Seth Jones is the consensus #1 ranked prospect for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft
1. D Seth Jones Portland Winterhawks - WHL
Consensus #1 pick goes to his
hometown team where he first met Joe Sakic. Jones will bring stability in the
back end for Colorado when paired up with fellow American and former 1st
overall pick in 2006, Erik Johnson.
2. LW/C Jonathan Drouin Halifax Mooseheads - QMJHL
Losing the 1st overall
pick? No problem for Dale Tallon. Now he’s stuck with the biggest decision of
the draft: which Moosehead to pick? Well, he should not hesitate when picking
Jonathan Drouin, arguably the most creative and offensive juggernaut of the
draft. Tallon will be able to recreate his Toews-Kane duo in Florida.
3. C Nathan MacKinnon Halifax Mooseheads - QMJHL
Easy task for the Tampa Bay crew,
they will be happy with whatever is left from the big 3. MacKinnon is an
offensive force and is the best skater of the draft. The Cole Harbor native
could have gone 1st overall also, but he will be well welcomed in
Tampa Bay. He will be the perfect linemate to Stamkos, replacing the aging 2013
Art Ross winner, Martin St-Louis.
4. C Elias Lindholm Brynäs - Elisterien
Swedish phenom has been low profiled
the whole year but it did not stop him from having a very strong year in the
Elisterien with Brynas. He reminds a lot of Peter Forsberg. His vision is only
2nd best to Jonathan Drouin in this draft but plays a much more
physical game than the Moosehead player. Arguably the best Swedish prospect
since Nick Backstrom.
5. LW Valeri Nichuschkin Traktor Chelyabinsk - KHL
Carolina needs a big and nasty
forward with a complete offensive toolset and Nichushkin is their guy. Being a
late to the party, Nichushkin put on a show at the WJC and in the KHL playoffs.
Despite having 2 more years with Dynamo Moscow in the KHL, he is a Rick Nash type of
player and should become a dangerous threat once he comes to the big league.
