Monday, March 16, 2009

Quest For The Holy Grail: The John Tavares Sweepstakes


This time of year when you think of the Quest For The Holy Grail, you think of a gruelling Cup run to have members of the victorious team engraved on the chalice of Lord Stanley. Today, however, the Holy Grail is the prize position of the winner of the NHL 2009 Entry Draft lottery - John Tavares.  If you happened to forget just how talented this kid is, take a lot at the above video clip of a goal scored at this past year's WJC.



Coming into this hockey season, hockey experts projected
Victor Hedman would likely be the 1st overall selection this June.
An elite d-man with mammoth size and outstanding skill, he's the type of guy
you can build a franchise around. While that may very well still be the case,
Tavares has risen atop of this year's draft crop and is now the consensus #1
pick. The elite centerman is the Next "Next One"!



Tavares has just recently shattered
the OHL all-time goals record
with 215, after sniping a hat-trick on Mar. 8
in a London Knights 4-3 victory over the league-leading Windsor Spitfires.



As of Mar. 15/09, here's a lookout teams with the highest
projected percentage chance of landing Tavares, that is the 1st
overall pick in the 2009 Entry Draft (courtesy of TSN's Lottery Lookout ):



Team (% Chance of Winning):





1. New York Islanders (25%)



2. Tampa Bay Lightning (18.8%)



3. Atlanta Thrashers (14.2%)



4. Phoenix Coyotes (10.7%)



5. Colorado Avalanche (8.1%)



6. Ottawa Sentors (6.2%)



7. LA Kings (4.7&)



8. Toronto Maple Leafs (2.7%)



The Islanders could use a potential franchise player like Tavares to help try and turn this team around. The Lightning, with Vinny and Stamkos already patrolling the middle, might be tempted to grab d-man Hedman even if they win the draft lottery. One thing is for certain: the winner of all the losers will be one thrilled franchise!

Stay tuned as The Hockey Spy infiltrates the amateur hockey
ranks to uncover in depth previews, prospect profiles, rankings and mock drafts
via Eagle Eye Scouting - your source for inside coverage of the NHL 2009 Entry Draft.






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