Pre-Game Talk: 2024 Draft Thread

[Blueswin]

Wings look like they're taking Eiserman in the Team Board mock. We're up next. Who we taking boys?

where can we vote?

 

[sfvega]

where can we vote?

They'll probably make a poll tomorrow or tonight. I'm just jumping the gun because I think it would help discussion.

 

[bleedblue1223]

And in terms of the HF mock vs the real draft, I'm not that worried on how the real one plays out. The HF draft will be a pretty chalky draft, you aren't going to have many off the wall picks or highly ranked guys dropping.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

Here's another write-up on him, source unnamed
Freij has been a top defenseman in his age group in Sweden for several years. He was a highly productive player in their J20 league and a top player for Sweden's U18 team. His talent level is obvious. Freij is a decent sized defenseman with NHL skill and mobility. He can make a lot of people miss in open ice. He can create offense with pace and he has the hands to create chances out of nothing. Freij is a very good shooter with a pro one-timer from the point. His sense concerns me though. He plays with his head down and doesn't make many plays. He defends fine, but his D-zone play isn't as strong as his offensive work. I'm not sold on his NHL potential but the tools are good enough to give him a real chance to make it.

McKeens draft analyst and Scoutch (5) are both very high on him. This is the same clown that has Traff as an average skater when he is rated one of the best skaters in all of Sweden. Just don’t think he spends much time scouting Europeans.

 

[ExtremeColdWeather]

I understand the concerns with Connelly and quite likely he's not the one picked irl, but given this scenario I would draft him on upside (like his skill from the little I have watched), and bet on the organization working with him in fixing his off-hockey traits. . Really expecting one of Yakemchuk, Sennecke or Helenius to fall to us though.

 

[LGB]

I’ll vote Hage. No one here I’m super confident in and I think Hage has the best profile. Excellent production in the second half of his season and headed to a great program at Michigan.

 

[Beauterham]

Pfff... this would be a bad scenario if the actual draft would go like this. At this point I'd probably vote for one of Hage, Luchanko, Freij, Jiricek, Emery or Surin. The fact that I can easily name a few players without having a real preference probably means it wouldn't be a bad thing to move back in the draft to around pick 20-ish.


For the people that have missed it, @Brock posted his OHL top-50 in the prospect section. Always a good read every year. Wish we had someone that did the same for the Q and the WHL.

 

[Stealth JD]

Surin or Solberg for me

 

[jbron]

On the team board at #16 I would take either Elick or Emery for the Blues. I like Elick just a little more. With MBN and Sennecke off the board, to me you take the RD. It's the safer play and a major need for the Blues. Seriously, the Blues need to come away with two Dmen in their first three. I never like drafting a position of need in the first, but really after the top 12 players there is a full tier of players that could be selected, so picking either at #16 isn't a reach. Elick and Emery are solid RD's that can eat minutes and defend on the power play. Elick is a really good skater and solid. I do like Freij and Solberg as they potentially have more of an upside. Hage, Luchanko, and even Beaudoin are of interest, but to me you take the RD.

 

[stl76]

I’m taking the risk on Solberg’s upside over other remaining D.

On another note, Sam O’Reilly might just play his way into contention for a middle of the 1st pick by the time the draft actually rolls around…he’s gonna be a good one.

 

[TK 421]

Here's another write-up on him, source unnamed
Freij has been a top defenseman in his age group in Sweden for several years. He was a highly productive player in their J20 league and a top player for Sweden's U18 team. His talent level is obvious. Freij is a decent sized defenseman with NHL skill and mobility. He can make a lot of people miss in open ice. He can create offense with pace and he has the hands to create chances out of nothing. Freij is a very good shooter with a pro one-timer from the point. His sense concerns me though. He plays with his head down and doesn't make many plays. He defends fine, but his D-zone play isn't as strong as his offensive work. I'm not sold on his NHL potential but the tools are good enough to give him a real chance to make it.

I disagree with a part in that writeup.

Freij doesn't play with his head down AT ALL, especially not in the defensive zone where he's heads up all the time scanning for a lane to drive himself or someone he can hit with the breakout pass whether that's a short pass or a stretch pass which he can execute in motion. That's what makes him one of the best transitional D in this class. He has the quick processing speed and actual foot speed to make plays constantly and that frequently sees him skating it through the neutral zone and achieving zone entries himself. Those plays all start in his end once his team gets the puck back.

As far as his defending goes yes it's true that he isn't as good defensively in zone as he is offensively, that's a product of being supremely good at possessing the puck and achieving zone exits at such a high %. Simply put he's not in those situations often enough to where he's had to get better. That will come with time against men in higher leagues like Allsvenskan. It should be mentioned he's strong at denying zone entries and strong defending the rush through the neutral zone. Nobody is torching this skating dynamo and getting behind him. His in zone D is what needs work, specifically his willingness to use physicality to his advantage. He's not averse to physicality but he doesn't currently utilize it as part of his game. He defends using his reads, his feet and his stick right now. If he were to incorporate a well timed bump here and there as part of his game when he's defending in zone he could regain possession quicker by forcing bad passes sooner. He does have an active stick and he currently uses a stick lift as his primary means of getting takeaways and regaining possession. This means he ends up shadowing his man waiting for an opportunity to strip the puck when a well timed hit can expedite regaining possession. In the smaller NA rinks he'll be forced to make that adjustment and I'm betting his projected 6'2, 205 ish pound frame can easily handle it.

As far as questioning his NHL potential...I just don't get it. I have a first round grade on him easily in this class on tools alone and he isn't just tools. One of his three best attributes is how quickly he processes play and how smooth he is doing it. No idea why people would question this guy's potential over anyone else in this class. I think this is just limited exposure due to playing J20 in Sweden while several guys currently ranked ahead of him played against men in their draft year. It's literally just that some don't feel confident projecting him as a pro at this point in time. They like his tools but they're liking him more as a 2nd round guy to take a shot on because they haven't seen him against men. Thing is he isn't likely to make the 2nd round so if you like him you have to take him when you're up in the 1st imo. Could still end up top of the 2nd but no way is he there at 48th. Blues could theoretically trade back a bit with their own 1st and still get him but this class isn't particularly strong overall and that would be playing with fire imo.

 

[WeWentBlues]

I disagree with a part in that writeup.

Freij doesn't play with his head down AT ALL, especially not in the defensive zone where he's heads up all the time scanning for a lane to drive himself or someone he can hit with the breakout pass whether that's a short pass or a stretch pass which he can execute in motion. That's what makes him one of the best transitional D in this class. He has the quick processing speed and actual foot speed to make plays constantly and that frequently sees him skating it through the neutral zone and achieving zone entries himself. Those plays all start in his end once his team gets the puck back.

As far as his defending goes yes it's true that he isn't as good defensively in zone as he is offensively, that's a product of being supremely good at possessing the puck and achieving zone exits at such a high %. Simply put he's not in those situations often enough to where he's had to get better. That will come with time against men in higher leagues like Allsvenskan. It should be mentioned he's strong at denying zone entries and strong defending the rush through the neutral zone. Nobody is torching this skating dynamo and getting behind him. His in zone D is what needs work, specifically his willingness to use physicality to his advantage. He's not averse to physicality but he doesn't currently utilize it as part of his game. He defends using his reads, his feet and his stick right now. If he were to incorporate a well timed bump here and there as part of his game when he's defending in zone he could regain possession quicker by forcing bad passes sooner. He does have an active stick and he currently uses a stick lift as his primary means of getting takeaways and regaining possession. This means he ends up shadowing his man waiting for an opportunity to strip the puck when a well timed hit can expedite regaining possession. In the smaller NA rinks he'll be forced to make that adjustment and I'm betting his projected 6'2, 205 ish pound frame can easily handle it.

As far as questioning his NHL potential...I just don't get it. I have a first round grade on him easily in this class on tools alone and he isn't just tools. One of his three best attributes is how quickly he processes play and how smooth he is doing it. No idea why people would question this guy's potential over anyone else in this class. I think this is just limited exposure due to playing J20 in Sweden while several guys currently ranked ahead of him played against men in their draft year. It's literally just that some don't feel confident projecting him as a pro at this point in time. They like his tools but they're liking him more as a 2nd round guy to take a shot on because they haven't seen him against men. Thing is he isn't likely to make the 2nd round so if you like him you have to take him when you're up in the 1st imo. Could still end up top of the 2nd but no way is he there at 48th. Blues could theoretically trade back a bit with their own 1st and still get him but this class isn't particularly strong overall and that would be playing with fire imo.

I should have clarified that my intent to share the write-up on Freij was to illustrate how all over the map "analysts" are for this crop of draft eligible players.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

Surin or Solberg for me

I really like Surin and hope he last til pick two

 

[Blueston]

I disagree with a part in that writeup.

Freij doesn't play with his head down AT ALL, especially not in the defensive zone where he's heads up all the time scanning for a lane to drive himself or someone he can hit with the breakout pass whether that's a short pass or a stretch pass which he can execute in motion. That's what makes him one of the best transitional D in this class. He has the quick processing speed and actual foot speed to make plays constantly and that frequently sees him skating it through the neutral zone and achieving zone entries himself. Those plays all start in his end once his team gets the puck back.

As far as his defending goes yes it's true that he isn't as good defensively in zone as he is offensively, that's a product of being supremely good at possessing the puck and achieving zone exits at such a high %. Simply put he's not in those situations often enough to where he's had to get better. That will come with time against men in higher leagues like Allsvenskan. It should be mentioned he's strong at denying zone entries and strong defending the rush through the neutral zone. Nobody is torching this skating dynamo and getting behind him. His in zone D is what needs work, specifically his willingness to use physicality to his advantage. He's not averse to physicality but he doesn't currently utilize it as part of his game. He defends using his reads, his feet and his stick right now. If he were to incorporate a well timed bump here and there as part of his game when he's defending in zone he could regain possession quicker by forcing bad passes sooner. He does have an active stick and he currently uses a stick lift as his primary means of getting takeaways and regaining possession. This means he ends up shadowing his man waiting for an opportunity to strip the puck when a well timed hit can expedite regaining possession. In the smaller NA rinks he'll be forced to make that adjustment and I'm betting his projected 6'2, 205 ish pound frame can easily handle it.

As far as questioning his NHL potential...I just don't get it. I have a first round grade on him easily in this class on tools alone and he isn't just tools. One of his three best attributes is how quickly he processes play and how smooth he is doing it. No idea why people would question this guy's potential over anyone else in this class. I think this is just limited exposure due to playing J20 in Sweden while several guys currently ranked ahead of him played against men in their draft year. It's literally just that some don't feel confident projecting him as a pro at this point in time. They like his tools but they're liking him more as a 2nd round guy to take a shot on because they haven't seen him against men. Thing is he isn't likely to make the 2nd round so if you like him you have to take him when you're up in the 1st imo. Could still end up top of the 2nd but no way is he there at 48th. Blues could theoretically trade back a bit with their own 1st and still get him but this class isn't particularly strong overall and that would be playing with fire imo.

i look at the physical package, the skill, the way he plays at his best and i see a guy that has upside rivaled by but a few in this draft, none of whom will be on the board for us. but i read guys who seem to hear things and they all think he is 2nd or even 3rd rounder. it makes me question what dog isn't barking. especially after his u20 team signed lsw for shl deal and freij got deal in hockeyallsvanskencan'tspell instead. is there some sort of intelligence or character issue? what are we missing? i don't have any evidence specifically of anything, but otherwise maybe not at 16 but by some point late 1st round how is he not best available option?

 

[bleedblue1223]

i look at the physical package, the skill, the way he plays at his best and i see a guy that has upside rivaled by but a few in this draft, none of whom will be on the board for us. but i read guys who seem to hear things and they all think he is 2nd or even 3rd rounder. it makes me question what dog isn't barking. especially after his u20 team signed lsw for shl deal and freij got deal in hockeyallsvanskencan'tspell instead. is there some sort of intelligence or character issue? what are we missing? i don't have any evidence specifically of anything, but otherwise maybe not at 16 but by some point late 1st round how is he not best available option?

And we'll have to wait and see on Lindstein if he continues his upward development or if we are over-hyping him a bit, but I could easily see a handful of defensemen not rising in these rankings because those scouts that they talk to are trying to be a bit hush-hush about it. Scouts connected with teams do talk, but they also don't want to reveal all their secrets or maybe they purposely put out fake intel like being higher on a player than they actually are or more down on a player they really like.

Feel like that something that happens in drafts in all sports when a truly off the wall pick happens and people bash the pick, it turns out a few other teams had similar rankings and that player was never going to last very long anyway.

 

[TK 421]

i look at the physical package, the skill, the way he plays at his best and i see a guy that has upside rivaled by but a few in this draft, none of whom will be on the board for us. but i read guys who seem to hear things and they all think he is 2nd or even 3rd rounder. it makes me question what dog isn't barking. especially after his u20 team signed lsw for shl deal and freij got deal in hockeyallsvanskencan'tspell instead. is there some sort of intelligence or character issue? what are we missing? i don't have any evidence specifically of anything, but otherwise maybe not at 16 but by some point late 1st round how is he not best available option?

I think you nailed it by highlighting his perceived value based on what league he's in. If an SHL team couldn't/wouldn't find him a spot like they did for teammate LSW then he immediately drops in some people's eyes. Meanwhile it could be Freij's camp wanting him going J20->Allsvenskan->SHL as the progression. In any case it drops his value on lists but we're still not to final aggregate rankings yet so there's a possibility he still gets into the 1st once the dust settles. No way I take LSW ahead of Freij but many would and the rankings reflect that currently.

I would think Freij's camp chose Allsvenskan and a team in it that could provide opportunity for him to play significant minutes but that's just speculation and for all I know he just couldn't find an SHL team that had a spot or was willing to give him a spot. Bjorkloven was I believe 7th out of 14 teams last year so middle of the pack team may provide that type of opportunity. Allsvenskan is a great development league where he could wrest minutes away from vets much more easily than on an SHL team so his chance to develop is there. All I can say is I'm really, really curious about what our Sweden area scout and Steen think of him. Those would be his primary advocates on the Blues and I'm hoping they like him as much as we do but hey maybe we are missing something.

I know this much, in drafts like this one tools and post draft development are key and I think Freij is a solid floor pick as a strong transition D.

 

[PerryTurnbullfan]

I think you nailed it by highlighting his perceived value based on what league he's in. If an SHL team couldn't/wouldn't find him a spot like they did for teammate LSW then he immediately drops in some people's eyes. Meanwhile it could be Freij's camp wanting him going J20->Allsvenskan->SHL as the progression. In any case it drops his value on lists but we're still not to final aggregate rankings yet so there's a possibility he still gets into the 1st once the dust settles. No way I take LSW ahead of Freij but many would and the rankings reflect that currently.

I would think Freij's camp chose Allsvenskan and a team in it that could provide opportunity for him to play significant minutes but that's just speculation and for all I know he just couldn't find an SHL team that had a spot or was willing to give him a spot. Bjorkloven was I believe 7th out of 14 teams last year so middle of the pack team may provide that type of opportunity. Allsvenskan is a great development league where he could wrest minutes away from vets much more easily than on an SHL team so his chance to develop is there. All I can say is I'm really, really curious about what our Sweden area scout and Steen think of him. Those would be his primary advocates on the Blues and I'm hoping they like him as much as we do but hey maybe we are missing something.

I know this much, in drafts like this one tools and post draft development are key and I think Freij is a solid floor pick as a strong transition D.

Totally agree. I watched plenty of tape and reports and I see a player with greater talent that can do things at a speed and level others cannot. I usually do not levitate to a non Physical type player, but he is just a really great talent that is being overlooked in my opinion.

 

[TK 421]

Totally agree. I watched plenty of tape and reports and I see a player with greater talent that can do things at a speed and level others cannot. I usually do not levitate to a non Physical type player, but he is just a really great talent that is being overlooked in my opinion.

Same, I don't normally look at these archetypes unless they have traits I'm a fan of in general like plus skating and quick processing. That he has both and is 6'1, 196 lbs is the trifecta for me. He's everything I want in a modern pro defender that's a net positive for your transition game.

Take Parekh for instance, you were right to not want to expend a pick on such a narrow usage profile no matter how talented he may be. We can watch his highlights for Buffalo later without any of the complete lack of defense that would drive us insane here. Instead we've identified an underrated transition D with a wider usage profile due to being a more explosive skater and who is actually willing to defend using his feet and his stickwork. Parekh gets worked on the cycle and can only pass his way out of trouble while Freij can skate or pass his way out of trouble and is much better at handling any level of forecheck which is a prerequisite for an NHL defender. Now Parekh is obviously a sublime talent and a RD but I'd feel my pick was far better spent on the amazing skating + quick processing combo of top 4/primary transition D Freij at 16 rather than taking PP specialist/sheltered 3rd pair D Parekh somewhere before 14th. At least with Freij you've got an elite skater who's constantly pushing the pace and who has better potential as an in zone defender 2-3 years from now. With Parekh you're wondering if he will ever care about playing defense or using his feet to defend but some team will take him bless their little hearts.

 

[Blueston]

Totally agree. I watched plenty of tape and reports and I see a player with greater talent that can do things at a speed and level others cannot. I usually do not levitate to a non Physical type player, but he is just a really great talent that is being overlooked in my opinion.

agree. and you have been pushing him longer than anyone. because i watch harley and think with a similar development path, it sure seems like freij could get there in a few years.

that is absolutely a 1st round pick unless there is something about him that suggests he is even more unlikely than we would otherwise expect to reach his potential, because by the time you get beyond the top few guys the likelihood of anyone reaching true top end production tends to decrease pretty significantly and what he offers tends to be in high demand

which is why i keep coming back to, what are we missing?.

 

[LGB]

I think Freij is an interesting player that's worth consideration at 16, but I don't think he has huge upside and I think there also could be a low floor. His main asset is his skating, and we've seen a lot of European defensemen who were really good transition defensemen struggle to handle the NA forecheck. From what I've seen he rims or flips out a lot of pucks when he can't skate to open ice. I don't think he has high end vision and awareness of his outlets (though he's not a poor playmaker either), and I don't think he has the physical skills to absorb contact and spin off checks consistently. He's a good prospect but not one that gets me excited at 16.

 

[stl76]

I think Freij is an interesting player that's worth consideration at 16, but I don't think he has huge upside and I think there also could be a low floor. His main asset is his skating, and we've seen a lot of European defensemen who were really good transition defensemen struggle to handle the NA forecheck. From what I've seen he rims or flips out a lot of pucks when he can't skate to open ice. I don't think he has high end vision and awareness of his outlets (though he's not a poor playmaker either), and I don't think he has the physical skills to absorb contact and spin off checks consistently. He's a good prospect but not one that gets me excited at 16.

Reading about Freij here and on the main boards, it sounds like a lot of posters LOVE the player but many professional scouts doubt his upside. I wonder if the scouts are seeing what you're describing here...