2009 NHL MOCK DRAFT

With the 2009 NHL Entry Draft about five weeks away, here's a look at what could happen. This is based on how the selections are stacked up today, the final four teams could switch places as the Conference Finals wrap up; and trades could happen.

1. New York Islanders - John Tavares, C, OHL
2. Tampa Bay Lightning - Victor Hedman, D, Sweden
3. Colorado Avalanche - Matt Duchene, C, OHL
4. Atlanta Thrashers - Evander Kane, C, WHL
5. Los Angeles Kings - Brayden Schenn, C, WHL
6. Phoenix Coyotes - Jared Cowan, D, WHL
7. Toronto Maple Leafs - Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson, LW, Sweden
8. Dallas Stars - Zach Kassian, RW, OHL
9. Ottawa Senators - Nazem Kadri, C, OHL
10. Edmonton Oilers - Oliver Ekman-Larsson, D, Sweden
11. Nashville Predators - Scott Glennie, C, WHL
12. Minnesota Wild - Simon Despres, D, QMJHL
13. Buffalo Sabres - Ryan Ellis, D, OHL
14. Florida Panthers - John Moore, D, USHL
15. Anaheim Ducks - Jordan Schroeder, RW, NCAA
16. Columbus Blue Jackets - David Runblad, D, Sweden
17. St. Louis Blues - Jacob Josefson, C, Sweden
18. Montreal Canadians - Peter Holland, C, OHL
19. New York Rangers - Carter Ashton, LW, WHL
20. Phoenix Coyotes - Ethan Werek, C, OHL
21. Philadelphia Flyers - Landon Ferraro, RW, WHL
22. Vancouver Canucks - Louis LeBlanc, C, USHL
23. New Jersey Devils - Chris Kreider, LW, USHS
24. Washington Capitals - Dmitri Kulikov, D, QMJHL
25. Boston Bruins - Nick Leddy, D, USHS
26. New York Islanders - Jordan Caron, C, QMJHL
*27. Carolina Hurricanes - Kyle Palmieri, C, USNTDP
*28. Chicago Blackhawks - Jeremy Morin, C, USNTDP
*29. Pittsburgh Penguins - Calvin De Haan, D, OHL
*30. Detroit Red Wings - Stefan Elliott, D, WHL

* = final position still to be determined

Obviously, there will be trades. Some of the teams with major trade potential are Toronto at #7 (up or down), Dallas at #8, Columbus at #16, Philadelphia at #21 and Boston at #25.

A Look Ahead

With only eight games remaining in the '06-'07 season, the Philadelphia Flyers will soon be finishing up their run at the #1 pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. They are currently nine points behind the 2nd worst team (Phoenix Coyotes) and it seems unlikely that the Flyers will catch them. Especially the way they've played recently. They've lost their last three games (capped off by a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of the Rangers on Wed.) and five out of their last six.

Missing the playoffs, the Flyers need to look towards their future. They've already addressed that by trading away veterans for younger players and draft picks. They've acquired their new #1 goaltender in Martin Biron, scrappy young, winger Scottie Upshall and three, solid, young defensemen in Lasse Kukkonen, Braydon Coburn and Ryan Parent. All five of these players will play huge parts in the Flyers immediate future and long-term plans.

In addition to this help, the Flyers most likely will also own the first pick in the 2007 Entry Draft. There is a lottery system, but if they end up with the worst record in the league, the lowest they can select is 2nd overall (based on NHL rules).

So let's take a look at some of the top prospects in this year's draft class:

--- RW Patrick Kane (18 yrs. old) - Kane is currently playing for the London Knights in the Ontario Hockey League. Through 58 games, Kane 62 goals, 83 assists and 52 PIM. And although he wears the jersey #88, he definitely does not possess the size or attitude of Eric Lindros. Kane is listed at 5'10" 165 lbs. He is considered the "safest" pick of the top prospects.

--- RW Alexei Cherepanov (18 yrs. old) - Cherepanov, who is currently playing for Omsk Avangard in the Russian Super League, is widely considered to have the most talent of any prospect in this draft. He is compared to Pavel Bure, but without the blazing speed. In 47 regular season games, Alexei totalled 18 goals and 11 assists. He also has three playoff goals. But to put those numbers in perspective, he is only one of two 18 year olds (or younger) to amass 20 goals in one season in the Russian Super League - the other being Sergei Samsonov. Cherepanov is 6'0, 183 lbs. The knock on him is that he is inconsistent and that he wasn't really considered a top prospect until this season.

--- C Kyle Turris (17 yrs. old) - Turris is currently playing for the Burnaby Express of the British Columbia Hockey League. He has 36 goals and 36 assists in 57 games. He is listed at 6'0, 170 lbs. He is not a physical hockey player, but for his age, has shown a nice scoring touch and should develop nicely into an NHL player. Turris has committed to playing hockey at the University of Wisconsin this fall. Not unusual for a player of his age and skill level. He is considered a notch below Kane among scouts and also has not played against the same level of competition as Kane and Cherepanov.

So there are arguably the top three prospects in the upcoming Entry Draft. There are other prospects that could be considered in the top 3-10 selections. They include: C Angelo Esposito, C Sam Gagner, D Karl Alzner, LW James Van Riemsdyk, D Keaton Ellerby, RW Jakub Voracek and C Logan Couture.

One of these players will surely add to the Flyers ever-growing cache of quality, young skaters.