Fansided

2018 NHL Draft: Report card grades for every team

By Jeremy Lambert

DALLAS, TX - JUNE 22: Rasmus Dahlin of the Buffalo Sabres, Andrei Svechnikov of the Carolina Hurricanes and Jesperi Kotkaniemi of the Montreal Canadians pose for a picture of the 2018 NHL draft on June 22, 2018 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX - JUNE 22: Rasmus Dahlin of the Buffalo Sabres, Andrei Svechnikov of the Carolina Hurricanes and Jesperi Kotkaniemi of the Montreal Canadians pose for a picture of the 2018 NHL draft on June 22, 2018 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
11 of 32
Next
DALLAS, TX – JUNE 22: The Philadelphia Flyers draft Joel Farabee in the first round of the 2018 NHL draft on June 22, 2018 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX – JUNE 22: The Philadelphia Flyers draft Joel Farabee in the first round of the 2018 NHL draft on June 22, 2018 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Philadelphia Flyers – B

First Round Picks: Joel Farabee (LW) (14), Jay O’Brien (C) (19)

The first round was a mixed bag for Philadelphia. I like Joel Farabee and think he’ll be a good NHL player in a few years. He’s an all-around player who can play in any situation. He could look very nice next to Nolan Patrick in two seasons. He fits with what the Flyers are trying to do and he made sense for them at No.14. Jay O’Brien makes less sense. This is another instance where a team reach on a player just because he’s a center. It’s no secret that the best teams in the league have depth down the middle. It’s been this way for years and it’s going to be this way until hockey is played by robots and then it’s not about having a great center. It’s about building the best robot like on Battlebots. I’m very much looking forward to this era of hockey. Until then, centers rule. Now, this doesn’t mean teams have to consistently reach for centers in the draft. If there’s no elite center available, it’s ok to wait. The Flyers could have waited on O’Brien or taken a better player. Sure, they got their center. But they passed up better wings and defenders.

Other Notable Picks: Adam Ginning (D) (50)

I love the Adam Ginning pick, especially at No. 50. He’s a stay-at-home defender and a leader on the backend. The Flyers were expected to grab a defenseman at some point in the draft, and while they could have gotten one at No. 19, they were fortunate enough to grab one of the better defenders all the way down at No. 50.

Ginning makes up for their first-round mistake.

Home/NHL Draft