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Anaheim Ducks: 2019 First Round NHL Mock Draft

By Jonathan Maxfield

KELOWNA, CANADA - DECEMBER 2: Peyton Krebs #19 of the Kootenay Ice skates to the bench against the Kelowna Rockets on December 2, 2017 at Prospera Place in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Marissa Baecker/Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***
KELOWNA, CANADA - DECEMBER 2: Peyton Krebs #19 of the Kootenay Ice skates to the bench against the Kelowna Rockets on December 2, 2017 at Prospera Place in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Marissa Baecker/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** /
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Anaheim Ducks
VICTORIA, BC – FEBRUARY 24: Bowen Byram #44 of the Vancouver Giants skates during a Western Hockey League game against the Victoria Royals at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre on February 24, 2019, in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Kevin Light/Getty Images) /

4th Overall: Colorado Avalanche

Canada -- Vancouver Giants. Bowen Byram. 103. Scouting Report. Defense. 4. player. Pick Analysis

The Avalanche find themselves in quite an enviable position. They were just in the 2nd round of the playoffs, and yet still have a Top 5 pick thanks to some shrewd GM work by Joe Sakic, and it doesn’t stop there. In addition to having a Top 5 pick, the Avalanche possess one of the most daunting forward corps in the league that boasts Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, Tyson Jost, Alexander Kerfoot, Vladislav Kamenev, J.T. Compher, Mikko Rantanen and Shane Bowers, who all except Gabe Landeskog (who is 26) are under the age of 25.

The Avalanche are in a position to dominate for years to come up front. Their defense, on the other hand, is a bit lacking, they do have Cale Makar and Samuel Girard, the former of which is one of the most highly touted defensive prospects in the league. However, beyond that their defensive crop is fairly “meh.”

An aging Erik Johnson, a good but not elite Tyson Barrie, and a bunch of other “guys”, the Avs could use another blue-chip defensive prospect and Bowen Byram is without a doubt the best prospect in this draft. A defender who screams “top pairing guy”, Byram will be a welcome addition to the Avs and a team with a string of good decisions recently makes another one here.

5th Overall: L.A. Kings

Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. USA -- USNTDP. Trevor Zegras. player. 67. Center. 5

The Kings are likely hoping that Bowen Byram is still here (and if the Avs take Zegras or another player 4th, which is a distinct possibility I think Byram will go 5th) but they will be happy to take Trevor Zegras. The Kings had a disastrous season and were looking to retain their 2nd overall selection entering the draft lottery, only to plummet down to 5th.

The Kings could really use a defender, with an aging core and not much in the way of blue-chip defensive prospects, one could argue that Mikey Anderson or Kale Clague are great prospects, but I have a hard time seeing them as future top line defenders. But when you’re in the Top 5 you don’t draft according to need, you draft according to best player available, and the truth is there’s not a defender that I think is worth taking in the top 10 outside of Byram. So, it’d be a real stretch for the Kings to take one, even if they desperately need it.

Instead, they’ll get Trevor Zegras which will add to their wealth of promising young forward prospects and I’d argue that he would immediately become #1 (or #2 if you’re a big Gabe Vilardi fan) best prospect. An elite playmaker, Zegras has all the tools to be a #1 center in the NHL and learning from Anze Kopitar would be a blessing for the high skill center.

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