Who were the biggest losers of NHL Draft weekend?
It was another busy and exciting weekend at the NHL Draft, with many teams trying to lay the groundwork for their future.
There were teams who really shone over the two days, especially the Toronto Maple Leafs and San Jose Sharks, who grabbed top prospects that could make immediate impacts on their rosters in the near future.
However, there were teams that were underwhelming, passing up on names that could build their prospect pool for the long haul.
On Monday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Jonny Lazarus and Carter Hutton give their thoughts on which team faltered in Buffalo, and why.
Carter Hutton: I don’t know if there’s a team in, like, a worst position, right? I think a lot of them were status quo, too. You kind of like what you have and you’re trying to build, and there’s some faces around there for me. The team that I question a little bit is the Tampa Bay Lightning, where they’re at in this arms race that seems to be building in the Atlantic Division. Tampa Bay is a team that I’m a little bit concerned for, because I look at the way they drafted, they haven’t really done a ton, and where do they go? I see Darren Raddysh leaving that squad, and not really having those pieces. Their back end is getting older, and these are the concerns that I start to worry about when I think about the Tampa Bay Lightning. I think a lot of this stuff is going to be settled on the ice and how you build, but my concern is like where you go as you get there.
The other team for me in that same Atlantic Division is the Ottawa Senators. I guess I just am worried about where they are. You lose Brady, you make that deal for Eklund, like is he going to come in and fit there? Then, the factor of, obviously, the Jason Robertson saga, not wanting to go to Seattle, the big paycheck, and everything that he’s turned down. He didn’t want to go to Ottawa either. So, I worry that these are teams that are going to have problems drawing players in to come play in these markets that are, as we talked about, tax-free and everything that goes into it. I think we’re really learning now that players want to go somewhere they can win, and I think that becomes the head of the snake right now, is if your team’s not going to win, even if it’s a good destination, it is a tough draw to get those really sexy players.
You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…