The NHL Entry Draft is a month away, and while there has been plenty of attention placed on top prospects Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko, some of the other top names in the draft have flown by somewhat under the radar. Corey Pronman of The Athletic seeks to change that with his comprehensive draft rankings (subscription required) which give a full scouting report on 107 names eligible for this year’s draft.
While Hughes and Kakko each hold a tier of their own at the top of the draft, Pronman considers several others elite prospects making the top half of the first round quite exciting. Pronman may be the most bullish evaluator on American sniper Cole Caufield, who stands just 5’7″ but received an 80 grade (the maximum) for his shot. Pronman raves about Caufield’s scoring ability and has him ranked fifth in the entire draft.
- If Pittsburgh Penguins fans were hoping that Swedish defenseman Lukas Bengtsson would make his way back to North America, they’ll have to wait another few years. The 25-year old signed a two-year contract with SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL, meaning he’ll join one of the top programs in Russia. Bengtsson signed as an international free agent in 2016 and played parts of two seasons with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins before returning to Sweden last year. His 24 points in 42 games with Linkopings HC were good enough for 11th among all SHL defensemen this season.
- The Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators are getting closer to filling their vacant head coaching positions according to John Shannon of Sportsnet, who tweets that both are hopeful to make their decision before the end of the month. The Senators were most recently linked to Patrick Roy, but have interviewed at least six other candidates.