In the next installment of our mock drafts, we follow the guys over at My NHL Draft. Their draft is actually more reflective of how I would do the draft, with the Islanders taking Victor Hedman #1 overall. You can’t pass on an 18-year old 6’4 220 lb defenseman who can score, hit, and play well in all three zones. They are incredibly rare. He would be the rock on defense that DiPietro so desperately needs. But then again, from a management standpoint, you can’t pass on Tavares and the revenue he would bring to Long Island.

This mock draft has the Rangers taking Jacob Josefson at #19 overall. Josefson was profiled over at Blueshirt Banter, so you should check it out for more information on him. Some key points from their review:

Elite Prospects:

Josefsson is a highly skilled center. He plays a strong two-way game is very all-round. Hockey sense is excellent and skating ability and technical skills are very good. Nice creativity with the puck and a skilled playmaker and decent goal scorer. Makes smart decisions and plays a mature game. Gets involved in the rough stuff and has pretty good timing in his hits.

Hockey Prospect:

Has a good shot, but does tend to pass too much, which is a product of playing on a team with so many older players, where he defers to their experience. If he shot a little more, he would score a lot more than he does. Is being brought along slowly by his club team, who has produced the likes of Mats Sundin in the past.

Hockey’s Future:

2007-08: Centered for a number of teams in the Swedish leagues, but spent most of the season with Djurgardens. Scored 31 points (14g+17a) in 34 games. Also represented his country at the U17 and U18 WJC, putting up decent numbers.

I would have no problem with this pick, assuming some of the glut of center prospects can be converted to winger. Josefson is a center with sound offensive talent, and would fit in well with Torts’ system.

Other notable items from this mock draft:

  • Jordan Schroeder going at #11 to Nashville. Schroeder is an interesting prospect, as some have him ranked as high as #7, but as low as #20.
  • Scott Glennie going at #17 to St. Louis. He is another interesting case as some project him to go top-10, but others mid-20s. The averages have him going around mid-teens. I’m telling you this, if he’s available at #12, following Nashville’s pick, and the Sather doesn’t at least make an attempt to trade up, I will be very, very, very upset. This kid is going to be gold.
  • Landon Ferraro dropping out of the first round all together. I can definitely see this happening, as his numbers are hurting because his team is comparable to the Islanders.

So in the different mock drafts profiled here so far, we have seen the Rangers take a different player in each draft. Just goes to show you that the draft is a very inexact, and incredibly subjective, science.

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