It won't be easy
Expansion will make drafting harder
Posted: Wednesday June 24, 1998 01:28 AM
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MacLean coached the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup finals in 1996 (Columbus Blue Jackets) |
By John Heid, CNN/SI
ATLANTA (CNN/SI) -- Is there enough talent to go around?
With the NHL expanding from 26 teams to 30 over the next three years
finding talented players to fill out rosters will be difficult but not
impossible.
"Obviously it's an issue," said Doug MacLean, general manager of the
Columbus Blue Jackets. "You go from 600 players to 700 players. There's
going to be some pretty good players available."
"But it's going to be unbelievably difficult finding them all."
The Nashville Predators join the NHL this fall, followed by the Atlanta
Thrashers in 1999-2000, and the Blue Jackets and the Minnesota Wild in
2000-2001.
"It's going to be quite a building process [for the expansion teams]," said
Kevin Prendergast, director of player personnel and hockey operations for
the Edmonton Oilers. "It
will become harder and harder to build."
Both MacLean and Prendergast say teams will have to look to the free-agent
market more and look harder in Europe.
"In my mind there are players for the eventual 30 teams," said Martin
Madden, director of scouting for the New York Rangers. There are
going to be some good expansion teams.
"The base will be good enough to furnish the 30 teams."
Of course, making the right selections in the expansion and amateur drafts
can't hurt. Just ask MacLean.
"It's the typical thing -- you take the most talented player," MacLean
said. "You're hoping to get a franchise player. You hope to land a [Paul]
Kariya or a [Jaromir] Jagr or a [Steve] Yzerman."
MacLean coached the Florida
Panthers all the way to the Stanley Cup finals in 1996, just the
franchise's third year. He posted a 79-56-29 record in two-plus seasons
behind the Florida bench.
The Panthers came out of their first few amateur drafts and the 1993
expansion draft with a good mix of young and veteran players. But the
selection of veteran goaltender John
Vanbiesbrouck in the expansion draft may have been the biggest reason
for the Panthers' early success.
"Obviously, the key pick up was John Vanbiesbrouck," MacLean said. "He set
the plan up two years. Johnny was in a zone [during the 1996 playoffs]. He
was phenomenal. You can built on that."
In 22 Stanley Cup playoff games in 1996, Vanbiesbrouck posted a 12-10
record and a goals against average of 2.25. He turned in a 55-save
performance in Game 4 of the finals against the Colorado Avalanche.
Colorado swept the series.
Another key for expansion teams is too groom their top players slowly and
give them time to develop.
The Boston Bruins may
have rushed the draft's No. 1 pick last year, Joe Thornton, too
quickly. The 18-year-old rookie struggled at times last year and finished
with just three goals and seven points in 54 games.
"It's such a big step from juniors to the NHL," said Don Luce, director of
player personnel for the Buffalo Sabres. "I think if
they're groomed, they'll do fine. Look at Joe Thornton.
"He didn't get to play as much as he would have liked. And he struggled."
The morale of this story?
"Don't rush them," Luce said. "We're finding out now that it's such a big
step ... let them get their kinks out in the minors. It's so much about
confidence."
Luce said one year in the minors can give a player four good years in the
NHL. The American Hockey League is a good place for players coming out of
juniors to test their skills and develop.
"The junior kids have no idea about how good the American Hockey League
is," Luce said.
Since players have to be 20 to skate in the AHL, they may be better off
playing another year in the Ontario, Quebec Major Junior or Western hockey
leagues than trying to make the jump Thornton did.
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