2007 NHL Mock Draft

In order to conduct the 2007 NHL Mock Draft, TSN first put together a panel of hockey experts to make the selections. Except where otherwise noted, the selections were made based on which players were projected as being good fits for the clubs making the pick. The order of selection was determined by a random draw of one through five, with the order being applied to each block of five picks. Bob McKenzie did not make any selections, but offered the following analysis when the mock draft was done.

TSN's Panel of Experts | Picks 1-15 | Picks 16-30 | McKenzie's Analysis

Bob McKenzie's Analysis

It didn't take mock Chicago GM Doug MacLean long to turn heads with the first pick of the 2007 TSN mock draft. His selection of Kyle Turris, over the expected choice of Pat Kane, makes me wonder if he might be the first NHL GM fired twice in the same season.

Just kidding.

Turris, as the No. 1 pick, is not off the wall. There are NHL teams, more than a couple, that believe Turris is the top prospect in this year's draft, but the majority of teams will tell you Kane is No. 1. Kane excelled at the World Junior Championship while Turris was just okay at two U-18 events and there is a big difference between the two. Kane lit up the OHL; Turris tore apart the B.C. Jr. A league. There isn't a huge amount to choose between the two, but most scouts would give the edge to Kane.

No surprise, then, to see Pierre McGuire pick Kane second on behalf of Philadelphia. The Flyers would take that gift if offered.

Darren Dreger, likewise, had no real choice but to take James van Riemsdyk No. 3 on behalf of Phoenix. While van Riemsdyk doesn't get much in the way of No. 1 consideration, he's locked in as the No. 2-ranked prospect. Turris gets more No. 1 consideration than the big power forward, but Turris also gets more valuations at No. 3 (or lower) than van Riemsdyk. In any case, it will be a huge shock if Kane, van Riemsdyk and Turris aren't the first three prospects taken.

The next most critical issue in this draft is the Russian factor and Alexei Cherepanov is the poster boy. James Duthie's selection of the Russian sniper at No. 4 for Los Angeles is not out of the question, but the Kings will need a degree of comfort they can get him out of Russia without too much delay or too much money changing hands. The Kings do have people on their staff well plugged into the Russian scene, so this one is plausible. Not saying it's guaranteed, but believable.

If the Kings don't bite on Cherepanov, we could be looking at something of a free fall for the sublimely skilled Russian. Non-playoff teams such as Washington, Edmonton, Columbus, Boston, St. Louis and Florida likely don't want to sell the unpredictability and uncertainty of a Cherepanov pick to their fans. Cherepanov, on talent, is clearly a top five prospect. On some team's lists, he's a top three guy. But the lack of a transfer agreement is going to severely impact where guys such as Cherepanov and Maxim Mayorov get picked.  Mayorov, arguably a top 20 prospect who went 25th to Vancouver thanks to Chris Cuthbert in our mock draft, could actually slide more.

So in the top 10, anyway, safer picks such as Sam Gagner (No. 5) to Cuthbert's Capitals and Jakub Voracek (No. 6) to MacLean's Oilers, make all the sense in the world.

This draft is a good one for defencemen and Karl Alzner, whom McGuire took at No. 7 for Columbus, is the consensus top blueliner. It's not unanimous, however, and while the options on d-men are plentiful, teams are saying none of the blueliners are can't-miss prospects. Alzner is the safest best and should be the first one selected, as he was in this mock draft.

It was interesting to see defenceman Keaton Ellerby go No. 8 to Dreger's Boston Bruins. This is a reasonable projection, but Ellerby, for me, is one of the most intriguing players in the draft. Some teams have him rated in their top five or six, but more than a few teams have him much later on their lists, well into the 20s or even the 30s. As big and strong and mobile and tough as Ellerby is, some teams don't like his decision-making. It wouldn't surprise me to see him go in the top 10, but if he slides into the late teens or 20s, I wouldn't fall out of my chair, either.

I really like Duthie's selection of Brandon Sutter at No. 9 for St. Louis. This kid could be the steal of the draft and I can't imagine he doesn't go top 10. He had 18 goals in the first half of the season, hit the wall at Christmas and didn't play as well in the second half. He needs to get stronger, and he will, but he's as smart a player as there is in the draft. Combine that with his size, work ethic, bloodlines and we could be talking about the best all-around prospect in the draft. He doesn't have the offensive ability of a first liner in the truest sense of the word, but he could be a complete package, a guy who can play the point on the power play, kill penalties, take faceoffs - you name it. In a year where the overall quality of the draft is questioned, Sutter could be as good as it gets in terms of a safe pick who can grow into a significant NHL player.

Cuthbert surprised me with his choice of Logan Couture for Florida at No. 10, not because Couture isn't a fine prospect, but because he's coming off a star-crossed season in which he dealt with mononucleosis and a knee injury. He has everything you look for in a hockey player except quickness and speed. Many scouts are mildly concerned about that, which may push him down a little closer to 20 than10.

The mock drafting of defencemen Ryan McDonagh by Carolina at 11, Kevin Shattenkirk by Colorado at 14 and Thomas Hickey by Anaheim at 16 came as no surprise. Each of those players is going to get some consideration in the top 10 and if any of them is left at 20, I will be surprised.

When McGuire took Angelo Esposito at 12 for Montreal, it spoke to what a lot of us believe. If Esposito, this year's Phil Kessel, does fall out of the top 10, it's hard to believe Montreal will pass on the local product. Despite his fall from grace over the last year, Esposito is still a credible first round prospect.

Cuthbert's pick of Danish prospect Lars Eller for Edmonton at 15 would make him the highest-ever Danish-born player chosen in the draft. Eller, who is dealing with some injury issues, could slide a little but he's a legitimate first rounder and no Dane has ever been picked that high. I would be surprised if Edmonton is his destination, though. I think Kevin Lowe, and many others, will be sticking closer to home in this draft, which would explain why only four Euro-based prospects (Cherepanov, Backlund, Eller and Mayorov) went in this mock draft. In reality, it could be as few as three if Mayorov is a victim of the Russian conundrum.

The rest of the first round of this mock draft did not produce any huge surprises, although it wouldn't shock me if Dave Perron goes higher than No. 23, which is where Dreger took him on behalf of the Predators. Seeing prospects such as Logan MacMillan go 26th to St. Louis or Max Pacioretty go 28th to Washington is not unexpected and, in fact, I won't be stunned if they are taken higher than that.

It's interesting that WHL scoring leader Zach Hamill went 22nd overall to Montreal. This is an intriguing player. He's obviously gifted, but the question mark is skating. If there are two qualities that will cause a player to slide down the draft list, they are questionable skating and questionable hockey sense. The NHL game is all about speed and all about being able to think the game as quickly as it unfolds. Heaven help the poor kid that is slow and not so smart. Being afflicted with one or the other could be a big impediment on draft day.

It's not a surprise no goalies were taken in the mock draft. That's not to say one or two won't go in the first round in Columbus, but it's a poor year for goalies. Teams with multiple picks might decide to step up in the first round. Jeremy Smith seems to be the consensus No. 1 but it's wide open on that front. I am not expecting a goalie to go in the first round but if one does, it's simply because a team feels the need to have one and believes the one they want won't last until the second round.

The truth is, after the first three picks, and to some degree after the sixth pick, this draft could go just about anywhere. The players taken between 20 and 30, in particular, could be interchangeable with those taken between 30 and 40. None of Michael Repik, Riley Nash, Colby Cohen, Stefan Legein, Dana Tyrell, Jim O'Brien, Ted Ruth, Joakim Andersson, Simon Hjarmalsson or wild card Akim Aliu went in the first round of the TSN mock draft, but that isn't to say their names won't be called on June 22 in Columbus.