Wednesday, August 20, 2008

THN's Caps 2008 Draft Grade: B+

Mark Seidel of The Hockey News has finally gotten around to posting the rest of his 2008 NHL Entry Draft grades, and he's got good things to say about the Caps' effort (then again, he's got good things to say about nearly everyone - only San Jose got lower than a C). Particularly noteworthy is his assessment of our guy Delly.

Anyway, here's Seidel's Caps capsule:
B+, Washington Capitals – The Caps started things off with Anton Gustafsson, a guy who caused as much internal divide at NACS as any player in this year’s draft. Some of our staff loved him, while others thought he was completely overrated. While there was no consensus on Gustafsson, we liked the Caps’ selection of John Carlson from Indiana of the USHL. It’s no secret we are critical of players selected out of the USHL, but there’s no doubt Carlson will become a very good player as his career progresses. Their next pick, Eric Mestery, is a purely defensive defenseman who has to improve his puck skills if he is to play at a high level. In the middle rounds, the Caps’ picks were underwhelming with the exception of their last pick, Stefan Della Rovere, who we think has a chance to make a lot of teams look silly for passing on him. If Gustafsson and Carlson turn out the way we think they can, the 2008 draft will be remembered as a successful foray for Washington.
H/t Canes Country on the link

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