Senators willing to move back from No. 21 in NHL draft - if the price is right
The Ottawa Senators scouting staff is ready for every scenario.
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With the first round of the first decentralized National Hockey League draft since 2020 — which was due to the COVID-19 pandemic — set for Friday night, chief amateur scout Don Boyd will be huddled with the club's staff in the Senators makeshift war room in the dressing room at the Canadian Tire Centre.
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While the top prospects will be in Los Angeles, Steve Staios — the club's president of hockey operations and general manager — along with Boyd and the scouting staff, will conduct the annual crapshoot virtually, with the Senators holding the No. 21 selection overall in Round 1.
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Boyd, chief European scout Mikko Ruutu and the club's amateur staff have been huddled in a board room since Tuesday, pouring over their lists for the draft, which will continue with Rounds 2-7 on Saturday.
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'I'm out of the room right now and, when I go back, there will probably have been 42 changes,' Boyd said, only half-jokingly.
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Boyd is confident the Senators will get a good player at No. 21, no matter what happens in front of them.
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'First of all, we're going to look for some people with hockey sense and some skill level, and I think they're there,' Boyd said during a pre-draft availability on Wednesday at the rink. 'There are four or five or six guys in our area that'll still be available.
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'You never know with the draft, but we've pretty much narrowed.
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'You know, we didn't ever know with the draft, but we've pretty much narrowed it down to the top 16-to-18 people, and that usually becomes a part of our pick process there.'
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There are kinds of different draft scenarios available, but the most reliable lists are made by TSN's Bob McKenzie and the network's director of scouting, Craig Button. McKenzie revealed his top 80 players on Monday and Button released his mock draft on Wednesday.
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Button had the Senators selecting Blainville-Boisbriand Armada winger Justin Carbonneau from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with the No. 21 selection. He finished second in the league in scoring with 89 points and was tied for second with 49 goals.
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Button also had Wisconsin defenceman Logan Hensler, Windsor Spitfires centre Jack Nesbitt, Swedish centre Milton Gastrin, and Moose Jaw winger Lynden Lakovic being taken in that area.
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