Kraken Grab Nemec, 4 others. Make 5 trades on Day 1 of DCHL Draft

As per usual GM Bryce Shuck was wheeling and dealing on the draft floor

The Kraken front office was jubilant as the day ended on the floor of the DCHL draft today. 5 trades, 5 picks made, and some exciting value added by the franchise. Let's break it down

Selections
#4 - D Simon Nemec - Our top rated player in the draft, we knew we'd be getting him at 4. We knew the Rangers wanted to jump up for a center. To us Nemec is the best player in the draft. He breaks the projection models, he's a dynamic offensive player and could be a franchise altering pick. We are thrilled to have him

#22 - RW Jimmy Snuggerud - We had him ranked 11 on our board, well ahead of the "experts" we love his ability to think the game, combined with his speed and vision. I think he has high end forward ability and will produce at a high level right off that bat at the University of Minnesota next year

#26 - RW Isaac Howard - Our 14th ranked player on our big board. A highly skilled offensive player who skates like the wind. He's pure offense, which is exactly the type of player we want to bring on board. Excited to see his freshmen year at Minnesota-Duluth next year

#33 - D Mattias Havelid - Ranked #15 on our board, we were excited to get him at the start of round 2. An offensive defenseman who has top end edge work. He will be running Swedens PP at the WJC, he was on the team as a 17 year old last year. We love the opportunity in front of him in the NHL as well. 

#50 - C David Goyette - Didn't think he'd be here, we had him ranked 22 on our board. Pure offense baby! Still don't know how he fell in NHL draft as far he did, or here. We were thrilled grab him and add him to our offensive pool of prospects!


Trades

1.5m cash for a 5-6-7 - We like picks, and have a ton of cash

16ov for Jacob Bernard-Docker & SJ 2 (23) - we like JBD, we figured the guys we had highly rated would fall (and they did) and like JBD's upside still as a NHL ready dman. We envision him as a top 4 defenseman very quickly, which we're starting to look towards.

21ov for Was 1 next year - The Caps look like they suck. We're gambling that pick will be a lotto pick next year. Again, many of our targets I figured would slide.

24ov for Tor 1 (24) *2nd to Tor if pick is top 10* - Toronto REALLY looks like they're going to suck for awhile. Happy to grab a future 1 of theirs and hope for an additional lotto pick in the final year we plan on being in it.

SJ 2 (2023) & Taige Harding for Pick 50ov - We picked up the sharks pick next year earlier in the night, and moved a guy we took last year who did not have a good year. To get our 22nd rated player in David Goyette. A pick we're thrilled with.


Overall Trades
IN - Tor 1 (24), Was 1 (23), Jacob Bernard-Docker, David Goyette, 5th, 6th, 7th  
OUT - 16ov, 21ov, 24ov, Taige Harding, 1.5m


Picks Left