Making a Mockery of the Mock Draft

6/21 UPDATE ON MY PERSONAL DRAFT CONJECTURE: BOSTON GLOBE: Fluto Shinzawa (is there a better name in sports journalism??) is reporting that Bruins' GM, Peter Chiarelli, recently spoke with Oilers' GM, Steve Tambellini, over the weekend to discuss potential draft deals. Specifically, they bandied about the idea of a deal that would allow the Oilers to keep the first overall pick, but require an asset from the Bruins, who could then choose between Taylor Hall or Tyler Seguin. But, as per usual, it "sounds as though no deal is close."

However, I would like to point out that this is exactly the sort of thing I was thinking of when explaining my rationale behind the Oilers possibly selecting Tyler Seguin. If Boston is really that high on Hall, then they've got enough ammunition (in the form of tradeable players and the 15th overall pick) to perhaps persuade Tambellini to fork over Hall. Don't you think EDM would certainly enjoy having the 15th pick so they could grab U-20 World Championship hero, Jack Campbell (G) to bolster their back-stop situation, which seems shaky at best?

Also, Chiarelli said that he wouldn't trade the second overall pick and would likely select Seguin if the Oilers were to select Hall, but he's willing to entertain offers for any of their other 3 picks in the top 45 of the draft -- Boston possesses the 15th, 32nd and 45th picks overall.

***Original 6/20 Entry***

For the last several days, I have been perusing many different websites and blogs in an effort to absorb as much useful information as possible to take a somewhat informed stab at predicting the first 25 picks of the upcoming NHL Draft, which will be conducted on 6/25 in Los Angeles. The problem with this idea is that, the more you delve into the deep reservoir of information, the more overwhelmed you become with the array of "enlightened" opinion and well-reasoned analysis. Whether it's a website featuring a media-annointed expert or a fan-blogger with gobs of experience, finding any degree of consensus is damn near impossible.

Thus, I have decided that the only way to make this futile exercise in prediction interesting at all is to take a more daring approach to the early summer blogging ritual known as the Mock Draft. Here goes...something? Something that will hopefully tweak your curiosity bone and give you pause, or at least make you chuckle with dismay! Okay, even that seems to be a bit of a "stretch-goal" for this endeavor as I still hope to avoid any accusations of absurdity and outrage from the masses when I publish this mockery of a mock draft.

#1) EDM - Tyler Seguin (C) Plymouth Whalers -- while GM Steve Tambellini certainly seems enamored of consensus # 1 Taylor Hall, he may very well view Seguin as his top-line pivot of the future. EDM is loaded with young players such as Jordan Eberle, Linus Omark and last year's # 1 pick, Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson, all of whom may be better suited to playing the wing in the NHL. Tambellini is on record as saying "there's (no) wrong answer" in choosing between the two so I would not be surprised if Seguin gets the nod as top dog.

#2) BOS (from TOR) - Taylor Hall (LW) Windsor Spitfires -- barring some kind of "looney tunes" trade scenario, I suspect GM Peter Chiarelli will do the "safety dance" at the drafting podium when he takes Hall to replace former winger Phil Kessel, who was traded to TOR before last season when contract talks stalled. Unlike most teams, BOS is deep at center for years to come with the likes of Marc Savard, David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron. Who knows? Perhaps Chiarelli offers to flip the 15th pick to EDM as incentive to leave Taylor Hall on the board?

#3) FLA - Erik Gudbranson (D) Kingston Frontenacs -- while many South Florida hockey fans seem to covet highly-touted prospect Cam Fowler (D), my gut tells me that new GM Dale Tallon will opt to take the bigger, more mature Gudbranson to add some grit and muscle to a blueline that already features two talented, puck-moving D prospects. Russian youngster Dimitri Kulikov already has a year in the NHL under his belt and the offensively-gifted D-man prospect Colby Robak may be ready to make a serious run at the roster at camp this fall. With aging veteran Bryan McCabe (35) likely to depart after this season, the final year of his contract, Tallon may prefer picking the imposing Gudbranson to fill the eventual void.

#4) CBJ - Brett Connolly (RW) Prince George Cougars -- again, the consensus around the blogosphere is that D-men will be selected with picks 3 thru 5 because the trio of Gudbranson, Fowler and Gormley is simply too good to pass up. While CBJ certainly seems a bit thin when it comes to offense from the blueline, they are even thinner when it comes to right-wingers who can put the biscuit in the basket. Faced with uncertainty as to who will man the right side of the 2nd line, I think GM Scott Howson will surprise some folks by tabbing Connolly since he is probably the most NHL-ready forward (assuming the hip is fully healed) available after Hall & Seguin. Seriously, can it be THAT risky when the choices are either unproven prospect Mike Blunden or journeyman Chris Clark??

#5) NYI - Cam Fowler (D) Windsor Spitfires -- okay, so I took the easy way out and went with Cam Fowler here. Can you blame me? I have no doubt in my mind that GM Garth Snow probably fancies the idea of young, Swiss forward Nino Niederreiter streaking down the wing like Mike Bossy alongside John Tavares for the next decade to come. Shit! Who doesn't seem to love the flamboyant and charismatic kid from Switzerland? He's nearly achieved rock star status without anyone having seen him play outside of the World Juniors last December. But the Isles, who gave up a whopping 264 goals last year, need more depth on the blueline. And even though Fowler is more of offensive-minded D-man, his puck-possessing skills and fluid skating make him near impossible to pass up with the 5th overall pick.