 |
First-round draft choices, especially lottery picks, are key to Stanley Cup success.
Just look at the two teams in this year’s final.
Over the years, the Philadelphia Flyers have been notorious for dealing away first-round draft choices, but have hit home runs with the ones in they kept.
The Flyers took full advantage of the super-talented 2003 draft by nabbing both Jeff Carter and Mike Richards, but they aren’t the only first-rounders impacting the team’s fortunes.
Claude Giroux (2006) and James Van Riemsdyk (2007) are playing important roles. Plus, 2008 first-rounder Luca Sbisa was dealt to Anaheim for Chris Pronger, and Steve Downie (2005) went to Tampa Bay for Matt Carle.
Chicago’s stable of first rounders includes Patrick Kane (2007), Jonathan Toews (2006) and Brent Seabrook (2003), with other key draftees being Duncan Keith (2002, 54th overall), Dustin Byfuglien (2003, 245th), Dave Bolland (2004, 32nd) and Niklas Hjalmarsson (2005, 108th).
The 2009 champion Pittsburgh Penguins were built around a pair of first-overall selections in Sidney Crosby (2005) and Marc-Andre Fleury (2003) and second-overall picks Evgeni Malkin (2004) and Jordan Staal (2006).
By comparison, the Calgary Flames team which missed the playoffs finished the season with just five of its own draft choices on the roster, and two of them spent the majority of the year in the minors — Mikael Backlund and Brett Sutter.
In today’s salary-cap world, teams must make astute free-agent signings and wise trades, but the building blocks must come from the draft.
Clubs which trade away their first-round picks — hello Calgary and Toronto — will pay dearly for those moves, especially if their first-rounders don’t become impact players.
Flaming C-notes
The Flames will hold their annual equipment sale June 5. It starts at 8 a.m., but there usually is a lineup with those hoping to be among the first into the Saddledome for the selection which includes Game-used and new skates, gloves, helmets, sticks and goalie equipment ... Just asking: Should the Flames be looking to swing a deal with Ottawa for Jason Spezza in the hopes of having a centre with real passing ability to play with Jarome Iginla? Personally, the Senators wouldn’t get in return what Spezza can do, but if that booing in the playoffs is the beginning of the end for him in the nation’s capital, you never know what it would take. That said, the Flames would be better off trying to nab younger talent ... It’s too bad 2008 first-round draft choice Greg Nemisz wasn’t quite 100% in the Memorial Cup from the horrible cut he suffered on his leg from a skate. You want to see what a player can do in the big games.
Hockey talky
Yours truly was seven of eight in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, two-and-two in the second and two-for-two in the third. The guess this round: Chicago in six at the most ... One of Steve Yzerman’s first major moves as the new GM for the Tampa Bay Lightning will be to re-sign Steven Stamkos, who has one year remaining on his entry-level contract but already is a 50-goal scorer ... It will be interesting to see the fallout in San Jose, especially what happens with pending unrestricted free agents goalie Evgeni Nabokov — who’s never shown he can win the big games — and Patrick Marleau. Marleau has taken his share of heat, some deservedly, but was very good against the Blackhawks because he could skate with Chicago’s stars ... If Ilya Kovalchuk bolts for the KHL, farewell. Yes, it would be a coup for the Russian league to bring in a star player in his prime, but Kovalchuk has never seemed to show he wanted more from a NHL career other than big coin. Then again, during all those years in Atlanta, he wasn’t part of anything close to a winner ... Anybody else expecting Olli Jokinen and Alexander Frolov to begin skating off to the sunset by playing in the KHL next season?