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Skill comes in many forms. Lidstrom wasn't flashy like Doughty is, but he controlled the ice. Keith was never flashy like Subban is, but (in his prime) he controlled the ice. Bouchard thinks the game and sees the ice as well as, if not better than, any of his Dman peers. His first pass is exceptional. His shot is exceptional. (Hughes barely has a shot. Boqvist needs to work on his accuracy.) He logs huge minutes. He's the best natural PP QB in this draft class. I don't see a real problem with his skating, beyond the fact that he doesn't skate ludicrously well like Hughes does. He can't stickhandle in a phone booth, but he's a defenseman. Not hardcore disagreeing with you, just saying. I'm cool with us taking any of Hughes, Boqvist, Bouchard, Dobson. I just don't think it's quite accurate to say Bouchard is less skilled than the others. I want *effective* players.

NOOOOO. There is no offer that I would trade her for. Hubba Hubba. OK this guy.

For what it's worth, here's a view of Svechnikov from a scout that writes for The Athletic: " Evgeny Svechnikov As a first-round pick in 2015, Svechnikov is going to be looked upon to be a big piece of Detroit’s future. At first glance on video, he’s one of those guys that as a scout you say: “He looks like a hockey player, he smells like a hockey player but is he a hockey player?” All the tools are there. He’s big, he can skate, he has skill and can handle a puck really well. While watching him skate up and down the ice, it certainly looks like he belongs. But looking at the stats and doing some research, it sounds like the kid is having a tougher transition this year. As a 21-year-old, that can happen. Lately, he has looked more and more comfortable in a Red Wings uniform the more games he has played with the big club. He had his best game against the Philadelphia Flyers and was rewarded with a goal. His biggest strength is in his puck protection. As a big body, he does a really good job using his size to protect the puck from defenders. He made some nice plays in the corners bringing pucks to the net, and by playing a big-man’s game he scored his first career goal by getting to the net. Check out the clips below: I saw some little things that he does well too, details of the game that coaches love from their players. A lot of times, it takes young players a really long time to buy in to these little details (see: Andreas Athanasiou), but they are a huge part to winning games. In the clips below, you’ll see Svechnikov getting pucks out, getting pucks in, making good decisions at the bluelines, good defensive positioning (and nice skill hitting the puck out of mid-air) and finally sacrificing his body to block a shot: I’d love to see more of Svechnikov. If this is a guy that you are planning to have as a big part of your future, the Red Wings should play him more and play him with better players. He has yet to hit 10 minutes of ice time in a game or have more than 15 shifts. He has been playing with Luke Glendening and Marty Frk. I’d love to see him on the wing with Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha, instead of Darren Helm … or with Henrik Zetterberg and Gustav Nyquist instead of Tyler Bertuzzi. I understand that you have to earn it, as coach Jeff Blashill has pointed out after games. That’s the Red Wings' mantra. But with two weeks now left in the season, let’s see what the kid can do in an elevated role."

Jets and Caps better wake the hell up, or it's gonna be one boring Finals no one will care about. Vegas/Tampa. LOL

Most reputable draft rankings, including Bob McKenzie, Craig Button and NHL Central Scouting, all have Bouchard ranked above Wahlstrom. Not that that's the end all, be all, but it does give us some sort of indication. I've never seen Bouchard play a single game. I only have the highlights and scouting reports that everyone has seen to base an opinion. I'm not going to pretend to be an expert, but based on the way a lot of experts view him, I'd say he has just as much elite potential as anyone in this draft class, outside of Dahlin (and maybe Svechnikov). I've read that he has elite hockey IQ and awareness, and he's one of, if not the best passers in this draft. He has a bomb of a shot, that is also accurate. His foot speed isn't the best, but can be improved upon, and he makes up for it with great positioning. Also, he can quarterback a power-play as good as any. Holland made one thing clear when talking about this year's draft, and that is that we need to address the blueline, and we can't continue to draft all smallish defensemen. I'd personally take Bouchard over any of the other defenders available, and I do still say we should take a defenseman with that 6th overall pick. If Bouchard is off the board, I'd be completely okay with taking Wahlstrom. If both are gone, I'd highly consider trading back.

For the record: Bouchard is not slow. Like, this isn't an actual thing. In comparison to Hughes or Boqvist? Sure, he's "slow." And maybe Dobson has better technique. Maybe. But this "Bouchard's skating is a real point of concern" is overblown nuttiness, IMHO.

I just think he'd be overvalued around the league right now. Carolina might want him to pair with his brother... maybe hes the piece that nets us Faulk or something?

Boeser is the tiddies, id trade a lot for him

You haven't seen a single assessment that suggests Bouchard has the potential to be an elite defenseman at the NHL level? I've been on the Bouchard bandwagon for a while now. While I don't think he's a lock to be a top-pairing defenseman at the NHL level, I do feel he's about as promising a prospect as you're going to find outside of the true marquee prospects like Ekblad, Dahlin, et al. Same with Wahlstrom: he's by no means a lock to become an elite winger at the NHL level, he's not in that Ultra Top-Tier class of prospects, but he's about as good a winger as you could hope to get with the 6th overall pick. Between the two, Bouchard is probably the riskier pick, if only because defensemen are generally more of a crapshoot. But, yeah, I wouldn't say there's a big difference between the two in terms of their projectability. Either one would be a great pick, neither one is a sure thing.

I mean, elite is elite ya know? Like I said, I'd rather have an elite winger than a really good defenseman. I've read just about every scouting report and mock draft available, and the consensus seems to be that Wahlstrom has that kind of upside and Bouchard doesn't. So I think I'd take him and find my defenseman elsewhere. Plus, I don't think our defense is in as bad of shape as others might going forward. Not to mention we're likely to have two 1st round draft picks again next year (assuming Nyquist gets traded), but no guarantee that they'll be as high as 6th. Better to go with the high end skill guy on this one I think.

You're absolutely right. I don't disagree with your assessment at all. It does come down to a stylistic preference. And while I'd rather have Lidstrom than Doughty, I'd also rather have Josi than Pietrangelo, or Karlsson than Ekblad, or Burns than Vlasic, or Byfuglien than Trouba, or OEL than Parayko, etc. etc. etc. Again, I'm not saying this kid is "unskilled". Clearly he's good or we wouldn't be talking about him. I guess my point is that certain skills may be more useful in today's game than others. And given his draft position, I'd rather have a guy with dynamic offense than a guy who does everything well but nothing exceptionally well.

What is this "lack of skill" you speak of?

F*** You man! Carley is a goddamn goddess!

G603L should be Jonas, with all the holes in dat logic. G604L for Lefty, as the two spikes can be representative of Tippett and Hague.

Don't jinx us dude. SO then we should be able to get Bouchard for future considerations, right?

NBA players are wimps. These guys just had a week off in between series, even though neither team played more than 5 games in the second round. Now after two games in this series, they're getting an additional four days of rest in between games 2 and 3. Bunch of overpaid p**sies

Make Dogs A Dollar Again

I would. Kid is going to be a f***ing stud.

Holland needs to be all over this. For a team as stacked as the Canes are on defense, they can afford to give up a prospect like Bean. Add to that, the fact that they're likely drafting Andrei Svechnikov, they would likely have some interest in his brother, Evgeny. Seems like a pretty good fit there. Svechnikov and one of our late first, early second round picks is what I'd offer for Bean.

Just one of those things, like Why does Milbury still have a broadcasting job? This isn't the first time a Russian goalie refused to play for Snow and the Isles. Remember the Nabokov s***show where Detroit signed him for league minimum for playoff insurance with an option to re-sign the following season, and he agreed because he wanted a shot at a Cup. But, he had to clear waivers to re-enter the league. A few teams passed, but Snow couldn't help himself and snagged him. Nabby was pissed, refused to play for awhile, but finally came around when he knew he was stuck with Snow holding his contract re-sign option with Detroit over his head. He's a piece of s***. Guy returns to the league for a final Cup shot with a contender, and you bring him to the bowels of the league in NYI.