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!

Leafs draft preview: I have a bad feeling about this...

Various media have reported today that Brian Burke is still hot on the trail of John Tavares. With less than 72 hours left to make a deal, Burke has apparently made no progress but feels he has plenty of time.

I'm glad to hear it. Because for the past few weeks I've been devouring mock drafts and trying to talk myself into three players that the Leafs seem to have the best shot at: Brayden Schenn, Jared Cowen, and Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson.

And it will probably not shock you to learn that it's not going so well.

Yes, each of these three guys sounds like a fantastic player. And each would clearly fill a glaring need on a Leafs roster that has plenty of them. But as you no doubt know by now, it's in my nature to look for the downside as well.

So let's take a look at the three most likely candidates to become your next Maple Leaf savior, and why we may need to downgrade expectations.

---

I wonder if Tyler Kennedy
has a younger brother
who needs his ass kicked?

Brayden Schenn

The strengths: Is the brother of Luke Schenn.

Seriously, that's really all you need to know. NHL scouts haven't even bothered to watch him. His parents have patiently tried to explain that Brayden doesn't like hockey and has never even been on skates, but he's still Luke's brother so he's a top five pick. End of story.

The concern: I'll be honest, I love the idea of having two brothers form the core of our long-term rebuild. Luke Schenn was such a monster last year that the thought of doubling down on the family gene pool has me giddy.

But let's run down the script here: Luke is older. He's better known. The Leafs traded up to get him, he made the team as a teenager, played on the top pairing for much of the season, was named to the all-rookie team, and earlier today he was inducted into the NHL Hall of Fame. When he walks the streets of Toronto, tiny eunuchs scurry in front of him to scatter rose petals.

Now here comes Brayden, the younger brother who may actually be more talented. But he's trapped in his big brother's shadow. And he knows it. Everybody knows it.

If a lifetime of english literature, greek epic poetry and professional wrestling have taught me anything, it's that younger brothers can't be trusted. The potential for an eventual dramatic brotherly backstab is off-the-charts here.

Keep in mind, these two kids are from Western Canada. There's precedent here that should raise all kind of red flags. Don't say you weren't warned if at some point Brayden snaps on Luke, and kicks his leg out of his leg.

---

Jared Cowen does his
impression of every Leaf
fan the day JFJ was hired.

Jared Cowen

The strengths: Was a consensus top five pick who was even getting some fringe consideration as a potential first overall choice until he blew out his knee this season and slid down the rankings. Has the size and mean streak to be the steal of the draft. If paired with Luke Schenn, would likely play his entire career without ever being on the ice for a goal against.

The concern: None. Drafting a can't-miss defensive stud who dropped in the rankings because he wrecked his knee is always a great idea.

Seriously, this is can't miss. Any time you have a chance to take a top ten pick and turn it into Grant Jennings, you have to go for it.

---

This man could someday
break Doug Gilmour's team
record for ridiculous hair.

Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson

The strengths: MPS, as the kids call him, is a dynamic playmaking winger with excellent size, speed and creativity. Based on raw skill alone he would immediately become the Leafs' best winger, and probably also their second-line center and perhaps backup goalie.

The concern: His name is, literally, impossible to spell. I know this seems petty, but I'm a blogger. This is important to me.

Seriously, take a good long look at it: Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson. WTF?

I don't know about you, but I don't have a "ä" key on my keyboard, let alone three of them. What kind of person fires off a triple umlaut into one name? Is he a hockey player or an 80s hair metal band?

Here's a little known fact about Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson: his full name has only ever been typed once. Since then, every single person who has ever written about him has been cutting and pasting from that original version, passing it down to future generations like monks transcribing the bible. If the Leafs draft him, they should create a page on their web site that just says "Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson" in 36-point font so that writers can easily grab it whenever they need to mention him.

At the very least, can we all agree to ditch the horribly uncreative "MPS" nickname in favor of something better? I'm suggesting "CTRL-V". Who's with me?

---

As you can see, I'm struggling here.

So please, Burkie, get a deal done. Draft John Tavares for us long-suffering Leaf fans, so that we'll finally have a prospect with no downside.

(You know, other than the poor defensive play, mediocre skating, questionable work ethic... oh god...)

Draft note: I'll be blogging on Friday night during the first round of the draft. I won't call it a liveblog, but I'll try to update a few times over the course of the night.

And since I'm apparently the only hockey blogger on the planet who won't be in Montreal this weekend, I may also try to hack into Pension Plan Puppets and post there too. Assuming PPP hasn't changed the site's password ("gillsux"), head over when the Leafs make their pick and commiserate with me.