The 2013 NHL Draft is upon us. NBC Sports Network will be simulcasting TSN’s coverage starting at noon (PST) up until 5PM. From there coverage will switch to NHL Network. Incidentally, that’ll be right around the time the Kings will be selecting their 8th defenseman of the draft.
We’ll be updating this post with any news as it comes. In the meantime, please fill the comments with your seething disappointment and/or euphoria.
***Update***
Vacouver trades G Cory Schneider for the 9th overall pick. The Kings new division rivals managed to pull off a shocker which will likely be the biggest draft day transaction. They used their 9th pick on C Bo Horvat. Here’s what prospect guru, Corey Pronman had to say about him:
“Horvat is one of the most complete forwards in this draft. He is tough, hard working, and defensively skilled, with enough offensive ability to project as a scoring line player.” – Hockey Prospectus
***Update Número Dos***
Here are the Kings’ division Rivals and their picks in the 1st round:
Anaheim: 26. D Shea Theodore.
- Theodore was ranked 35th on the NHL Numbers consensus list. Here’s what Last Word on Sports had to say about him: “Theodore’s skating is at an elite level and defines his game. He has excellent speed and acceleration, and this allows him to lead the rush, or to join as a trailer and then get back to the defensive responsibilities in his own end.” /
Calgary: 6. C Sean Monahan, 22. LW Emile Poirier, 28. LW Morgan Klimchuk
- Monahan went about where he was expected to go. Here’s a report on him from the Hockey Guys.
- The Poirier pick was a head shaker. The rankings had him being a late 2nd to early 3rd round pick. NHL numbers’ mock draft actually had him going to the Kings at #57. It seems like they could have traded this pick and traded into the 2nd round to get Poirier. They basically flushed value down the toilet.
- The Klimchuk pick was a return to planet Earth. He was expected to be a late 1st rounder/ early 2nd.
- Pronman on Nurse: “He has slowly begun to emerge as a two-way player, but his value comes from his high-end work in his own end. Nurse is a tall defender with an aggressive edge and the strength to consistently push his checks off pucks.”
- Domi is the son of you know who and a little under-sized at 5’9 but “built like a bowling ball“. Not sure if i’d consider that a compliment.
- A very Sharks-y pick. Mueller is a good skater who’s assets are moving the puck and apparently has strong hockey sense. The only draw backs are his size and physicality.
***Update Número Tres***
The Kings have traded up in the 2nd round. They gave up a 2nd (56th), 3rd (88th), and 4th (96th) for Edmonton’s 2nd (37th). They used that pick on F Valentin Zykov. More details to come…
***Update Número Quatro***
The Kings had two picks in the 4th round. With the first pick at the 103 spot, they selected 6’7″, 215 winger Justin Auger.
Here’s Auger scoring a hat trick for Guelph:
With their 118th pick, they took winger Hudson Fasching. We had Fasching pegged as atarget in the 2nd round, but he slipped all the way to the 4th. Here’s what Future Considerations had to say about him:
***Update Número Cinco***
Kings had two picks in the 5th. They took G Patrik Bartosak at 146:
LAK selects Bartosak. Very intriguing goaltender. Had a great year. Has good size, flashed high-level tools.
— Corey Pronman (@coreypronman) July 1, 2013
And at 148 they took C Jonny Brodzinski. SB Nation’s Western College Hockey Blog has a great breakdown on him.