So we all know he\'s one hell of a talant however where do you guys see him going in the draft? (I wouldn\'t be surprised to see him go top 3).

Further what do you guys see as his upside (regular upside) as well as his upside if he were to get drafted by the Caps and play with Ovie/Backstrom?

How long before he makes it to the NHL?

Thanks in advance...just really interested in this kid, being a Knights fan and all

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F: Crosby, Iginla, Heatley, E. Staal, Hossa, Pleckanec, Stepan, Morrow
D: Boyle, Yandle, Carlson, Gilbert, Girardi
G: Lundqvist, Brodeur
Rookies: Yakupov, Kuznetsov

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08/09 and 11/12 Runner-up

I am purely guessing but this is the top 3 I see going in the draft (dis-regarding which teams are the bottom 3):

1. Kane
2. Cherapanov
3. Alzner

Bottom 3 teams will probably be between: Philly, Phoenix, Chicago or Washington.

Imagine Kane or Cherapanov playing long term with:
Philly: Jeff Carter
Phoenix: Peter Mueller, M Hanzal
Chicago: Jonathan Toews
Washington: Ovechkin, Backstrom, Semin (this team would be like Pittsburg)

Post edited by: Bombers, at: 2007/03/30 11:10

I see Cherepanov possibly dropping due to the lack of a transfer agreement with Russia...but not too far.

Philly will take Kane 1st overall.
Alzner may go top 3 but only to Columbus or Wash.

If the lottery has no impact on order, top 10 will be:

Philly - Kane...best talent available
Chicago - Voracek...need a big centre
Phoenix - Cherepanov...perf winger for Meuller.
Wash - Alzner...won\'t pass on a blue chip blueliner
LA - Ellerby...perfect partner for Jack Johnson
Edm - Turris...A Lowe/MacT kinda player, will not slip past the Oil!
Columbus - Van Riemsdyk...need for scoring wingers, will take either of the above D instead, if available.
St. Louis - Esposito, Weight\'s replacement, bad pick too early for Espo!
Boston - Couture...all around centre will go top 10!
Florida - Gagner...the old \'I can\'t believe he was still there\' pick.

Post edited by: Bobby Beautiful, at: 2007/03/30 13:09

Bobby..I hear the Yotes are very interested in Turris.

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C- Thornton, Backstrom, Kesler, Turris, Savard
L- Vanek, Burrows, Hartnell, Lucic , Leino
R- Brown, Pavelski, Ericksson, Holmstrom, Little
D- Chara, Rafalski, Weber, Edler, Letang, Bieksa,
G- H. Lundqvist, Miller, Rinne,

Prospects- Bowmman CAR, Glennie DAL, LeBlanc MTL, Ferraro DET, Tangradi PIT, Yip COL, Kuznetsov WAS, Neuvirth WAS

League Champion 07, 08, 09,

They\'d be hard pressed to pass on a skilled winger like \'Chere\' as they are painfully weak on the wings.
Unless they\'d consider moving either Hanzal or Meuller to the wing, they\'re rather deep at Center.

Having said that, the lack of a transfer agreement, as I mentioned earlier, may deter teams from taking Cherepanov.

I wouldn\'t pass him up!

I feel at this point that Kane is getting a bit overrated. He\'s not as heads-and-shoulders above the others as a lot of people have made him out to be. If I\'m an NHL scout, I have a tough time recommending any of the top four forwards (Turris, Kane, Cherepanov, Couture) above any other.

Kane is built for the New NHL. We know that. He\'s small, agile, has a tiny centre of gravity, superb hands, and good passing and shooting ability. But there\'s no single quality there that makes him jump out ahead of anyone else.

I think Kane\'s hype is primarily a result of people attempting to identify a clear cut #1. Couple this with his 145 point effort in his draft year and its easy to see why many believe he\'ll go #1.

Furthermore, Kane\'s strong puck possession, offensive prowess and deft stickhandling, particularly in tight quarters, is what I think separates him from the pack.

As you\'ve mentioned Bugg, Kane\'s lack of size is his only drawback and is in my opinion, the only thing preventing him from being a consensus #1.

Bugg - I feel Couture is being overlooked in most circles. Why do you think that is? He\'s top 3 in my books, behind only Kane and Cherepanov.

Post edited by: Bobby Beautiful, at: 2007/03/31 16:17

His battle with mono\'s the biggest reason, of course. But he\'s been getting more and more dominant as he gets is legs, and he\'s still being ignored. What\'s the deal?

As you said, everyone wants a consensus #1. Even the scouts. And they\'re tossing aside the guys with even the smallest problems to define one. Couture has had some big problems, so he\'s immediately out. I\'m surprised Turris hasn\'t been smacked on for playing in the BCHL more. I think Cherepanov hovers into that #2 spot behind Kane on most team lists.

Bobby..
Well you know how the ole saying goes we took the best player at that spot (not position)!
Yep I think the Russkies will be getting a different look when teams draft now. They are able to get big $ now without leaving home and the deal with their association is not fixed yet. This could lead up to their dropping well down the actual picks from where they were ranked. I guess we\'ll soon see June is closin in fast.

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Yahoo Keeper Team - STD Cats
C- Thornton, Backstrom, Kesler, Turris, Savard
L- Vanek, Burrows, Hartnell, Lucic , Leino
R- Brown, Pavelski, Ericksson, Holmstrom, Little
D- Chara, Rafalski, Weber, Edler, Letang, Bieksa,
G- H. Lundqvist, Miller, Rinne,

Prospects- Bowmman CAR, Glennie DAL, LeBlanc MTL, Ferraro DET, Tangradi PIT, Yip COL, Kuznetsov WAS, Neuvirth WAS

League Champion 07, 08, 09,

Kane i think will go 1st, I love how he plays the game and has great wheels, Obviously if Philly gets him, he could be in for a 40-60 point season as a 18 year old rookie, obviously if he gets the linemates and ice time necessary... The best case scenario for him is the Caps, if he breaks in at 18 we could see one of the best rookie duo of linemates ever with Backstrom setting Ovie and him up, once he reaches full potential i would expect 100 points...

For the rest :
2. Cherepanov
3. Voracek
4. Alzner
5. Turris
6. Van Riemdsyk
7. Couture
8. Ellerby

thats the order i would rank them, some talk about Alzner being NHL ready (some scouts), while i think hes 2 years away, He\'ll be a stud

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