What Am I missing....

[random-d]

Aram Minnetian

From the film I've seen on this kid he has Makar-esque skating and hands but I keep seeing him fairly low on draft boards (22nd best defenseman, 78th NA skaters). For a draft that isn't incredibly deep on defenseman I would think he'd be getting more attention. Is he a Merkley or Deangelo type? Seems like a middle round steal to me but maybe there's something I don't know about him.

[Selanne13]

Damn, a lot of views, but no posts. I'd be interested in peoples thoughts as well and was hoping for some answers. I am in the same position as the OP here so unfortunately i cannot provide more information.

[senryu]

Perhaps it is an indictment on me, but I have never heard of that person.

[random-d]

Perhaps it is an indictment on me, but I have never heard of that person.

I don't think anyone who isn't digging past the top 32 has. I'm just wondering how late I can get him.

[Belexus75]

Not sure when your draft is but if it’s after NHL draft… it could be good indicator for you once u know where he went in NHL

[Pengwin7]

His bio says he's a former forward, recently converted to defense.
My guess... pro scouts have seen his defensive game - and THAT - is probably sliding him down.
The internet typically doesn't provide a lot of highlights of defensemen failing at playing defense - and they all make mistakes - and there are rarely highlights captured for those.

(Extrapolating from my years of playing hockey - anytime we had a forward that had to be pulled back to play D... he was a disaster defensively. Sure Fedorov and Burns and Buff have played both at NHL-level... but the backwards skating defensive game is very difficult against NHL-level opposing skaters oncoming... and that level of forwards doesn't really exist at the USNTDP level.)

[random-d]

Draft takes place before NHL draft. These guys tend to overvalue defensemen especially ones with offensive potential. My earliest pick is 30th but I'm betting that there's enough depth in the draft that he will have easily been overlooked by most of the GM's up to that point but I'm also sure that there are a few that are aware of him. Next pick is 35 and then 37. I'm guessing he's definitely available at 30 and at least the top 10 defenseman on ESPN's draft ranking will be gone by then but I wonder how long I can wait... I mean I'm not going to quit fantasy hockey if I don't get him but I really like what I'm seeing here. For anyone interested in "what I'm seeing here", there's an 8 minute video on youtube from 22-23.

[Belexus75]

if there is no NHL draft to reference, im sure most guys will follow rankings from few platforms for anybody past 10 or so...

[Eskimo Brother]

If he's really a target of yours, then I think you can still wait to 37, even with the heavy lean towards D in your league. If he's gone before, it just means a few GMs are reaching and there is probably a top-25 guy still on the board.

[random-d]

If he's really a target of yours, then I think you can still wait to 37, even with the heavy lean towards D in your league. If he's gone before, it just means a few GMs are reaching and there is probably a top-25 guy still on the board.

You're probably right, I'm also liking Bertucci as a backup plan a little later.

[JayJJeffery]

For what it's worth, he went 53 and 59 in my two dynasty leagues (before the real draft too).

I had him at around 60th on my board, I also consolidated 8 of the most recent draft rankings and these were his numbers;

44

74

53

87

62

52

68

44

60.5 (Average)

[snaxwell]

Just chiming in here to say that I picked this guy 67th OA in my rookie draft (32 team cap league) because of this post. Had never heard of him before yesterday when I read this. A few guys were bummed I picked him before them and the general sense is that he is a bit of a sleeper but it looks like guys catch on to him around the 50-60 pick mark. Will probably be one of the last boom-potential D prospects available.

[random-d]

Just chiming in here to say that I picked this guy 67th OA in my rookie draft (32 team cap league) because of this post. Had never heard of him before yesterday when I read this. A few guys were bummed I picked him before them and the general sense is that he is a bit of a sleeper but it looks like guys catch on to him around the 50-60 pick mark. Will probably be one of the last boom-potential D prospects available.

That's good to know. I might have to jump a little earlier because of how much these guys overvalue defensemen. I should know alot by the time the 30th pick comes around though based on how many D are off the board at that point.

[random-d]

I ended up getting him at 51-53. I picked him at 51 but I had 3 consecutive picks.