SBNation 2019 NHL Mock Draft: Picks 19 - 23

The SBNation 2019 Mock Draft continues with two selections today.

The Draft so Far

1. NHL Mock Draft 2019: New Jersey Devils Select Jack Hughes with No. 1 draft pick - All About The Jersey
2. NHL Mock Draft 2019: New York Rangers Select Kaapo Kakko with No. 2 Pick - Blueshirt Banter
3. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Chicago Blackhawks select Alex Turcotte with No. 3 pick - Second City Hockey
4. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Colorado Avalanche select Kirby Dach with the No. 4 pick - Mile High Hockey
5. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Los Angeles Kings select Dylan Cozens with No. 5 pick - Jewels From The Crown
6. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Detroit Red Wings select Bowen Byram with No. 6 pick - Winging It In Motown
7. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Buffalo Sabres select Cole Caufield with the No. 7 pick - Die By The Blade
8. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Edmonton Oilers Select Peyton Krebs With The Number 8 Pick - The Copper & Blue
9. SB Nation NHL Mock Draft 2019: Anaheim Ducks select Trevor Zegras - Anaheim Calling
10. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Vancouver Canucks select Matthew Boldy with the No. 10 pick - Nucks Misconduct
11. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Philadelphia Flyers select Alex Newhook with No. 11 pick - Broad Street Hockey
12. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Minnesota Wild select Vasili Podkolzin with the No. 12 pick - Hockey Wilderness
13. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Florida Panthers select Philip Broberg with the No. 13 pick - Litter Box Cats
14. 2019 NHL Draft prospect: Victor Söderström is the defender you’re looking for - Eyes On The Prize
15. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Montreal Canadiens select Thomas Harley at 15th - Eyes On The Prize
16. NHL Mock Draft 2019: New York Rangers Select Arthur Kaliyev 16th Overall - Blueshirt Banter
17. NHL Mock Draft 2019: Vegas Golden Knights select Raphael Lavoie with No. 17 pick - Knights On Ice

NHL Mock Draft 2019: Dallas Stars Select Moritz Seider 18th Overall - Defending Big D
Thursday’s and Friday’s Picks

NHL Mock Draft: Ottawa Senators Select Bobby Brink with No. 19 Pick - Silver Seven
We have the Sens taking the American winger with their first pick in the 2019 draft.

Brink came into this past season as a bit of a dark horse. Fresh out of playing for Minnetonka High School (the same team as Sens prospect Luke Loheit), he joined the Sioux City Musketeers, where he quickly burst onto the scene. Scoring 35 goals and 68 points in 43 games, his point-per-game rate was third in the league, behind Alex Turcotte and Jack Hughes. That’s higher than many prospects expected to go earlier, including Matthew Boldy, Trevor Zegras and Cole Caufield. As a 17-year-old in a league full of 20-year-olds, Brink was rewarded by being named the USHL’s Forward of the Year.

NHL Mock Draft 2019: Colorado Avalanche select Cam York 20th overall - Mile High Hockey
We traded down and somehow this top-tier defenseman was still available?!

York will very likely be the second defenseman to be drafted in June (although he wasn’t in the mock draft). At the very least, his upside and talent lend himself to being a top-15 draft choice. York recognized where the weaknesses in his game were and made significant efforts to improve upon them.

NHL Mock Draft 2019: Pittsburgh Penguins select Nils Hoglander with 21st pick - PensBurgh
The Pens take a speedy Swedish forward with skill to burn with their projected first round pick

Nils Hoglander took a step up in competition in 2018-19, playing in Sweden’s top league the SHL as a 17/18 year old player. He performed well in a lower line role, and maintained his spot with the top club throughout the year. Hoglander showcased his speed, tenacity and hands to make a name for himself as one of the top draftable prospects in the 2019 NHL draft with an impressive first season in the SHL.

NHL Mock Draft 2019: Los Angeles Kings select Matthew Robertson with No. 22 pick - Jewels From The Crown
Having addressed center depth earlier in the mock draft, we now turn to the blue line.

But this year, it’s time to start adding more pieces to the defense pipeline. While our decision to skip over Bowen Byram in the mock draft with the number five pick was controversial, with the number 22 pick, we’re going to focus on the blue line.

Meet Matthew Robertson of the Edmonton Oil Kings: a confident, smooth-skating defenseman with a shot good enough to rival that of a top-nine forward. He’s who our Fake Kings Team is going to select with our second pick of the first round.

NHL Mock Draft: New York Islanders Select Ryan Suzuki with 23rd Pick - Lighthouse Hockey
Another center for our mock system.

The Senators selected Bobby Brink 19th overall before Colorado choose the more obvious LD Cam York with the 20th selection.

Both Suzuki and Tomasino were still on the board, but we were holding our breath as they could easily be the next two prospects selected by the Penguins and Kings. As Pittsburgh stepped up to the podium, the only words we heard were: “with the 21st pick…Nils Hoglander!” We were now guaranteed one of Suzuki or Tomasino.

The L.A. Kings were up next. “With the 22nd pick in the 2019 NHL entry draft, the Los Angles Kings are proud to select Mathew Robertson.”

Ryan Suzuki was ours.

There’s one extra pick to announce in this set. With what became the 22nd overall pick, the Toronto Maple Leafs selected Jake Muzzin.

Related

Getting to know Jake Muzzin

Originally selected 141st overall 12 years ago by the Penguins, Muzzin is proof of the concept that you can find jewels in the later rounds, and you can particularly find defenders there. You can also find jewels from drafted players who are never signed by their drafting team.

Muzzin did not have great points stats as a junior heading into his draft year in 2007, however, and he was selected in the fifth round, 141st overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins, and don’t they wish they still had him now? Maybe someday we’ll think that about Sean Durzi, too. This story gets worse for Pittsburgh though, because they just decided they didn’t want him after two years, and didn’t sign him.

Muzzin went back in the draft, but was not taken. He went back to the Soo Greyhounds and played another year at age 20/21. His point production shot up, and so it should — he was a grown man playing in junior hockey. Whether it was those points (he was leading the OHL in points for defenders at the time he was signed) or some deeper scouting of him as a player, the LA Kings signed him as a free agent in January of 2010.

The draft is a gamble, but sometimes, you get to bet on a sure thing by trading a pick.

Toronto makes you better, even if you celebrate your 30th birthday in Maple Leafs blue.

I’m not sorry the Leafs took Jake Muzzin with their pick, are you?

In hindsight, are you happy with the Muzzin trade?