Tuesday, June 24
Back to the draft, buddy. Boston did some good work this year, and overall I'm pleased. They did some dealing before and after the draft, and when all was said and done they had ten picks this year - a first, 2 seconds, 3 fourths, and 1 apiece of fifth, sixth, eighth and ninths.
Their first pick was a guy by the name of Mark Stuart, who is by all accounts a can't miss defensive defenseman, but doesn't have the talent to be a superstar. You can read a bit about him at the top of this page. People compare his style to Scott Stevens in that he might not score a lot, but he fucks shit up in fron of his net, in the corners, and will stand you up at his blueline. He's supposed to be a good leadership guy, too, which is why he's captain of the U.S. Junior team. The Bruins traded the 16th pick overall to San Jose for the 21st and 66th picks, which is why they probably decided to go with the safest guy available when 21 rolled around. Too bad, too, becuase I was hoping they would pick up Zach Parise, who went to NJ with the 17th overall.
The second rounder that the B's picked up is named Patrice Bergeron. Yeah, it's a gay name, but O'Connel has already said in the paper that if he plays in Boston he's going to try to convince the kid to go by the name "Pat". Anyway, he's a center who is a great playmaker and faceoff man, although he needs work on his skating. He's a great kid, and works his ass off, even going so far as to hire his own powerskating coach. He's been compared to Adam Oates, but frankly I think that's a pipe dream. Still, I'm glad the Bruins went with a Center with their second pick, as now that Stumpel is gone it's by far their weakest position (Thornton and Vernarsky are the only natural centers on the team, with Zamuner, Rolston and Hilbert having been converted to cover sometimes).
The third pick was a Finn, and is apparently a total dickhead, unlike their first two. When they called Masi Marjamakis name, one of the local announcers told Kirk Leudeke of the New England Hockey Journal that he "fucking hates Masi Marjamaki", and that Masi "went to the Esa Tikannen school of pissing people off". So obviously I like this pick already. I don't have high hopes at all, but we could use another agitator on the bottom two lines who actually appears to be able to play the game, unlike P.J. Stock (although I love the guy). Oh, Masi is a LW.
The other picks were nothing speical, but maybe someone will come out of nowhere. My best guess for Bruins darkhorse is Patrik Valcak, who went 129th overall. He's Czech, and is kind of an irritant like Marjakami, only more polished but with less upside. He'll probably play in Providence next year, and I could see him earning a place on the third line with Boston if there are injuries (like fellow Eupropeans Mikko Eloranta, Antti Laaksonen, and P.J. Axelsson have done in the past few years).
Oh, and I know Jessiman because he's a New England kid. I'm a big fan, and I get a kick out of the fact that his nickname is "Huge Specimen". Mike and I talked a little about him when the Rags called his name. I think either CSS or the Red Line Report had him ranked 12th, but people were reluctant to pick him because he plays at fucking Dartmouth. Only one NHLer I've ever heard of came out of Dartmouth, and I've already forgotten who it was. Anyway, I hope he pans out, becuase he seems like a good kid.
Their first pick was a guy by the name of Mark Stuart, who is by all accounts a can't miss defensive defenseman, but doesn't have the talent to be a superstar. You can read a bit about him at the top of this page. People compare his style to Scott Stevens in that he might not score a lot, but he fucks shit up in fron of his net, in the corners, and will stand you up at his blueline. He's supposed to be a good leadership guy, too, which is why he's captain of the U.S. Junior team. The Bruins traded the 16th pick overall to San Jose for the 21st and 66th picks, which is why they probably decided to go with the safest guy available when 21 rolled around. Too bad, too, becuase I was hoping they would pick up Zach Parise, who went to NJ with the 17th overall.
The second rounder that the B's picked up is named Patrice Bergeron. Yeah, it's a gay name, but O'Connel has already said in the paper that if he plays in Boston he's going to try to convince the kid to go by the name "Pat". Anyway, he's a center who is a great playmaker and faceoff man, although he needs work on his skating. He's a great kid, and works his ass off, even going so far as to hire his own powerskating coach. He's been compared to Adam Oates, but frankly I think that's a pipe dream. Still, I'm glad the Bruins went with a Center with their second pick, as now that Stumpel is gone it's by far their weakest position (Thornton and Vernarsky are the only natural centers on the team, with Zamuner, Rolston and Hilbert having been converted to cover sometimes).
The third pick was a Finn, and is apparently a total dickhead, unlike their first two. When they called Masi Marjamakis name, one of the local announcers told Kirk Leudeke of the New England Hockey Journal that he "fucking hates Masi Marjamaki", and that Masi "went to the Esa Tikannen school of pissing people off". So obviously I like this pick already. I don't have high hopes at all, but we could use another agitator on the bottom two lines who actually appears to be able to play the game, unlike P.J. Stock (although I love the guy). Oh, Masi is a LW.
The other picks were nothing speical, but maybe someone will come out of nowhere. My best guess for Bruins darkhorse is Patrik Valcak, who went 129th overall. He's Czech, and is kind of an irritant like Marjakami, only more polished but with less upside. He'll probably play in Providence next year, and I could see him earning a place on the third line with Boston if there are injuries (like fellow Eupropeans Mikko Eloranta, Antti Laaksonen, and P.J. Axelsson have done in the past few years).
Oh, and I know Jessiman because he's a New England kid. I'm a big fan, and I get a kick out of the fact that his nickname is "Huge Specimen". Mike and I talked a little about him when the Rags called his name. I think either CSS or the Red Line Report had him ranked 12th, but people were reluctant to pick him because he plays at fucking Dartmouth. Only one NHLer I've ever heard of came out of Dartmouth, and I've already forgotten who it was. Anyway, I hope he pans out, becuase he seems like a good kid.
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