Nine 1st round picks worse than Jamie Storr

by Quisp on Jul 24, 2011 1:41 PM PDT

Bleacher Report has an inane post today listing the worst 1st round picks of each team in the NHL. Jamie Storr is their pick, and that's just b***sh**. Here's my post on Storr from last year ("Jamie Storr was better than you think"). And here are some names from Kings history that have a better claim on worst 1st round pick:

[the links lead to a complete run-down of picks from that draft year, so you can revel in the teeth-gnashing joy of "what might have been"]

1967 - Rick Pagnutti, 1st overall pick, 0 games played.
1968 - Jim McInally, 7th overall pick, 0 games played.
1984 - Craig Redmond, 6th overall pick, 191 games played.
1985 - Craig Duncanson, 9th overall pick, 38 games played.
1985 - Dan Gratton, 10th overall pick, 7 games played.
1987 - Wayne McBean, 4th overall pick, 211 games played.
1997 - Matt Zultek,15th overall pick, 0 games played.
2001 - Jens Karlsson, 18th overall pick, 0 games played.
2004 - Lauri Tukonen, 11th overall pick, 5 games played.

And we'll see about these two guys. I still have hopes for them, but they're on the clock.

2007 - Thomas Hickey, 4th overall pick, 0 games played.
2008 - Colten Teubert, 13th overall pick, 0 games played.

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Wondering about Hickey...

Is this guy ever going to pan out? Ever going to play an NHL game? Or just a bust. Seems like drafting him will not be Dean’s finest moment.

Teubert, don’t know, and don’t care.

by Steve S. on Jul 24, 2011 1:51 PM PDT reply actions

Wow, that Pagnutti draft year (1967) sure was a banner one! Only three of the 18 draftees played a single NHL game. But I guess teams get a pass on it as the draft was a brand new concept and scouting departments must have been pretty weak.

What can you say about Bleacher Report? Pretty sure that its entire business model is to post random, controversial lists in order to generate traffic to its advertisers, without any thought regarding quality. Glad that you didn’t bother posting a link to the article.

And yes, while Storr’s stats were perhaps a little better than his actual “game”, he deserved better. “Five-hole” was villified by Kings fans to a greater extent than Modry and other mediocre Kings, so I’m not surprised that others have picked up on the criticism.

by SCSF on Jul 24, 2011 2:38 PM PDT reply actions

"Bleacher Report has an inane post today"

and every day

You wanna tell me that to mah face?!

by uvgt2bkdnme on Jul 24, 2011 2:41 PM PDT reply actions 2 recs

Yeah, I was going to say!

And that makes today different from any other day… how? :-)

"I think you just outed yourself as Dean Lombardi. I knew it all along." — Rudy Kelly

by DougX on Jul 24, 2011 6:08 PM PDT up reply actions

If Storr is the worst

Then I am a fan of the worst. Least Jamie was a hell of a backup netminder. He sat the bench like a pro. Those guys you listed couldn’t even do that.

As for Hickey…I will be amazed if he makes it. My guess is he gets dealt at the deadline this year, a la Teubert, for a third liner. Or with a draft pick for a top six guy if the injury bug crops up

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by TradedForAPick on Jul 24, 2011 2:56 PM PDT reply actions

i don't mean to be down on Hickey, but his name must be included at this point.

personally, i think he deserves a shot at proving himself. this year. he’s not going to be waiver exempt after 2011-2012, so it’s now or never.

Wait till this year.

by Quisp on Jul 24, 2011 4:24 PM PDT up reply actions

In all fairness to Hickey, it should be noted that injuries have set back his development, and that he is as much a victim of the Kings’ glut of D prospects as anyone. If he stays healthy, maybe Martinez never gets the chance to pass him on the way up. If the Kings don’t draft Doughty (who jumped to the head of the line almost immediately) the next year and he stays healthy, maybe he’s already pegged for the top 4. With so many solid prospects in the system, it’s really a zero-sum game for those who have to compete to get noticed.

But yeah, I totally agree that Storr has gotten a bum rap. He showed flashes of genuine quality, and it’s not his fault that the Kings handled him badly. In fact, Robb Stauber would be much more of a 1st round bust, wouldn’t he?

"I think you just outed yourself as Dean Lombardi. I knew it all along." — Rudy Kelly

by DougX on Jul 24, 2011 6:08 PM PDT up reply actions

Stauber was a 6th round pick.

And he was also a large part of the reason the Kings made it to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1993. Lest anyone forget, after Kelly Hrudey lost Games 2 and 3 of the first round series against Calgary, Melrose put Stauber in for Game 4, which the Kings won. Stauber also played Games 5 and 6 – both also wins – and started the second round series against Vancouver before Hrudey finished the playoffs out as starter.

by Garrett79 on Jul 24, 2011 7:08 PM PDT up reply actions

i loved stauber; especially those kamikaze slides out at the top of the circles...the full body poke check.

Wait till this year.

by Quisp on Jul 24, 2011 9:41 PM PDT up reply actions

I was a huge Stauber fan too. Ol’ Blue Line Robb =)

by Garrett79 on Jul 24, 2011 10:28 PM PDT up reply actions

I was going to say how could you miss Doug Smyth, 2nd overall pick in 1981, but looking up his stats, he had 115 goals and 138 assists for 253 points in 535 NHL games. Still, considering that he was the first Kings draft pick that high in years, he’s got to be considered a bust since Bobby Carpenter went 3rd, Ron Francis went 4th and Al McInnes went 15th.

by m_and_m on Jul 24, 2011 7:47 PM PDT reply actions

Never signed,,,,

…..have to give Zultek and Karlsson the nod; not only didn’t play, but the team never even signed them…..with a slight advantage to Zultek, who was drafted with a pick obtained from St. Louis for Wayne Gretzky. David Steckel was another unsigned first rounder, but managed to carve out a decent career in Washington…..Also drafted Tim Young in the first round, but traded him to Minnesota before he ever played in LA….

Also had a first rounder named Martin Gelinas who never played in LA, but the trade return for him (guy named Gretzky) worked out okay……

by jkaflagg on Jul 24, 2011 9:09 PM PDT reply actions

Gelinas wound up having a respectable journeyman career. I recall he lasted about 10 seasons and always seemed to score in double figures. Though he never played for the Kings, I wouldn’t call him a flop in the larger sense.

"I think you just outed yourself as Dean Lombardi. I knew it all along." — Rudy Kelly

by DougX on Jul 24, 2011 10:54 PM PDT up reply actions

Wayne McBean!

Wow. Nine goals in 22 games one year for the Capital District Islanders. That was as good as it got.

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by Dominik on Jul 24, 2011 10:28 PM PDT reply actions

Karlsson just had no inclination to come over ('cept for rookie camp)

And the Kings had no inclination to sign him, he was terrible…

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by Paul Udani on Jul 25, 2011 2:59 AM PDT reply actions

It’s all relative to expectations I guess. I agree with Quisp, that any of the picks he mentioned turned out far worse than Storr, but Storr was supposed to be THE next great goaltender when he was drafted, so when he turned out to be “just” a solid backup, it was a disappointment.

by Hoolie on Jul 25, 2011 7:40 AM PDT reply actions

I think Storr was talented, but talent at the time a player is drafted is not enough. There are injuries, there are the ways teams develop a player, and there are motivation factors all up to the player himself.

I always wonder if the Kings did not handle his development well. Also feel like that about some of the other 1st rounders of that era. (On the other hand, Storr did make it to the NHL.)

There is no such thing as a “sure thing,” even in the first round. It’s only around 60% success rate, by one measure based on career games played. Then it drops to 25% in the second round, and keeps going lower and lower.

Hickey and/or Voynov should be traded to some other team where there is more opportunity for them to advance. They are young enough to have an NHL career ahead of them; the Kings’ depth is in their way.

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by Niesy on Jul 25, 2011 10:26 AM PDT reply actions

Hickey and/or Voynov should be traded to some other team where there is more opportunity for them to advance. They are young enough to have an NHL career ahead of them; the Kings’ depth is in their way.

I think you’re getting a little ahead of the game here. As you said in the previous paragraphs, there are injuries and motivation factors to consider, but in this case I’m thinking of players already in the Kings’ lineup. There is also the little matter of Drew Doughty remaining unsigned. Assuming the worst, if Doughty doesn’t sign then it’s nice to know that either Hickey or Voinov is still in the system to replace him. And if someone else gets hurt on a longterm basis, it’s good to have them there to step in and replace that injured player.

The time to trade one of these guys doesn’t come until the Kings have to resign one/both of them or they’re not waiver-proof anymore. Or if some other team is making an offer that can’t be refused.

Otherwise it just makes sense to keep them in the system on a cautionary basis.

Either way, I expect one or both to be in Europe with the Kings to start the season anyway.

by Garrett79 on Jul 25, 2011 12:09 PM PDT up reply actions

Well, I do the math, and I see Voynov and Muzzin and Hickey battling for that last spot. That makes at least one of them a leftover, unless they also trade other d-men on the roster, like Green and Martinez.

I don’t want to trade either of them, but I’ve resigned myself to the fact that one of them getting moved is more likely to happen than not. Losing waiver eligibility will happen pretty soon.

In Dinglebarn We Trust -- JftC

by Niesy on Jul 25, 2011 5:02 PM PDT up reply actions

Oh, and I can’t imagine Doughty not being signed. If that happens, boy are we in trouble.

In Dinglebarn We Trust -- JftC

by Niesy on Jul 25, 2011 5:03 PM PDT up reply actions

I don’t think so. Whether it’s Hickey or Voinov replacing him they will be able to step into a full time NHL role and will most likely not make the kinds of bordering-on-arrogant plays Doughty makes that frequently result in pucks behind Quick/Bernier because they will have a shorter leash and know the other is there to replace him if he screws up.

The Kings might not be the best team in the West without Doughty but they would still be top 5. And those draft picks that would come back their way if he signed with someone else would keep the cupboard full when the current crop of prospects have all made the team or moved on.

by Garrett79 on Jul 27, 2011 12:22 AM PDT up reply actions