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*bobdigi9* · 10-01-2024, 09:53 AM

The Lovin' Spoonful asked us if we believe in magic.
Told us to believe in the magic of a young girl's soul, the magic of rock and roll.
That the magic can set you free.

Talking 'bout magic.

Well, the SHL Entry Draft is a magical time and a magical place. The young hockey players assembled have spent most of their lives working towards this moment. For some, it is merely a stepping stone on a path that will lead unto even further greatness. But for now, the spell has been cast and we wait to see it's effect.
Since we're talking about magic and spells, it's worth noting the absolute sorcery that Edmonton GM/Wizard HFFO has been able to pull off across the past few drafts including this most recent one.
Dating back to the S76 draft, the Edmonton brain trust have made a total of 22 picks. That includes the past 3(!) first overall picks as well as the mindboggling S78 draft in which they made the first four selections of the draft. Throw in the S76 draft where they had the second overall pick and the fact they lowest pick they had out of the 22 picks was 69th overall and it all adds up to a lot of high end talent.
If history is any indicator, however, we know that high picks doesn't always equate to success on the ice. Have the Blizzard done their due diligence and and found some true talent with their gluttonous drafting or are they destined to follow in the footsteps of their NHL counterpart Oilers of the early 2010s?

Here we'll take a look at the most recent Blizzard draft class and see if we separate the Yakupov's from the McDavid's.

1st Overall

Player: Hip Hurts
Position: LD
Height: 6'5" Weight: 215lbs
Team: Nevada Battleborn

The Blizzard had a spot to fill on defense and they crossed that off of their checklist right off the bat after acquiring the number one pick in the draft and taking Hip Hurts.
While some of the taller players in junior hockey tend to be lanky and easier to move off the puck before they begin to fill out and put on muscle, Hip Hurts is already blessed with pro size and is extremely strong on his skates.
While his minutes weren't exactly sheltered, playing the third highest on his team with 21:15 of ice time per night, he was fortunate to be surrounded by and lean on a great group of defenders in Nevada like Cade de Vries and Jeyeff Effo as well as fellow first rounder and top 10 pick Kiwi Söderberg-Snooks.
After an impressive rookie season, all eyes will be on Hip Hurts to see how much more he can do in his sophomore season. The sky is the limit.

8th Overall

Player: Roisin Armagh
Position: RD
Height: 6'4" Weight: 220lbs
Team: San Diego Tidal

Did I mention that Edmonton had holes on defense.....
While not a hockey hotbed of sorts, Armagh made her way from the shores of Northern Ireland to the shores of California.
Known for her versatility, she may end up being in the mould of Brent Burns, capable of playing defense but moving up and playing wing if necessary as well as being able to play on her offhand. Wherever they ask her to play, Armagh will be equipped with the skills to fill the role asked of her.

16th Overall

Player: Javelin Bodine
Position: LD
Height: 6'2" Weight: 198lbs
Team: Anchorage Armada

In my completely unbiased take here, Bodine is quite possibly the steal of the draft and is a major coup by the Blizzard that they were able to get him at 16.
Bodine makes it three blueliners in a row selected by Edmonton. He lacks the size that Hurts and Armagh possess, but possesses the physical attributes to excel from the back end and be a threat offensively as evidenced by his 12 goals, 37 assists and 49 points, marks that put him in the top ten leaguewide in each category. Absolute stud.

22nd Overall

Player: Duke Howard
Position: RW
Height: 6'5" Weight: 227lbs
Team: Quebec City CItadelles

If I just said the name Duke Howard to you, you'd just automatically know that he was a hockey player. The "Duke" (or maybe Blue Devil, I haven't decided on which nickname to give him because there are just too many good options) stops the streak of Edmonton picking defensemen but continues the trend of them taking players with large physiques.
A "Johan Franzen" type player, he should fit in nicely up or down the line-up, a grinder with a nose for the net.

23rd Overall

Player: QCCBOT4
Position: G
Height: 5'9" Weight: 175lbs
Team: Quebec City Citadelles

Goalies are like a box of chocolates......or something like that.
It's hard to really know how goalies are going to develop. It's the reason why goalies are rarely taken with high picks. With all of the elite prospects that Edmonton possess in the way of forwards and defense, there is going to come a time when they're going to need someone to stop the pucks for them. So with the 23rd overall pick they elected to choose QCCBOT4. Just a tiny little, puck-stopping robot. What could go wrong.

[Image: IQmK.gif]

30th Overall

Player: Ima Noobie
Position: RW
Height: 5'11" Weight: 200lbs
Team: Newfoundland Berserkers

With their last pick of the S79 draft the Blizzard take another forward.
Noobie is a coach's and GM dream, willing to do whatever is required for the betterment of the team and to make himself a better player and fit.
(and even though it has no bearing on the player, I can't not mention that the user's name has Yeti in it. Yeti and Blizzard. It just seems right.)

[Image: ooo-yeah.gif]

22 picks in 4 drafts. An entire roster of players. The first wave of those picks are set to make their SHL debuts this year so we'll slowly start getting a sense of how well the scouting department in Edmonton has done. As for the newest class of baby Blizzards, all we can do is wait and hope that this doesn't become "Fail for Nail" 2.0.

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***HabsFanFromOntario*** · 10-01-2024, 09:54 PM

That's my GOAT <3

Evok · 10-02-2024, 09:30 PM

nothing can go wrong don't worry

*Eggcracker* · 10-02-2024, 10:30 PM

We can always burn it to the ground and start again

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