The Hockey News "Future Watch" 2012 (Subscribers be on look out..In stores 03/12)

[Habsfan18]

2011 - http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=856620

2010 - http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=716924

2009 - http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=591712

2008 - http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=474062

I thought it was a little early to start this thread up, but then I noticed I started it on 12/23 last year and on 12/21 the year before. So close enough.

It's getting to be that time of year again. We're approximately 2 months from the magazine getting shipped out to subscribers, so I'd imagine they will start working on it soon. They do the majority of the write-ups immediately after the WJC.

Remember, age doesn't matter when it comes to Future Watch. As long as the player isn't considered an NHL regular at the time of printing, they're considered a prospect for FW. This is why sometimes you'll see a player who is 24 or 25 on a teams list.

Anyone want to take a stab at the top 5 or 10 prospects this year? Top 5 for your team?

For Montreal, I can see it looking something like this:

1. Nathan Beaulieu
2. Brendan Gallagher
3. Jarred Tinordi
4. Danny Kristo
5. Michael Bournival

Louis Leblanc will obviously be in the top 5, if he's back in Hamilton when they do the write-ups.

[SpezDispenser]

For the Sens:

1.Lehner
2.Zibanejad
3.Silfverberg
4.Puempel
5.Da Costa*

*tough one, could easily be Borowiecki or Noesen

[imbatman]

Quacks
1.Etem
2.Schultz
3.Palmieri
4.Holland
5.Vatanen

[Habsfan18]

For reference,

Here are the list of players rated 1st overall in Future Watch (1994 was the first year they did a top 50):

1994: Peter Forsberg
1995: Ed Jovanovski
1996: Bryan Berard
1997: Marc Denis
1998: Marian Hossa
1999: Roberto Luongo
2000: Roberto Luongo
2001: Rostislav Klesla
2002: Tuomo Ruutu
2003: Kari Lehtonen
2004: Kari Lehtonen
2005: Alex Ovechkin
2006: Evgeni Malkin
2007: Erik Johnson
2008: Carey Price
2009: Nikita Filatov
2010: Alex Pietrangelo
2011: Brayden Schenn

[EastCoastSensFan]

Originally Posted by Habsfan18

For reference,

Here are the list of players rated 1st overall in Future Watch (1994 was the first year they did a top 50):

1994: Peter Forsberg
1995: Ed Jovanovski
1996: Bryan Berard
1997: Marc Denis
1998: Marian Hossa
1999: Roberto Luongo
2000: Roberto Luongo
2001: Rostislav Klesla
2002: Tuomo Ruutu
2003: Kari Lehtonen
2004: Kari Lehtonen
2005: Alex Ovechkin
2006: Evgeni Malkin
2007: Erik Johnson
2008: Carey Price
2009: Nikita Filatov
2010: Alex Pietrangelo
2011: Brayden Schenn

they seem to favor D and goalies

[hototogisu]

Predictions for #1 overall? Huberdeau? Granlund? Kuznetsov? Tarasenko?

Originally Posted by EastCoastSensFan

they seem to favor D and goalies

Because they take the longest to develop. Most highly drafted forwards go straight to the NHL and aren't eligible for FW, whereas a D or a goalie selected high is likely to stay in the minors for a bit.

[DousedInOil]

Edmonton is still looking really good despite having RNH, Lander and Petry graduating:

1. Oscar Klefbom
2. Martin Marincin
3. Tyler Pitlick
4. Curtis Hamilton
5. Colten Teubert

HM: Musil, Bunz, Hartikainen

[Dr Jan Itor]

Minnesota:

1. Granlund
2. Coyle
3. Brodin
4. Larsson
5. Hackett/Phillips

HM: Hackett/Phillips, Zucker

[Dr.Sens(e)]

Originally Posted by EastCoastSensFan

they seem to favor D and goalies

Mostly because the elite forwards tend to crack the NHL very soon after being drafted, if not immediately. Goalies almost never crack the team right away and often take 3-4 years before they get there, and defencemen typically take longer as well. As such, the elite defensive and goalie prospects tend to hang around as prospects longer, versus their elite level peers at forward.

[Dr.Sens(e)]

Originally Posted by SpezDispenser

For the Sens:

1.Lehner
2.Zibanejad
3.Silfverberg
4.Puempel
5.Da Costa*

*tough one, could easily be Borowiecki or Noesen

Interesting. I'd rank them:
1. Zibanejad
2. Silfverberg
3. Lehner
4. Puempel
5. Stone

Top 3 are all very close, as is the next tier.

[Kloparren]

I'm guessing the number one spot goes to either Granlund atm but probably Huberdeau and maybe Hamilton once the WJC are over.

I was gonna make this thread actually asking who the top 10 most valuable prospects in the world are a while back but decided not to. I think you'd be deciding from this pool of players for the top 10 drafted prospects:

fwds: Huberdeau, Schwartz, Tarasenko, Kuznetsov, Granlund, Niederreiter, Scheifele, Strome, Johansen (NHL regular tbh), Zibanejad, Nyquist, Baertschi

dmen: B Smith, Hamilton, Gormley, Ellis, Rundblad, Elliot, Murphy, Orlov

[Sidney the Kidney]

For the Pens, probably something like (not sure if Dustin Jeffrey is still considered for these lists):

1-Eric Tangradi
2-Simon Despres
3-Joe Morrow
4-Beau Bennett
5-Robert Bortuzzo*

*could be swapped with about a dozen prospects. The top four are likely the indisputable ones.

[CamDegs13]

1) Hamilton
2) Spooner
3) Khokhlachev
4) Knight
5) Caron

[KingJet*]

For the Jets I think it Will be

1. Mark Scheifele
2. Carl Klingberg
3. Patrice Cormier
4. Paul Postma
5. Jason Gregoire

6. Adam Lowry

7. Ivan Telegin

8. Arthurs Kulda

9. Zachary Yuen

10. Edward Pasquale

Just my opinion, but I bet some won't agree, we don't have too many good prospects... yet

But I think the cover will have either Scheifele, Strome, Hamilton, Zibanejad, Baertschi or Huberdeau, but i think all of them will be in the top 15

[Brodeur]

Originally Posted by EastCoastSensFan

they seem to favor D and goalies

THN polls something like 22-23 scouts/execs right after the WJC. Some years there's a consensus #1 like Malkin, but other years not so much. Off the top of my head, the year that Pietrangelo was named #1, half of the ballots didn't have him in their top 5.

----------------

The top 10 lists are provided by the teams themselves. The past two years, the Islanders seemingly left off a good prospect (Kevin Poulin and Casey Cizikas) because they were yet to have been signed. Might have been a preemptive PR move if contract negotiations had fallen through.

[Rare Jewel]

Not counting Kadri cause he's up with the big team now.




1. Colborne
2. Biggs
3. Mckegg
4. Percy
5. Ross

HM: Owuya, D'amigo, Olden

[SmellOfVictory]

Flames:

1. Baertschi
2. Reinhart
3. Irving
4. Arnold
5. Nemisz

Left Brodie off because I'm pretty sure he's sticking with the team for the rest of the season.

[ManByng]

Originally Posted by DousedInOil

Edmonton is still looking really good despite having RNH, Lander and Petry graduating:

1. Oscar Klefbom
2. Martin Marincin
3. Tyler Pitlick
4. Curtis Hamilton
5. Colten Teubert

HM: Musil, Bunz, Hartikainen

development stages of their careers......

1. Teemu Hartikainen
2. Colton Tuebert
3. Linus Omark
4. Oscar Klefbom
5. Tyler Pitlick

[ManByng]

Originally Posted by CamDegs13

1) Hamilton
2) Spooner
3) Khokhlachev
4) Knight
5) Caron

want Hemsky for Hamilton?

[ottawah]

Originally Posted by EastCoastSensFan

they seem to favor D and goalies

D and goalies take longer to mature, so likely they stay on the eligible list longer.

[Dr John Carlson]

1.Kuznetsov
2.Eakin
3.Holtby
4.Galiev
5.Grubauer

Kuznetsov is obvious, Holtby would be number 2 but he has struggled in Hershey this year. Left Orlov off because he will probably stay with the Caps.

[zetterberg40]

Detroit:

1. Smith
2. Nyquist
3. Tatar
4. Jarnkrok
5. Sheahan

[flamebird]

Originally Posted by zetterberg40

Detroit:

1. Smith
2. Nyquist
3. Tatar
4. Jarnkrok
5. Sheahan

Jurco can get swapped in there at 4-5

[Cujomi]

Originally Posted by Dr.Sens(e)

Interesting. I'd rank them:
1. Zibanejad
2. Silfverberg
3. Lehner
4. Puempel
5. Stone

Top 3 are all very close, as is the next tier.

Agree with this list.

[madmike77]

Originally Posted by SmellOfVictory

Flames:

1. Baertschi
2. Reinhart
3. Irving
4. Arnold
5. Nemisz

Left Brodie off because I'm pretty sure he's sticking with the team for the rest of the season.

Looks about right to me. Arnold would be the one big mover for the Flames.