Friday, June 26, 2009

NHL 2009 Draft Liveblog

Welcome to the 2009 Draft liveblog. I'll be updating here throughout the afternoon and the first round. Refresh the page for the latest updates, and don't forget to follow me at twitter.com/DownGoesBrown.

11:00 - So there you have it. The first round ended up being largely predictable and somewhat dull. The Leafs walk away with one decent prospect and a whole lot of "what if"s.

Thanks to everyone who joined in tonight.

9:40 - I'm always amazed at how many teams apparently base their draft decisions on geography. First Minnesota, now Montreal. You'd think you'd prefer to take the best player, no?

9:25 - The folks at hfboards aren't impressed either.

9:05 - And there goes Zach Kassian. Time to start drinking.

9:00 - Every time a kid is drafted in the first round, they show him having a quick conversation with his girlfriend. How many of them do you think go like this?

Her: Congratulations baby! I love you!
Him: Thanks. By the way, we're no longer together.
Her: But... but... you promised we would always...
Him: Security, have her removed.
Her: (sob)
Him: (Hits on Elisha Cuthbert)

8:40 - According to Wikipedia, it could have been worse.

8:25 - From RobViper13 in the comments:

Good job Boyd Deveraux. That hat trick on the final night of the season cost us Brayden Schenn. Was it worth it?

8:20 - When I expressed disappointment at Burke not doing anything at the deadline, everyone said that Burke would do his work at the draft. Safe to assume that now everyone will tell me to just wait for free agency? Then training camp... then the next deadline...

8:15 - The Leafs have drafted Nazem Kadri with the #7 pick.

He sounds like a great kid, and he's immediately one of the best prospects in the Leafs system.

But the bottom line is that after writing off an entire year, the Leafs didn't wind up with a surefire stud. And that's a little hard to swallow, no?

8:05 - OEL goes to the Coyotes. Leafs are up next. CTRL-V? Grant Jennings? Trade down? Or somebody else?

8:00 - The Kings just took Owen Schenn at #5.

Meanwhile, Dreger is reporting that the Leafs are hoping Bouwmeester is dealt tonight so that they can make a Kaberle deal.

So just to recap: The Ducks go out and find a great deal for Pronger, while the Leafs are waiting around for the Panthers to create a market for them.

7:50 - It's a little tough to listen to all these media folks who spent the last week swearing that the Isles would take Duchene or Hedman now turn around and confirm how predictable the draft has been.

7:40 - After all the uncertainty, the first three picks went as expected.

Now we're at #4, which is Evander Kane territory. Let's all watch as the announcers awkwardly refer to him as "athletic".

7:30 - The Flyers got absolutely robbed on the Pronger deal. Two firsts and two players for one year of an old defenceman? Wow.

Meanwhile, the Lightning take Hedman. Guess we'll never know if there was a deal in place with the Leafs.

I'm not completely sold on Hedman. Despite the once-in-a-generation combination of size and skill, he's still only two letters away from being this guy.

7:15 - The Islanders take Tavares with the #1 pick. That's the right move. And it was nice to have a little suspense for a change.

The moment is diminished somewhat when Brian Burke runs up to the podium, clubs Tavares over the head, loads his body into the trunk of his car and drives off.

6:55 - There's a major thunderstorm getting ready to hit southern Ottawa.

Me + being at home during the draft when everyone else is in Montreal = mild annoyance.

Me + being at home during the draft if there's a power failure = potential psychotic rampage.

6:35 - More on the (apparently dead) Leafs/Bruins deal. It seems the Bruins really did expect to get Tomas Kaberle and the #7 for Phil Kessel.

So I guess the "misunderstanding" is that Burke thought the Bruins were actually serious about making a deal, and not just wasting everyone's time.

6:20 - My annual plea to NHL GMs:

  • We know you want to thank Montreal for hosting.
  • We know you want to congratulate the Penguins for winning the Cup.
  • Therefore, feel free to skip that part and just make your damn pick.
6:00 Now TSN says there was a "major miscommunication" between the Leafs and Bruins, with both teams thinking that the other side was throwing in a high draft pick.

How does that happen? Is this my office fantasy football pool?

5:50 - Bob McKenzie says he'll be "shocked" if Kaberle doesn't wind up in Boston by the end of the night. Meanwhile, Dreger says the deal is off.

In other words, TSN will eventually claim they had a scoop on this.

5:30 - Just a reminder: If you're in Montreal, and especially if you're at the Bell Centre tonight, I hate you.

4:50 - My reaction the reported Bruins offer of Kessel plus a pick for Kaberle is pretty much identical to Brian Burke's: Decent offer, worth considering, now let's see if anyone else out there wants to do better.

4:00 - Finally, draft day is here. For Leaf fans who've been waiting all year for the Brian Burke rebuild to really get going, tonight's draft is the equivalent of Christmas morning.

That makes this afternoon the equivalent of the night before Christmas, which was always the best part. Enjoy it while you can -- it's that wonderful moment of anticipation and hope before crushing reality sets in.

Kid: Socks? Underwear?
Dad: Merry Christmas!
Kid: But dad, didn't you promise to trade up and get me a bike?
Dad: Daddy tried. Didn't work out.
Kid: Maybe Daddy should spend more time working and less time talking to the media.
Dad: GO TO YOUR ROOM!




19 comments:

  1. LMAO!!

    Excellent start DGB

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sick with the Blue BloodJune 26, 2009 at 4:54 PM

    Happy Draft Day!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Bring back the Burke Twitter for the festivities!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hehehehe......For once, I hope your wrong about the last part.

    ReplyDelete
  5. You'd think it might have been Burke actually wasting everyone's time. You know, seeing as all the major news sources had the offer correct until Toronto's front office put it out there.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm in southern Ottawa as well, as the first 30 seconds or so of sportscentre was cut off. I wasn't pleased.

    Although it might not be a bad thing if this turns out to be a dull draft with no trades or anything.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm so mad I could kick the leg out of someone's leg.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I blame Kerry Fraser for the fact we're short a Schenn.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Burke stays at 7 to take a 170lb forward? Was he pronouncing CTRL-V's name wrong?

    I'm going to go get drunk.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good job Boyd Deveraux. That hat trick on the final night of the season cost us Brayden Schenn. Was it worth it?

    WAS IT?!?!?!??!?!?!!?

    ReplyDelete
  11. When I expressed disappointment at Burke not doing anything at the deadline, everyone said that Burke would do his work at the draft. Safe to assume that now everyone will tell me to just wait for free agency? Then training camp... then the next deadline...

    Sounds like a Habs fan. The next big name is always the next big day away.

    ReplyDelete
  12. What kind of sense does it make for the Islanders to trade up and then go off the board with their pick? Why not just stand pat, take the guy they want at #16, and keep their other picks? It's like Snow feels compelled to keep things interesting since Burke is sitting on his hands.

    ReplyDelete
  13. @Peter...

    Only way it makes sense is if they had information that somebody in the 13-15 range was taking him.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Him: I'm so excited to finally play hockey in the NHL!
    Her: ...
    Him: Baby? Is anything wrong?
    Her: That city has a lame club scene.
    Him: But honey, we'll still be together, and...
    Her: DEMAND A TRADE.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Perhaps Pronger's wife should be allowed to coach these young girls on how to control their men.

    ReplyDelete
  16. In theory, not too much wrong with the Leafs performance so far. However, given how much Burke was shooting his mouth off, this is a let down. Maybe he would have been better off worrying less about providing sound bites and more about playing his cards better.

    ReplyDelete
  17. So, as a Rangers fan I ask your opinion of Craig Krieder.

    1. Bust who never plays a game.
    2. 3rd liner.
    3. Superstar who blossoms on another team after being dealt for a 7th defenseman around the deadline.

    Too bad on not getting Ctrl-V, you guys needed umlauts up front.

    ReplyDelete
  18. hmmm
    DGB that was sort of half assed!!!
    you had ample time and space for more jokes inbetween picks ... looking forward to next years!

    ReplyDelete
  19. "4:50 - My reaction the reported Bruins offer of Kessel plus a pick for Kaberle is pretty much identical to Brian Burke's: Decent offer, worth considering, now let's see if anyone else out there wants to do better."

    I might cry just now.

    ReplyDelete