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Now that the order of all draft picks have been determined, I will be releasing my 2016 NHL Mock Draft second round.
For those who haven’t read the LWOS mock before here are the rules.
1) There are no trades allowed, except for those that have already been made by NHL teams.
2) The two-round Mock draft is done in four parts. The final portion of the draft is released today.
3) Clicking the Player’s name will bring you to a full scouting report.
Picks 1-15 are found here.
Picks 16-30 are found here.
Picks 31-45 are found here.
So with that out of the way, I present the LWOS Mock Draft.
2016 NHL Mock Draft Second Round Part Two (Picks 46-61)
46.) Detroit Red Wings: Filip Gustavsson, Goaltender, Lulea IF
Previous Pick: Dante Fabbro
Petr Mrazek has started to establish himself as the Red Wings goaltender of the future, but the team lacks a solid prospect behind him. The Wings address that need and take Gustavsson, who is the top goaltending prospect in Europe. Gustavsson has strong reflexes and plays a solid butterfly technique. He stays square to the shooter and gets in and out of his stance quickly and efficiently. His quick legs take away the bottom of the net, and also has a very good glove hand and blocker.
47.) Nashville Predators: Jonathan Dahlen, Left Wing/Centre, Timra IK
Previous Pick: Luke Kunin
The Predators continue to address their forward depth with Jonathan Dahlin. He may be a bit undersized, but he has all the skills scouts look for when it comes to an offensive forward. He has an excellent array of shots, including a good wrist shot with a quick release; a hard slapshot; and a quality backhand. Dahlin has the soft hands to make moves on defenders and get himself the open space to get a shot off, as well as the hockey sense and the elusiveness to find open spots in the defence where a teammate can hit him with a pass. There are always risks in taking an undersized player, but Dahlin has huge upside.
48.) Philadelphia Flyers: Cam Morrison, Centre/Left Wing, Youngstown Phantoms
Previous Pick: Max Jones
As mentioned earlier, the Flyers have one of the best groups of defence prospects in the NHL. Given that, they continue to load up at forward with Cam Morrison. Morrison is developing a solid two-way, power game. A natural goal scorer, Morrison has an excellent array of shots. His wrist shot and snap shot are both hard and accurate, and feature a quick release. He is willing to use his size to drive the net, and has the hands to pounce on rebounds and get deflections when he is there. He is able to find soft spots in the opposition defence and get himself in open positions to get that shot off.
49.) Boston Bruins (from New York Islanders): Chad Krys, Defence, US NTDP
Previous Picks: Charlie McAvoy, Pascal Laberge
The Bruins acquired this pick from the New York Islanders in the 2014 trade that sent Johnny Boychuk to the Island. After picking Charlie McAvoy in the first round, the Bruins continue to build their defence by selecting Chad Krys. Krys is an excellent skater. He has good speed and acceleration in both directions, powered by a fluid stride. Krys also adds good puck handling ability to his strong skating skills. He can also lead the rush, creating offensive chances with a good vision, passing skills, and an accurate wrist shot. Krys has very good agility, allowing him to walk the line and create passing and shooting lanes on the powerplay. Defensively Krys has good instincts, and solid positional play, but must get stronger and play more physical in his own end.
50.) Chicago Blackhawks (from New York Rangers via Carolina Hurricanes): Adam Mascherin, Left Wing/Centre, Kitchener Rangers
The Blackhawks acquired this pick when they traded Teuvo Teravainen and Bryan Bickell to Carolina on Wednesday. Carolina acquired the pick at the trade deadline, when they sent Eric Staal to the Rangers. The Blackhawks select Adam Mascherin with their first pick in this year’s draft. Mascherin is a pure sniper. His shot is very heavy, but it is his release that really fools goaltenders and leads to the puck finding the back of the net. Its tough to describe, but Mascherin has a very unique release that surprises the opposition. His shot is deadly accurate, and he is able to pick corners or find the tiniest of openings. Mascherin also has the ability to score goals in tight. He is also an excellent play maker, with good vision and passing skills. Mascherin is undersized at just 5’10” tall, but at 205 pounds, he has a thick and powerful body.
51.) Los Angeles Kings: Markus Niemelainen, Defence, Saginaw Spirit
This is also the Kings first pick in this year’s draft. Dean Lombardi has shown that he loves big players, and takes another one here. At 6-foot 6-inches tall, Niemelainen has tremendous size. He uses it effectively in the defensive zone. While he isn’t a huge hitter, he does play physical in battling for loose pucks and pinning his man to the boards; clearing the front of the net, and blocking shots. Niemelainen is mainly a defensive defender, but there are hints that a better offensive game may be lurking under the surface. He does have a hard slap shot, though he does not use it enough, and he needs to work on getting it on net and through traffic.
52.) Philadelphia Flyers (from Chicago): Jordan Kyrou, Centre/Right Wing, Sarnia Sting
Previous picks: Max Jones, Cam Morrison
The Flyers acquired this pick in last years Kimmo Timmonen trade. They take Kyrou, who played with Flyers prospect Travis Konecny in Sarnia. Kyrou is a great skater, featuring excellent speed and top-notch acceleration. Kyrou’s speed makes him extremely dangerous off the rush, however he also controls the puck well in the cycle game and works hard down low. He has the versatility to play both centre and right wing. Kyrou is more of a playmaker than a goal scorer. He also has a well-developed defensive game.
53.) Arizona Coyotes (compensatory): Evan Fitzpatrick, Goaltender, Sherbrooke Phoenix
Previous Picks: Alexander Nylander, Libor Hajek, Dennis Cholowoski
The Coyotes received Connor Bleackley, the Avalanche’s 2014 first round pick in the Mikkel Boedker trade. When they choose not to sign Bleackely, they received this pick as compensation. With plenty of picks, the Coyotes are able to take the best player available here. That player is Evan Fitzpatrick. With his excellent size, he covers a lot of net. He takes advantage of this by coming out to challenge shooters, and by having an excellent sense on his angles. He’s also very technically sound for a young netminder, with rebound control not often seen in someone his age. Fitzpatrick understands how to kick low shots into the corners and to swallow up those that come in high. He gets down into the butterfly quickly and pops right back up.
54.) Calgary Flames (from Florida): Ryan Lindgren, Defence, US NTDP
Previous Picks: Matthew Tkachuk, Nathan Bastian
The Flames acquired this pick when they traded Jiri Hudler to Florida at the NHL Trade Deadline. After going forward with their first two picks, the Flames take a defenceman here. Ryan Lindgren is better known for his defensive game than his offence at this point. He has strong positioning, keeping himself between his man and the net. He reads the play well, and uses a quick stick to cut down passing lanes and create turnovers. Lindgren is not a huge hitter but he is physically involved in the corners and in front of the net, establishing leverage and using his strength and balance to its full advantage. He makes a good first pass out of the zone and gets the transition game going. He also has enough puckhandling ability to protect the puck while avoiding forecheckers.
55.) Pittsburgh Penguins (from Anaheim via Vancouver): Frederic Allard, Defence, Chicoutimi Sagueneens
The Vancouver Canucks acquired this pick from the Anaheim Ducks when they traded Kevin Bieksa last summer. The Penguins got the pick in the Brandon Sutter/Nick Bonino deal. The Stanley Cup champs take the best player available here, grabbing Frederic Allard from Chicoutimi. Allard has the potential to be a top-four defender in the NHL. His offensive game is coming along nicely, while his defensive game is also showing signs of improvement. He is showing dedication to learning. If a team has the proper development staff in place, and can continue to help him develop his defensive game, Allard could turn out to be a real gem.
56.) Calgary Flames (from Dallas): Trent Frederic, Centre/Left Wing, US NTDP
Previous Picks: Matthew Tkachuk, Nathan Bastian, Ryan Lindgren
The Flames receive this pick after trading Kris Russell to the Dallas Stars at the NHL Trade Deadline. Frederic shows good size, and plays a power forward style of game. He loves to get in on the fore check, pressuring defencemen, and throwing hits in the offensive zone. He creates turnovers, and generates offence by winning battles along the boards or working to establish space in front of the net. He protects the puck well down low, and is able to prolong possession and generate plays. Frederic has the ability to score goals, with a strong wrist shot and good release. He is also able to score in close, taking the puck to the net when he gets the opportunity, or throw fast hands that get rebounds and deflections.
57.) Toronto Maple Leafs (from Washington): Cliff Pu, Centre/Right Wing, London Knights
Previous Picks: Auston Matthews, Carter Hart, Luke Green
The Leafs received this pick in the Daniel Winnik/Brooks Laich trade that was made at the NHL Trade Deadline. With four picks in the top 60, the Leafs will be able to continue to build their prospect pool. Mark Hunter takes another player he is very familiar with in Cliff Pu of the London Knights. He spent most of the first half of the year playing a bottom six role and not getting a lot of offensive opportunities. When players like Mitch Marner, Christian Dvorak, and Matthew Tkachuk were gone for the World Juniors, Pu got a bigger opportunity and took full advantage, impressing head coach Dale Hunter. When the Knights stars returned he remained in a top six role, and impressed down the stretch. He was in an important role throughout the Knights march to the OHL Championship, and Memorial Cup.
58.) Tampa Bay Lightning: Sean Day, Defence, Mississauga Steelheads
Previous Pick: Taylor Raddysh, Rasmus Asplund
The Lightning have outstanding prospect depth, as well as three picks in the top 60. As a result, they can afford to take a gamble on the biggest boom-or-bust player in this year’s draft. Sean Day is the fourth ever player to receive exceptional status from Hockey Canada and entered the OHL at 15. He has outstanding size, is the best skater in the draft, and has a hard slapshot. However, he has been unable to translate all those skills into his play. The effort level does not always seem to be there, and there is some question as to how committed Day is to a career in the NHL.
His raw skills and tools give him the ability to be one of the top defencemen in the game. However, there are real questions about the fact that he’s not been able to put things all together to date, and some question if he ever will.
59.) St. Louis Blues: Riley Stillman, Defence, Oshawa Generals
Previous pick: Tage Thompson
The Blues added to their forward group with Tage Thompson in the first round. The Blues are built around a philosphy of playing a heavy game. They take a defenceman who fits that philosphy in the second round with Stillman. Stillman’s defensive game is well developed. He is difficult to beat one-on-one. Those who try can often find themselves flattened with a strong open ice hit. He also has very good positioning and is willing to battle along the boards and in front of the net. The offensive numbers may not have been great, but Stillman shows a lot of offensive tools. He really improved as the season went on, and this was most evident in his offensive game.
60.) San Jose Sharks: Wade Allison, Right Wing/Centre, Tri-City Storm
The Sharks take a late rising prospect with their first pick. Wade Allison plays a simple game, but a highly physical and highly effective one. He is a budding power forward, willing to throw hits on the fore check, get involved in battles along the boards, and go to the front of the net. Strong and powerful, Allison uses his well developed frame to dominate against his peers. He will need a little more muscle to do the same at the next level, but is well ahead of most prospects his age. He has a strong and powerful wrist shot which he gets off with a quick release. He also finds openings to set himself up for a powerful one-timer. He had an outstanding playoff run, leading Tri-City to the Clark Cup as USHL Champions.
61.) Pittsburgh Penguins (from Pittsburgh via Toronto): Noah Gregor, Centre, Moose Jaw Warriors
Previous Pick: Frederic Allard
The Penguins sent this pick to Toronto when they acquired Daniel Winnick at the 2015 NHL Trade Deadline. They re-acquired the pick in the Phil Kessel trade last summer. Gregor has decent size and plays a strong all-around game, as he shows ability in all three zones. He is a good skater, with very good speed and acceleration. Gregor shows good skill in the offensive zone. He has a heavy wrist shot, with good accuracy and a quick release. He also shows a good arsenal of shots, with a strong snap shot, and one-timer. Gregor has excellent vision and sees openings to thread the needle to create a scoring chance for a teammate. He is also a hard worker at the defensive end of the ice.
Thanks for reading. Check back tomorrow for another NHL draft feature.
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