I really think this will be the last of the SWINDLE years for the SCAM. Meaning - he could swindle some GM's in that pick 6 thru 10 range with future #1 picks. There have only been a handful of really good players taken in the pick 21 to 32 range over the last 15 years: Kevin Hayes, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Brock Nelson, Rickard Rakell, David Pasternak, Adrian Kempe, Brock Boeser, Travis Konecny, Tage Thompson, and Jake Oettinger. The Red Wings are at the point where they're about to enter the 21 to 32 pick range for a good while. I wouldn't mind seeing the SCAM trade away our 24 first, 25 first, 26 2nd, and roster player (Fabbri) to move up in the draft to get a guy like Iginla or Buium. We need better odds on the one guy we take, as our prospect pool is deep at this point. The teams in the pick 6-10 range need more picks to have chances at more guys panning out into NHLers over the next 4-5 years. It's a win win for both teams.
I'm ok with it, but I wouldn't give up too much. He's not what we need. He's part of the Matthews34 school of hockey. He doesn't scare anybody when it's time for the playoffs. We need Kirk Maltby and Dave Brown type guys that give us the upper hand in the post season. Not saying we don't need a Brendan Shanahan. We definitely need one more power forward up front that can mix it up. But it doesn't seem like there are any in this draft. So we've got to wait to get our Tage Thompson in a future draft.