Prediction: With The 6th Overall Pick, The Anaheim Ducks Will Select…

By Thomas Harrington

The Ducks hold two first-round picks in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft: 6th overall and 27th overall. As in previous years, I’ve examined several mock drafts and read over scouting reports from a large variety of different hockey sources in order to predict who I think Anaheim will select in the first round.

I am basing my predictions off of what those rankings and reports say, and also by my own instinct in terms of who I think the Ducks would like on their team. The reason I do it this way and not based on my own observations is because I don’t get much of a chance to see these kids play. Outside of the World Junior Tournament, I don’t watch a lot of junior hockey and even less international hockey, so I go with what is being said by the people who get to watch these prospects on a daily basis.

The Ducks hold seven picks in the draft: sixth overall, 27th overall, 36th overall, 67th overall, 104th overall, 129th overall, and 160th overall.

Before I get to my prediction, a bit of background on the 2020 Draft. The New York Rangers will almost certainly take winger Alexis Lafreniere 1st overall. The Kings and Senators pick second and third, and they will be taking center Quinton Byfield and center/winger Tim Stutzle. The draft really begins with the fourth pick, held by the Detroit Red Wings. From fourth through eighth or ninth, there is a group of players who are very close in terms of skill level.

The Ducks say they have a philosophy of drafting the best player available, and, for the most part, I do think that is true. However, if Anaheim feels they need to really upgrade a particular position, I do believe that the Ducks will draft based on positional need in their prospect pool. So if they have a winger and a defenseman ranked at a similar spot, they will take the player who helps fill in their prospect system better.

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That philosophy has led to Anaheim selecting several forwards over the last couple of years since the team was so well stocked with young defensemen and a need to replace the offense of aging stars like Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Based on Anaheim’s current prospect group, the Ducks have a deep group down the middle, led by Trevor Zegras, Isac Lundestrom, and Benoit-Olivier Groulx. Anaheim’s left-wingers are led by Maxime Comtois and Brayden Tracey. However, Anaheim is much weaker on the right side and I expect them to take at least one or two right-wingers in this draft. At the draft last year, Anaheim really worked on rebuilding its defensive pipeline and may have hit on a couple of gems in Jackson LaCombe and Henry Thrun, to go along with Josh Mahura and the recently acquired Axel Andersson.

One other note about defense. While the 2020 NHL Draft is not expected to be strong on the backend, the 2021 NHL Draft is. If the Ducks think they will get another mid to high first-round pick in 2021, they may want to try to get a stud defenseman then and focus on getting a forward this time around. In net, Anaheim’s best prospect is Lukas Dostal; he was the best goaltender in the Liiga last season.

Bob Murray has been the GM of the Ducks since 2009, and since 2010, he has chosen Nick Ritchie, Shea Theodore, Hampus Lindholm, Rickard Rakell, Emerson Etem, Cam Fowler, Jacob Larsson, Max Jones, Sam Steel, Lundestrom, Zegras, and Tracey.

A few things stick out about those picks. If Murray takes a defenseman, it’ll be a good skater with a good offensive upside. His forwards are a little more of a mixed group. Steel and Zegras are playmaking centers, while Rakell is a two-time 30 goal winger who was drafted as a center. Ritchie and Jones are power forwards, while Etem was more known for his speed.

Not every pick works out, but Murray has had more luck with drafting defensemen in the first round since three of the four have become NHL regulars. Larsson hasn’t developed into the top four defensemen many had hoped for, but he’s played over 100 NHL games over the last two NHL seasons and was playing some of his best hockey when the season was put on pause.

At forward, Rakell was a good pick, while Etem and Ritchie ended up not panning out. Steel and Jones both played around 60 games for the Ducks this past year; hopefully, their offensive game will come around this coming season. It’s too soon to evaluate Zegras, Tracey, and Lundestrom, though I’m hopeful all three will work out. Zegras in particular has a lot of people excited to see what he can do in the NHL.

Who Will Anaheim Draft 6th?

Now, on to my prediction, and this assumes that the Ducks don’t make any trades. With the sixth overall pick, there are going to be at least three really good players available, possibly more if a team in front of Anaheim goes off the board with their pick. I believe Anaheim will be hoping to draft one of the following players: defenseman Jamie Drysdale, center Cole Perfetti, center Marco Rossi, winger Alexander Holtz, or winger Lucas Raymond. Most scouts and mock drafts have these five players going right around where the Ducks are picking, and I think Anaheim would be happy with any of them. Two of them will likely be gone by the time the Ducks make their selection, but at least three of them should still be available.

Drysdale is the top defenseman in the draft. Even more importantly, he’s a right-handed shot. Virtually every team in the NHL is always looking to add a highly-skilled right-handed defenseman. Perfetti is one of the top passers in the draft and one of the smartest players as well. He had 74 assists in 61 games last season. Rossi just dominated the OHL last season and was one of the best forwards in the CHL overall. He had 120 points in 56 games. Holtz might be the best pure goal scorer in the draft. Raymond may not be quite as talented as some of the other players, but he’s one of the most complete players in the draft. Both Holtz and Raymond played in the SHL as 17 year-olds, so their offensive numbers aren’t quite as impressive as the other players, but playing against men at that age really helped speed their development along.

With the sixth overall pick, the Anaheim Ducks will select Lucas Raymond. Besides a potentially elite talent level, he’s a prototypical Murray draft pick. He’s a Swedish player who plays a strong 200-foot game. He doesn’t shy away from physical play and is willing to go into the corners. He also has one of the highest hockey IQ’s of any player in the draft. Raymond doesn’t really have any glaring weaknesses and is just a very well-rounded player. As an added bonus, given his experience having already played in professional leagues, Raymond could be NHL ready once the 2020-2021 season begins. If Raymond is taken in the top five, then I think the Ducks will take either Rossi or Drysdale, but if they have their choice, I do believe that their target is Raymond.

Related Articles:

Draft Prospect Profile: Lucas Raymond

Draft Prospect Profile: Tim Stutzle

Draft Prospect Profile: Marco Rossi

Draft Prospect Profile: Alexander Holtz

Draft Prospect Profile: Jamie Drysdale

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October 5th, 2020