LOTTERY Q & A: Pierre McGuire of NBC and TSN
His rankings of the kids at the top of the draft
First things first. If Pierre McGuire was the general manager of an NHL team with a solid forward corps but weak defense, he would select Victor Hedman with the first overall selection in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.
If the commentator for TSN, NBC, Sports Illustrated and just about everywhere else was the GM of a team with needs all over the roster, he would take John Tavares – and not hesitate one second to do so.
“John Tavares will score a lot of goals, help you win a lot of hockey games and sell you a lot of tickets,” McGuire told Point Blank over the phone today. “If you’re a team like the Islanders with many needs and a lot on the line, you take Tavares.”
The conversation continued…
Does Matt Duchene belong in this conversation at all, Pierre?
Hmm, probably not. Just a step below Tavares and Hedman. He’s in a different group with 2 or 3 other guys. Let me be clear: I love Matt Duchene. He just missed out on Team Canada at the World Junior Championships and my heart broke for the kid. I thought he could have made it over Angelo Esposito, but Angelo had a great tourney so you can’t criticize that move.
Duchene’s going to be a great player. He’s also an outstanding person. He has definitely moved up the ranks this season where I wouldn’t be surprised if he goes 3, and the team that gets him is going to have a wonderful hockey player leading their franchise for a long time.
I’ve heard scouts have been all over his playoffs for Brampton.
For good reason. He’s having a tremendous postseason. He’s playing with Cody Hodgson and Evgeny Gratchev. They are something to watch. You want to see how Duchene excels in pressure situations. With each game, Matt’s stock is rising. He won’t go 1 or 2. He shouldn’t go 1 or 2. He’s not in the same category as Tavares and Hedman. He doesn’t have the same pedigree.
If any team gives up the right to draft Hedman, got something big in return and grabbed Duchene at 3 or 4, would you freak out like you did when the Islanders passed on Parise to draft Nilsson?
Definitely not. I would support a move like that very much – especially if the team got something great in return. I would not flip out in the TV booth. Come out of the draft with Matty Duchene and another piece to your puzzle, and you’re one of the biggest winners of the draft. By the way, was I wrong to lose it on the Parise deal?
Every time Zach takes the ice, he makes you look smart. Okay, back to John Tavares. No. 1, hands down?
Yes – unless you’re just a brutal defensive team and your forwards are okay. Did I mention John Tavares is going to sell you tickets?
Hey, I wrote a few days ago that if the Islanders win the lottery on Tuesday night, they should just claim Tavares right on the spot.
That’s why I still return your calls! You and I think a lot alike.
What’s Hedman’s upside?
Special. Real special.
Talk to me about Evander Kane.
Should be an excellent player along the boards, a tremendous offensive weapon. Everyone talks about his weight (listed anywhere between 165-180 lately). I’m not concerned about that at all. He’s a skinny kid right now but he’s going to fill out. He has a large frame. He could easily get to 205 pounds in the NHL. Kane will not lose one-on-one battles.
Sounds a bit like Kyle Okposo.
I think Kyle has even more upside offensively. Quick story. I spoke with Okposo before the WJC last year. I said to him, “You have to stop being so unselfish, Kyle”! He was always looking to include his linemates on every play. That’s admirable, but when you have talent and power like he does, sometimes you’ve got to take over the play yourself. He looked incredible in the second half for the Isles.
Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson.
For such a strong, big person, he’s as good a skater as you’ll ever find. World-class speed. My only question is whether he’ll be a pure finisher at the NHL level. I’ve said that if you took this kid’s wheels and gave him Brendan Shanahan’s hands, you’d have one of the most exciting players in the history of the game.
From our conversation so far, my take is you have Tavares and Hedman in one group and Duchene and Kane at the next level in a group of their own.
Yeah, that’s right. Paajarvi-Svensson is real close with Duchene and Kane because even if his finish isn’t the best, he’ll still be an outstanding playmaker.
Jared Cowen.
Probably the second-best defenseman in the draft. If a team gets him anywhere after the 7th pick, they’ll have one of the steals of the draft. A very, very good defenseman. Time will tell about his lateral mobility, but I wouldn’t be too concerned. Cowen is so good, missing the second half of the season has not really hurt his draft status.
But you don’t have Cowan with Duchene, Kane and P-S.
No. He’s in the next grouping.
Okay, so beyond all the kids I’ve mentioned, who’s the one prospect you love that no one includes in the top 6 or 7?
Ryan Ellis, the defenseman from Windsor – Josh Bailey’s old teammate. Brian Rafalski with more offense. People say he’ll go between 12-20. He’s going to fall to someone because he’s not huge, but he’s exceptional. If I’m a team wants to make a big move to get younger, I could see a team like Detroit making a play for him. Any team would be wise to. He’s the real deal.
TSN vs. POINT BLANK TOP 10
Originally posted two months ago tonight, our top 10 rankings remain the same. Here’s how it cross-checked with TSN’s on Feb. 13. Please note, this is not Pierre McGuire’s list.
TSN Point Blank
1. John Tavares 1. Tavares
2. Victor Hedman 2. Hedman
3. Matt Duchene 3. Duchene
4. Evander Kane 4. Magnus Svensson-Paajarvi
5. Brayden Schenn 5. Kane
6. Jared Cowen 6. Schenn
7. Svensson-Paajarvi 7. Cowen
8. Nazem Kadri 8. Jordan Schroeder (TSN ranks 12)
9. Scott Glennie (PB ranks 14) 9. Kadri
10. Oliver Ekman-Larsson (PB 12) 10. Ryan Ellis (TSN 13)
Comments.
43 Responses to LOTTERY Q & A: Pierre McGuire of NBC and TSN
His rankings of the kids at the top of the draft
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Great read!!! always like pierre. Sounds like he was talking about Tampa Bay when saying it would be acceptable to draft Hedman if you had a good group of forwards and not a lot of D.
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Strummer's Army says:
There ya go Mr. Botta, nice read!
Isles have to draft Tavares or Hedman. Then ensure they move up high enough (if they need to based on SJ’s finally draft slot) to draft Zach Kassian (Lucic with even more offense).
Going forward Isles have to ensure every player they get has more character and size too.
I was please Howie Rose called the organization out for doing nothing to Mottau and not paying Boston back. It was disgraceful. Those debts need to be paid next year.
The defense must be reshaped, bigger, meaner more talented.
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dmen77 says:
Chris,
Could you please write the followup to this story…..the story where after you got done talking to Pierre you and him got Garth on the ole 3-way calling and pounded it into his said that if our 48% comes up tomorrow night, Garth immediately declares that Tavares will be an Islander on draft day….and Garth actually agreed to do so.
Please Chris, please tell us this is so……
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Yanks26 says:
Great stuff CB. I can’t agree with more with McGuire said. I really think with the Isles inability to score they need Tavares more than Hedman. I’m not too sure about trading down out of the top 2 if they don’t win the lottery though. Just can’t see giving up a franchise D-man unless Garth is wowed by a deal. Although McGuire seems to think it’s a good move and who can argue with the guy who constantly reminds Milbury of the wonderful job he did while GM here
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Drew from Jersey says:
BRING ON TAVARES! Tomorrow night cannot come soon enough.
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Booten says:
Tomorrow night is going to be nerve-racking to say the least.
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Marc says:
FYI, Logan has an article on newsday.com with quotes from Garth Snow stating that he WILL NOT tip his hand regarding his intention with the draft pick. There’s nothing surprising in the article but just a head’s up to all of those previously expecting / hoping for Snow to make his choice if the Isles’ get the #1 pick.
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walter says:
Cb, does pierre support the lighthouse?
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King says:
Tomorrow should be exciting Hedman or Tavares …
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Sean says:
and islander nation collectively holds their breath.
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Mark in Ottawa says:
Re: This article :
CHRIS BOTTA IS THE @#$%’IN MAN !!!!!
Thanks for this. He’s a good hockey man.
Say some prayers tonight for that 48%.
Something tells me we got about as much
chance of winning as Al Gore did running
against the Bush dynasty.Bettman doesn’t want Tavares on the Island. I think Tavares is goin’ to Los Angeles. It’s Gretzky part deux …..
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bergie20 says:
i’m scared – i actually agree with mcguire for once. i agree that the isles should take tavares at one BUT that they really should look at trading down for duchene if they are picking 2nd. like pierre said – add duchene and another piece to your puzzle and you’re one of the drafts biggest winners. imo, i think that’s what the isles try to do if they are picking 2nd. they will get the great d prospect from the trading partner or later in the draft.
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Ben says:
Here is the best case scenario:
Get the #1 pick – select Tavares
Pick up Gilroy – 1.8 per season for 3 years w/ an option plus incentives
UFA signing of Gaborik @ 6.5 mil per year for 3 yrs plus incentives
UFA signing of JayBow from Florida for 6 mil per year for 6 years
PRAY that DiPietro is able to play next season
Trade off the excess and we’re in the playoffs!
Two more top talent pieces added up front. Top talent in the back to compliment what we have, and all-star talent in goal.
Garth, are you taking notes????????????
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JKP in Halifax says:
CB, I personally can’t stand Pierre (perhaps it’s over-exposure up here or how he always seems to be yelling), but if he’s good enough for you, I may have to re-evaluate my opinion of him.
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KLann says:
Ben i like what your thinking……. execution is a different story though lol
Great article CB. Hopefully tomorrow brings us the ACE -
Ajax says:
After just reading this, I felt better. After reading Newsdays story on their site from Garth, not so much.
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alex says:
can’t wait till this is all over tomm, so we don’t have to keep wondering and hoping, we will know the deal in less then 24 hrs!
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The Logan article makes me nervous. It sounds like Garth doesn’t think as highly of Tavaras/Hedman as the rest of us. Somehow I get the feeling that Garth is going to pull another Milbury and draft someone other then the obvious choice.
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sec301 says:
i usually dont like pierre but after reading that blog and the way he has ripped on mike milbury all season long on NBC i cant get enough of the guy keep ripping mike the team was left in shambles when he finally was gone…draft tavares hopefully and let the rebuilding continue
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Why must Snow try to go off the cuff? Dammit!
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Jeff in Oswego says:
I can’t wait, I’m going to be nervous all day.
P.s CB you do an amazing job, I can’t(and don’t want to) imagine a season without all the information you give.
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Brian G says:
This is not hard Snow, if you have the 1st pick its Tavares, if you have the 2nd pick its Hedman. If another team wants either of these picks they better be giving up a package of 3 1st round picks and Solid Player.
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Great read Mr. Botta!
The Isles must select Tavares or Hedman.
Then ensure they move up high enough (if they need to based on where the SJ pick ends up) to draft Zach Kassian. In the second round focus on defense.The Isles must reshape the defense into a bigger, meaner, and more talented unit. We are talking 2-3 need d-men.
I was please Howie Rose addressed the low point of the season when the Isles never got justice for Nielsen against Mottau and the other times they didn’t defend each other. That can never happen again and those debts still need to be paid..
From now on character and size need to be on the top of the Isles shopping list.
These are good days for the Isles, things are moving in the proper direction. This summer will shape things.
Just remember Garth no more small d-men please!
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Mikey says:
CB – thanks for the article. McGuire can be a bit of a blowhard, but I love how he rips into Milbury every Sunday.
However, he twice mentioned “sells tickets” as a reason for selecting John Tavares. I need more than that to convince me JT would be a more important piece to this team than a 6-6, smooth skating defenseman. That same line of reasoning was used to justify the Yashin trade. You draft the best player on the board. Period. If that player is Tavares, then take him if you can. But the pick should be made for hockey reasons, not summer ticket and jersey sales.
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jethro09 says:
People, please! Focus! NO TRADING DOWN! This team needs a franchise player in the worst way, hopefully Tavares, but Hedman will do just fine. I’m not buying into this Duchene trading down crap. Quality, not Quantity. The last franchise center this team has had was Turgeon. The last franchise d-man? Try Potvin.
The Isles need to come out of this draft with a franchise player, not additional picks. You don’t trade down from 1 or 2 when you’re team is barren of anything resembling a franchise player.
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NYLES says:
I definitely hope we scoop Gilroy and as well as landing our pick. CB, do you think Isles will pitch for Komisarek?
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Daniel says:
Excellent, excellent read. You gotta love this guys insight. Pierre says some controversial things, but the guy is a straight shooter and doesn’t bs when it comes to anything. I find it interesting what he said about trading the number 2 pick for Duchene and how it would be a great move if the price was right. That makes me nervous though because I really want the Islanders to just pick up the number 1 or 2 pick. As he said, anything after 2 is just a different level. We better take Hedman or Tavares.
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GGC says:
All I have to say is THANK YOU CB. Visiting your site is something I look forward to on a daily basis. Case in point, take a story like this, informed, insider perspective that you cannot get any where else, especially from an Isles’ POV. Isles’ coverage has gone a long way in the past two years between you and “Logie.” I hope that does not end from your vantage point.
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Will Teese says:
Great read Chris. I kinda think we should go with hedman if we got the number 2 pick, unless the price was very high (and i mean high).
And as for garth’s comments, i think he is just going through the motions, being vague, because nothing is set in stone until the ping pong balls pop up. Another interview with him after the lottery would probably be better. -
randy wood says:
How about SJ’s #1 , #31,Toronto’s #2,our next year’s #1 and Bailey for #2.Would love to have both Hedman and Tavares.Some of you would argue that we are giving way to much, but the reality is you need to give up to get. No GM is gonna give away their #1/ #2.
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If Snow waits till the draft to pick it shows me he defintely is not taking Tavares. As a season ticket holder for many years I cannot take this anymore, his arrogance that he knows more then all the other GMS. TSN had a poll and 25 of the GMS would take Tavares. Every year we go through this, For once do what the fans want, and he knows what the fans want that is what is pissing me off, he does not care what the fans want. I called up the Islanders today and told them I am done with organization, if we win the lottery and do not announce Tavares Immediately. The organization keeps doing this to us and enough is enough. I have spent a lot of money on them and that is it. Right now I am sick to my stomach because I know what the Isles are going to do and wait til June.
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blitz says:
Group 1, group 2, group 3. Obviously, its gonna take a bounty to move from one group to the next.
At the end of this, the top five teams in the draft pick in the order they receive based on the lotto.
CB, thanks for providing numerous angles, opinions, and thought-provoking stories the past couple of days. Good work.
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Jim Clark says: Can you get Don Cherry’s opinion? He’s so shy and withdrawn it may be hard to get a peep out of him.
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Coach B says:
Great interview Chris-Lots of good info.
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CB,
Another reason IPB is the one of the greatest sites on the internet. Getting a Q&A with Pierre was awesome. Great info, great questions leading up to tonights lottery. Great stuff, CB. -
Spartiarti - RVC says:
the more i read of talkign about Duchene, kane and guys below tavares, the more upset i get.
CB, i know you doing it for the discussion. I know you can’t believe it.
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Mark P says:
Just relax everyone…Snow needs to at least listen. The only trade involving our #1…should be considering dropping to #2….thats it.
If TBAY is desperate for Hedman they might just want to flip #1 for #2. Lets say they offer us a flip of their 2010 #1 for our 2010 #2 and we give up #1 for #2 and still get Taveras…..this may be wishful thinking….but Snow’s job as GM is to find out.
As for trading out of top 2…the only way you do it is if you wind up with 2 of the top 7 picks—–I can’t see how that happens….I don’t see Isles trading for currently rostered players from other teams that are moving closer to big paydays….Isles have made it pretty clear they are going to build through draft….We will get Taveras or Hedman….Modells will be ready with the Jersey’s by the end of June. -
ALL ISLES FANS REVOLT! says:
The scouting report says Taveres is a “pure goal scorer” who hasn’t great skating ability yet, when was the last time we’ve had the chance to pick a guy who had the same scouting report, fellas???
Need I say more?
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C.J. says:
GREAT READ, CB. Easily one of your best pieces. Why can’t Pierre McGuire be our GM? He may be a goof, but he knows his stuff inside and out, as evident by this article.
He’s confident and doesn’t hesitate or flounder… that tells me he knows what he’s talking about.
I look no further to him in terms of his initial reaction during the draft. Nobody else matters. Not McKenzie, not the clowns at ESPN, certainly not Mike Milbury.
For proof, look at his immediate reaction to the Nilsson draft selection, his reaction to the Isles not selecting Schenn, his reaction to the Isles bringing in Ryan Smyth.
He’s been right every time w/his gut, quick, reaction and thoughts.
If GMG slides down to #3 to draft Duchene (I think there’s a good chance he will), the Isles had better get a king’s ransom in the process.
How’s about Shatterkirk and picks from Colorado? A top flight forward, top defensive prospect, and picks.
This is the reason I really want to see the Isles nab the top pick in tonight’s lottery. That top selection carries a lot of weight and value, whether it be for the right to select a player or to dangle it as part of a trade. Holding that #1 pick allows you to dangle that carrot to GM’s who are salivating.
Come on Hockey God’s, shine down favorably on this organization. It’s been a while.
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The scouting report says Taveres is a “pure goal scorer” who hasn’t great skating ability yet, when was the last time we’ve had the chance to pick a guy who had the same scouting report, fellas???
Need I say more?
DANY HEATLEY.
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Nova Scotia Isles Fan says:
TSN says that Gilroy will decide in the next day or so, and that he’s probably deciding between Toronto and Vancouver, leaning Vancouver b/c TO is not offering a one way deal.
Once again C.B., another great, great read. I think McGuire is exactly right. Tavares for the Isles, if they are in the position to do so.