Continental divide

North American players dominate first round of 2003 draft

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Europeans are no longer the favored flavor in the NHL. In fact, it was so heavily tilted toward junior hockey this almost looked like a draft from 15 years ago

Thomas Vanek was the highest drafted Euro player, but he played in the USHL for juniors and then at the University of Minnesota last year.

There was a little intrigue at the top, but overall it was a predictable first round. It was fairly certain Florida was going to move that No. 1 pick since it didn't need a goalie, and the Panthers made a nice little move to drop down two spots and still get Nathan Horton.

Pittsburgh has so many needs, and you have to wonder if Marc-Andre Fleury is "the" guy. Most scouts I've talked to think he has the capability to be a star, but one scout told me this morning that he's just not that sure about the kid. The Pens have a pretty good rookie goaltender in Sebastien Caron, so clearly they felt they needed an upgrade if they decided to deal up to get Fleury.

The Pens' move to draft Fleury continued to prove that teams don't feel you need to wait until later in the first round to take a goalie anymore. The game is so much about goaltending now, as was proven in the 2003 Stanley Cup Playoffs. If Fleury is as good as most guys think he is, it was a pretty solid move for Pittsburgh. The Pens believe he's going to be the rock upon which they build their church.

There were several teams maneuvering to try to get up to No. 1 for Fleury, but in the end the Hurricanes weren't one of them. Carolina drafted a good goalie last year in Cam Ward, so the only teams that were going to go after Fleury were teams that really needed a goalie like Boston, Colorado, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. The Panthers made a strong move by getting the player they really wanted (Horton) and another asset (Mikael Samuelsson).

The biggest surprise of the day may have been the Flyers taking Jeff Carter with the 11th pick. He's a real good skater but played on a bad Sault Ste. Marie team in the OHL. Central Scouting had him ranked only at 27th among North American skaters, but Carter is a big kid, he has great wheels and the Flyers obviously liked his skills enough to take him at No. 11. He's 6-foot-3 and 182, but he didn't have stunning numbers, largely because his team wasn't any good.

Another notable choice in the first round was Ryan Suter going to Nashville with the seventh pick. The three top defensemen were going to go quickly in a block, and the Predators made a very safe choice by taking Suter over Braydon Coburn and Dion Phaneuf. Suter has great bloodlines and Nashville needed someone identifiable. This team is basically the witness protection program and it needed someone to market.

The Devils made one of the savviest moves of the first round by trading up to get Zach Parise when they realized he would still be available at No. 17. New Jersey waited on him, identified its need, moved up a bit and got a guy who will just be great there. A move like that is so typical of Lou Lamoriello's team, and it shows you why the Devils are the best organization in the NHL.

A great example of the depth of this draft is demonstrated by the fact that Jeff Tambellini lasted until the 27th pick. This kid is a great skater and scorer, and last year he would've been a top 10 pick. But this year he was in the low 20s because of the great depth in the first round. One of Tambellini's college teammates at Michigan, Eric Nystrom, went 10th overall last year, and while they play a different style, they are both skilled guys. I like Tambellini a whole lot -- in another year he would've gone much higher than 27th.

But the first day of the draft was most notable for what didn't happen. The day began with rumors coming out of New York and Washington that Jaromir Jagr could be dealt to the Rangers. But that blockbuster never materialized, much to the dismay of several fans on hand who kept chanting, "We want Jagr! We want Jagr!"

There were no major shocks, but rather a smattering of low-profile trades like Ivan Majesky going from Florida to Atlanta and Andrei Nikolishin going from Chicago to Colorado. Majesky will help the Thrashers and Nikolishin is a good faceoff guy for the Avs to get, but nothing ever happened with John Leclair, Jagr or any of the big guys.

The lack of any big-name trades stems from the fact that there are only so many teams willing to take on big contracts right now. Toronto and the New York Rangers can add payroll, and Detroit might be able to, depending on what it does with its own free agents, including Sergei Fedorov and Darren McCarty. But outside of those three teams, there isn't a lot of interest in high-salary stars.

Anyone who was expecting Jagr to go Saturday was disappointed. The local papers reported there were serious talks, and one GM told me big things will probably happen later this summer, but teams don't want to take on salary or long contracts as we head toward the unknown of Sept. 15, 2004.

While there wasn't a ton of action, the first day was boring only in the sense that the top five players had been identified in advance. Nothing huge developed in the manner of Alexei Yashin getting dealt at the 2001 draft in Florida. There wasn't wild dealing at the top or any premier guys going for picks. It was essentially just the Panthers' auction for the No. 1 pick and then a bunch of teams drafting the guy they wanted.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Michael Farber covers the NHL for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com.

 

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