Monday, June 24, 2019

Filling out the Sabres 2019 NHL Draft, Day-2

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 6-23-2019


The Buffalo Sabres were set up for a few long bouts of inactivity yesterday on Day-2 of the 2019 NHL Draft in Vancouver. Buffalo selected 31st on day-one and wouldn't be selecting again until pick-67 after trading their second rounder to the Carolina Hurricanes as part of the Jeff Skinner deal (for posterity, the 'Canes selected goalie Pyoter Kochetkov with the 36th pick.) The Sabres would also have long wait between their own pick in the third round and a late pick in the fourth round (via the Evander Kane to SJS trade) as they had dealt their own to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the deal for Conor Sheary and Matt Hunwick.

Buffalo had also traded away their fifth-rounder to Detroit in the Scott Wilson deal and weren't set to draft until the 6th round but used two of their three sixth-rounder (plus their own seventh-round pick) to move up in the fourth and to acquire a fifth rounder.

When all was said and done the Sabres used six picks in the 2019 NHL Draft, two on the first day and four yesterday.

Buffalo selected center Dylan Cozens with the seventh-overall pick on Friday and ended Day-1 of the draft by taking defenseman Ryan Johnson 31st-overall. Of the 12 picks (six each year) general manager Jason Botterill has made since taking over in 2017, seven have been on defensemen and three have been centers so it's not surprising that he added to those counts on Day-1.

Botterill took goalie Ukka-Pekka Luukkonen and winger Linus Weissbach in 2017 but went strictly defense and center last year. On Day-2 yesterday he added to those positions selecting a goalie in the third round followed by three consecutive picks on the wing.

With the 67th pick of the draft Buffalo drafted goalie Erik Portillo who was draft-eligible last year as a 17 yr. old but went undrafted. Portillo is a native of Sweden who struggled in his initial draft year but came on strong in 2018-19 with a 1.99 goals-against average and .931 save percentage for Frolunda of Sweden's Super Elit junior circuit. The huge 6'6" 209 lb. Portillo adds to the Sabres depth in net but is a "longer-term project," according to Botterill, as he'll be headed to the USHL (Dubuque Fighting Saints) next season before heading to the University of Michigan the following year.




According to pre-draft reports Portillo was very much a reach but when asked about the third round pick, Botterill's response seemed to be that of the cat that ate the canary. "We have some intel in Frolunda," snickered Botterill as he was referencing the Swedish hockey organization that Rasmus Dahlin was drafted from, "plus he's committed to go to Michigan (Botterill's alma mater,) we have some intel there too and we had the opportunity to for him to come to our combine in Buffalo and interact with him there and that's why we felt very comfortable selecting him (at No. 67.)"

Eliteprospects.com has only two pre-draft rankings for Portillo and both ranked him much lower than 67th-overall. McKeen's had him at #89 while Future Considerations had him at #126. Portillo didn't make it onto Central Scouting's list of European goalie rankings.

In his 2019 draft preview Kris Baker of sabresprospects.com had Portillo as a late-fourth round possibility for Buffalo writing, "Portillo mixes his obvious physical gifts with a strong athletic base and mobility to keep his game tight. He’s big, but not awkward. He moves well with all pieces moving as one. The strong core is present. He’s not talked about a lot, but he’s a pretty dynamic prospect. 

"Portillo looks like a goalie that plays at the ideal depth for his height and mobility, allowing him to properly compete at the correct angles and consume a great deal of the net. He can make the cross-crease save and do it while not belly-flopping. More importantly, he doesn’t allow many bad goals. He’s become more composed compared to his previous semi-wild tendencies, so there’s less of a need to tame him stylistically. He seems coachable, which is great, because he’ll need to keep working at it."


Whereas Buffalo may have reached for Portillo, they may have gotten a steal selecting when they traded up in the fourth round to select RW, Aaron Huglen with the 102nd pick. As mentioned the Sabres traded their own fourth-rounder to the Penguins but had the San Jose Sharks pick at No. 122.and Botterill packaged that pick along with No. 175 (acquired from the Winnipeg Jets in the Nathan Beaulieu trade) to move up in the fourth round.

When it comes to the fourth round and lower in the draft, most don't have a clue as to what said players are really about so we'll let Corey Pronman of The Athletic do the talking here. Pronman had Huglen ranked 55th on his pre-draft rankings and placed him in the Legit Chance/Bubble category of potential NHL'ers. Pronman wrote yesterday that he thought Huglen "had the most upside of any player picked outside of the first round." Here's more from Pronman:

"Huglen started the season in the USHL before heading to play high school at Roseau where he was a Mr. Hockey candidate in Minnesota. He finished the season strong back in the USHL with Fargo. He’s a high skill/high IQ forward and is one of the most purely skilled players that will get picked outside of the first round. Huglen has quick-twitch hands and can make defenders look foolish with his fakes and dekes. He makes plays around defenders at a quick pace and is dangerous on the attack. He was a regular on the highlight reel at the high school level. He’s a fantastic playmaker who flashed elite vision on some very creative passes throughout the season. He skates well. It’s not explosive speed, but Huglen has a clean stride, good edgework and gets above-average speed through the neutral zone. Off the puck, he’s just OK. He’s physically underdeveloped and can struggle to win puck battles but doesn’t shy away from the crease area. He didn’t play amazingly at the USHL or at the Hlinka Gretzky, raising some concerns if the talent will translate to higher levels, but the raw talent is significant."

Although his lacrosse-style goal (see below) at the Hlinka is uber-highlight worthy and was certainly acknowledged by Botterill, Buffalo's GM pointed to Huglen's hockey sense and skill while also stating that "it's a longer development plan with him" as there's "a lot of work for him to be done off-ice to physically mature for him to be a National Hockey League player."

But...this sure is sweet, and attention-getting:



(via TaiwanHockey)


Botterill stuck with the trade-up-to-select-a-winger-theme when he made a trade with Detroit to draft LW, Filip Cederqvist from Växjö Lakers of Swedish Super Elit League. Buffalo used a sixth-rounder (No. 177, acquired from Toronto in a swap of sixths last year) and their own seventh (191st) to move into the fifth round to select Cederqvist.

The 6'1" 187 lb. winger had 32 points (14+18) in 26 junior games before getting the call to the SHL where he scored eight points (4+4) in 33 games as an 18 yr. old. 

In his draft preview, Kris Baker of sabresprospects.com had Cederqvist as a possible pick for Buffalo in the sixth round. Here's what he wrote:

"Cederqvist, a durable skilled winger that can pick corners, hit the next level with his all-around development this year. He definitely passes the eye test. His upward trajectory and skill set fits the profile of a winger worth drafting with a late-round pick."

The Sabres remained overseas when they selected RW, Lukas Rousek with their own pick in the sixth round (160th.)  

Of Rousek, Baker tweeted, "Nice hands-high energy playmaker with PK ability. Very fast, gets out of the blocks quickly. Plays with intensity. The 20 yr. old is under contract with HC Sparta Praha through 2021."

This was Rousek's third year of draft eligibility.


Buffalo Sabres 2019 Draft Picks

7th --  C, Dylan Cozens
31st -- D, Ryan Johnson
67th -- G, Erik Portillo
102nd- RW, Aaron Huglen
143rd- LW, Filip Cederqvist
160th- RW, Lukas Rousek









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