The TSR off-season has been short, swift and full of change. As you will likely have noticed, we’ve been doing a lot of revamping around here in preparation for the 2010/2011 season. While the change was exciting, albeit stressful, we’re finally back to the point where we’re operational. With the 2010 NHL Entry Draft firmly in the books, I figured I would take this chance to review how TSR fared in the first round of the NHL Draft, where we can pump our tires, and where we just completely missed the boat! While our rankings are just that, rankings, comparing them in a mock-draft setting allows for some major discrepancies, but for interest sake, here’s the review!

Right On

• #1. Taylor Hall (Edmonton)
• #2. Tyler Seguin (Boston)
• #3. Erik Gudbranson (Florida)
• #6. Brett Connolly (Tampa Bay)
• #9. Mikael Granlund (Minnesota)
• #19. Nick Bjugstad (Florida)

There wasn’t very much surprise up front with the big three going down as most anticipated. After that, Connolly to Tampa Bay looks like a solid pick as his hockey sense and drive should help him transition into an effective top six winger. Granlund at 9 worked out well as his style seems to be a strong fit with Minnesota and he will certainly develop a lot under the tutelage of fellow countryman Mikko Koivu. The Bjugstad pick was definitely a fluke for us, but he’ll be an interesting player to watch over the next few years. Rick Dudley added some considerable depth to the system on draft day, and Bjugstad has the frame and raw potential to develop into a solid NHLer as he gets set to embark on a college career at the University of Minnesota.

Pretty Good (Within 5 Picks)

• #5. Nino Niederreiter (New York Islanders) | TSR Rank: 8
• #8. Alexander Burmistrov (Atlanta)| TSR Rank: 12
• #15. Derek Forbort (Los Angeles) | TSR Rank: 10
• #18. Austin Watson (Nashville) | TSR Rank: 14
• #25. Quinton Howden (Buffalo) | TSR Rank: 20
• #30. Brock Nelson (New York Islanders) | TSR Rank: 34

None of these picks came as real surprises to us as their actual draft selection coincided fairly well with our final rankings. It was a little surprising to see Derek Forbort to slip to 15 as there was a lot of talk that he could actually be a guy that might go around 8. Aside from him, some may have been surprised that the Islanders elected to step up and grab Niederreiter with Gormley and Fowler still on the board, although, several other teams shared the same sentiment as they went on to slide out of the Top 10.

Questionable (Within 10 Picks)

• #4. Ryan Johansen (Columbus) | TSR Rank: 11
• #12. Cam Fowler (Anaheim) | TSR Rank: 5
• #11. Jack Campbell (Dallas) | TSR Rank: 21
• #13. Brandon Gormley (Phoenix) | TSR Rank: 4
• #16. Vladimir Tarasenko (St. Louis) | TSR Rank: 7
• #21. Riley Sheahan (Detroit) | TSR Rank: 30
• #23. Mark Pysyk (Buffalo) | TSR Rank: 13
• #26. Evgeny Kuznetsov (Washington) | TSR Rank: 16
• #28. Charlie Coyle (San Jose) | TSR Rank: 35

Off the top were a few surprises. There was a notion that the Blue Jackets were going to take Johansen at #4 and several teams were very high on the Portland Center, however, we felt that he’s still a bit of a project which is what kept him out of our Top 10. The drop of Fowler and Gormley will go down as one of the most renowned draft day falls in NHL Entry Draft History, and was probably the biggest surprise of the day. We likely should have put Campbell a little higher in hindsight, he’s a nice addition for Dallas. Tarasenko’s fall was unsurprising due to the generic Russian concerns, as was Kuznetsov’s drop to Washington.

Ouch! (More Than 10 Picks Off)

• #7. Jeff Skinner (Carolina) | TSR Rank: 18
• #10. Dylan McIlrath (New York Rangers) | TSR Rank: 24
• #14. Jaden Schwartz (St. Louis) | TSR Rank: 25
• #17. Joey Hishon (Colorado) | TSR Rank: 46
• #20. Beau Bennett (Pittsburgh) | TSR Rank: 38
• #22. Jarred Tinordi (Montreal) | TSR Rank: 45
• #24. Kevin Hayes (Chicago) | TSR Rank: 43
• #27. Mark Visentin (Phoenix) | TSR Rank: 84
• #29. Emerson Etem (Anaheim) | TSR Rank: 15

In a first round that was full of surprises, it came as no surprise to see several picks of this nature. Skinner at 7 is a little ambitious, but there is no doubting he had a dominant year and it’s nice to see him get some recognition for it. McIlrath at 10 was a pretty big surprise especially given the fact that both Gormley and Fowler were still on the board. It was one of the most shrewd picks of the draft and it will be interesting to see how it plays out down the road. Visentin was definitely the biggest off the board pick of Round 1, however. Despite some positive steps forward this year, he still has a lot of work to do in his technical game before he will ever tend an NHL crease.

About the Author: Scott Campbell

Scott, 23, is the Managing Editor for TSR after helping to found the site in 2009. A 2010 graduate from Laurentian University's Sports Administration program, Scott currently attends Indiana State University as a graduate student majoring in Sports Management.