The 2023 NHL Entry Draft is fast approaching with all the action kicking off Wednesday, June 28 in Nashville. Chicago Blackhawks yet Winning the lottery Generational talent would likely pick Conor Bedard, but this class has plenty of elite prospects, some of whom could fall into the second round. One team looking to take advantage of that is the New York Islanders.
Related: 2023 NHL Draft Guide
The Islanders don’t have a lot of draft assets to work with. In seven rounds, they only have five picks with their first-round pick being transferred Bo Horvat trade Their selection is dealt with in the third round Andrew Ladd Trading In the 2021 season. With little room for error, General Manager (GM) Lou Lamoriello should have a good draft pick. The Islanders’ prospect pool is one of the worst in the NHL and they should add talent to both the forward and defensive positions.
For the Islanders’ fictitious draft, it’s important to look at the potential avenues Lamoriello might take. With each round, there are chances where it would be ideal for them to fall into the lap of the Islanders, and players are more likely to pick them up, making it to selections, specifically ones that would be head-stopping if drafted.
Second round (pick 49)
The second round is where the islanders must target an attacker. They need a young skater on the wing who can create scoring chances and hit the net with a great shot. While the prospect they pick will require time to develop, plenty of second-round forwards have a high ceiling and could make the Islanders’ forward unit one of the best in the league in a few seasons.
Perfect pick: Carson Rekopf, striker
One of the best forwards in this draft. Standing at 6-foot-1 and weighing in at 194 pounds, Carson Rickopf is a larger skater who plays in both center and wing positions and uses his size to influence all aspects of the game. He is an attacking tackler and also has strong defensive instincts that make him a reliable two-way player. Despite being a bulkier skater, he is also a fast skater with a great shot, two skills the Islanders would like to add to their forward unit.
On the Islanders, he can use his shot to become a reliable scorer in Jean-Gabriel Bagou’s line. After scoring 30 goals in 68 games this year with the Kitchener Rangers in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), he’s proven he can be a consistent scorer with 20 goals when he makes it to the NHL. This season, forwards have dominated games and carried their teams on occasion. Tage Thompson scored 47 goals and 47 assists for the Buffalo Sabers to give them one of the best offenses in the league while Matthew Tkachuk helped carry the Florida Panthers to Stanley Cup Final With great play across the board. Rehkopf has a high ceiling as a power forward and makes him an intriguing player for any team that adds him to their offense.
The Islanders’ biggest hurdle when it comes to selecting Rehkopf is that he likely won’t be available as the 49th pick. He’s the type of prospect who’s most likely to start in the second round and has a cap that can get the team to pick him in the first round. Lamoriello hopes Rekopf can drop to 49, but otherwise, it’s an unrealistic selection.
Possible choice: Striker Alex Cernick
The question surrounding Alex Cernick ahead of the project is its scale. At 5-foot-10 and weighing in at 179 pounds, he’s a smaller skater who could easily get roughed up in the NHL and throughout his development. Otherwise, he’s a high probability for the Islanders to pick him up in this draft.
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He is a fast skater who can instantly create goal-scoring opportunities and start rushes. However, it is Cernick’s volley that makes him such an interesting prospect. Not only is it accurate, but it also has a quick release that allows him to find the back of the net effectively. At the NHL level, he can find open ice in the offensive zone and wait for the puck to find it and with open eyes, constantly slip past goalies.
The Islanders will have to be patient with Cernik and let him develop in the American Hockey League (AHL) for a few years. However, he could become the top scorer this team is eagerly looking for on the wing. Ciernik can be the perfect player to play on the same line as Matthew Barzal because he’s a fast skater with a great shot, but he can also be a great complement to Brock Nelson’s playmaking ability. The Islanders will add a great quality skater and someone with the potential to become an integral part of the forward unit for years to come.
Access: Defenseman Gavin McCarthy
The Islanders were already taking a risk by picking a defenseman in the second round. They need help in the forward unit, and unless they drop an elite linebacker early, the pick might not be worth it. Gavin McCarthy along with being a defenseman will come in handy with the 49th pick.
McCarthy is a great skater and reliable playmaker at this point. However, he struggled on the defensive end and his tracking ability (or lack thereof) expected him to be selected late in the second round or in the third round. Furthermore, his inconsistency at the USHL level will require any team that drafts him to be patient and wait a few years until he becomes an NHL-ready defensive player. The Islanders can look forward to picking McCarthy, but going into the second round, he’ll be a scratchy selection.
Other second round options: Strikers Felix Anger Sorum, Callan Lind, and Niko Mijatović
Fourth round (choose 113)
In the fourth round, the Islanders can target a defenseman especially if they select a forward early in the draft. However, Lamoriello is perfectly targeting the forward position with this pick as well to help an offense that has struggled this year. The Islanders scored just 2.95 goals per game and in the first round they only scored 15 goals per game. A series of six games Against the Carolina Hurricanes. The lack of points makes the center worth targeting with the team’s first two picks.
Perfect choice: Defenseman Calem Parker
While the Islanders would prioritize the attackers, if Calem Parker fell for them, they would eagerly pick him off. He is a great skater who can defend the lunge. Playing for the Victoria Royals in the Western Hockey League (WHL), he had to defend against elite forwards in the space including Bedard, Zach Benson, and Gracyn Sawchyn (along with the rest of the Seattle Thunderbirds offense). He rose to the challenge and as the NHL becomes a faster and more agile league, teams will prioritize a defenseman who can defend the rush.
Parker still has room for improvement defensively. Specifically, he must work on his instincts and general play in the defensive zone. However, he is still a defenseman the Islanders could select in hopes of eventually replacing Scott Mayfield who will head to free agency after His contract is for five years expired this year. The problem the Islanders face is that Parker will likely get picked in the third round or as early as the fourth round.
Possible choice: striker Juraj Peracic
Juraj Peracik is the type of forward who could eventually replace Casey Cizikas, Cal Clutterbuck or Matt Martin on the fourth line. He’s a great forward checker and at 6-foot-2, 183 pounds, he has just the right size for an NHL match. The Islanders already have a smaller option to join the fourth line in Hudson Vashing, which has been a pleasant surprise this season and I signed a two-year agreement This is an offseason. However, if Lamoriello is looking to add more youngsters to the checking line, then Peracik is the perfect player to pick.
The red flags surrounding Peracik are his offensive skills. He doesn’t have a great shot, scoring instincts, or playmaking ability and his inability to add to the offense could make him a liability in the NHL. The Islanders desperately need to score, but adding a checking forward late in the draft could also help them in the long run. He wouldn’t be the hottest fourth-round pick but he’s someone who could be a valuable addition to the forward unit in a few years.
Access: Ian Scherzer Centre
Ian Scherzer showed flashes at the 2023 World Junior Championships as he stepped up to an Austrian team that was outmatched. He has great pace and a first step but his inconsistency and defensive limitations make him a risky selection. The Islanders could take a chance on Scherzer in the hopes that he can become a reliable skater, but he is expected to go in the final rounds of the draft and be a surprise fourth-round pick.
Other round four options: forward Cole Nobley and defender Quinton Burns
Late round options for Islanders (Round 5-7)
There are a lot of unknowns when it comes to prospects from the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). However, the Islanders could take a chance on forward Vadim Moroz who is looking to become a last six forward at the NHL level. He doesn’t have a great shot but he does have a reliable scoring instinct that could make him a depth scorer.
Two players to watch from the USHL are Jack Harvey and Tanner Adams. Harvey is one of the oldest players in the draft at 20 years old, but he had a great year with the Chicago Steel and looks like the sixth-ranked forward in the NHL to finish a long journey to the professional game. Adams had a great year with the Tri-City Storm and will play for Providence College in the National Collegiate Athletic Accossiation (NCAA) next year, but he’s a forward who can add depth to any offense in a few years.
The Islanders can also look forward to trading any of their draft picks for an NHL-ready player. During the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, they Alexander Romanov got it 13 overall who helped make the defense one of the best in the league. Although they won’t find a player like Romanov with a mid-round pick, they can still look for a player deep in the trade.
The Islanders have a big draft ahead of them and finding prospects that can make an impact in the NHL will be pivotal to keeping the rivalry window open. With a heavy veteran roster, they need young skaters and hope to add a few in Nashville despite the limited resources to do so.