Strength of the 2014 Draft Class

[RookieInsider]

I know some people are all hyped about MacKinnon and Drouin and then in 2015 McDavid and Eichel but in all honesty how does this draft of Bennett Ekblad etc stack up against these 2 draft years. IS the hype from McDavid and Eichel taking away from the actual talent of this years draft making it seem as this draft is "weak"? or is this draft actually truly weaker then these 2? I just want some opinions on this topic. Some people are saying things like "Elias Lindholm only went so late because of the draft if it was 2014 he'd contend for #1 pick" are people correct to say things like that? Lets hear some opinions

[gainerama]

There's no stand out high end elite talent in 2014 when compared to the other two years. You have good potential players, but probably not any generational or superstar talents from the guessing so far. I give you an example, I ended up drafting Sam Bennett and when another GM offered me their 2015 1st rd pick with potential top 4 overall, I gave up Bennett faster than you can say Sausage.

[VintageVibe]

I do think this years draft class hasn't received the attention they deserve with McDavid and co. coming in next year.

That being said: I think MacKinnon, Drouin, McDavid and Eichel will turn into Stamkos, P Kane, Crosby and Giroux type players (i.e. top 10 talent).

While Reinhart, Bennett and Draisaitl will turn into Eberle, Parise, and Kopitar type players (i.e. top 20).

At this point in time it's anyone's guess. Only time will tell!

[Bass56]

I do think this years draft class hasn't received the attention they deserve with McDavid and co. coming in next year.

That being said: I think MacKinnon, Drouin, McDavid and Eichel will turn into Stamkos, P Kane, Crosby and Giroux type players (i.e. top 10 talent).

While Reinhart, Bennett and Draisaitl will turn into Eberle, Parise, and Kopitar type players (i.e. top 20).

At this point in time it's anyone's guess. Only time will tell!

+1 on the dot with this

[Axeman33]

I think the fact that there was no real clear cut #1 this year makes people speculate that this draft class is "weak". I call BS. I think every year there are quality, future NHL players. I mean, lets take Nichushkin as an example. Last year, the pre-draft hype was all MacKinnon and Drouin. Most drafts, I bet Nichushkin was drafted around 4th overall AT BEST! Today, the sun shines on him like few others and he craps lollypops. Who knows who this years Nichushkin will be. I think every year there are lots of quality assets to be had. Just because there is no clear cut #1 doesn't mean the draft is weak, to me it means the draft is pretty damn equal. Not a bad thing at all.

[lesouder]

Most drafts, I bet Nichushkin was drafted around 4th overall AT BEST! Today, the sun shines on him like few others and he craps lollypops. Who knows who this years Nichushkin will be.

In all fairness the reason Nichushkin wasn't a top 5 pick was because he is Russian and was playing in the KHL/VHL/MHL at the time. If he had been playing in the CHL you can almost guarantee he'd have been picked much, much earlier in both the real NHL draft and fantasy leagues. He also was very vocal before the draft that he wanted to play in the NHL or he'd return to Russia and if I'm not mistaken he said the combine was a joke to him. Why roll the dice more than you need to, right? So he slide until the risk-reward pedulum swung the other way. Also let's not get too far ahead of ourselves, he was used in favourable situations and had low expectations in his rookie year. Playing in Dallas will help on the media and publicity side of things but let's see how he handles being expected to produce at a certain level every night from his coach and management.

To answer the OP's question though, VintageVibe pretty much nailed it on the head. McDavid and Eichel are expected to emerge as star caliber players, with McDavid possibly being a generational type. Beyond those two there are probably at least 10 very good prospects, so basically McDavid, Eichel and then 10+ Reinhart, Bennetts and Ekblads types - The 2003 draft has arguably been the deepest in NHL history and many are predicting that type of crop for the 2015 draft.

[Axeman33]

In all fairness the reason Nichushkin wasn't a top 5 pick was because he is Russian and was playing in the KHL/VHL/MHL at the time. If he had been playing in the CHL you can almost guarantee he'd have been picked much, much earlier in both the real NHL draft and fantasy leagues. He also was very vocal before the draft that he wanted to play in the NHL or he'd return to Russia and if I'm not mistaken he said the combine was a joke to him. Why roll the dice more than you need to, right? So he slide until the risk-reward pedulum swung the other way. Also let's not get too far ahead of ourselves, he was used in favourable situations and had low expectations in his rookie year. Playing in Dallas will help on the media and publicity side of things but let's see how he handles being expected to produce at a certain level every night from his coach and management.

To answer the OP's question though, VintageVibe pretty much nailed it on the head. McDavid and Eichel are expected to emerge as star caliber players, with McDavid possibly being a generational type. Beyond those two there are probably at least 10 very good prospects, so basically McDavid, Eichel and then 10+ Reinhart, Bennetts and Ekblads types - The 2003 draft has arguably been the deepest in NHL history and many are predicting that type of crop for the 2015 draft.

I doubt he would have gone any higher in fantasy drafts than 4th overall (which is where he seemed to be the consensus pick). I doubt he passes and bumps MacKinnon, Drouin and Barkov out of that top 3 but it's possible I guess.

[Fast Tony DeNiro]

The 2014 draft is sandwiched in between two very very good drafts. Yes, this hurts the perception of the class, I think. The 2014 draft is pretty averagely deep in terms of the 1st round, there just aren't any clear-cut superstar types at the top. But in terms of potential top 6 forwards or top 4 defenders, it's pretty deep through the 1st round and into the beginning of the 2nd. It peters out in a hurry, though.

So in terms of high-end talent and depth, ya it's weak. But the first two rounds are pretty average compared to most drafts.

[DMaz16]

I think part of the debate stems from the definition of "weaker" and "stronger". When many talk about strength they have a pretty narrow scope looking at the top 10 or so prospects. In that regard I definitely think that the 2014 is noticeably weaker than the two drafts sandwiching it. I think arguments could be made that all of Mack, Drouin, Barkov, Jones, Monahan, Lindholm and Nichushkin are better than any 2014 draft prospect. Additionally McDavid, Eichel and possibly Hanifan have the look of genuine superstars at the NHL level. So if you're looking at this narrow definition then I support the notion that 2014 is a weaker draft.

However as Axeman noted a draft class is not defined by the top few guys. I believe that the 2014 draft has quite a few players who will become quality NHLers. With the exception of perhaps the 1999 draft (bad) and the 2003 draft (amazing), when you compare recent drafts against each other I feel like they compare pretty evenly against each other. The 2005 draft had Sidney Crosby but does that make the overall draft better than 2007 where Kane, JVR, and Turris were the top 3 picks. I'd argue that they are pretty even. If you are using the broader, whole draft definition, I doubt that 2013 or 2015 will be all that much more impressive than the 2014 one.

[fungchen3]

I do think this years draft class hasn't received the attention they deserve with McDavid and co. coming in next year.

That being said: I think MacKinnon, Drouin, McDavid and Eichel will turn into Stamkos, P Kane, Crosby and Giroux type players (i.e. top 10 talent).

While Reinhart, Bennett and Draisaitl will turn into Eberle, Parise, and Kopitar type players (i.e. top 20).

At this point in time it's anyone's guess. Only time will tell!

I kinda agree with this too. MacKinnon and Drouin (2013) and McDavid and Eichel (2015) project to be elite-level or borderline-elite-level talents. Reinhart, Bennett, Draisaitl, Nylander, Dal Colle, etc. (2014) can be star-to-superstar level if all goes right. However, the one exception for me in 2014 is Nikolaj Ehlers - I think he has the potential to be a borderline-elite player.

[mounD]

Yeah, I think 2014 gets a really bad reputation for no good reason. I understand the criticism that there is no MacKinnon / McDavid type of player who has the potential to be a generational talent. But there are tons of guys who could be legit stars in the NHL. Bennett, Reinhart, Draisaitl, Dal Colle, Ehlers, Nylander, Ekblad, Nick Ritchie, etc. all have the potential to be top-tier fantasy assets (especially Bennett, Draisaitl, Ekblad, and Ehlers imo). Plus, if you look at the top 30-35 picks or so there is very good depth n the 2014 draft -- at least as far as potential top6 F / top4 D talent goes.

In multi-cat leagues, Sam Bennett is going to be absurd in 3 years, and people will be like "oh, I guess 2014 wasn't that bad."

[arctic_rogue]

The beauty is, in both my leagues, the hate for this year's draft went too far. People were able to acquire early picks MUCH cheaper than they should have been.