Anaheim Ducks Draft Jake Gardiner After Busy First Day at The Draft
To begin the draft for Anaheim, they made a trade for the 17th and 28th overall picks with Los Angeles after the Kings made a trade with Calgary sending Mike Cammalleri to Calgary for two picks for the Kings.
At 17th overall, the Ducks drafted Jake Gardiner, a defenseman from Minnesota. He played forward for three of his high school seasons and switched to defense during his senior year. Due to the position change Gardiner is a very offensively strong blue liner.
He finished fifth in goals (20) and assists (28) in the Classic Lake Division, leading all other Minnetonka players. His 48 points placed him third overall among Minnesota high school defensemen in scoring. Next season Gardiner will be playing for the University of Wisconsin.
Audio Interview with Jake Gardiner: http://ducks.nhl.com/ext//R09_0054.MP3
Personally, i never paid any attention to this kid, but he seems to be a good fit for the Ducks. I'm not sure why the Ducks felt the need to get involved with the Kings/Flames deal but whatever. The Ducks got a defenseman which they could use, especially once this kid finishes at the University of Wisconsin. All in all, not a bad draft choice or day for the Ducks
The Ducks finish the day in a deal with Phoenix. The Ducks give up the 28th overall pick for the 35th and 38th. With this deal the Coyotes draft a Russian and the Ducks are done for the day.
12 comments:
What the f was Brian Burke thinking? The trades he made make no sense to me..he could've gotten Tyler Myers at 12, who's a smooth skater in his own right, plus he's got the size. Then trading the 28th for two 2nd rounders? Oh well, In Burke we trust.
Then trading the 28th for two 2nd rounders?
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You make that sound a bit worse than it is, anon. Both picks he acquired for the 28th are within 10 selections of the selection he dealt.
It always seemed to me like this draft was more about refilling the cupboard than it was trying to hit a home run with a prospect. Doubly so since Bryce Swan spurned their offers. And, as far as that goes, they've done fairly well so far.
Well, I guess I'm still in the mentality that this is what the Ducks are getting for Penner, an NHL regular, and the Ducks are refilling the cupboard with those picks? It will be interesting to see who Burke assembles to be the "Top 6 forwards who can score" this season.
And you're right about 28th for 35th and 38th, it isn't so far to slide down, so let's see what happens.
Plus don't they have like three 2nd round picks overall plus about four 3rd Round picks?
How'd we score all this crap anyway?
Yeah, from what I see Burke turned one pick into three--that's not so bad in an imprecise environment like the draft. It's a roulette move, and seeing as I'm a guy who doesn't research the draft at all, I'm fine with it.
I'm loving the Nicolas Deschamps pick...could be a sleeper. :D
This is my first highly followed draft, and overall i think Burke made risky moves that as of now look for the better of the team. He cashed in alot of picks and i am really excited about Gardiner growing at UW. He will be a great Ducks blueliner
A report I read about Gardiner before the draft on TSN mentioned that one team had him rated in the Top 10 of this draft even though TSN and most other rating services had him in the 20 and 30's.
Now if the Ducks were that team and were able to not only get him at #17 but then eventually pick up the 35th and 39th pick then that is some nice trading.
Of course you have to be right about Gardiner being a top talent part. we'll see.
Gardiner is a strong skater. That you cant teach and after a certain time you can only improve in small portions. his defensive skills will get stronger at UW. I think he will be a great pick. Although Deschamps is more exciting to me.
Ugh, I'm glad he went to a team I'm not bananas about, partially due to the bias I have of being from the archrival of his high school team. That being said, he IS a good skater, but it seems to be Dan Cloutier has better defence than he does at times.
Unless you are Colorado, Detroit or New Jersey, I don't see where getting the extra picks is that helpful. Those are the only teams that seem to consistent pull stars out of their ass.
I strongly believe the Ducks should have used their first rounder to get someone good at the trade deadline. You know, that whole top 6 forward thing which until Selanne makes his official decision, the Ducks only have 3 viable scoring forwards.
I went to the same high school as Gardiner and attend UW with him as well. He will be a great addition to the Ducks, although I wish he had gone to the WIld. He's a great, fast skater, a versatile, smart, and team player, and he makes plays. He's bulking up and still has a couple years left at UW to further improve his game. In high school, he was named all-metro player of the year in minnesota and he just led team USA to gold in the world junior championship tournament. He'll be great and prove it to everyone.
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