Vancouver Canucks: 5 Late-Round Options for the 2016 NHL Entry Draft
The Vancouver Canucks will have many tough decisions to make in June.
Over the past weeks, we took a first look at the top two rounds of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and profiled players the Vancouver Canucks could target. But the top two rounds are only the tip of the iceberg that is the draft.
Read: 5 First-Round Draft Options
Read: 3 Second-Round Draft Options
Now, you could argue that players drafted later than the second round rarely turn into impact players on the NHL level. While that is certainly true, I want you to take a look through this list and re-evaluate your thoughts:
- 117th overall, 1998 — C Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings
- 210th overall, 1999 — C Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit Red Wings
- 205th overall, 2000 — G Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers
- 258th overall, 2004 — G Pekka Rinne, Nashville Predators
- 129th overall, 2007 — LW Jamie Benn, Dallas Stars
The Detroit Red Wings snagged two of their best players of all time late in the 1998 and 1999 Drafts, respectively. The New York Rangers and Nashville Predators found their long-time franchise goalies even later. The Dallas Stars selected Jamie Benn outside the top 100, and Benn is currently a top-three scorer in the league.
Obviously, the chances of making a steal like that are extremely slim, but they are there. How about an example from the Canucks? Guess where first-line right winger Jannik Hansen was drafted. In the ninth round, 287th overall, of the 2004 Draft.
Hansen is not a superstar by any means, but he developed into an important player for his team. He now has 517 regular season games played and 210 points in the best league in the world. In addition, he played in 64 playoff contests. That is comparable to the career of Lauri Korpikoski, who was selected 19th overall by the Rangers in the same year.
There is no guarantee for anything in the NHL Draft, which shows one thing: scouting is extremely important, and the later rounds are at least as important as the first two. A lot can and will still change, but it is never too early for a first look.
So, here is one player for each round that the Canucks could, and perhaps should, target at the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.
Next: Round 3
Round 5 — D David Bernhardt (Djugardens IF U20, SuperElit)
Ranked #17 by NHL Central Scouting (European skaters)
Vancouver currently doesn’t own a fifth-round pick, but this guy could be drafted literally anywhere come June. David Bernhardt is a player who could, though might not, rise far up the rankings as we near the draft. A 6-foot-2, 192-pound defenceman from Sweden, Bernhardt is the top-scoring blueliner in the SuperElit, Sweden’s top junior league. His 32 points in 36 games rank 20th among all skaters.
Bernhardt was on no one’s radar for most of the season and did not make TSN Craig Button’s top-100 ranking in November, but suddenly jumped up to No. 17 on NHL Central Scouting’s list. The reason is simple: Bernhardt has terrific size for a defenceman, scores like there is no tomorrow, but struggles with consistency and his defensive game.
The Swede skates well for his size and plays nice passes, and also possesses a dangerous shot. However, he does struggle in the defensive zone and is not nearly as physical as you would hope for a player of his size. That does not mean he cannot develop that side of his game, though.
If Bernhardt can improve his defensive game and perform consistently, he could turn into a poor man’s Erik Karlsson. Who knows, maybe he could even be an actual Erik Karlsson type and become a huge steal in this draft. No pressure, bud.
Also, let me warn you, his draft range is big. High risk, high reward, if picked as early as the second round. The next few months will be extremely interesting for Bernhardt.
Potential: Top-Four Defenceman
Draft Range: 50-150
Next: Round 6
Round 6 — C Tobias Eder (EC Bad Tolz, Oberliga)
Ranked #47 by NHL Central Scouting (European skaters)
Team Germany didn’t do too well at the 2015 World Junior Championship, being relegated to the Division I. Tobias Eder and his team failed to make their way back into the top division this year. However, Edmonton Oilers centre Leon Draisaitl shows that there is still hope for German hockey, and Eder could be the next one to make the jump.
Eder is a smart player who knows where to be on the ice. A good skater, Eder moves around the ice well, sees his teammates and plays crisp, accurate passes. Throughout his junior career, he has always had roughly the same amount of goals and assists, proving that he knows how to put the puck in the net as well.
Unlike most draft prospects — or hockey players in general — Eder has played games in four different leagues this season, gaining experience at very different levels of play. He played two games for EC Bad Tolz’s under-19 team in the DNL, the German top-tier junior league, and 21 for their men’s team in Germany’s third-tier league. In addition, he joined the Red Bull Salzburg under-20 team for four games in the Red Bull Hockey series. Last but not least, Eder made his professional debut for SC Riessersee in the DEL2, Germany’s second-tier league, and scored a goal in that first and last game.
In 21 games for Bad Tolz, he has six goals and 17 points — outstanding numbers for a teenager playing in a men’s league. He is currently “only” eighth in scoring on his team, but leads the team in points per game at .81. Last but not least, Eder was on Team Germany for the Division I World Juniors in Vienna, Austria, this year, where he recorded a goal and two points in five games.
Potential: Bottom-Six Forward
Draft Range: 140-180
Next: Round 7