NHL Draft: Mocking the Stars
Thursday, June 24, 2010-10:44:pm
/Andrew's Dallas Stars Page
/Andrew's Dallas Stars Page
Here's a look at what various mock drafts say the Dallas Stars will do in with the 11th overall pick in the NHL Draft, which gets underway Friday at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
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Of the 17 mock drafts from both scouting services and media outlets, 10 had the Stars going with a defenseman. Among the defensemen, Derek Forbort of the U.S. National Team Development Program got the most mentions with five. Defensemen Mark Pysyk, Jon Merrill and Dylan McIlrath also went to the Stars in this batch of mock drafts.
While Forbort got the most mentions, a forward and a goalie got the second and third most mentions in these mock drafts.
Finnish forward Mikael Granlund was the individual with next most mentions to Forbort, getting a total of four and he was followed by U.S. goalie Jack Campbell with three.
Here's a breakdown by player.
| Player | Times Picked |
| Derek Forbort, D (USNTDP) | 5 |
| Mikael Granlund, C (HIFK/Finland) | 4 |
| Jack Campbell, G (USNTDP) | 3 |
| Mark Pysyk, D (Edmonton/WHL) | 2 |
| Jon Merrill, D (USNTDP) | 2 |
| Dylan McIlrath, D (Moose Jaw/WHL) | 1 |
Here is a breakdown of those mock drafts individually along with the comments made about the Stars' projected selection.
| Mock Draft | Player |
| TSN (Pierre McGuire) | Mikael Granlund, C (HIFK/Finland) |
| Comment: Dallas has had a lot of success with Finnish-born players. This guy is a lot like Saku Koivu. He's a tremendous leader. He's not overly large but he makes a big difference. He's wants the puck, he knows how to play defensively, he competes like all get out, he'll block shots and do what ever it takes to win. | |
| TSN (Scott Cullen) | Mikael Granlund, C, (HIFK/Finland) |
| Comment: Will have to overcome lack of size, but after 40 points and a plus-12 rating in 43 games against men in the Finnish League, there's enough reason to believe he'll be a top-six forward in the NHL. | |
| Red Line Report 1 | Jack Campbell, G (USNTDP) |
| Comment: With the Stars moving away from the Marty Turco era, why not grab a goalie with a chance to become a star. We all know he rises up in big games. His style is a bit unorthodox, but so was Dominik Hasek's. | |
| Red Line Report 2 | Derek Forbort, D (USNTDP) |
| Comment: This is a club that could really use some size on the back end. The Stars lack size, strength and toughness in front of their goalies, and their organizational prospect chart is heavily weighted towards the forward group, so Forbort could give them a much needed premium blue line chip. | |
| International Scouting Services | Jack Campbell, G (USNTDP) |
| Comment: Although acquiring and signing Kari Lehtonen to a multiyear deal, the Stars would certainly like to sure up their goaltending situation for years to come and can afford to take Campbell and allow him to develop properly before tabbing him as their starter for the future. | |
| The Hockey News | Jon Merrill, D (USNTDP) |
| Comment: Stars need D-men and Merrill is in the same class as Forbort. | |
| Future Considerations Draft Guide | Derek Forbort, D (USNTDP) |
| Comment: With the trade of prospect Ivan Vishnevskiy during the season, the graduation of young NHL defenders Niskanen, Daley, Fistric and Grossman to the NHL ranks and the tendency in the past few drafts to select as many skilled forwards as possible; the cupboard has become bare on the backend. | |
| NHL Eastern Conference Scout (NHL.com) | Dylan McIlrath, D (Moose Jaw/WHL) |
| Comment: A hard-nosed defenseman to fit in with their young forwards. | |
| NHL Western Conference Scout (NHL.com) | Mikael Granlund, C, (HIFK/Finland) |
| Comment: Stars have had success with players from Finland. | |
| NHL.com 1 | Mark Pysyk, D, (Edmonton/WHL) |
| Comment: Stars have had success with players from Finland. | |
| NHL.com 2 | Mark Pysyk, D, (Edmonton/WHL) |
| Comment: For a team looking to bolster the blue line, Pysyk is smooth skater off the transition. | |
| NHL.com 3 | Mikael Granlund, C, (HIFK/Finland) |
| Comment: Stars have had success with Finnish players, and Granlund has the offensive moxie they're looking for. | |
| Sportsnet.ca (Shane Malloy) | Derek Forbort, D (USNTDP) |
| Comment: The strapping defenseman is an intriguing package with the tools to be a premier blue-liner in the NHL. Forbort has impressive size and he will be a monster to play against once he fills out. He has good mobility and should be able to shut down quick NHL forwards once his two-step quickness and agility improves. He displays good hockey sense under pressure, with or without the puck. His puck skills are solid and he makes a good first pass and does not fumble the puck. I would not project him as a big point producer in the NHL, but he will add offence. Defensively Forbort can be a two-way defenseman as he shows consistent body position, gap control and has a wide wingspan. | |
| ESPN (Gare Joyce) | Derek Forbort, D (USNTDP) |
| Comment: The Stars like Dylan McIlrath's toughness, but Forbort has more offensive upside. Some scouts have him closer to the top three defensemen and say he has a good shot at developing into a better player down the line. He will require more time, though. | |
| CBC (Jeff Marek) | Jon Merrill, D (USNTDP) |
| Comment: The Stars lost a promising young blue-liner in Ivan Vishnevskiy, who they surrendered to acquire goaltender Kari Lehtonen from Atlanta, so look for GM Joe Nieuwendyk to try and shore up that position by selecting the mobile defenseman who is off to the University of Michigan next season. Dallas needs to do something with their blue-line prospects because after Philip Larsen, it gets pretty thin, pretty quick. Merrill is a great first step. | |
| SI.com (Allan Muir) | Derek Forbort, D (USNTDP) |
| Comment: One scout told me that Forbort could be this year's Thomas Hickey, a defender regarded as a mid-first round prospect who eventually was drafted by the Kings fourth overall in 2007. It could happen. Forbort has the size (6-5, 198) that teams covet, is quick on his feet, and he has both the poise and the smarts to bring something to the offensive end of the ice. There's a lot of projection involved with his still-maturing game, however, and that should allow him to drop to the Stars, a team that's desperate for some defensive depth in the system. | |
| The Sports Forecaster | Jack Campbell, G (USNTDP) |
| Comment: The Stars are also looking for defense, so they could look to move up or get lucky and wind up with Forbort. Otherwise, they'll potentially look for their next 'goaltender of the future' in Campbell, the best at his position. | |
