BUFFALO - Before beginning the press conference on the Buffalo Sabres 2010 Entry Draft, GM Nick Abbott was heard on his cellphone, bizarrely trying to desperately trade his current vehicle and Kristian Huselius for a candybar (no word on the state of those negotiations.) The News has decided to post pieces of the transcript from the press conference for context's sake. Here is the first year GM on the 1st round:
The conversation then turned to the team's 2nd round choices, which still had Abbott beaming at the podium.NA: We were thrilled to see Ryan Johansen as still being available when our pick was up. We did receive inquiries into not only the pick, but Johansen himself right after he was drafted.
Reporter: Which teams were interested?
NA: I'm not going to divulge that information as a show of respect for my fellow GMs. They were classy to deal with throughout the entirety of the draft, and I'd like to think that they looked at me in the same light, so I'm not going to jeopardize that. That being said, we feel Johansen is already a solid player who will only continue to get better as the years go on. He is the type of all-around forward this team needs, with strong abilities both offensively and defensively. He's already shown such strengths with Portland in the WHL with 42 points in 29 games, and a +24 plus/minus. Though we'd like him to put on some more weight, he's going to be a freight train to be reckoned with, and we feel that he has the tools to someday become a franchise player.
Reporter: Can you discuss the trade you made with Montreal? Was Johansen in the plans the whole time, or just the best available player?
NA: Naturally, you have to have Hall, Seguin, etc. at the top of your list, but feasibly we had Johansen and one other player at the very top of the list. After carefully looking at the two, we came to the conclusion that Johansen was by far the better choice. We also felt confident that we could trade down 3 spots while gaining an important earlier 2nd round pick than we had, and still get our guy, which we did. Even for a pick-for-pick trade, we felt it was a sensational one. And no, we are not going to discuss the "other player".
Though the team lacked a third and fourth round pick, the fans still seemed beyond thrilled over their team's first 3 picks. A group of fans stormed HSBC Arena prior to the conference for the first time since the final game of the season in April, waving team flags, some even sporting Ryan Johansen jerseys. Abbott continued on with the rest of the team's draft:Reporter: Why Beukeboom, why Ohman?
NA: We feel Beukeboom has the potential to be an absolutely punishing defenseman, which is something this team has longed for for ages. His size has the potential for some concern, but ultimately we feel he'll be a top contributor to this team's defense. His offensive numbers with Sault Ste. Marie are a bit misleading we feel, but his plus/minus is impressive, as are his other intangibles.
Victor Ohman is a forward that we feel is going to be solid, but with some extra hard work, could become a very dynamic player in the future. There are some discrepancies over his stats in the Swedish League, but we've liked what we've seen thus far. We'd like to get him over to North America so he can better hone his skills to hit that next level we feel he's capable of.
With that, the Sabres GM took his leave, mentioning future plans for an autograph session involving all of the 2010 draft picks.NA: Janos Hari is a player who's strengths, while posting a phenomenal +35, lie in his offense. The Swedish league is not an easy one to compete in, and to post 27 points in 74 games as a 17 year old is quite impressive. His size does leave some questions to be answered, but I don't have any doubts he will be a contributing piece to this franchise, whether its in Buffalo or Portland.
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Juraj Petro is another feisty player we feel can add some defensive toughness on our front end. Despite scoring just 9 points in 29 games, his +11 is telling as to what he brings to the ice. We also feel his leadership for such a young age, and his composure are key elements to building a team-first attitude.
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Nikolai Suslo is someone who we felt was overlooked, and offered much more than meets the eye. He may not have shown much to other teams, but we feel the potential is there for the taking and honing. His numbers from last season, as well as his selection to both the Belarussian World Junior, and World Championship teams speak volumes.
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Finally, Scott Wedgewood offers us some alternatives in net, certainly for Portland, perhaps for Buffalo if he continues to work hard, er, diligently. His endurance could use some work, but we feel that will a little TLC, he could become a beast-, er, rock-, er, good goalie in the net.
Stay tuned for the Free Agent Frenzy.
Juraj Petro, +10 Stickhandling, +10 Checking