Winnipeg Jets 2017 Draft Review

Moderator: SharksGM

Post Reply
JetsGM

Winnipeg Jets 2017 Draft Review

Post by JetsGM »

The Jets did their best to stockpile picks coming into the 2017 draft as a kick start to their rebuild after taking home a cup then falling off the map a season later...

Unfortunately management failed to take into account the lack of franchise talent available and spent most of the draft participating in the act of desperation based pick shuffling. With heads hung low, the long road to relevance may have been extended indefinitely after the dismal draft acumen shown by GM Brett Hosie and the rest of the soon to be "golden parachuted" scouting department.

Without much further ado, introducing your 2018/19 Manitoba Moose...

43. Winnipeg Jets (via New York Islanders) - Alex Formenton - The first whiff of the day and a true sign of things to come. Formenton projects to be a 2nd/3rd/4th line all around forward with a little bit of grit. Very low con for a booster vs. early birthday = a crap shoot if he will ever hit his stride... although even with a boost he may not sniff the pro's for any team with playoff aspirations.

45. Winnipeg Jets (via Vancouver Canucks) - Nate Schnarr - The yin to Formenton's yang. Similar to Formenton in the low con vs early b day crapshoot for a boost and overall talent level, Schnarr does at least have some ability to play as a defensive centre, something the organization is sorely lacking. With a boost and playing for a team with weak depth down the middle, Schnarr could be the Tyler Bozak of his generation.

47. Winnipeg Jets (via Toronto Maple Leafs) - Kristians Rubins - Formenton with some playmaking and no shot... with much less time to boost. A pattern is starting to form of what kind of players Winnipeg was after... going with the "throw same crap at wall, some must stick" draft strategy. Thinking back... isn't Rubins supposed to be a D man? If so this pick makes more sense as he may turn into a pro 4-7 D man someday.

53. Winnipeg Jets (via Ottawa Senators) - Kasper Kotkansalo - 4 for 4 on con boosters so far... skill set is a solid if unspectacular 6/7 D man. Kotkansalo add's future flexibility to Winnipeg's defence... a defence that is already young and more talented than what Kotkansalo could bring on a good day. AHL lifer in the making... yessir.

61. Winnipeg Jets (via St.Louis Blues) - Jesper Boqvist - Not entirely pleased with the draft progress so far and accepting that there was enough quantity of boosters for future bottom line depth, Winnipeg changed gears a bit and selected Boqvist. Boqvist is an altogether unspectacular talent with 84 pot and the slim prospect of over training (with low con slimming this chance down further). Completely unsure how Boqvist will turn out, although top 2 farm C would be where house money is located.

101. Winnipeg Jets (via Buffalo Sabres) - Griffin Mendel - Looking back I believe this pick was made at the precise moment where realization was had by the organization that all picks from the beginning of the 2nd round up the end of the 4th were essentially on the same talent plane. Mendel will require a double boost to hit his is 5/6/7 D man potential... but talent wise may be better than anyone picked on the above list. Very strong testament to the fringe depth of this draft, but also points out the foolishness of Winnipeg not falling back in this draft with previous selections.

113. Winnipeg Jets (via Ottawa Senators) - Mario Ferraro - Man I hate offensive D men that can't hit... not even sure why he was picked beyond being a solid addition to the farm with a boost. So... will be a solid addition to the farm one day, go team.

133. Winnipeg Jets (via New York Islanders) - Bryce Misley - Bags were being packed up and team table tear down had already begun. Misley is a safe ish all around AHL D man with decent pot... looking at him now, not even sure he will make the AHL in his career.

146. Winnipeg Jets (via New York Rangers) - Adam Thilander - Liked Thilander so much that I sent in a pick list with 10+ players that must of been lost in the PM's and he became an autopick. In a perfect world this pick could of been a future farm back up goalie... at least Thilander will provide Misley with some AHL 6/7 D man spot competition.

Final Thoughts - Winnipeg deserves a D- for this draft. Nobody picked will ever make a meaningful impact on this team and there is a slight chance no one picked above will even suit up for the Jets in a pro game... but no picks were made in the first round and things were generally advertised by all as being a weaker than normal draft, so the Peg barely escapes an F. Better luck next year!
Post Reply

Return to “Team News”