2009 SBN NHL Mock Draft: Day 10: Penguins nab Elliott at 30th

by James Mirtle on Jun 25, 2009 5:00 AM CDT Comment 8 comments

Welcome to Day 10 of SB Nation's 10-day mock draft here in downtown Toronto, as I call the 'Hawks, Red Wings and Pens to the big board for the final three picks from No. 28 to 30. The defending champs from PensBurgh have the final pick of the draft:

#	Team	Pick	Blogger's notes	More analysis:
1	N.Y. Islanders	John Tavares, London (OHL)	The sexy pick, the consensus pick, the right pick. He's what this team and franchise needs most. Get ready for "Islanders goal scored by #91..." because they're coming in bunches.	Lighthouse Hockey
2	Tampa Bay	Victor Hedman, Modo (Swe)	A boy playing among men in the Swedish Elite League (and thriving) the past two seasons, Hedman starts immediately on the TB blueline and can contribute at both ends of the ice.	Raw Charge
3	Colorado	Matt Duchene, Brampton (OHL)	No big surprise here; we’ll take whichever of the big 3 is available and immediately offer them a position as GM & coach.	Mile High Hockey
4	Atlanta	Evander Kane, Vancouver (WHL)	Named after Atlanta boxing legend Evander Holyfield, Kane adds some scoring punch to Atlanta's top six — perhaps as early as this fall.	Bird Watchers Anonymous
5	Los Angeles	Braydon Schenn, Brandon (WHL)	Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson is the popular pick here, seeing as how the Kings need a left winger badly, but I'm counting on Dean Lombardi's love of grit and distaste for Swedes to influence his decision here. Plus, I really wanted to upset Toronto fans.	Battle of California
6	Phoenix	Jared Cowen, Spokane (WHL)	The Coyotes are deep on forward prospects and badly need young defensemen. Cowen is a beast who could play in the NHL very soon if his recently repaired knee doesn't hamper him.	Five For Howling
7	Toronto	Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson, Timra IK (Swe)	Most of Canada already hates him, so he'll fit in just fine. Plus he provides the high-end Swedish forward that the Leafs have been missing since last April.	Pension Plan Puppets
8	Dallas	Oliver Ekman-Larssen, Leksand IF (Swe-2)	Dallas is fortunate to not only draft the best player available but also pick a defenseman that fills a glaring need in the Stars' system.	Defending Big D
9	Ottawa	Nazem Kadri, London (OHL)	With Ottawa's recent emphasis on drafting skilled defencemen, Kadri gives the Senators a good skilled forward to fill out the team's development systems — maybe even one of those ever-elusive top-six forwards.	Silver Seven
10	Edmonton	Ryan Ellis, Windsor (OHL)	No 17-year old defensemen has ever led the OHL in assists — not even Bobby Orr. That is, no one has done it until Ryan Ellis did this year. The only thing keeping him out of the top three is his height.	Copper & Blue
11	Nashville	Jordan Schroeder, University of Minnesota (NCAA)	He may be short in stature, but he's long on talent and strength. Just as he played alongside Colin Wilson at the World Juniors, he projects to be the next top Predators prospect to come out of collegiate hockey.	On The Forecheck
12	Minnesota	Zach Budish, Edina Minnesota (USHS)	After missing last season for the Hornets with a torn ACL from his football playing days, Budish has added size and strength during his rehab. Now at 6'3" and 229 pounds, Budish is the type of power forward the Wild have always lacked.	Hockey Wilderness
13	Buffalo	Zack Kassian, Peterborough (OHL)	At 6'3" and 215 pounds, Kassian is the most NHL-ready prospect in the draft. His offensive upside may not be as great as some of the other prospects but he makes up for that with size, speed and strength. He is everything the Sabres are not. Big, strong and tough.	Die By The Blade
14	Florida	Louis Leblanc, Omaha (USHL)	It's no secret Florida is in dire need of offensive-minded centers, and LeBlanc - the USHL Rookie of the Year - has impressed by leading his club in scoring and having a way-cool hockey name.	The Litter Box
15	Anaheim	Dmitri Kulikov, Drum'ville (QMJHL)	I haven't seen a draft projection that has him picked later than 16th, and I'll have to assume he has some value. The Ducks don't have a great history of picking Russian defensemen with their top picks so I may be off-base.	Battle of California
16	Columbus	David Rundblad, Skelleftea (Swe)	The Blue Jackets look to add some serious skill on the back-end. Rundblad will quickly become a vital piece to the young core in Columbus.	The Cannon
17	St. Louis	Chris Kreider, Philips-Andover Academy (USHS)	A center with exceptional size and skating ability, Kreider is also blessed with a goal-scorer's touch. A character guy on and off the ice, Kreider is everything the Blues' scouts typically look for in a player.	St. Louis Game Time
18	Montreal	Scott Glennie, Brandon (WHL)	Glennie is the closest thing to a sure bet the Habs could get at the 18th slot. A competitive, responsible, focused player who displays good maturity and poise, Glennie is a projected top six forward, who should make his place on the Habs within three seasons.	Eyes On The Prize
19	N.Y. Rangers	Carter Ashton, Lethbridge (WHL)	Ashton has all the tools necessary to become a solid power forward in the NHL. Big strong kid who skates well and puts up good numbers.	Blueshirt Banter
20	Calgary	Landon Ferraro, Red Deer (WHL)	Flames could use a strong scoring winger as the organization is extremely light in that regard beyond Greg Nemisz. In addition, Ferraro could develop as a Red Deer Rebel under the watchful eye of new Flames bench boss Brent Sutter.	Matchsticks & Gasoline
21	Philadelphia	Simon Despres, Saint John (QMJHL)	His size, mobility, and hockey sense epitomize the meaning of a solid, puck-moving defenseman. It's hard to pass up a player with a skill set like Despres has.	Broadstreet Hockey
22	Vancouver	John Moore, Chicago Steel (USHL)	The USHL Defenseman of the Year is precisely what the Canucks do not have: a blindingly fast offensive-minded defenseman with a potent shot and leadership skills to boot.	'Nucks Misconduct
23	New Jersey	Calvin de Haan, Oshawa (OHL)	Calvin de Haan is a slick skating, offensive-defenseman who thrived all season in Oshawa – with and without John Tavares. His best assets include his intelligence, his ability to move the puck up ice, and his calm approach to the game, even in pressure situations.	In Lou We Trust
24	Washington	Jacob Josefson, Djurgardens (Swe)	For the third time in four years, the Caps take a Swedish pivot with their first pick, as the defensively-sound playmaker both fits an organizational need and is simply the best player available at this point.	Japers' Rink
25	Boston	Peter Holland, Guelph (OHL)	Holland is a great skater, who is gifted offensively. Besides being an offensive threat, Holland is a two-way forward, who knows his responsibilities in his own end of the rink.	Stanley Cup of Chowder
26	N.Y. Islanders	Tim Erixon, Skelleftea (Swe)	The Isles' system needs a two-way blueliner who isn't undersized. NY-born Tim Erixon, "already playing with men" in the SEL, fits the bill. If they keep this pick, they can take more forwards at 31 and 37.	Lighthouse Hockey
27	Carolina	Drew Shore, US U-18 (NDTP)	GM Jim Rutherford is seeking to add size up front, and the team's tendency to not draft Europeans leads me to Shore. The 6-foot-3 forward is good in the corners and will play a physical, all-out game.	'Canes Country
28	Chicago	Joonas Nattinen, Espoo (Fin.)	As a center, Nattinen can provide depth at one of the most needed positions for the Hawks. He wins battles at the faceoff and along the boards and has the size (especially if he bulks up) to plant himself in front of the net.	Second City Hockey
29	Detroit	Nick Leddy, Eden Prairie (USHS)	The Wings want strong skaters who can play at both ends of the ice and Leddy fits that description perfectly. Leddy can really skate, makes strong outlet passes, and the quiet leader shines on the power play.	Winging It
30	Pittsburgh	Stefan Elliott, Saskatoon (WHL)	The Pens have already made it obvious that offensive d-man Alex Goligoski will make the jump to Pitt next season and others in the system may follow. Reserves are needed, and any guy getting comparisons to Washington's Mike Green is a fitting replacement.	PensBurgh

So, that wraps our first-ever SBN mock draft — hope you enjoyed the proceedings and be sure to stop back on Friday when the real thing takes place that night in Montreal. We will have eight bloggers at the draft chronicling the picks all weekend.

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Comments

Great. Three Gophers in the first round. I’m thrilled.

by J. Michael Neal on Jun 25, 2009 10:05 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Elliott to Pittsburgh… that’s a horrible thought.

Hockey blogging can't get any flatter.

by saskhab on Jun 25, 2009 10:18 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Sask, better get your scouting report to GMBG so that he can take him first…

by Bosc Ulrich on Jun 25, 2009 10:56 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sask — and to think Frank and I were worried our pick would be mocked (if we couldn’t get Erixon, Leddy or Stefan)…

by Hooks Orpik on Jun 25, 2009 3:03 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

By the way, thanks for getting past the first round to make the Guerin pick a 3rd. But did you have to go all the way and make it 92nd overall? Sheesh.

Lighthouse Hockey: Side effects may include Weight gain and frequent game loss.

by Dominik on Jun 25, 2009 5:39 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The Penguins acquired Tampa’s 3rd round pick (which turned into 63rd overall) for the rights to Ryan Malone and Mr. Roberts last summer.

For a while there I was worried that NYI would be sharp enough to get that pick instead of the Pens 3rd rounder (which would be in the 80s if they made the playoffs). Big swing from 63rd overall to 91.

www.pensburgh.com

by Hooks Orpik on Jun 25, 2009 5:53 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I remember hoping that was the case before finding the details at the time. I’d gripe, but really there was a flat market for Guerin and his NTC at the time. A lot changed in the last few months. Just putting in the escalator made sense for both sides, since he could have just as easily worked out like Recchi.

Lighthouse Hockey: Side effects may include Weight gain and frequent game loss.

by Dominik on Jun 26, 2009 12:23 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Recchi worked out pretty well I thought, despite the fact that he wasn’t a winger for Sidney Crosby. I’d take him back this year.

Join me on the Hockey Blog Adventure!

by Cornelius Hardenbergh on Jun 26, 2009 1:02 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

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