Since boom refuses to break down the Whalers, I will add in my own thoughts about our draft needs.
 Centers: Daniil Nikiforov (425), Wile Coyote (310), Dee Centerman IV (290), Rikki Petrov (286)
It’s been a while since the Whalers haven’t needed a center. Let’s look at the depth down the middle:

Daniil  Nikiforov: A capped 425 top flight top line center. Can’t really ask for more than this from the S54 3rd rounder. He made good use of his sophomore season putting up 39 points.
The loss of Hartmann on his wing may bring down that number, but Nikiforov will be the Whalers’ top center for S56 and S57.

Wile Coyote: Sitting at 310 TPE isn’t the greatest place for a player heading into his third year in the league, but the S54 4th rounder continues to plug away, despite missing some updates Coyote is still active. He may be passed by some of the other centers on the team, but Coyote will be either the second or third line center for at least the start of S56. Coyote should be careful with two second year players in Centerman and Petrov right behind him, he may find himself on the wing real soon. With just 14 points on S55 the Whalers hope the on-ice numbers improve, as the TPE improves. There is a real chance Coyote could be as low as the forth line by the end of this season.

Dee Centerman IV: The 8th overall pick in the S55 draft, Centerman IV a late create, has done a good job updating thus far, and is likely to play center right off the bat in S56. Coming off an 11 point campaign where he shot 4% Centerman looks to solidify his spot down the middle and may be shooting for the second line.

Rikki Petrov: Sitting at 286 TPE, this exciting rookie, drafted in the 3rd round, put up 17 points in S55 and has been active. Set to start the season on the wing, Petrov likely has Coyote’s second line spot in mind, or at least to take the third line if Centerman takes the second line.

NEED: F
There is absolutely no need for the Whalers to take a center in the upcoming draft. It’s been a while since we could say this, but the Whalers are set down the middle with 2 S54 and 2 S55 active centers. If anything, the lack of space on the wing may lead to a trade as rare as those are.
 
Wingers: Bryce McMahon (425), Devin Basher (425), Luffy Richard (411), Jason Desrouleaux (394), KnockedOut ByOvechkin (303), Valtterri Kauppinen (286), Markleesio Hopscotch (187)

Bryce McMahon: Undrafted in the S53 SMJHL draft. He has worked his way up to being a capped 425 winger who will be on the top line.

Devin Basher: Basher, taken 12th in the S54 draft is another capped winger. He will likely join McMahon on the top line.

Luffy Richard: Taken in the 5th round in S53 Luffy Richard improved quite a bit over S55. After going undrafted in the S54 SHL draft, Richard got to work and was taken as an overage prospect in S55. Same story in the WJC, where after missing the first two WJCs he was eligible for, he is set to play in his first one this offseason. This shows the work Richard has put in and continues to. Likely to be a capped 425 winger at the start of the season, Richard will continue to be a presence for the Whale.

Jason Desrouleaux: Drafted at the end of the 4th round in S54, Desrouleaux is very odd with his updating, as he amasses points and seems to actually update them rather rarely.  He should be a 425 capped winger.

KnockedOut ByOvechkin: Likely to hit his cap right around the season start date, ByOvechkin, the last first rounder in S55, will play on the third line for S56 and will likely move up to the second line for S57.

Valtterri Kauppinen: Taken in the third round of S55 draft, Kauppinen put up a solid 13 points on the wing. He has been active and will likely hit 350 a few weeks into the season. He will likely be the other third line wing.

Markleesio Hopscotch: Has not updated since 8/18, and he may not make the roster out of camp if he doesn’t improve on that.

NEED: D+
Vancouver has 4 wingers capped at 425 for S56, and for S57 only McMahon and Richard might be called up. It’s unlikely to see Richard be called up, but the Whalers should be planning for it. If Richard is called up, the Whalers would have no third line wingers at all. Even with Richard that would likely be a hole in S57, but one that could be filled at the S57 draft.
 
Defense: Ryosuke Sato (425), Slimey Snail (425), Johnny Shuffleboard (424), Lonnie O’Donoghue (354), Sarah Burke (302), Zebulon Leavitt (278)

Ryosuke Sato: Capped at 425 and ready for what will likely be his final season with the team, Sato is a defacto leader on the backend. His personability is perfect for it.  A favorite to be voted captain. Sato is the Whalers and he will try to bring them a cup. Maybe he will even hit double digits in points.

Slimey Snail: Snail has come on since struggles as a rookie and is now 425 capped, with 500 for the SHL. He may be called up following this season. Snail, a defensive defenseman is the perfect partner for Sato and they will anchor the top pair.

Johnny Shuffleboard: The third overall pick in the S54 SMJHL draft, Shuffleboard has had an interesting ride. As an SMJHL player Shuffleboard will hit his 425 cap before the season, and will likely move up the first line next season, although Shuffleboard-Snail was a disaster pair in S54, so that remains to be seen. He’s far more intriguing as an SHL prospect having missed about 7 weeks of updates, but that’s not for this article.

Lonnie O’Donoghue: It seems Lonnie has gone inactive. Sitting at 354 TPE he can likely remain on the second pairing with Shuffleboard as both players behind him are capped at 350 for S56. If O’Donoghue does not come back he will likely be demoted to the third pair for S57 if he can hang on the team.

Sarah Burke: A highly active S55 draftee, the first pick in the second round, Sarah has been active and will likely hit the 350 cap early in the season.

Zebulon Leavitt: Taken in the 4th round of the S55 draft Leavitt has been active and should hit the 350 cap later in the season.

NEED: C+
Vancouver has 3 full lines of defenseman and no real room for a rookie right now. However, looking to S57, they will lose Sato and perhaps Snail, and with O’Donoghue inactive and staying at 354, they could be looking at a hole to fill out the top 4 outside of Shuffleboard/Burke/Leavitt if Snail is called up.
 
Goailes: Name Redacted (425)
Name Redacted: A first round pick in S53 and expected to stay with the Whalers through S57 the starting goalie spot is secure.
NEED: A
With no backup goalie the Whalers need to give those 6 starts to somebody. If they draft a S56er they can be set for S58 to hand over from one 425 to another 425, but that would require the goalie to stay active while backing up Redacted.
 
Prediction: There are only two goalies in the class as of now. Yanno Rosejac( @Demolish) is one, so I’d expect Vancouver to look at him. As first gen it will be interesting to see if the Whalers go in that direction. He created just 4 days ago. The other Jon St. Ark( @Arkz) has a head start on Rosejac, and is also a first gen. I’d expect Vancouver to grab one of them. As far as the rest of the draft, Vancouver could really use a defenseman and a winger but only ones that will be fine with minimal playing time as rookies. The Whalers are in a very good position for S56 and they really aren’t too many pressing needs for this roster.

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1,376 words. 2x draft media