26th Overall: Brennan Othmann, W
NHL Draft: 16th overall, New York Rangers
Analysis: Brennan Othmann was my first ever pick as Capitals GM. He followed up the draft with an amazing D+1 year scoring 50 goals and 47 assists in 66 games in the OHL. His production has been consistently very strong in both the OHL and the AHL, though he has struggled a bit at the NHL level. With Kreider no longer a member of the Rangers, Othmann's biggest opportunity is yet to come and it's likely now or never for him. Othmann was traded in a package for Erik Karlsson, and he is currently a member of the San Jose Sharks of the DCHL.
Hindsight: I don't think Othmann was a bad pick by any means, but just 1 pick later at 27th overall, the Nashville Predators selected Wyatt Johnston, who has since looked like far and away the best player from this draft class.
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28th Overall: Daniil Chayka, D
NHL Draft: 38th overall, Vegas Golden Knights
Analysis: Chayka was once a highly touted prospect, but his draft year saw his stock take a hit. Personally, I thought it was just a down year and that he would rebound following that. He did have a solid year with the Guelph Storm, putting up 39 points in 53 games, but that would unfortunately be where any growth ended for Chayka. He then moved over to the AHL and was just never able to establish himself as a threat of any kind. He was released by the Capitals this offseason and he has returned home to Russia to play in the KHL.
Hindsight: This was likely the worst draft pick in my time as GM of the Capitals, and that is only made even worse when looking at some players who went after him. Guys like Matthew Knies, Olen Zellweger, Mackie Samoskevich, Josh Doan, Aatu Raty, Logan Mailloux, Ville Koivunen, and the list goes on.
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43rd Overall: Logan Stankoven, W
NHL Draft: 47th overall, Dallas Stars
Analysis: From one of my worst picks to one of my best picks, Stankoven was a guy I really liked who dropped because of his size. Though he was traded as the main piece in return for Nikita Kucherov, I've continued to really enjoy watching Stankoven play. He followed up his draft year with consistent great seasons at every level he played at until he made his way to the NHL and he has continued his excellent play, earning himself a very nice extension with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Hindsight: This is probably the only pick I made this year that I wouldn't have changed. I loved this player at the time and nothing has changed since. Recently drafted Caps prospect Lynden Lakovic said in an interview with Tony Ferrari stated that Stankoven was the hardest player to play against in the WHL, describing him as "Carter Bear on steroids," and watching him do the same thing in the NHL has been a joy, even if he is no longer a member of the Washington Capitals.
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120th overall: Liam Dower-Nilsson, C
NHL Draft: 134th Overall, Detroit Red Wings
Analysis: LDN was a player that looked like he had more potential than where he was taken. Most of the picks at this point are all swings anyways, but I still had high hopes for LDN. Following his draft year, it seemed like this was the case as he put up 19 goals and 31 assists for 50 points in 34 games in the Swedish J20 Nationell league. He moved onto the SHL the following year but was never able to come close to his junior league production and then moved down to HockeyAllsvenskans, Sweden's 3rd tier hockey league. He did have a great year this past season, but went unsigned by Detroit. Like Chayka, he was released this offseason by the Capitals.
Hindsight: Like I said, past the first 2-3 rounds, most of the picks there are just swinging for the fences and hoping you can make something out of it. There was a couple players taken after LDN that have become something, namely Joshua Roy and Daniil Miromanov, but I don't regret my pick by any means.
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152nd Overall: Jack Matier, D
NHL Draft: 124th Overall, Nashville Predators
184th Overall: Gage Alexander, G
NHL Draft: 148th Overall, Anaheim Ducks
215th Overall: Simon Knak, W
NHL Draft: 179th Overall, Nashville Predators
Analysis: I've grouped these 3 together as they haven't done enough to really warrant an extensive writeup. Jack Matier is a defensive defenseman who is in the AHL who has looked okay at times, but other than that Gage Alexander is an ECHL level goaltender and Knak came over for 2 AHL games before promptly returning to Sweden.
Hindsight: Only one player taken after Matier has become an NHL player, and that is Ivan Fedotov. Francesco Arcuri is a guy who has looked solid in the AHL but his ceiling isn't higher than a 4th line center in the NHL. Otherwise, as of now there was very little of note that happened in this draft after this point.
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Overall Grade: C-
Analysis: The only saving grace of this draft, to this point, is Logan Stankoven. Othmann might have a big season with Kreider out of his way, but when you look at some of the guys who could have been taken here instead, it's hard to justify the pick given what we've seen so far. That all being said, this was my first draft and I learned a lot of lessons from it that have since helped me improve my drafting/scouting ability. To the point where I feel pretty confident saying that drafting is my biggest strength as a GM.
What could have been:
26th Overall: Wyatt Johnston
28th Overall: Matthew Knies
43rd Overall: Logan Stankoven
120th Overall: Joshua Roy
152nd Overall: Ivan Fedotov
184th Overall: Francesco Arcuri
215th Overall: ????? (This draft class sucked so idk)