Sunday, June 21, 2015
Ian Gooding
2015-06-21
Happy Father's Day, Mike Ribeiro, Mini Mock Draft, and more…
Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there. And I know there are a few of them out there frequenting Dobber Hockey and perhaps checking out today's Ramblings.
Many of us credit our fathers for first getting us into hockey when we were very young. That was the case for me, as one of my earliest memories as a young child was watching my dad get home from work, opening a stubby of Labatt's Blue, and watching the Canadiens and B's (as I liked to call them) while I ran around our little house in the northern coastal town of Prince Rupert, BC, with my little wooden hockey stick.
But I think it was when I was seven years old, when my dad brought home a Canucks calendar from Shoppers Drug Market that really sparked my interest in hockey. That quickly led to street hockey, then hockey cards, then minor hockey, then eventually hockey pools and fantasy hockey and now writing about it. So I guess I have my father to thank for my little obsession, along with so much more in my life.
Now it's my turn. I have two little boys aged 6 and 2. My older one has his own Canucks calendar now, and he even reminds me whenever a Canuck has a birthday (a few days ago, he interrupted me while I was brushing my teeth to tell me it was Kevin Bieksa's birthday). I took him to his first NHL game this past season. Although the Canucks lost, he had the absolute time of his life at that game.
I've made many decisions in my life, both good and bad. But the best decision I ever made, hands down, was to become a father. If you think you might want to have kids someday, it's just something to keep in mind.
*
Someone who perhaps wasn't such a good father: Mike Ribeiro. To find out what I mean about that statement, you'll have to read this article from On The Forecheck, which covers his alleged sexual assault in graphic detail (disturbing content warning, however).
If you'd like to contribute your two cents' worth on the major issues in this case, you can do so in our Forum thread on the topic. I won't jump in on the forum discussion myself. Instead, I'll post my thoughts here in the Ramblings.
To focus on the bigger picture for a moment, it's sad that we live in a society where violence against women is so rampant, underreported, and stigmatizing. Many of us (myself included) know someone who has been a victim and has had their lives scarred because of an incident or series of incidents. If you choose to sweep it under the rug, as Mrs. Ribeiro was alleged to have done, then you are clearly part of the problem. And I have absolutely no problem with someone discussing the issue itself rather than the hockey implications in a hockey forum. Discussion is necessary for society to evolve, wherever or whenever that conversation should take place. (I call this my "there are bigger problems in life than your fantasy team" rant.)
Having said that, we need to allow due process to take place in this court case. While we wait for that, are we looking at a Slava Voynov type situation? Remember that Ribeiro was only signed to a one-year contract in Nashville, mainly because of his suspected personal problems. From all accounts, he was a model citizen this past season in Nashville. They liked him, and he liked them. But he is now without a contract, and now he has this hanging over him.
Let's now focus on the hockey implications. Ribeiro was no small potatoes player in Nashville this past season, centering the top line and scoring 62 points in a season in which reaching 60 points was a notable accomplishment. In the Dobber Hockey Keeper Rankings, Ribeiro is ranked 76, right next to recently oft-discussed players such as Patrick Sharp and Ryan O'Reilly. But I'd expect that ranking to plummet the next time Dobber updates his rankings.
Regardless of your opinion on whether the NHL should give Ribeiro the Voynov treatment, NHL GMs simply might blacklist him come July 1. The Predators could certainly use him. Who knows, maybe they're still considering resigning him, particularly if they have further information that is not being reported here. Also keep in mind that this alleged transgression – as wrong as it is – occurred prior to his time with the Predators.
Assuming the Preds won't resign him, I'd be investing in some Calle Jarnkrok stock unless the thrifty Preds shock the world and make a big splash in the free agent pool. But they may at least have Mike Fisher locked up soon (ESPN).
*
Since this is my last Ramblings before the draft (unless I suddenly have to fill in at the last moment), here's my mini mock draft of the first ten picks.
Edmonton – Connor McDavid
Buffalo – Jack Eichel
Arizona – Dylan Strome
Toronto – Noah Hanafin
Carolina – Mitch Marner
New Jersey – Mathew Barzal
Philadelphia – Lawson Crouse
Columbus – Zach Werenski
San Jose – Pavel Zacha
Colorado – Ivan Provorov
We all know who will go 1 and 2 in this draft, and you've probably read enough McEichel articles by now. So I'll turn to what might be the less predictable and more intriguing storyline of the draft: the 3, 4, and 5 slots. Strome, Marner, and Hanafin seem to fill that second tier of prospects (or third, if you consider McDavid in a class of his own).
The way I see it playing out is the way that drafts have played out in years past. If teams are stuck between two equally talented players, they will almost always opt for the size, which in this case is Strome. In addition, the smaller guy will fall a bit. So the Leafs will then draft Hanafin, giving them one more reason to try to push Dion Phaneuf out the door. The Hurricanes will then pick Marner, the most talented player left in the draft.
I wanted to watch Barzal play when I bought a ticket to watch the Seattle Thunderbirds during the Christmas break, but unfortunately he was sidelined with a knee injury – an injury that cost him nearly half of his draft season. The Devils, who have a very thin pipeline of prospects, won't be able to pass up his possession ability and pick him at number 6.
The Flyers have always coveted size, so Crouse seems like the perfect fit for them at number 7. Enough said.
How far will Provorov fall as a result of the Russia/KHL factor? The fact that he is already in North America helps in that regard, and his point-per-game numbers in the WHL last season were unmistakable. One team I don't see drafting him is Columbus, a team that has been burned by high Russian picks in the past (Nikolai Zherdev, Nikita Filatov – where are you today?) But they have a significant need for a defenseman of his kind, so watch me "eat crow" on that prediction.
Will there be any trade surprises on draft day? With such a deep draft this season, I'm going to say no, since teams will want to hang onto those picks. If we see any trades, they will be from picks later in the first round at the earliest.
*
Birthdays this past week… Happy belated birthday to the aforementioned Bieksa. And happy birthday to Sam Bennett, who turned 19 years old on Saturday. That means two things: 1) He is old enough to legally drink in the rest of Canada (18 is the drinking age in Alberta), and 2) sadly, Hockey Night in Canada can't call him "18 year old Sam Bennett" any longer. Darn.