My Version of Draft Analysis

If you have ever read this blog before (or even glanced at its name), you know what kind of hockey players I like - big, tough, gritty players who win by physical punishment and force of will rather than fancy feats of skating prowess. It's been that way ever since I can remember watching hockey; I've always gravitated towards the worker bees and tough guys.

Therefore, it should be no surprise to anyone that all who know me and my hockey preferences have been coming up to me in the last couple of days saying the same thing:

"You must be really happy with the draft this year."

Let's see: The Sabres used their first-round pick on Zack Kassian, labelled the toughest player in the draft. They drafted no player under 6'1, 187 lbs. They took the son of a former captain, a young player that has been compared to my favorite player.

Yeah, I'd say "happy" pretty much covers it.

I know that there's a chance that some of these kids will never see the NHL. Even the best probably won't be on the team right away. Still, though, the team at least acted like they know what they are sorely lacking right now. They addressed their needs, which is all you can really evaluate in the NHL draft.

With all that being said, I now present "Katie's Completely Unnecessary Guide to the Sabres 2009 Draft Picks":

1. Zack Kassian

• States that his shootout move is a "shot" - I love a guy who doesn't over-think things.
• Favorite restaurant is Applebee's - This boy needs to be introduced to the Buffalo culinary scene. Now.
• Calls himself "the guy that just sits at home and plays video games" - Is there any way we can keep him away from Tim Connolly at training camp every year? He needs to stay this innocent boy and not be introduced to the debauchery of Chippewa.

3. Brayden McNabb

• Hails from the beautiful town of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. You know who else calls Saskatoon home?

Colby Armstrong. This automatically makes him fantastic just by proximity to my favorite non-Sabre NHL player.

• Likes Harry Potter books - he would have earned even more points with me if he would have specifically said Prisoner of Azkaban.
• Patterns his game after Calgary's Robin Regehr. I love Regehr's ability to stay relatively unnoticed, which is a good thing for a defensive defenseman. I became a big fan of his two years ago, so it's nice to see him mentioned by one of our prospects.

4. Marcus Foligno

• Was born August 10, 1991 - We share a birthday! But he's three years younger than I am and getting more press than I will ever receive. Oh well, I'll look past the bitterness and enjoy the fact that I now actually know someone with my birthday.
• Was compared to Paul Gaustad, which automatically makes him my new favorite prospect. However, this comparison was about how he needs to work on his skating just like Goose did. Still, though, if he has the work ethic of his dad, I think he'll succeed just like Goose did.

5. Mark Adams

• Smallest Sabres draft pick this year
• Still in high school - God, I feel so old!

6. Connor Knapp

• Undecided major at Miami (Ohio) University
• As a goalie at 6'5, 215 lbs., he makes Ryan Miller (6'2, 166 lbs.) seem like even more of a twig than we already thought he was.

7. Maxime Legault

• Plays for the Shawinigan Cataractes of the QMJHL, the same team Jason Pomiville played for.
• Is only about a year younger than I am (5/28/89), which makes me feel somewhat better about myself.

Question for all of you Facebook users out there - now that these boys are so much younger than I am, is it creepy to request to be their friend? I'd appreciate any and all opinions on this very important matter (because I know how much this matters to all of my readers...or not...).