The glitzy players carry a little baggage, weighing them down as elite prospects. At least when compared to previous drafts. The Capitals don’t know who they’ll select next week, but they know they won’t get an Alex Ovechkin. Or Alexander Semin. Or maybe not even Nicklas Backstrom.
“There are good players at the top,” said Capitals General Manager George McPhee, “but maybe not the elite players like we’ve seen the last couple of years. But there are good players who will play.”
The seven-round NHL Draft is June 22-23 in Columbus, Ohio. McPhee and approximately 10 staffers will convene in Columbus on Monday, finalizing their draft boards and entertaining trade offers.
“We have the ammunition if a trade makes sense,” said McPhee, knowing the Caps have 10 draft picks.
Washington has two picks in the first round, the fifth and the 28th.
And, McPhee said, there are five players who appear to have separated themselves from the group.
According to the International Scouting Service, the top five available players are right winger Patrick Kane, left winger James vanRiemsdyk, center Kyle Turris, right winger Alexei Cherepanov and right winger Jakub Voracek.
Kane and Turris are considered good playmakers, though the former is only 5-foot-10 and 160 pounds. Turris also needs to add weight to his 6-foot-1, 170-pound frame. Cherepanov, considered to have great acceleration, only benched 150 pounds three times at the scouting combine. And Voracek is considered a speedy, and skilled, forward, who can get burned by risks he takes.
