NHL Mock Draft: Joun’s Final Full First Round Mock of 2016

It doesn’t get any more real than this. Only 75 hours separate this final NHL Mock Draft from the real one.

If there is one thing about the 2016 NHL Entry Draft that we know, it is that the top is loaded with talent. After that, all we know is that nothing should be taken for granted. Whether they be trades, off-the-boards draft selections, or unexpected steals, the variables are endless and the possibilities infinite.

But with this year’s top crop being as good as it is, NHL teams cannot afford to make the smallest mistake.

The past season has been a great blessing for the NHL as its top draft-eligible prospects grew and matured for this single event. The “Big Three” of Auston Matthews and the two Finns made a lot of teams think hard about “tanking” during the regular season. Trading draft picks became the new hype of the trade market. The Draft Lottery was nothing short of breath-taking drama.

This year’s prospect pool also contains players like Logan Brown and Clayton Keller who are more than eight inches apart in height potentially facing off in the top-ten. It will be a test of the ages to see if the modern NHL is willing to sacrifice size for skill or vice versa.

The draft is also shaping up to be a feast for the Europeans and the Americans. With only a handful Canadians represented at the very top of the draft class, the future of Hockey Canada may hang on the shoulders of Pierre-Luc Dubois at this draft.

And the future of Vancouver Canucks hockey may also depend on Dubois, or whatever asset the Canucks turn that pick into.

Here we are, just days before the 2016 Entry Draft. It is time for the final mock draft of the year.

Next: Picks 1-5