jackets believe he can help them.
14. Islanders: They lost Mark Streit so they grab David Schlemko. The Edmonton resident won’t replace Streit’s offence but they feel he can be a regular.
15. Minnesota: The Wild take Derek Morris. They want depth on their backend.
16. Ottawa: They want to upgrade their 4th line and take UFA Boyd Gordon, and sign him to a two-year deal.
17. Detroit: The Wings grab David Rundblad (17th pick, 2009). They are confident they can turn him into a solid NHL D-man.
18. Rangers: Slats loves wildcards so they take Rostislav Klesla.
19. San Jose: The Sharks take Michael Stone, and many wonder why the Rangers didn’t take him instead.
20. Washington: They choose David Moss.
21. Toronto: The Leafs take goalie Mark Visentin. The Leafs haven’t drafted a goalie in the first four rounds, since they took James Reimer (4th round, 99th overall) in 2006.
22. Vancouver: They choose veteran Kyle Chipchura. They need more centre depth.
23. Los Angeles: They take goalie Chad Johnson. They want depth in the organization and they plan to trade Jonathon Bernier.
24. St.Louis: They want to engage with their fans more so they choose Paul Bissonnette.
25. Boston: They select Lauri Korpikoski. Claude Julien likes to roll four lines and likes Korpikoski’s speed.
26. Montreal: They grab journeyman Andre Bolduc.
27. Anaheim: Takes Rob Klinkhammer. They like his name and he’s cost effective at $600,000 for the next two years.
28. Pittsburgh: The Penguins take Jordan Martinook (58th pick, 2012). He’s already played one year in the AHL and they hope he can be a call up next season.
29. Chicago: They grab Lucas Lessio (56th pick, 2011 draft) and he becomes a solid performer within two seasons.
I know it is unlikely that the NHL would have a dispersal draft, but considering we will see compliance buyouts this summer and a reduced salary cap next season, a dispersal draft would just add to the intrigue.
QUICK HITS
- What an excellent game one for the Cup final. If Nathan Horton is out, I don’t see the Bruins being able to bounce back. The Hawks won and none of their gunners, only Hossa had one point, really made an impression.
- Does any player get less respect than Corey Crawford? He’s been very solid in the playoffs, yet few seem to think he’s capable of winning the Cup.
- I sense that Hockey Canada influenced the CHL into banning European goalies. It looks like a knee jerk reaction. Banning Euro goalies won’t make the US/CDN kids who replace them better. The Canadian goalie class coming out in this year’s draft looks strong. You can expect that four of the first five goalies chosen will be Canadian.
- Is the CHL going to ban all European players next?
PRANCERCIZE CONTEST
This "workout" craze gave us a fun contest idea. We asked people to submit their best mock/spoof videos. The winner will receive a total of $1,300 in gift certificates from The Pint, Rona, United Cycle, Palisades DQ, eBus on Red Arrow, Safeway and vivo ristorante.
We have decided on these four finalists. You can vote on our Nation Poll page we will announce the winner on Monday.
Enjoy, they are all very different in their approach to Prancercize.
SHANE: THE NEW FARM ANIMALS
ALEX: MR. DRESS UP’S TICKLE TRUNK
RUSSELL: SALLY O’MALLEY
RANDI: THE CAMEL TOE
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