GRADE THE ISLANDERS’ DRAFT
A one-comment-per-reader thread
In five years, this draft could be viewed as the one when the Islanders got a star goal scorer, top-pair defenseman (Calvin de Haan) and No. 1 goaltender (Mikko Koskinen or Anders Nilsson).
Or it could be known as the weekend the Islanders got John Tavares.
Yep, the Islanders made some odd-duck moves – taking goalies with the first picks of the second and third rounds? (Does that mean they’re not sure both are really good?) The de Haan move is easily explained: the people at that draft table were clearly infatuated with him, and he must have kicked butt on his psych test. But for a franchise that stockpiled picks and puffed out their chests about it in 2006 and 2008, the Islanders paid big for de Haan.
Then there’s the issue of a continuing lack of size and toughness on the roster.
I don’t do draft grades, but you are welcome to review the Islanders’ complete draft. To some, it seems Garth Snow and Ryan Jankowski were playing with house money after making the easy choice of Tavares. But the rest of this draft was crucial to the franchise. It cannot be written off.
Thank you for hanging in there the last two months, and for a fun weekend.
One post per reader in this thread. Going forward, all other Comment Guidelines are back on.
216 Responses to GRADE THE ISLANDERS’ DRAFT
A one-comment-per-reader thread
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Ed J says:
A+
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kevin27NYI says:
odd moves. de haan looks very good but i feel that he would have been there still at 16 but hey if they felt like he will be really good then i guess its a good move. the obviously tackled the goalie problem head on. we now have a third for next year and got a dmen and fowards in later picks. good draft
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EdTurner says:
Garth Snow is not Bill Torrey.
Almost every move he has made, outside of taking Tavares can be questioned.
Garth was a back up goalie who was given a postion he was and is not qualified for.
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TIM says:
Id give it a B+
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Matt says:
As far as I’m concerned, the scouting staff earned my trust when they made the smart choice in tavares. what they do after that is their call. If they like De Haan that much to move up that far to take him, there must be some potential there at least and they must see something special in him. As for the goalies, we really need one for the future. So why not take 2 and see which one starts turning out better in 2 years.
Especially one who’s 6’7″… 6’7″!! -
Staten Islander says:
the goalie picks tell me that that they are not confident about DPs future. DeHaan from what I’ve read could have been had later. We’ll see how this works out in a couple of years
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B. I love the Tavares pick, and the goalie pick, but think they could’ve done a little Moore. Cizikas was a nice addition, but I feel like they put all their eggs in the De Haan basket when they could’ve stayed at 26 and snagged Dupres, who is a nice big D man. There isn’t much that we know today about how this class will pan out, except for Tavares. This could be a A or a C in a few years. But as long as we got John Tavares, it’s an absolute success.
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i4e11 says:
I’d give it a B. After Koskinen I wasn’t impressed with any of the picks.
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Belarus says:
C-
Tavares saves from D -
pennst92 says:
The draft is about value and adding depth, and the only pick they got value for was Tavares, and the only depth they added was a goaltender. Picking the Fin at 31 was highly questionable, then to follow that up w/ another goalie in the 3rd round…
Picking Tavares is the only reason I’m giving them a C.
>:(
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hyedray says:
A-
The strange moves are not that strange.
Obviously Tavares is the big plus.
The De Haan move could prove to be very strong, time will tell, but he is a potential top defenceman.
The goalie picks solve a gigantic improvement over what we had in the organization. The two centers and the defenceman continue to build a strong young foundation.
Time will tell, but I would not be surprised to see 4 very stong players come from this class.
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Jzimm says:
I don’t do draft grades, either. Up until 1990, I didn’t know anything about players until they got to their respective NHL teams. There is so much coverage, micro-managed coverage now, that every last pick is scrutinized. If the internet and 24 hour sports coverage was around 35 years ago, who would be throwing a fit over taking Bryan Trottier in the 2nd round? Bringing that into the present, most every fan would be wondering who the hell Bryan Trottier is. For this day, having seen John Tavares play, he’s on our roster, and I am completely satisfied and happy.
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ItsGoodToBeRich says:
We got Tavares. Regardless of who we picked with our other picks, we still had an excellent draft!
A+!
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Rich says:
Tavares: A+
de Haan: B-
Koskinen: F
Nilsson: F
Ciziskis: F
Klementyev: F
Lee: FOverall: C-
very disppointed by the fact that GMG reached for 6 of his 7 picks and the 1 he didnt reach on was the 1st overall pick…disappointed…
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Bob says:
I was there last night and we had to take JT or the place would have been torn down, Garth played poker with all of us just to get the excitement level up. Billy Jaffe said it was only his gut that we were picking Duchene.
We were all convinced the trade up to get John Moore made complete sence, not the 23rd rated NA scater de Haan, you don’t trade up to get lower rated scaters not that many picks….
Bad Move not taking Ferarro he was waiting for them all night another Parise move. The Goalie was the #2 European Goalie but he is 21 and probably could have been picked up much later.
The lack of picking up Kassian at 12 would have given the team the size they need instead all of the size the team acquired is between the pipes, this also speaks volumes of the health of DP, long term they must have some scary reports that he will continue to breakdown physically and is a huge risk.
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Tavares #1 says:
I give him a B. Obviously he knows something is very wrong with DP. Before now we had NO reliable goalies. Now we have two young monsters with talent. Maybe our Lundqvist.
Enjoy it, it is what it is. We got the best player and will finally be exciting to watch.
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Bossy22 says:
Nothing wrong with this draft. We had to fill other holes with prospects. We had nothing in goal…now we do. Our D was getting better….we added to it. We needed a superstar…we got him. Put last years and this years draft together and we did very well. Remember, we had to use the last 2 years to replenish all areas. Next years draft, we will be in a position to take the best players available. Snow…you get an A from me
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DM says:
If either of these goalies becomes a #1, de Haan is Streit Lite and Tavares does what he’s supposed to, then regardless of the last 4 picks, this is a big ‘A’ grade….just anxious to see if Koskinen makes BPort next year and what he does there if so.
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tond24 says:
D without Tavares its a F..we had a real shot to draft some studds..got none outside J.T….de hann is a d man who dosnt hit..sounds great.
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DP says:
C
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fred says:
I think it was a smart draft and the system was restocked with goalies. Two actually. Something the system needed and was lacking desperately.
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dose says:
wow. they got 2 guys named ‘anders’.
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dedshark says:
Overall a B-
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Wow garth can’t seem to keep some islander fans happy first is was “if we don’t draft Tavares i’m cancelling my season tickets” now we have Tavares and it’s still not good enough for some whinners well Garth i think you did a good job could have done a little better but i’m happy with the way things turned out boo hoo to the whinners
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beatlebailey says:
C Taking Tavares was not brain surgery – trading all the way up for a reach is just stupid or smug…2 goalies?…where is the size? IF we land Komi in free agency I will feel MUCH better
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Brother Rat says:
A: Tavares, a great D man and two 6’5″ Swedish goalies with good lateral movement? Honestly, though, grading a draft immediately afterward is a silly exercise. I’m glad we got JT and de Haan, and if one of the goalies pan out to be decent, that’s great.
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Craig says:
a solid B
Tavares was the obvious choice at #1 even though any of the other two (Hedman, Duchene) would have been fine as well.
Many mock drafts (and yes, i know they are all predictions) had the Isles taking de Haan with the 26th pick and many believed he’d have been there. I don’t understand why they’d move so many picks just to drop down to select him when he’d have been much cheaper just to move to the earlier 20s. When they made the move, I thought John Moore, Kulikov, Kassian or even Schroeder. I’m hoping he does become a very good dman but we could have used those picks for other pieces of the puzzle that fell.
I was also alittle disappointed with not taking a risk on Toni Rajala. I know he’s small but he could be dynamic.
The two goalies I felt were ok choices, though it tells me that the isles are trying to replenish their depleted source of goaltenders and that DP’s status is probably worse than feared.
It really does come down to Tavares and de Haan. I guess we will have to wait and see.
Oh, and I’m sadly hoping for another bad season next season so we have the chance of drafting either Taylor Hall, Kirill Kabanov, or a few others.
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So their were other players available besides Centers and Goalies and defenseman. Any wingers in the draft???? Seems like we drafted all of the same positions. We do need some left and right wingers with size too. Overall grade B…..
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smittty says:
I wonder if Koskinen’s age and the fact he has already played with men made the decision for the Islanders. BPort next year and possibly up after the All-Star break?
I give it a B+, maybe higher if they didn’t take another goalie at 56. I think that shows they needed to restock the pool very soon due to DPs declining health.
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starz31 says:
The cost for moving up to 12 was not much, especially after dealing the 56th pick. The selection is a curious one, but they obviously love the kid and did what was needed to make sure they had him. I’ll pass judgment on this one for a while. I don’t like his size for D-man, but I’ve liked everything else I read.
The goalie selection was high, but sounds like they got a real good talent there.
People need to know the NHL draft is a big crapshoot after the 1rst round. So it’s really not that big of deal.
I wouldve like to have added size, but like I said, these later picks arent going to be NHL ready anytime soon, so it really doesnt matter.
JT #1 and poker face was a marketing ploy, and it worked great. Already sold over $73,000 in season tickets. Great play by Garth, although it created many ulcers for fans.
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Jeff says:
Relieved that we picked Tavares 1st.
Somewhat up in the air over the de Haan pick, really thought that after seeing us move so far up and giving up all those picks I really thought we were going after a Kassian or J. Moore, so when I heard de Haan’s name I was alittle confused. I thought the islanders were trying to get two players in the first round that could step up and play this coming year, but from what I hear about de Haan sounds like he is years away. Maybe this means we will be more active in the free agancy period. -
I dont think the goalie picks really show a lack of faith in DP…its really just a smart move. We need insurance…we need depth there. If he crumbles in a few years, maybe we have some good talent there to replace. It’s all about security.
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doug says:
CB,
They had a good draft. I think they took a page from the Giants draft philosophy…pick players with a lot of upside and then see what happens. We all Tavares is a stud, de Haan could be a good one- in the U18 World Championships he was 0 goals 6 assists- 6 points +6 in 6 games. It seems like he good in the defensive end and a good passer in the offensive zone. The goalies picked are a question mark…the Russian Dman will probably play in the KHL.
I’d give the draft a B+. Buit when Taveras, turns into a star, deHaan a big top 2 def. man and one of the goalies works out…it will go down to be an A draft for the Islanders….
Enough about the draft let talk about July 1…the minimum cap is 41 Million and they are at 32 Million. I think you’ll see a goalie, 2 forwards and defenseman signed…maybe a trade of either Sutton or Witt…how about Witt to Montreal for Higgins?
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isle5 says:
John Tavares great pick!!!!!! But then you move up & pass on Kassian,Moore,& let Kreider fall to the Dark Side!!!!! What were you thinking!!!!! Thanks Garth for the Best 1st pick in years. You blew the rest of the draft. Lets get right next year.
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Brian B says:
A
We get:
1. Best player in the draft.
2. A slick skating puck moving d-man (When the Isles are in love with offensive d-men who can handle the puck, I’m confident they know what they are doing and the player is probably pretty good (see Mark Streit)….lets see.
3. 2 goalies. Seriously…I still think the Isles feel DP will be healthy at the start of the season but when a guy has had so many heath problems and surgeries, you can’t be so sure. So we need depth at the goalie position…its smart. And why not take the ones you think are the best available? I like it.Good job Islanders.
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Pat says:
The draft –
Drafting Tavares was a *great* move.
deHaan ? Time will tell. He will take 2 or 3 years to mature, but if he pans out as a top two Dman on this team – very good move.
I also question why TWO goalies………unless its a way of saying that they think Rick might be done. I understand the need for organizational strenght, but wonder if we picked the right guy or not.
We left some good players unpicked ( passing on Kassian and Ferraro for instance) – but this was no Zach Parise moment here.
I think we had a good draft. Can’t really grade it – how does one really know?
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kallur says:
To review: the Islanders, desperate for goal scorers and a big bruising forward or two who can bury the puck and a big offensive d-man, have the first pick overall in an exceedingly deep draft, as well as several other high picks — 11 picks overall. With the first they choose a player who has been talked about as a first pick overall since he was 15. So obvious a selection it does not deserve comment.
Now: what can they do with picks 26, 31, and 37 in this exceedingly deep draft? Do they find another bona fide scorer or two? The banger forward? The big d-man? No. They get a d-man they almost certainly could have gotten much later, and two goalies. SO: for #1, 26, 31, 37, AND other picks, they get a probable superstar, and a probable good offensive d-man, and two potential NHL-calibre goalies. Still no big, banging forward — with 11 picks. Bill Torry has nothing to worry about. -
LI Hockey Kid says:
A- … Should be less but Tavares keeps it at an A status
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CT Isles Fan says:
A. Time will tell on the other picks. This draft was all about Tavares!
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frank nyc says:
Im pretty happy overall.
The Isles got a true #1 center in Jt
A potential top pair D man i De Haan
and some good prospects in goal, which they were
extremely deficient in.
Don’t know anything about the later round picks but overall
you cant complain.
If i had to give a grade I guess i would say a B to B+
The only thing i would say is i would have taken one of the forwards that was left at #31 and taken a goalie with the second of our 2nd rounders. But then again what do i know.
The isles future is bright. The rebuild i full steam ahead.
GO ISLES! -
bcarroll25 says:
typical islanders.last year they trade down to stockpile picks for this,a deep draft,then they blow all those picks to get a guy they might’ve had if they stayed put. after tavares(thank god garth didn’t screw that up)this draft sucks as far as value.
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stopthepain says:
Compare what the Islanders did last year at the draft to this year. The Islanders thought Bailey was their guy, realized he’d be available later, and TRADED DOWN to add picks and still get their guy. Almost every one of their draft picks last year was a great value, and the Islanders maximized their chances that somebody will turn out and produce. This year, they seemed to take the opposite tactic. They traded up (twice) when they likely didn’t need to (I’m fine with the trade to 16 to make sure you get DeHaan, but be honest guys, who really believes he would have gone 12-15?). The goalies were likely available at a later time too. In other words, they overpaid for most of their picks this year. Even if several picks turn out, the draft is still disappointing based on the value proposition. People need to understand that. The defenders of Garth (D.O.G.) are correct to point out that everything after 15 is a crapshoot – but you must also recognize that is why the Islanders were supposedly stockpiling draft picks – in order to maximize their chances that they pick a stud with one of them…what a waste of value…
Final Grade C -
doc says:
Hoping for a bad season next year is about the worst thing I’ve heard so far. Fans can lose their collective heads.
Get a grip.
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Pd says:
Day 1: A
Tavares A ++++
De Haan C (good player but didnt have to waste that many picks to get him he prob would of been there at 16 and probably 26)
also could of had John Moore insteadDay 2:
D-
2 Big Goaltenders.
1 Big DMan
did not adress any issues at the wing.Overrall: C
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big dally mac says:
The Islanders seem to like picking player who’ve played togther in the past. Calvin De Haan is well known to Tavares and probably sent ole JT in on a couple of end to end rushes. But we should have capitized on the 31 pick. Another great d-man or power winger would have helped. That goalie could of been taken when the second goalie was taken. One thing is both Koskinen and Nilsson are giants at 6’7 and 6’5 respectively. we will see, kind of disappointing for me….grade c+
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Craig says:
C
Tavares alone kept it from being an F. I understand some of Garth’s reaches. I really do. DeHaan could become one of the star defenseman in this league….but 4 years from now! The goalies are alright, but considering the top goalie in the draft was available when they chose to take Koskinen. I understand you want a NHL ready backup for Dipietro, but still. As many above have already said, there were too many reaches that the Islanders took in this draft. If the Islanders would have taken Moore or Kasian with the 12th pick, then no matter what they would have had an A or an A-. But nonetheless, my answer is definitely a C. Let’s just hope they make some moves during the off season, such as maybe…..the Sedin twins????
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Joe says:
C, terrible job besides Tavares.
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alex says:
I am going to say a B+. They drafted Tavares, and even though the price was high, they got a defenceman that they really liked! I knew they would take a goalie with the 31st overall pick. But i did not see them picking a goalie later on again! That one surprised me. Overall it was a good draft. The fans are happy, management is happy and it seems that even the TSN NHL analysts are overall happy!
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hale78 says:
if you know anyone after the 30th pick your a scout….i trust the scouting staff knows what it is doing…if you get tavares and 2 other nhl players from this draft then it was a good one…i don’t do grades…look back in 4 years
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Chummlee says:
Tavares throws the curve out the window. Did they jump the gun on de Haan at 12, absolutely! At that spot I would have preferred John Moore or a second big name forward. The goaltending back to back show signs of goaltending issues at all levels of the organization. They could have been had later on.
I think that the chance to have the best draft was squandered with those two first round trades. There was considerable talent still left on the board by the time picks 26, 31 and 37 rolled around. We have heard the past few years it is about quantity, this year was supposed to be quality. I don’t see much quality, unless you like stretching and reaching like they did throw the draft.
Pick value: C-
Fitness vale with the reaching: A+ -
gary9-19-22 says:
I like de Haan alot!!! Just not at 12
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MACCH says:
A+ The Islanders got the best player in the draft and the future face of their franchise. They addressed goalie depth which everyone knows was lacking. They must have really like de Haan and they made some bold and aggressive moves to get him.
Great Job Garth. Time will tell of course but I dont understand how some of you could be upset. I dont think anyone here is a scout and after hear ALL THE TIME AND EFFORT in this draft you would think you could trust our GM.
We got JT and your giving out Ds and Fs… Some of you will never be happy
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B+
The de haan move is kinda odd to move up that far to get him but seriously 63 points in 68 games on a bad team and hes not even near ready? i think we hit another home run with this kid. Besides JT mustve said something to them during their interviews.Rest of the draft is up in the air, this was a concensus bad goalie year, so we shouldve just taken one, but the DP sitch has clearly scared them into making sure they have depth and these kids might become pawn pieces down the road to trade with desparate teams for other holes we may need to fill.
it was good to hear bob mckenzie talk about how good Corey Trevino is going to be.
good day overall dont knpow anythign about later picks we got so i’ll read up on those ,but it was neat seeing so many sons and nephews of former nhlers get drafted. even ulf samuellson’s kid got drafted. ahahah
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Terry19 says:
A++ Great Draft. Expect to get 1 or 2 NHL players in entry drafts. Isles made sure to get two, Tavares and De Haan, and these goalies, big with good lateral movement, might pan out as NHL starters. We’ll get size in wingers through the trade market when we are ready. Some of these big wingers turn into Isbisters frequently. I’d rather wait for a 28 year old banger in free agency. Size on the blue line is a definite next year, but I wouldnt be surprised to see Komi in an isles uniform next year. We need to spend this summer to reach the cap floor. Forwards are pretty stocked with youth, D is where the money goes and I am all for it. My opinion!
Tavares is the man. Played against his Uncle a few times. He was a ferocious competitor, I suspect JT is the same way. Cant wait!!!
Twitter name: sarkelter -
mrlbem says:
I’ll give the draft a B+. I’m more concerned about who they now pick up in free agency to play with Tavares. If they plan on keeping him at center, they need a playmaking wing as well as another wing who makes his living in the corners. If the plan had been to build through the draft and not be players in the FA market, having Tavares fall in their laps has to change that.
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Chris Mc says:
What a fickled bunch. The Islanders got what they needed out of this draft. And that was John Tavares. They addressed something that sorely needed to be addressed and that was goaltending depth. They also nabbed someone who they must see as a future top pair d-man in Calvin de Haan.
The fact that he wont be ready for a couple of years is a moot point bc honestly, besides JT and Viktor Hedman it doesnt seem like any of these guys are ready to wear an NHL sweater. If you remember the Isles drafted Kyle Okposo with the 7th pick in ’06 and he wasnt ready for the NHL for 2 years. So I dont understand why any of you thought our 2nd first round pick, whether it was at 12, 16, or 26, would be ready to see NHL action this year.
I agree I was taken aback by the seemingly early selections of de Haan and Koskinen, but its very likely that Snow didnt think either would be there by the next time they picked so he needed to reach for them. Theres no way to grade a draft for at least 3 years, but as an Islander fan who is going to get to watch John Tavares score goals for his team, I am very happy with this draft. I look forward to the continuing progress of KO, Bailey, Comeau, Neilsen, and Bergenheim this year, and with JT and maybe a FA or 2, we can bring the excitement back to the Coliseum.
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Shawn R. says:
B
Tavares was the no brainer pick.
The trade to 16 was above avrge.
The trade to 12 was a amazing value trade.
The pick at 12 is questinable but I think the moved up again to ge him because they got windof another team from 13-15 taking him.I was sad when we los Campoli, De Haan is my next Campoli only better.
The goalie pick scare me because it cearly shows they have no idea if DP is gonna be able to play s full tme strtr for the next 12years…who kows maybe they turn out t be the nxt Lundqvist…
As for the sizeand grit factor…Jackman, and I say h Isles really need to sign Komasarek..and how would you guys feel about Colton Orr? -
Drafting goalies today will not affect the Islanders on-ice for many, many years. I think drafting two goalies likely says more about their longterm faith in guys already in the AHL (Lawson, Mannino) or perhaps the goalies a few years into the system (Ridderwall) than it does about the one that is already the starter (Rick) or the relatively new kids (Poulin, perhaps Weslosky).
Aside from our teams new goalscoring prodigy I really dont know a lot of these kids- but hey, they sound good to me. We will not know for many years. Honestly, once you get past the top guys in a draft there is little agreement on rankings and it ultimately doesnt mean very much. We might as well trust them, thats what fans generally do.
So, Im happy.
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Lee says:
I’ll give the draft a “B”.
In John Tavares we got what we all wanted and needed….a goal scorer, a face of the franchise guy. Those who were at the Draft Party saw the line to get personalized Tavares jersey’s and T-shirts…he gives us a boost on and off the ice.
When I saw that we traded up to the 12 pick, I really thought we were gonna draft Kassian or Moore. Had we nabbed one of those 2, I would have given the draft an A right there. Did they reach for Calvin de Haan? Sure they did. But down the line, if he becomes our QB of our Power Play, no ones gonna remember or care. Personally, I would have stayed put at 26 and gone with Dylan Olson myself, but I’m not a scout. At the end of the day, anyone picked after Tavares and Hedman is going to play in the AHL for one year if not more, so that leads to an Incomplete grade there.
With the goalie picks, everyone has been complaining that we don’t have any solid goalie prospects in our system. Now we have 2. I’m all for bigger goalies, nothing better than a guy that can protect the top corners of the net while he’s on his pads. This gives us leverage if a)we need to a make a deal in the future or b)DP isn’t recovering well.
As for the other picks, Cizikas seems to be an agitator, who has some untapped offensive potential. The Russian kid probably will never come over here, but he has decent size. While Anders Lee is a big dude who is obviously an athlete.
So I give this draft a B just based on getting JT, a potential top pairing defenceman and restocking our Goalie prospects alone.
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german islesfan says:
i’am happy with this draft.
now we can look for july 1.
my wishlist komisarek,higgins and seidenberg. -
uBETTAno says:
A- I think we should have gotten a big D-Man. Is it me or does this kid de Hann remind you of Aaron Ness who think will be a real good QB defence guy, but we need a big D-Man and should have went with a big D Man, to me they look like the smae type of player. Overall we got TAVARES & 2 Goalies (MUCH NEEDED). So will see what happens now. LETS GO ISLANDERS BABY…. BIG Shout Out To Maverick who i met at the Draft Party last night when we were both buying our Tavares Gear.
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Brian G says:
Besides Tavares….this was going to be the draft that would restock the system with everything….after Tavares was taken they went completely off the board(or should I say out of left field) with every pick. They needed some wingers…and pass on many guys that were rated higher.
Tavares A+
the rest of the draft = F -
C.J. says:
After Tavares, the Isles threw the “Best Player Available” Rule out the window.
I think they did a TERRIBLE job.
The goaltenders could have both been had later as evident by the subsequent rush on goalies 1 round later, as would de Haan. All were reaches.
When you see the likes of Zack Kassian go immediately after de Haan and Landon Ferraro go to the Wings (who know what they’re doing) immediately after some no name goalie, you know you’re up a creek.
If they did a good job last year, they just blew off their big toe this year.
Thank god for Tavares.
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Andy Badger says:
People grading pick no. 152, LOL. You have no clue whatsoever. In the first round, go by BPA. Fans have some insight as lots of experts and scouting services rank the top talent. After pick 30. Noone has a clue, the most reasonable is to judge by organizational need. The Isles picked two goalies. There was 0 depth on the goalie position. In the 2007 and 2008 draft the Isles picked up a lot of D (Ness, Katic, Hamonic, Nyemi) and forwards (Bailey, Trivino, DiBenedetto, Martin) and I think Snow is happy with their development. I also think he sees both Comeau, Joensuu and Nielsen as potential top 6 forwards and thus he’s satisfied with forward depth. Also, if these goalies make it to the NHL they could become valuable trade chips if they can’t unseat DP as no. 1. In 2007 San Jose fetched 1st, 2nd and 4th round picks for Toskala (and Mark Bell).
All in all, I think Snow made a good, solid draft, just like last year. He added talent and, maybe most important, value to the prospect pool. -
Millertime says:
They really could do no wrong with the first pick, however, with an opportunity to really do something significant following that pick, they left quite a bit to be desired. I do not question De Haan’s upside, but they blew an opportunity to get Kulikov or remain in their spot and take Simon Despres. Back to back European goaltenders, as early as they took them, have my eyebrows on the top of my skull. Thank GOD for Taveras because it appears they blew a golden opportunity with the chip lead at the table, but hey…that’s poker!
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bonzo says:
kassian needs powerskating…jackman better and cheaper, lol
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Angry Bill says:
I am certainly happy with Tavares. DeHaan looks like a solid D prospect. Too difficult to rate the rest of the players at this stage. Only time will tell.
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TONYSAC says:
I just made it home in time for the announcement for the ISLANDERS first overall pick and once I heard JOHN, i jumped and screamed like a little kid who just opened up his RED RYDER BB GUN on xmas morning!!!! I am not going to grade this years draft, or the next or the one after the next….Other then TAVARES, we know jack squat about any of these other picks…I loved the move from 26 to 12, but was slightly confused on the pick and thought we lost alot to draft DE HAAN at that spot, probably could of drafted him at 16, but I have full faith in our SCOUTS…I love the 6’7 GOALIE who is 21 and will walk right into BRIDGEPORT and become the top ranked goalie in the AHL… DP is a BIG QUESTION MARK, and we needed top prospects in net, so now we have TWO…I am also a little confused on the 5’10 center we picked…Arent we STACKED in the center position?????? I would of liked to see a BIG D-MAN or POWER FORWARD….
OVERALL, I am so PUMPED for next season and I am going to purchase a partial ticket weekend package…WE got our POTENTIAL star player in TAVARES which over 90% of us fans wanted SO PLEASE STOP CRYING about the other picks….BE SUPPORTIVE of this team FOR ONCe..There is more to be excited about then upset about for the FUTURE of this team, so lets make the best of it and CHEER the HECK for OUR TEAM this coming season…WE ARE ALL ISLANDERS!!!
next stop…….FREE AGENCY…….
LETS GO ISLANDERS!!!!!
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isles99 says:
i love tavares and im even fine with dehaan but the fact of the matter is we could have gotten everyone else at a later slot…i saw the jankowski interview on the nhl network and it seemed as if he was proud to reach and get his guys….overall, id give the islanders a C-…anything else and you’re just drinking the kool aid. tavares said them from a D-. i dont mind the players they got. im just angry WHERE they got them. they reached for every pick besides tavares when better players were available in those slots. all of you know it.
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al says:
C-
Any monkey couldve drafted Tavares #1, but this team lacks size up front and on the blue line. Wasn’t addressed in this draft. Unless this team will spend some money in free agency – highly unlikely
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I know there is a group here that will always be optimistic with our picks but I must say that I am very disappointed with the way we wasted our boatload of picks that were built up with the implied promise that this would be the year our lack of punch would finally be taken care of. What do we get after our beloved # 1 pick? A reach d-man, a goalie, a goalie AGAIN and a risky 4th rounder who took a step back this year. Beyond the 4th round who really knows anyway? Once again we leave future big goal scorers on the table which we will come to regret. Put me down as UNHAPPY.
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Jeff Speight says:
Is it possible to get all these armchair GMs to post their scouting credentials? I’d be willing to bet none have ever seen any of the round 2 on down picks ever play, had access to the all-around results or had inside info from the other draft tables to determine when each would have been picked. But if it does nothing else it does provide some comic relief. Lighten up. Lets go Islanders!
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JT pick is great, after that I like the aggressiveness to go and get the kid they wanted. The scouts are the experts, not me. Seeing how 90% (maybe more?) of draft picks never make a name for themselves in the NHL, I don’t mind them trading the picks to ensure they get the kid that they wanted. Only time will tell if de Haan becomes what they must believe he will be, but for now, I’m very happy. I am nowhere near knowledgeable enough to give a grade based on talent, but they get an A for JT and how they went about getting de Haan.
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nyislanders93 says:
B+
The Tavares pick was a great pick with the 1st overall. Calvin De Haan could have definitely waited and they didn’t need to give up all those picks to get him. They also didn’t address their need for size on D or on the wing which was a little disappointing considering John Moore and Zack Kassian could have easily been theirs. Maybe they have plans to bring in Komisarek in FA this year allowing them to pass on drafting a big defensemen. Drafting 2 goalies back to back wasn’t a good choice either. Even if both turn out to be great, DP is still under contract until 2021.
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Strummer's Army says:
*SIGH* Anytime you get John Tavares it’s a good draft. I think the first four picks are sure things to be NHL players but I do question two goalies that high. Does that mean they hate the other three goalies in their system?
No matter how much Snow, Gordon, Jank want to talk about how they know they need to get bigger and tougher THEY DON’T.
They had several opportunities to upgrade the team in not only size, toughness and skill and chose not to.
My fear is one day Zach Kassian will pick up Calvin De Haan and use him to beat John Tavares.
Not talking about De Haan or Ness here because they do have talent but I hate all the small puck movers in the system. At this point, I feel the Isles have only 4 credible d-men prospects to move forward with De Haan, Ness, Harmonic, and Neimi, everyone else needs to be dealt for guys with size.
The defense has been crap for a long time De Haan whenever he gets here will be an upgrade.
Komisarik would be nice because he’s talented but he’s not tough. Not sure I wanna watch Lucic beat him up. Shoot Witt even beat him up and Witt can’t fight at all.
Chelios would be a guy who interests me for a year and who said he’d play for the Isles.
They seriously better go out and get Bieksa, O’Byrne, and Petricki at least on defense.
Better check with Boston about winger Bitts.
FA and trades better be about adding skill but packaged in size, toughness and character.
Let me tell you this just like the did Bailey, Comeau, Nielsen, and Okposo teams will be trying to take advantage of Tavares. Reichlecz and Fitz are the only two men on this roster who will do the right thing (if Gordon let’s them) and maybe Sutton and the Isles better ice a big mean team because if you think Pronger won’t cripple Tavares or Okposo your crazy.
Other then Tavares, De Haan, oskinen, and Nilsson I think the only other guy who may develope is Lee.
So as great as I felt after the Tavares pick and when they manuevered themselves up to 12 I feel pretty burned by Snow. He says he deserves our trust but he hasn’t earned it. He promised to get bigger and meaner and has not. Any of us would have been smart enough to draft Tavares. I think not drafting Kassian is going to haunt this team for years.
I need to see the character of the team change.I like a lot of the young forwards, other then Streit there isn’t much on defense, I love DiPietro. When I see the organization adding more of what it already has too much of in the organization it worries me they don’t get it. It seems like they have all peanut butter in the cupboards and no jam!
So in terms of quality added in the draft I give the team a B, it could rise to an A+ pending how these guys turn out.
In terms of my confidence that Snow, Gordon, Janikowski understand the way the NHL game is being played, that we can trust them to do the right thing, to make the right moves I give them a C.
Big let down this weekend and that is even with adding Tavares.
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richie66 says:
Were almost ready to leave montreal (I was one of the trip winners) have some great stories to tell, was able to talk to tavares for about an hour with the other winners, will e-mail botta the details when I get home, all isles execs are very happy
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Rob in NJ says:
We got JT…and a great d prospect. Last year was a great draft, this year was even better. How many picks each year make it. If we get 3 or 4 from this draft it will be a huge success..if not we got Johnny T….we got respect back and the New York Islanders will be moving up the charts.. Let’s Go Islanders!! Grade A
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it seems last year we wanted to replenish our system and this year we drafted on needs
we got a prolific junior goal scorer
a hopeful top pariing puck moving defenseman
and 2 goalie whove had great seasons in junior
these 4 picks alone make me happy…the more i read abotu de haan the happier i get
the fact is we the fans have been saying we needed to get a solution to backup dp b.c of his health and now once garth and his staff do this were questioning it…yes maybe it was a lil too early but we got what we needed
obviously i would of wanted another high ranked forward or dman but goaltending is an issue on this team with dp and that was hopefully solved today
because of the 1st 4 picks i give it a B+
i dont no much about the other picks or who else was availbale to get so i wont rank the bottom of the draft
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season tix holder since day ONE says:
other than the obvious first pick, this draft tells me that they are REALLY concerned about DP, they are really pleased with the development of some of the bigger forwards we saw last year as well as the younger ones we didn’t see, de Haan is special in some way and they expect to get a FA or two. The bottom line is we need to wait 2-3 years before we really know for sure. Why do fans always presume that their GM is dumber than the other 29?
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db says:
After Tavares, this was a very predictably Islanders draft. Overall, strange picks and head scratches aside, the Isles filled some of their major needs and just improved their prospect pool at least tenfold. You can’t go wrong with that, so this is a good couple of days for this team.
But this draft was all about Tavares because he helps us NOW. The rest of the guys are a couple of years away, if that.
As far as strange picks go, I’m not so much shocked by the goalies being picked up consecutively in rounds 2 and 3. It’s the 4th round pick that really intrigues me (given the legal ramifications we will soon learn about).
Now on to July 1st. We shall see how Tavares changes the playing field. Also, is Wang still willing to spend again? Questions, questions…
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I would think that Ryan Jankowski knows more about scouting than at least 50 of the commentators here at this point, including myself.
Tavares was a no brainer and was the right choice.
I think they probably traded up to 16 in order to get De Haan and caught wind that somewhere in 13-15 there was a serious threat he’d be selected. This does surprise me, but I assume it is what happened. I was okay with the first round trades bacause they held on to 31.
After that I will not even try to analyze the rest of the players and the reasons for their choices. I’m wondering how big your scouting budgets are.
Also I think Garth Snow might know something about goaltenders.
A-
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JAS says:
Thrilled we got JT. We had 3 picks in the top 31, that’s awesome. Glad to hear they think so highly of de Haan and the netminder. If all three develop into high end players as they project then awesome.
I thought picking two high-end goalies was necessary. Can’t win without very good goaltending and we need options A, B, C, and D especially with DP and the number of goalie injuries due to the rule changes. Now if they add an Anderson or other high quality 1A backup to DP then they have great depth at the most important position on the ice. Build from the net out is what we always hear.
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JD (e_godard) says:
Im quite pleased with the results, my only question is why would we continue to trade up from 16 to 12 for someone that was predicted to be available at 23?
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Vlad from Brooklyn says:
A-. Not sure about us passing on Moore or Kassian. If de Haan turns out to be great, my (-) becomes (+). My highlights of the night: 1. Video translation ended right before Rag’s pick. There were some Rag’s fans at the Colliseum. You should see the expression on their faces!
2. The guy with Obama’s mask and sing “Obama needs Tavares!” “Yes we can!”
3. A lot of people CRYING with happiness right after JT was picked.
It was well worth it to share the moment with others in the hart of the Barm. -
Austin H says:
Seems like we gave away that we stocked up on last year by trading up for guys rated later in the draft.
CB, you are right…this draft is key, they all are. The more picks the better and reaching (and trading picks to reach) seems like a bad idea.
All and all, just getting JT may be enough until the ’08 and ’09 picks materialize…or don’t.
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Jim Clark says: I am not Mel Kiper on skates. But outside of drafting Tavares, the draft strikes me as Garth Snow trying to convince us that
2 + 2 = 5. Trading a bunch of picks so you can select a player ranked 21st-23rd with the 12th pick? Drafting goalies in the second and third round shows us they don’t think DiPietro and his contract will be a 15 year albatross on this franchise’s neck.When do I buy my tickets?
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Chizzler says:
A
Tavares, de Haan and the 2 goalies will be great.
People grading players (especially both goalies) they’ve never seen, it’s so ridiculous.
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Johnny Jet says:
Obviously like the Tavares pick up here in Canada!! The sleeper might be de Haan as he only has played one year of major junior while most have played 2 or more. He was on the top pair at the u-18 for Canada and played great. He put up great numbers for a rookie in the ohl and probably has the most untapped potential of all the d-men. He was probably going to be gone by the 16th pick. He has a shot to make the World Junior Team for Canada. I am a little confused by the 2 goalies taken but we really can’t complain. We got our guy!!!!!
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Kevin says:
Started great. Ended weakly. Lots of stretches. C+
Why can’t we pick someone with size? Except for goalies. -
joey bagodonuts says:
It’s a B+ for me. I wanted Duchene…i still think he will be the better player in 5 years, but you still cannot go wrong with picking Tavares. if it was so easy to jump all the way down to 12, i wonder what the cost was to jump to 10 in order to get someone like pajaarvi-svensson. the problem is that there are still tons of glaring holes on this team that one draft is simply not enough to turn this team into a perennial contender. there was no way the islanders could have screwed up this draft. the real test for garth is to figure out ways to build outside of the draft. Free Agency? Trades? Only time will tell…
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Kai says:
I’d give it a C. Tavares was great, but I think they gave up too much for de Haan. The goalie picks could probably have been made much later as this was not a supposedly good year for goalies, which makes it even strangers.
The others are largely unknowns but Anders Lee seems a sound pick.
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secmaster420 says:
Its like I went to a buffet expecting to try a lot of different dishes. Instead, I got the best dish which I was expecting, and then a few odd-ball dishes that the chef said were very good, but I’ve never tried before. Right now I’m hungry, and I had expected to be full.
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Mike in Bohemia says:
#1 – A+
Beyond that, a big disappointment.
And by the way, I have every right to disagree as much as you have a right to agree. None of us are GM’s, and we base our opinions on boatloads of info from numerous experts (most of whom have more experience than Garth Snow). I hope I’m wrong, only time will tell. As much as I like Garth Snow (I hope he’s around for a long time), I don’t have to blindly agree with his decisions.
As I stated in the previous blog, all of you with no tolerance for criticism should stop “whining” about us critics. We are still Islanders.Finally, nothing can ruin this draft for me now that we have JT.
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Church Hill Drew says:
Okay, my thoughts:
1) Landon Ferraro is NOT Zach Parise. Let’s clear that up right away.
2) De Haan’s “hockey sense” was ranked 3rd in the entire draft (by RLR) just behind Tavares and Hedman. Also reads…”best pure passer in the draft” Give it time, this pick should be a gem.
3) If Kassian doesn’t have size and grit, would we even care about him? We need TALENT in this organization, regardless of the package it comes in. Sorry, but I’ll pass on this year’s Brad Dalgarno.
4) One of those goalies will play at the NHL level. Maybe we just bagged our Kari Lehtonen and/or Henrik Lundvist….and yes, I do believe DP’s health played a role. I also believe that these two kids are real good prospects and when you factor it all in, taking two goalies wasn’t as much of a stretch as people think.
5) Love Bill Torrey but both he AND Sather have shi* the bed as many times as they struck gold. Go look up some of the post dynasty drafts. Bill and Tex Ehman screwed this club BIG TIME toward the end.
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mtrico says:
After the initial excitement of getting Tavares, I walk away from this draft with a sense of disappointment. How does an organization, that by everyone’s acoount lacks depth, trade all those picks to get a defenseman slotted in the 20′s of the first round, and then select two goalies in back to back rounds? Has that ever happened before? It just doesn’t make much sense to me.
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Priest says:
It is too early to tell really, but I’ll bite, just for fun. I’ll give them a B-. They took the right guy at #1, but then paid way to much to move up, and then used that higher draft pick to take a guy who may well have been available at #26. Two goalies in rounds 2&3 doesn’t inspire confidence either. There were some big bodies available in the mid-rounds that they could’ve taken with with the traded picks as well.
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Alex says:
B-. Grabbing Tavares was the easy part, but at least they were smart enough to do that. They really did however, violate their philosophy they preached last year when they mentioned the 08 and 09 drafts were going to be about replenishing their farm system. Tavares is going straight to the pros, while De Haan is the only solid prospect we drafted. Giving up 4 picks for him was not a smart move, when we could have gotten 3 legitimate prospects for our system instead. The Mikko pick is interesting, as he has some size, but I feel like the Islanders were trying to get the next Lundqvist or Kiprusoff of the draft, and reached for him way toO early. DiPietro should still be the goaltender of the future, unless there is something we don’t know about his health, so I think using the first pick of round two on a goalie was not a smart move. Additionally, our farm system is not much better than it was a year ago. Maybe the Isles are that confident in all the kids they got last year? i.e. Trivino, Harmonic, Ness, Martin. Hopefully some of those picks pan out, but I doubt we’ll see any results for at least 2 years. Hopefully they’ll bring up Joensuu full time next year, as they passed on Kassian, and maybe will sign a good defender and a good winger to make us a possible playoff contender next year.
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Zach says:
A grade for what? What we think we know is going to happen in four years? Quick, someone look into their crystal ball and tell me who will win the superbowl in 2013 so I can win some big money.
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corey says: i think that De Haan was picked because he used to play with tavares and i think it will help tavares to have a friend with him when everyones going crazy over him. also think its weird how the Islanders took two goalies. does that mean DP wont be healthy or something?
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Merrick says:
As judged today, this draft is a B-. We started with an A because we were handed a 50% curve on our grade with a freebie answer of Tavares. However, on my grading sheet, except for positioning ourselves into the 16 and 12 spots, we got every answer wrong after that.
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Alex Kinkead says:
A+
We got Tavares and some of you still complain -
chris says:
B+
Mostly because we landed John Tavares.I believe the Islanders have the correct analysis of deHaan, who was OHL rookie of the year. He has tremendous upside and they can allow him time to properly develop. I also believe they knew someone was very likely to grab him before #16, so we weren’t the only team interested. At worst, he’ll develop into a Gervais or Campoli like prospect. But at best…
Disappointed by the selection of goaltenders. I believe the team would have been best served drafting Ferraro at #31 and used the later picks for goalies. I also thought Olivier Roy was worth a 4th or 5th round selection.
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Frank James says:
I think grades right after a draft are a fun read but really mean nothing.
Saying that,
Tavares- great. If he scores 35-50 goals great. If he scores 20-30 we can’t blame Garth.
de Haan- seems like he went early. But they always say if there is a player you want and think he may not be there go and get him.
2 goalies, the Finnish kid didn’t even speak with Garth.
Maybe Ricky is really hurting or they are so spooked they want to make sure if DP is done they have a #1 and possibly a good back up.
Who knows.
Why they refuse to draft size is something I can’t answer. There seems to be some questions on a couple of the big kids.
We’ll see.They have cap space. Maybe they add Komisarek or another quality blue lines. Maybe they spend a little more to get a Chris Neil type- being they are not close to the cap.
After seeing Nielsen get rung by Mottau this team needs a policeman.
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b-ri says:
A-
Drafting Tavares was huge obviously. De Haan will probably be very good, but it was a bit of a stretch to grab him at 12, no matter, i like the pick. Koskinen might be the answer in net post DP. Hes 21, he’s huge at 6’7” and he played with the men over in finland and put up superb numbers. They didn’t add size (outside of goal) or toughness and that’s why this is not an A+ draft. Their first 3 picks have the potential to be impact players on this team in a few years (Tavares’ impact will be immediate). The guys after that i’m not so sure about just cause i dont know much about them. I like Anders Lee. He’s 6’2” and 210lbs. Maybe he can bring his QB vision skills to the rink. According to an article i read online for him he is going to play for green bay in the USHL this upcoming year before shipping off to play HOCKEY at Notre Dame. He’s a ways away but he might be a steal down the line.
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Joe B says:
They needed to get some goalies, they had none in the system, so I understand that, to an extent. I hope de Haan turns out to be as good as they think he will be. I also hope that thelack of size can be addressed via some free agent signings this week. Overall, a B+ for now, thanks to JT.
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Bport fan says:
Tavares A+
Everything else after that is a friggin C- at best maybe even a DThe opportunity to take much needed high end players was passed on to draft 2 goalies they could have had much later.
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I am rating the draft an A+. It was exciting,they drafted the best player available,they sold 10000000 tickets (or soon will sell that many) and I woke up with a hangover for the first time in a long long time….that is 100% an A+.
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Schultz39 says:
I give it a B+. Was obviously ecstatic about the Tavares pick and was iffy on de Haan but have to give some trust to Janikowski on this one. He was obviously their top choice and they must’ve had info he was going to go at 12 or 13 so they jumped in.
As far as the rest of the draft, happy they got some goalie depth in the organization but not sure we needed two.
I was really hoping for Kassian at #12 b/c he would have added that “jam” this team needs and would’ve liked to have seen some more size on defense.
But, have to walk away from this weekend knowing now that we have Tavares to be on the team come Oct 1st and there is a future. Now we can concentrate on filling some of our holes in the FA market – a “1b” goalie like an Anderson, Conklin, etc. and a stay at home defenseman b/c I don’t see Witt and Sutton making it through the year injury-wise.
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princetonace says:
Look, Garth, Ryan & Co know more about these players than any of us, so until proven otherwise, let’s hope de Haan is worth it. It just seems like odd behavior compared to last year – they had a real sense of where Bailey would be available, and made smart moves to trade down. This year, it feels like they got overanxious – we’re still in a position where we need to build depth everywhere, so a few extra picks could have come in handy.
That said, fired up over JT, glad we got some goalie depth…wish we had gotten more size
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Jimmy says:
A- maybe drafting goalies in the 2nd and 3rd round was excessive but the drafted the best player and de Hann fits the type of system they play maybe they moved to early but so be it
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Nick says:
confused!
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I don’t do grades but I am guessing DP, McDonald and Danis give this draft an F.
DP’s really gonna hate the upcoming UFA season.
Everyone repeat after me.
“No one should ever “want” their star goaltender to play in an All-Star Game.” -
YellowHat says:
A+ for now. He took the best player. As far as the trading of picks goes. I give him an A. I dont think he got fleeced and actually came out ahead on most of the trades. What he did with those picks is a different story and that lies not with Garth but his scouting staff. We won’t know for a few years (other than De Haan who we should know more after next year in juniors for him) how the picks work out.
I personnally am glad they didnt take Kassian. I look at him and for some reason see him being more of a Chris Simon.
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Dan C says:
Take Tavares out of the equation (who was spoon fed to snow) and I give him an F. Terrible job. deHaan would have been available at 16 for sure. Passed up on many better prospects to get him. Rounds 2-7 are a complete mystery. Seems like they threw most of these picks away. Thank God for JT
F for Garth and Janks
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Isles6 says:
I am curious to know what they had on de Haan over Kassian, but hey, they took the guy at one they needed to take. It seems strange that they did not take any wingers, but that does not really mean anything that I know of, other than in looking ahead, maybe the Taylor Hall draft is really loaded with wingers as opposed to the other spots, or there are a bunch of free agent wingers. No draft can be graded so soon after it is held, but I say this, it seems clear that in the Islanders’ intramural basketball league, the goalies have their own team (why else would take two 6-5 goalies back to back)
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matt17 says:
b+ the only thing that bothers me is two goalies pretty early if they used one of those picks on a goaliei would of made it an A. The trade in the first round could be good or bad but that cant be graded until we see this kid play in a year or so
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kabbage19 says:
The Devils were really high on deHann and were going to make a move up to get him. The Isles beat them to the punch.
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MT says:
I don’t think we should grade this draft until 3-4 years from now, but just on Tavares alone automatic A
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jpa says:
Joensuu, 6’4″, opened eyes last year and may end up a regular next season – big and can play. Colliton, 6’2″, will get a share of ice next year. Fritz, 6’8″ (and over 250lbs) will be up. Iggulden, Rechlicz and Pitton all have size. Most of these guys can do more than just beat on people. And those are just the forward prospects. Not satisfied? Enforcers are cheap and always available thru trades or free agency.
Pitts has some young, talented players you might have heard off and an enforcer around to protect them you might recognize.. Course, Godard wasn’t even dressed for a single playoff game.
We have size in the system already. Enforcers are a dime a dozen.
I’d give Snow a B. A if one more pick becomes an impact player, outside JT. A+ if two do.
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A-
JT, thank goodness.
I would have liked Kassian, some scoring, size and grit on the wing, though I am not down on de Haan. He should fill out and be a decent presence on the blue line, while delivering the puck to JT and KO.
The goalies are a bit curious. I know nothing about them, but I pray we get another 6 (healthy) years out DP before he totally breaks down. Pipe dream?
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UIF says:
Well, I’m happy they got Tavares. I would still like Snow to at least tell us why he felt he had to trade up to 12 to take a guy projected to be there until the mid-20s. If he had info that someone else was eying de haan, then I understand. But when they got to 12, I expected them to take Kassian…or Kulikov if they wanted D. Just looking at body frame, Kulikov looks like he could challenge for a spot sooner than later. He was a top 10 on most projections I’ve seen, and was only still around b/c he has a Russian last name (He’s already in NA).
A goalie at 31 I don’t understand. Maybe they could have moved back. Maybe, again, they had intel that someone else wanted him. The player sounds good, actually, but the draft position just seems odd. I would have liked to have seen another forward or D higher up.
My initial reaction:
C+ b/c of Tavares.
C- if they took de haan at 12 with no intel that someones else was looking at him.I actually like some of the players from what I’ve read…but compared to what SEEMS to have been available…that’s factored into my grade.
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Beaker says:
we needed goaltending depth; if we cant sign a good starting goalie and you sign either joey mac or denis to back up ricky, you need some goalies to develop in bridgeport. i liked us taking de haan ever since i saw him in a mock draft about a month ago, but at 26, not 12. but at least we got the guy we wanted, plus tavares makes this draft great by himself.
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Blizzard says: The goalies selected are telling us something……..
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Julie says:
Reality check:
Each year, The Hockey News’ Future Watch ranks the top 50 drafted NHL prospects.
Not a single Islander pick is on the list.
(Filatov is #1, BTW.)
Same goes for Hockey’s Future top 50 list. NOT ONE ISLANDER.
Yes, I realize that several of our best young players are already with the team. But so are the best young guys from other NHL teams.
Philly – which consistently drafts in the bottom third of the league – has 3 players in the top 13.
So all of you touting our “blue chippers” like Ness, DiBenedetto et al, please come back down to earth.
That’s why many of us are unwilling to grant Snow the benefit of the doubt, and refuse to assume that he has some special insight that the rest of the league does not. The facts simply don’t support that assertion.
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KP says:
B+
First round was good. Snow had two choices for the right pick in my eyes, Tavares or Hedman. He took one of those two and that was the right call.
The de Haan pick was an interesting one. I like the scouting report on him, a point per game junior rookie Dman (the PP QB on Oshawa this year? Perhaps a connection with John T?) has some upside, but I like most thought if he was the guy, he would’ve been there at 16. Late round picks can often be reaches or stabs, and I guess the organization felt that it had stockpiled enough picks from last year and those kids are making progress they could afford to drop off a few late rounders.
Moving up from 26 to 16 was a great move by Snow though. He did what he had to do. I question the need to draft two goaltenders. Tells me that Rick may not be what the club says he will be, especially when you draft a guy who is 20 years old and is “ready” for North America.
Jeremy Morin was a forward I had my eye on for the second round. He was a guy who had some size playing in the US Developmental Program and had some offense. Disappointed they didn’t add this type of forward in the second round. Perhaps next year.
When Garth traded up to 12, I thought Kassian was coming here, but they did identify and fill a lot of needs with this draft – Scoring (Tavares), top pairing Dman (de Haan) and goaltending (two trees from Europe).
Not a bad job on the whole. Next year will be just as crucial, as I expect the Isles to be picking in the top 10 once again. The season after that, 2010-2011, you will have a sophmore John T, a third year pro in Okposo and Bailey, hopefully a healthy DiPietro, and this team will start looking scary with that one more piece to the puzzle drafted in 2010.
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Tom says:
Taking Tavares was a “No-Brainer.”
The rest of the draft and the 5 for 1 trade for de Haan was “No Brains.”
This team needs a new scouting department! -
TimQ says:
C – Snow made the obvious choice at #1, but then seemed to contract Milburyitis. Hopefully I’m wrong and all of these moves turn out to be great, but they seemed to give up all of the chips to get a few prospects that are significant reaches. I would have preferred another consensus bigshot at 12 or a number of warm (big) bodies. I felt so good after teh JT pick and have crashed back to earth since then.
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bergie20 says:
B. isles get their franchise forward and a future version of mark streit. they also probably solve their long term goaltending issue. koskinnen is the future starter – in probably 2 or 3 years b/c of his age. the isles, however, had to bypass some excellent players in order to solve the goaltending problem. cizikas legal issue bothers me but he does have talent. he probably goes much higher if not for his legal problem. lee is an intriguing late round pick. jankowski apparently said he’s commited to hockey and going to the ushl next year.
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KO21 says:
I’m elated that we got JT…I’m unsure why writers are saying hes so far below the Malkins,& Crosby’s… Maybe he is???Didnt he beat one of “young Gretzky’s” scoring records???I hope this kid is better than he is given credit for but I will be happy if he’s a consistent 40 goal 1st liner…
The move from 26 all the way up to 12 only to take a guy ranked 25 is questionable and disturbing…I want to think positive but it seems irresponsible to squander picks like that…I truely, look foward to the explanation after Botta askes Garth about this, “pointblank”….
If I were to rate Garth on a scale of
1-10, I’d give him a 3…He made the obvious choice but after that he went all “hog wild”…When he chose De Haan, Garth had some smirk on his face… -
Ketch says:
B- Tavares saves them from at least a D. Compared to the last draft and perhaps besides de Haan, I don’t see any players that could end up being a steal, like last year.
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The PolishPrince says:
I’ll give this draft the only fair grade one can give two hours after it wrapped up – “incomplete”. JT was an easy one, everything else should be judged three years from now. The scouts did their homework. Let’s go Islanders!!!!!
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Bri on Li says:
Can’t say much about the others, but I’m glad Mr. Snow didn’t try to reinvent the draft and picked the right guy first overall. Years will pass before Ferraro becomes another Parise before our eyes.
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not sure I love what the did after the first pick with Tavares. Taking a goalie as the first pick on day two reeks of desperation. Also, where is the size of from D line going to come from? I would have to rate this as a C- Sorry Snow job. I don’t believe you got enough value for all the trades up.. Seems like Mad Mike part deux.
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streit 02 says:
Hard to put a grade on it, i dont want to give it a letter. Thank god for John Tavares. Calvin dehaan sounds like he will be a good player (never seen him play but sounds like a rafalski type)from his stats and his rookie of the year award. I thought the staff made some excellent moves to move up that high in the draft. However, with them picking dehaan it didnt seem like a move that high was necessary. I was very shocked when they didnt pick Kassian at the 12 spot. If we added Kassian the Isles would have the perfect mix of skill and grit with their offensive prospects. The picking of two goaltenders is a tell tale sign of the Rick Dipietro situation which unfortunately does not look too promising at this point. I have no clue how good these goaltenders are. I dont like the fact that one of them said his biggest asset was his size. I like the fact that the Isles picked kids from high school and russia in the later rounds as i feel they have more potential to have potential later on with them not being watched or seen too much. All in all, i am a happy islander fan right now and although they made an islander type selection with the 12th pick (which may turn out to be a great one) the staff showed a lot to me with their ability to wheel and deal and it seems they have a good plan and have been staying the course with it. Thanks garth and staff
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DRIVE45 says:
Very dissappointed after the Taveras pick which gets an A. But that was a no brainer. The rest of the draft gets a D. You give up 4 picks to move up from 26 to 12 and draft de Haan when Kassian and Schroeder are sitting there. 5 picks in the top 57 and they end up with three in a deep draft. Wang should not be at the draft and Snow is a backup goaltender. C- overall. Very dissappointed.
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Jason says:
I’ll trade all the draft picks including Tavares for a new building. Any chance we can draft an architect next year?
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Long Suffering says:
Garth has my full support — truly won me over with the emotion he showed during the post draft interview. However it would be helpful if they explained why they gave up all of those picks to get a player they seemingly could have gotten with their original draft position — it just doesn’t make sense…with that said, thanks Garth for caring so much and doing the right thing with JT.
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FourCupsin4Yearsnot60 says:
I’m not sure how you grade this draft until about 2012 but it seems like every pick Snow made after Tavaras was a pretty substantial reach. Nearly every one of them was projected to go substantially lower. Plus, back to back goalies? Thus, even though I am ecstatic that we took Tavaras, I give Snow a B.
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Blizzard says:
A+…they drafted JT the best player in the draft. After that its clear they were drafting for positional needs. Defense and goalies. Too soon to say how that will all play out.
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NYICHAMP39 says:
AFter drafting JT its kind of hard to disappoint me. Seriously im very easy to please. BUT really I would have preferred coming away with either Moore or Despres after moving all those pics to move into the 12 position. This kid de HAAN better be as good as they think he is going to be. After that I love the move to bring in two goalies. Lets face it, we needed some solid goaltending prospects. Overall a great draft. A-. I would have said A if they had picked up Moore instead.
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ME says:
Taking Tavares alone should be a A+++ but we do need to grade the entire draft. I would rate this draft as a C+ Without Tavares it becomes a D. I feel the Islanders gave up way too much for DeHaan. Regardless if they thought someone else was planning on taking him earlier. There were still some very good defenseman available if they stayed at #16. The Islanders did not address their size issue up front or on the blueline and that should be noted. Taking two goalies back to back makes very little sense even if the thought is Dipietro’s career is on the rocks.
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Dan says:
A This team lacked goaltending prospects and now they have two. If both work out have two great goalies is not a problem. One can always be moved. They got the Defenseman they wanted. All of you who say he would have been there later you have no idea of that. Lets hope that a free agent signs here and look forward to the start of camp in September…
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love all these people who give an A because of Tavares – a monkey could have picked him. Garth should not get a free pass for the rest of the draft because of JT. It is a sad to say we have to be relieved when our GM does not do something stupid as oppposed to expecting him to be shrewd. Not impressed with the draft Garth. Let’s see what you got with free agency
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Al L says:
The obvious grade is INCOMPLETE as it is for all other teams. Grading a draft immediately is like grading an exam before taking it. This draft cannot possibly be reasonably evaluated until 3 or 4 years down the road when these kids either have become players or movable assets. I get a kick out of some here giving F’s to players they know nothing of. Most players beyond the first 6 have skills but haven’t applied them yet. Another factor here that has been overlooked is the 60 player contract limit. We drafted 13 kids last year and have to make decisions on players in the system who’s rights had been acquired earlier. The theme of this draft unlike the season before was quality,not quantity. The book on Tavares,DeHaan and Koskinen is they are all high end talent prospects. The same can be said for Anders Lee who lasted late mainly because he may concentrate on football when and if he gets and accepts a College Scholarship to play NCAA Div 1 QB!! Should he decide to play hockey he could become a steal. Then again,like ALL others a dud. You just don’t know about these kids at this point. Zdeno Chara could barely stay on his skates when playing AHL hockey for Kentucky a dozen years ago. Get the drift? I am sure Chris agrees it is ludicrous to conclude anything about these kids now.
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Allow me to correct the above post. Organizations are allowed 50,not 60 contracted players in a given year! Again,that factors into how many players you draft each year and one reason why Garth took the opportunity to defer his 3rd rounder to 2010.
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Rangers SUCK says:
Moving up to get Dehaan was stupid, Tavares was a no brainer. Two goalies was dumb, Karl Kluckenberg or whatever is Swede name is would have been a better pick in rd2. C- and hopefully not the continuation of the same old crap for the past 20 years.
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isles316 says:
I don’t know how anyone can grade a draft when we haven’t seen any of these guys really play, including Tavares. Give Snow some credit. Bailey had a nice rookie year and Joensuu looks like he can be solid. Petrov MIGHT come here in a few years with upside. I like what they did.
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steve k says:
Tavares is obviously a home run so no need to get into it with hin… A+ de Haan is a good choice as well, the only question is giving up the picks to move up. He’s been compared to Kaberle, so if in two years he comes in and becomes that type of dman it would be great. Thank god we took two goalies next. They did an interesting piece on XM’s Power Play about later round goalies and how succesfull they’ve been. We were incredibly depleted in the goalie department, now we have a good chance at a future NHL goalie. The later round picks I don’t know enough about yet, so I will wait to pass judgment. This was an absolute A+ draft. Great job!
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Obs says:
Lets see what happens in 5 years. That is the true measure of a draft. Most of these kids will be 23 or 24 YoA then we will see how Snow did. Tomorrow, lests start talking free agents. Who do we sign? Can we get tougher through FA? Need a big stay home D-man and an enforcer to protect Tavares. Jackman a good middle weight, Joel Rechlicz, need to see more improvement. Mitch Fritz Big, Strong, can fight but can’t skate. Who is out there and available?
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-j- says:
Great day. Now we really need healthy DP.
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JD says:
Too soon to judge this draft, except for picking JT…which was the obvious choice, so I feel relieved – as opposed to psyched. I’m interested in two things right now:
1) what does Garth do regarding July 1 free agency, and…
2) what he didn’t do (trades) during the draft this year. See the above and next year’s draft for what I mean by this.My gut tells me that DP is highly questionable, and that we may go after some big fish (on D and maybe a goalie) this summer. This could also be a sign that Garth is comfortable with another “growing as part of the rebuild” season, and as such he’s looking at the 2010 draft as part of his strategy. Who knows…I’m just happy we have JT.
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McLovin21 says:
In 2000, sports illustrated gave us an A for the draft. So I really dont put much stock in day after draft day grades.
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19 ISLE in NJ 22 says:
I give them a:
B- … and that is with the Tavares pick.
Without Tavares … and … uh hymmmmm …. I don’t know.
The de Haan pick as you said CB was to much of a price to pay for someone I felt they could get as high as 18th or as low as 24th … Why they felt the need to move up again and spend assets to get him at 12 … well we will not know … but maybe there was a huge buzz about the kid being a steel and the Isles wanted to ensure that didn’t happen.
de Haan has a lot to prove for Garth to expain those moves.
The goaltender drafts tells me that Rick isn’t long for the NHL … but 2 goalies that early? I question that … Plus they didn’t add any muscle … that to me was their biggest concern after getting Tavares.
de Haan … very good prospect … Tavares … Excellent prospect … the rest … a HUGE ??????
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Booten says:
A+, we added good to decent prospects at most positions last year besides goalie and Garth took care of that this year. I like the de Haan move a lot. Garth may have gotten info of another team before 16 being high on him and even if not, the things they are saying about this kid arn’t bad and I’m not pissed he gave up picks to get him.
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Quagmire says:
Who knows what the grade will be – let’s check back in 3-4 years. To me, regardless of how good these players end up being (or not being), this draft kind of feels like a fresh start. I’m sick of thinking about the Milbury years and all the players that got away. It’s now been 9 years since the Luongo debacle (to me, as a life long goalie who followed Luongo from Juniors, the worst of them all), I’m finally ready to let it go. Drafting 2 goalies this high says something about Rick D’s health (obviously). I don’t know anything about either, but since the picks I’ve read some very good things on Koskinen (check out Hockeys Future – there’s an interesting thread on him from March). He’s almost 21 and was playing in the Finnish elite league, so who knows if they think he may be ready more quickly than you might think. Let’s see how these guys develop and enjoy the ride, either way, no more (for me) thinking about what players we could have/should have had. lost
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Garth Snow and the franchise do not deserve some sort of special accolades for taking the 1 player (Tavares) everyone in the NHL universe has been saying to take for the past several years (except for Garth, Wang and the NYI franchise). The reason we were all on pins and needles for the past 2 months is because of their history of bonehead decisions.
The rest of their draft truly points out their lack of acumen. Think about this…
We could have walked away with Tavares, Kassian and Ferraro. Sounds like THAT could have been a game chaging draft. Instead they traded a billion picks away and got yet another smallish offensive D-Man (I thought we had Ness, McDonald etal..) and 2 young, young goalies who are years away.Please, please tell me there is another plan otherwise we’ll be in the same boat a couple of years from now as we watch a discouraged JT leave via free agency.
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I would give the final grade an A-. Obviously Tavares receives an A+, and I will even give Snow credit for de Haan (A), as I feel that they must have had a very good reason for moving up so high to grab him. Do I think he might have fallen? That is not for me to say, considering there may have been other teams that had him very high on their list. In any event, Koskinen is a nice addition to the franchise, as he could be ready to play in a year or two. As for the other picks, I am unfamiliar with most of them, but the Islanders did a pretty decent job with the top three.
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Terry 99 says:
AWFUL,AWFUL,AWFUL.THIS IS WHY THIS FRANCHISE IS MIRED IN MEDIOCRITY. I am disgusted. After the thrill of Taveras….excuse me I’m getting sick again. Shades of Milbury.
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Abe Bean says:
Cant belive garth passe don Kassian and Ferraro Both coulda been nice islanders
i give him a b- simply becaause of JT
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Tom D 37 says:
I thought they had a solid draft. Although you will never know until a few years down the road. But, they did what teams should do. With a top 10 you go with the safe sure thing, with the rest of the picks you go for high risk-high reward type players. They did that all perfectly. My only problem is they didn’t address their need for big physical d-men (which is odd because snojanks have been talking about that quite a bit). They did however finally get the superstar and add to their goaltending depth. I guess I would give it a B.
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Martin the french Canadian says:
Hey Chris, I have a question for you. Where do you think Islanders are ranked now all around the league about young guns after this draft ?
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fwb says:
I am not grading this draft, too early or unfair to so soon, anyway. I just read the article on the Islanders draft at nhl.com. You have to love the confidence in which Jankowski speaks. They had a plan last year – trade down and get Bailey. Use those assets this year to trade up and get de Haan. I have played and coached hockey almost my whole life – I am not gonna pretend to know any of these players. Just because I have a copy of the Hockey News and a few web address’ doesn’t mean I know. These guys have down alot of travelling and watched alot games – they have done alot of work. We should be lucky to have Jankowski and Snow, they seem to know what they are doing. If anything – the last two drafts have stockpiled the Islanders with good young forwards in particular (Tavares/Bailey/Petrov/Trivino etc), good yound d prospects (Ness/de Hann/Niemi/Harmonic) and two monster goalies today. Plus – plenty of cap room – they almost HAVE to spend money to make the floor. Let’s hope they keep up the good work. Maybe you can all trust these two more than Bob McKenzie or some blue line report. Don’t forget good moves like getting a 3rd round pick from the Coyotoes to move up 1 spot. Basically, with all the moves – the Isles still had 7 picks in the first 6 rounds and gained a pick for next year. Maybe, finally, things are looking up.
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Has anyone ever read the list of drafted players from 1995 to 2008, starting with the first round through round 3?
It reads like a who’s who of people you’ve never heard of.
So basically, except for probably the top 7 guys in round “1″ of any draft, the remaining 99% of the drafted players are never heard from again.
Get over it.
This draft is an A+++ simply because the Islanders got TAVARES – the probable face of the franchise and the franchise player for the next 10 – 15 years hopefully.
If de Haan or either of the goalies make a contribution, that would be awesome.
Time will tell.
DOC
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Matt says:
liked the draft. hope snow and company stay the course and continue to build our core. for those who “don’t like what garth snow did”, now i know why you were never in the sports industry.
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Izzy Franchise says:
Some of you people are unreal. Nothing makes you happy.
I really have no issue at all with the guys they took. sure with the 12 pick Kassian would have been nice but de Haan will be a good player.
Just be happy will ya? i am!
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jethro09 says:
A-. Any draft you walk out of with JT is a successful draft. Get a solid “d” prospect and a couple of goaltenders for insurance on DP and its a solid draft. Everything else is a bonus if it pans out.
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CJCB says:
Tavares, Kassian, Ferraro
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You people kill me, how many of you have ever seen any of thses guys play more than 2 games.. you have to trust the scouts..hopefully they did a good job, will know in 3-5 years..
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purify says:
two early goalie picks makes you wonder the health of dp and the medical reports we the fans dont see. de haan has the offensive upside to move ko off the point on the pp and move him down low with jt in the future. special teams win games. hey most of us said garth take tavares and you can do what u want with the rest of the picks, and he did. so i cant complain at all i was one of them.
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teddyfusi says:
b no problem with the players, just the method in which garth went about acquiring the later picks
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A – we got the best player in this draft, that’s what truly matters at the end of the day.
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Phil C says:
C +. Tavares was a no brainer. the move to 16 was OK for a dman slated 20 if that’s where the deal was, but the move to 12 and the consecutive goalie picks were more like “no brains”. . .the move to 12 made sense for kassian, not for a guy ranked 20 at best.
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dalcy says:
A+ we got a potential 50 goal scorer, a game changer, and a legit threat to every team in the league all in one player. Heatley who? Gaborik who?
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TwistedWrister says:
Solid B+
If those other high-risk/high reward prospects play out, this was a Grade A draft for the org.
Either way, it’s safe to say that Garth has raised himself a few notches around the league and with the fans for fooling everyone and taking the BPA.
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DonK says:
Anyone who wastes time grading an NHL draft until 3-4 years have passed its wasting their time.
Snow followed the first law of drafting (the one Mike Milbury did NOT follow): Take the best player (Hint, Mike: It wasn’t a goalie). Tavares gives them both offense and credibility (when was the last time the Isles got so much positive attention from the Canadina media?). They may have been able to get de Haan by staying at 16 or 26. He has at least 2 years of maturing left.
As for everyone else — who knows. I doubt anyone posting here has seen any of these kids, so it’s a case of wait and see. Call me in 2013, and we’ll discuss it.
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Frank Dillon says:
This draft will always be known for selecting Tavares…after Islander Nation had to hold their breath right up to the selection. However, I think they did a poor job with the other first round pick (Moore or Duprees would have been a better choice size wise)and I would have used #31 on Kassien. The goalies could have waited until 2 later selections.
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JB says:
I rate it a B. Couldn’t be more pumped about the JT pick. But the whole 26-16-12 move for de Haan really bothers me. was hoping it was all for Jordan Schroeder. Would have been great to reunite him with KO and maybe give us two pairs of setup-men/finishers in Tavares/Bailey and Okposo/Schroeder. Even John Moore would have been a better choice. But whatever, obviously the Isles see something in Calvin and we’ll just have to wait and see if it was founded. Draft Party was sick.
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ThuggyC says:
A-
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Joe C says:
Overall D, Taveras easy pick but could not have gone wrong with other two. In deep draft with 3 other pick in top 37 needed one more possible player other then reaching for Dehaan. No other GM would have made those trades, but Isles GM’s concistantly do. Disappointed overall
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SCLI says:
The jubilation I experienced after the Isles picked John Tavares soon turned to disgust as Garth Snow and company mismanaged several high draft picks and overpay dearly for an undersized defense men with potential if he gains 25lbs and quite a bit of strength. Followed up by their total misread of the talent pool in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. Drafting 2 goalies only tells me that they have little confidence in either. As usual they have failed to address the fact that Isles have possibly the softest D in all of hockey. Aside from Aron Ness (another smallish D) Isles have little to look forward to with their Defensive core of the future. Sorry to speak glumly but Isles had a marvelous chance to Hit a grand slam during this Draft. After the Tavares homerun, they managed little more than a couple of bunt singles. Isle took 2 goalies & a defenseman in a draft that was considered very weak for goalies and about average for defensmen. (aside from Hedman)This draft was top heavy in centermen and forwards. Seems like they were unaware of this little bit of info
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mt275 says:
even with Tavares, we still need scoring up front. Besides, we are still missing some size, and toughness.
I’ll give it a B. -
FantasyIsles says:
Islander farm sytem is ranked 29th out of 30 teams for a reason…
Gordie Clark (now directing Rangers scouting braintrust – and he’s piled up some very impressive young’ins for the rags these past 5 yrs)was the real reason behind Milbury’s success at the draft; of course Sorry Charlie! canned him for being an autonomous thinker.
Back-up goalie sychophant playing GM on TV and a tired bunch of talentless talent scouts flailing about made for yet another head scratching spectacle of a draft – how the self-righteous contrarians ever managed to draft the legit 1st pick 1st still amazes.
Well, I’m just glad Islander crazy didn’t come out to play till later.
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Ben says:
I think Garth panicked with his trades. De Haan, the two keepers could have been had with lower picks.
We could/should have two or more prospects in our ranks right now. Instead we have one no-brainer sure thing and alot of ? marks.
Time will tell however, why is it that we seem to see things differently from everyone else?
July 1st is near: do we go after a blue chip UFA long term?
Do we spill out the money the year “illbury” picked up Yashin, etc and change the face of the team a little. We have plenty of cap space.
Are we playing/picking to get another top pick because Garth feels we need more top picks to play with next year and another year of sub-par hockey.
Does Garth sign/trade for cap players?
It will be an interesting Summer indeed!
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Mark in Ottawa says:
C.
It all depends on the goalies.
Tavares will be a 30-40 goal scorer.
The goalies are the key.
If one becomes a franchise player the draft is an A.
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Chris D. says:
Outside of JT (which was easy), I really don’t know what to think about our picks. Unfamiliar with these players, as fans it seems we put so much faith in “consensus” rankings for each selection that when we don’t choose one of the expected players with the pick, we can’t help but feel a big letdown (especially considering our recent draft history). Only problem for us is that we really don’t have the insider knowledge that Snow or the scouts have, so we’re kind of judging this in a vacuum. The scouts obviously loved DeHaan enough that they felt ok giving up several picks to prevent the possibility of losing him. Pending further development, they obviously feel he is a “lock” for the NHL with a huge upside. Only time will tell if this was worth it. I would love to hear Snow give a detailed analysis of his thinking when this is all done, though I doubt he will give us any great insights because he tends to speak in such generalities (which is frustrating to listen to at times). Overall, I’m excited about JT but could feel a little better with the rest of the draft. Hopefully we can make some noise in the upcoming free agent frenzy.
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Bryan says:
I’m glad we didnt botch the first pick so I’m in no position to complain. We did not embarrass ourselves this year. That aside after Tavares every move confused me. I hope these guys know what they are doing.
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The thing I dont understand is this. On the official Islander web site prior to this draft, Isles posted profiles and interviews with the top ranked players in this draft. Then they ran profiles on the players that the Isles seemed to be interested in. The top 30 ranked players I believe. The Islanders gave us the impression that these were the player that they would target with the 11 draft picks they owned. The impression given by these postings was that by wheeling and dealing and By hook or crook, Isles would be landing several of these highly touted prospects. I feel we were misled. We put all our eggs into one basket. Where are the Klingers, Kassian’s, Caron’s, Ashton’s Schroder’s Olsen’s Moores, Despries,and all the other prospects that the Isle’s Profiled on their Web page. I believe that the Isles led us on to believe one or more of these prospects would be chosen. With out looking back, I bet any one of you can name 15 or more of the players that the Isles profiled on their site. Now how many of you can name our 7 picks? How many were Profiled on the Islander Official web site?
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puck-o says:
A
I didnt realize how many NHL scouts we have on these boards. I am going to say 99.9 % of the people on these boards are going by what they READ!! Not by what they have seen!! Our scouting department actually watched these players. And everyone says we could have had dehaan at 26 or 16 but not if Florida took him at 14! None of us know that. Its great we have fans who can read. All of these players besides Tavares are years away. The draft has never really been our problem dumb trades have been, yes we have missed on a couple but everyone does. Let our scouts who ACTUALLY WATCHED these plpayers pick. Imagine if they drafted by what they read, if they did that, they would be…..you -
Michael R. says:
I’d definitely have to give it a B+. First of all, I’m a bit upset that there aren’t any profiles of the picks on the Islanders website. I know that getting Tavares is a HUGE deal, but there was still a lot of work done after that.
For all the people complaining about the de Haan pick, and giving up all of the picks to get him, you have to look back to an earlier post by CB about how NHL teams can only have 50 players under contract. After all the picks they made last year, I was fine in giving up picks to get the player they really wanted. I had assumed at the draft party it would be Kassian, but after reading more on de Haan, I think he could be a great addition in about 3 years to the team. Also, keep in mind he’s a young draft pick…he’s still 17 and was just a rookie in the OHL this past season. He will grow more into his body and could easily become a bigger d-man who can use his body more.
One other thing…Joensuu is probably going to be given a huge chance to make the team out of training camp this year, so there’s size and speed for you there…and Hunter should be healthy come training camp as well.
The team desperately needed goalie depth, and although I wanted Ferraro at 31 (feels to me like another Parise is coming), I think getting these guys, including Koskinen who is 21 and more ready than most goalies to try to come to the AHL this season, was savvy.
Last year’s draft was about getting as much talent as possible, regardless of position…this year was more about looking to fill specific position needs, and I think it was done fairly well.
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lovin lethbridge says:
grading a draft the day of the draft is the same as handing out a kid’s grade on the first day of school.
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Railbait says:
A+
Tavares!
Everyone after him is gravy. While I think I would have liked them to pick Kassian, they earned my confidence by keeping their first pick such a mystery from everyone, and by selecting JT.
I do hope these other picks develop, but they are secondary to the instant credibility we have now.
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John from ATL says:
B. We got Tavares. And we had 10 other picks. This should have meant an easy A and possible an A+. But we root for the Islanders. Other than Tavares we got one maybe (de Haan) and a couple of long shots (for 10 picks?). I would be upset but, WE GOT TAVARES.
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Refhater99 says:
I am completely satisfied with the Isles’ picks. I’m thrilled they drafted two goalies to get that position up to par in the organization as a whole. I’m not sure why they rushed to pick de Haan considering there were other defensemen to pick from who are bigger, stronger, tougher but I’ll reserve judgement for now. I don’t like the sound of “Rick will start skating in August.” One month prior to training camp and our former franchise goaltender will be just starting to skate again. He won’t be ready for this October if that is the case.
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Cincy says:
Tavares… A+
Round 1 total… B
Rounds 2-7… DI’m pissed off.
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Sean says:
Snow really messed this draft up and it will haunt us for years to come. We could have come out of this draft with Tavares, Kassian and Ferraro but we came out with a haul far less impressive.
I give him A+ for Tavares F for everything else, D- Overall. I am not happy at all.
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Tavares = No brainer!
de Haan = Good player, really poor asset management…
Koskinen = Likely could have been had in round 3
Nilsson = Totally off the board!
Cizikas = Before Rajala, are you kidding me?
Klementyev = Simply a hunch? Mehhhh
Lee = Excellent longterm prospect at this juncture!Biggest statement: this draft replaced Dipietro as the face of the franchise. With Koskinen being the most NHL-ready goalie in the draft and Nilsson taken immediately thereafter, can this not be interpreted as a statement on Dipietro’s future, or lack thereof?
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Cary says:
Any one of us would have taken JT – Garth gets only minor kudos for not doing something different.
We could have taken Kassian at 12, moved up 1 slot to take Despres at 30, and then selected Nilsson later in the draft.
So based on the potential for Kassian and Despres versus what we ended up with in de Haan and Koskinen, I give the Isles a C.
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double_m09 says:
Too many people are trying to give this draft a positive spin because of Tavares. I could make a monkey the GM and he would know to take Tavares. The Isles should have waited to see who started to fall before making a trade. they could have seen Moore and probably DeHaan falling and traded just 26 and 37 to move up to 20 where calgary traded down. The could have landed Moore there. At 31 the isles should have taken Stefan Elliot. With our bottom 2nd rounder they could have landed Doherty. A project yes, but a worthwhile gamble. If they were so high on Koskinen, he would have been available with the first pick of the 3rd round. And even if he wasn’t oliver roy fell to the 6th round, there’s a late consolation prize. truthfully i would have packaged pittsburg’s 3rd, and a 4th and 5th and moved up to 63 or 64 and grabbed tyson barrie. With proper valuation and drafting we could have walked out of this draft with Tavares, Moore/DeHaan, Elliott, Doherty, Koskinen and Barrie before the 4th round began. That would rebuild a weak farm system and would provide a top 7 defense for 2012 of Streit, Moore/DeHaan, Elliott, Ness, Harmonic, Doherty and Barrie. Even if one or two busts, so what, that is a top 5 nhl defense. It is time for Wang to make his first smart decision for the islanders and stay out of hockey affairs, fire snow and all his cronies and hire a real nhl gm. Dean Lombardi would not come here because of Wang and now it is evident that his poor decision making and snow’s horrible valuation will sink this team’s future. First Milbury, now Snow. Bring back Bill Torrey. It is a travesty that he has to be an advisor for any team other than the one that he built into a dynasty.
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Marc says:
I’m disappointed that the Isles’ used back-to-back early picks to grab goaltenders. In addition, Jankowski admitted that neither are top-flight prospects. If they know that DP might not or will not make a contribution next season or beyond, either find a short or long-term replacement as soon as July 1 via free agency or suck wind again next season and add another top draft pick.
Also, what happened to the Lighthouse update the public was promised ten days after the Wang/Murray/Suozzi lovefest?
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Corey says:
I dont know how anyone can say that Garth looked like Mad Mike?! We have added at least 30 prospects into our system since 2006…and that does not include this year. It was about quality, organizational needs, and their top ranked players. JT instantly brings attention and is the guy to build around. De Haan might have been a reach but the sky is the limit for him and I think he will pan out in a few years. We add goalie depth and that Koskinen is 6’7 and seems to be about a year away. Out of all the players you draft , few actually play for you so I cant fault them for going for the guys they felt were best poised to make an impact on THIS team.
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geduffer says:
From San Juan: JT makes the draft an A. The two huge goalies intrigue me and I’m willing to have patience to see what de Haan develops into to see if this draft deserves better than an A. JT by himself is a homerun. Oh and Yanks go for the sweep tomorrow. Sorry, Chris but I had to bring it up.
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Jim says:
Grade D. The Tavares pick was a no brainer and if not for the fear of ticking off the fans perhaps it doesn’t happen. This year’s draft makes last year’s bad as well. In 2008 they trade downt to get a lesser prospect (Bailey) and stock pile picks for this year. Then they give away most of those picks to select a player that prbobably went way earlier then he should have. Then they pick not one but TWO goalies with the others when they have their number one signed up for 15 years. What in the world are these guys thinking?
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Seth says:
Draft gets a b+ in my opnion very good draft obviously tavares pick was amazing i like the de hann pick i think he is very underatted and will be a similar defensman like kaberle i think we needed the 2 goalies and they are giants are here and the rest was ok i guess very solid draft im very happy
TAVARES BABY!!!!
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Names names names.Thats all these other guys are and rankings…Please.. Garth didn’t give up much to move from 16 to 12. Kassain will be a third liner and Ferraro is NO Zach parise. Haan will qb our PP for 10 years and Mikko will be our #1 goalie in 2-3 years …Wait!
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JSpitz says:
C- — would’ve been an F if not for Tavares going 1st overall. With so much size on the board available at both 12 and 31, they inexplicably draft a guy they wouldnt have had to move up twice to draft (let alone surrender plenty for the moves). I find it to be a disgrace Garth prances around w/ that smirk leaving all fans in the wind regarding who he’ll draft first, then he takes the one most want .. and then he just starts pulling rabbits out of hats and completely ignores team needs. Stop worrying so much about psych tests and character and start drafting talent and for need!
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mike says:
AMAZING how so many fans have seen the other picks after JT play to come up with the draft being HORRIBLE? No body on this board has seen any of them play except JT.
\After JT if anything works out it is gravey the draft was “A+” -
jamie says:
(B-) Tavares was great! De Haan gives us a blue chip defenseman that we needed in a big way! We gave up a lot to get De haan but Isles staff really likes him and he was rated in the top 20 might not have been there if you wait at 16. We also needed depth at goal so I was ok with the pick at 31 not crazy about another goalie in round three. After that it was a really guessing game and we will not really know for years!
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phil says:
A
Tavares was a no brainer, de Haan will be a very good nhler in a few years, finally have some goalies in the system, i consider anything after the 3rd rounds basically a crap shoot. People seem to forget last years draft very quickly.
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Nick says:
A+…We could be sitting here with Hedman or Duchene, but instead we have JT…All of the other stuff (including the de Haan move) is secondary. Without him we are probably the Kansas City Lumberjacks in 5 years or less. It will be remembered, like the day the Pens got Sid, as the day that saved the Isles…I hope Howie is ready to belt out “Tavares to Okposo…score!!” at least 70 times next season…Let the resurrection begin!
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Hockey1919 says:
No point in giving a letter grade. de Haan was as surprise pick at 12, but there was word he would not be available at 16 forget about 26. 12 may have been the pick that was available via a trade. Koskinen was considered to be a sleeper pick in the draft by Redline and is a lot closer to being NHL ready than the others. Since there were so few goalies available he may not have been the best player at that slot, but using the 31 pick may have been the only way to get a top goaltender prospect. Seems like they worked on the organizational need theory and not Best Player Available in the second round.
Picking a second goaltender left me scratching my head, but who knows what else was available at that slot? My draft board would have been completely different with Hedman, Kassian and Morin at the 1, 12 and 31 slots and I would have been killed by 95% of the Islanders fans. Then again, what do I know since I haven’t seen much of any of these players and none of the players selected after the first round.
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Julian R says:
I would give the Isles a C. It would be lower were it not for Tavares. I just think that after the Tavares pick Garth wanted to once again reinvent the wheel. All indications are that DeHaan was picked way too early. So either Garth is smarter than everyone else in the NHL or he just picked DeHaan way too high up there. but lets just say that DeHaan is as good as Garth thinks, the other picks were complete head scratchers. First of, why 2 goalies? 2nd, there’s an excellent chance he could have gotten Ferraro with the 2nd round pick and Kotsinen with the 3rd. And if Garth is so high on Kotsinen to pick him with the 2nd round pick then why pick another goalie with the 3rd? If you wanted to take a flyer on a 2nd goalie prospect couldn’t you have done that in the 4th round or a later pick? And if you just weren’t too sure about Kotsinen in the first place and wanted back up for him why pick him with the first pick in the 2nd round? why didn’t he trade the first pick in the 2nd round and move down a few spots?? There are just so many things that don’t make sense and to me this was a bad draft because regardless how good or bad these guys turn out to be, Garth picked many of these guys way over their draft day market price.
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I’d give Garth Vader a B.
Obviously Tavares saves him from getting a C or lower.
I like the de Haan pick in that you’re getting a point-per-game defenseman from Canada’s top league. Vader has put a ton of his own reputation on the line here. If this kid isn’t a starting 6 defenseman inside of a few years (I will say 1-2), Vader is going to be villified for moving up 14 spots.
Koskinen is intriguing. He’s another one that will go a long way toward labeling Vader a potential genius. If nothing else, maybe this finally gets the Tin Man to understand that he must stay on the ice.
Everyone else in the draft gets an incomplete because they are all part of one total crapshoot.
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The Mick says:
I like the fact that my team had a plan, identified the players they wanted and made it happen. Tavares was a no-brainer, but Snow was able to keep the secret throughout the process although I would have liked it better if we knew earlier. I don’t know a thing about de Haan, but evidently that was the player they targeted and they made the moves they had to make to get him (kind like Bailey last year). I also like the fact that they addressed the goalie need.
Very happy with the draft.
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marc says:
the first pick was the end of the excitement for the draft. de Haan? why did they move up from 16 to take him? And they had the first pick in round 2, where a few projected first rounders fell, and they take a goalie?! What about Ray Ferraro’s kid? He learned how to skate on long island, and he’d be much more useful than a backup goalie. take backup in round 4-7, not the first pick of round 2.
First! this was a great weekend for isles fans!