This article is exactly what the title suggests. It’s a collection of thoughts heading into draft weekend that never really fit anywhere else over the past two weeks. Some players I never got around to writing about. Some ideas surrounding the fourth overall pick. Some trade thoughts. Some organizational philosophy. And finally, my annual Trey Fix-Wolansky Award for the player I don’t expect to hear called this weekend, the one we’ll all be talking about a few years from now.

1. This isn’t a normal top of the draft

Talking with other public scouts and the handful of contacts I have in NHL scouting departments, I get the overwhelming sense that teams don’t love this draft at the very top.

That’s not to say it’s a bad draft class. In fact, I think it’s one of the deeper drafts we’ve seen in years. But depth and elite talent aren’t the same thing.

Outside of Gavin McKenna and Ivar Stenberg, nearly every player in contention for the fourth overall pick comes with significant questions. Some have limited offensive ceilings. Others have incredible tools but haven’t put everything together. Others still have stylistic concerns that make it incredibly difficult to project them into NHL roles.

That’s why I understand why there’s so much disagreement over who Buffalo should select.

Personally, I’m nervous about the two names that continue to be connected to the Sabres: Caleb Malhotra and Daxon Rudolph.

With Malhotra, I don’t see an NHL center. I understand the appeal of his frame and physical traits, but I think he eventually slides to the wing, where the offensive upside remains the same. Still, the 200-foot impact becomes much less intriguing for a fourth overall selection. Maybe he proves me wrong, but I’d rather swing on more certainty if I’m drafting this high.

Rudolph might be the hardest player in the draft for me to project. There are moments where he looks like a future top-pair defenseman capable of controlling games. Then there are stretches when his offensive decisions become chaotic, and his defense is in shambles. His style is incredibly unorthodox on both sides of the puck, and while some teams will view that as creativity, I see a player with several developmental hurdles still ahead of him.

Maybe both players will become stars.

But fourth overall is where you’re betting on probabilities, not possibilities.

2. I love the draft…but I’d rather cash in these picks

The NHL Draft is my favorite weekend of the year.

I’ve watched hundreds of games. Tracked players for months. Written what feels like a novel over the past few weeks.

And yet…

I hope the Sabres don’t make both first-round picks.

There’s simply nothing available in free agency that moves the needle, and Buffalo is past the point of collecting prospects simply because they can.

This team was one shot away from the Eastern Conference Final. Losing Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram and replacing them internally doesn’t feel like a step forward.

If the Sabres can package the 20th overall pick and additional assets to acquire a legitimate top-four defenseman who’s under team control, I’d do it in a heartbeat.

Prospects are exciting.

Winning playoff rounds is more exciting.

3. I still don’t believe in paying goalies

I don’t believe in investing massive assets or salary cap space into one goaltender.

The position is too volatile.

Connor Hellebuyck is probably the safest bet in the league to deliver elite regular-season goaltending, and even he has struggled to carry that into the postseason consistently. That’s not an indictment of Hellebuyck, it’s just the reality of the position.

Goalies are voodoo.

I’d much rather invest in building an elite team in front of two capable NHL goaltenders and ride whichever one gets hot.

4. The Viggo Bjorck conversation made me happy

I knew when I wrote the Viggo Bjorck article that the odds of Buffalo actually selecting him fourth overall were slim.

That wasn’t really the point.

The point was to challenge how we evaluate players.

At some point, I hope the conversation around size evolves. There’s a massive difference between being small and playing small.

Players like Logan Stankoven, Zach Benson, Victor Eklund, and Viggo Bjorck don’t avoid contact. They initiate it. They win in body positioning. They attack the middle of the ice. They retrieve pucks. They compete like they’re six-foot-three.

Meanwhile, we’ve watched countless bigger players over the years live around the perimeter because they’re physically large but don’t actually leverage their size.

Hopefully, Bjorck continues to prove the conventional wisdom of NHL front offices and casual draft fans wrong.

5. Don’t sleep on Day 2

I genuinely think this draft class is way above average after the first round.

There are going to be players drafted in the fifth and sixth rounds that I think will eventually become NHL players.

I can’t remember saying that very often.

Obviously, the focus has been on the fourth overall pick and what Buffalo does with twentieth overall, but the Sabres absolutely need to find another contributor somewhere on Day 2.

Good organizations consistently uncover value after the first round. If we’re going to be a Cup contender over an extended period of time, we’ve got to get better at drafting players who make the NHL lineup after round 1.

6. My three ideal drafts

Option One: Chase Reid

4.) Chase Reid, RHD, OHL

20.) Mathis Preston, RW, WHL

45.) Chase Harrington, LW, WHL

124.) Vertti Svensk, LHD, U20 SM-sarja

156.) Ryder Fetterolf, G, OHL

188.) Logan Stuart, F, USNTDP

I still think Reid has the highest ceiling of any defenseman in this draft. His mobility, transition game, and offensive instincts give Buffalo something they don’t have on the right side. Preston brings legitimate top-six upside skills and processing in the late-first round, Harrington is a relentless forechecker whose tracking profile screams future scoring NHL middle-six winger, and Svensk might quietly be one of my favorite value bets in the entire draft.

Option Two: Viggo Bjorck

4.) Viggo Bjorck, C, SHL

20.) Tommy Bleyl, RHD, QMJHL

45.) Chase Harrington, LW, WHL

124.) Vertti Svensk, LHD, U20 SM-sarja

156.) Ryder Fetterolf, G, OHL

188.) Noa Ta’amu, LHD, WHL

This is probably my “bet on hockey sense” draft. Bjorck may never become the flashiest player in the class, but I trust his processing, competitiveness, and ability to impact winning more than almost anyone available. Bleyl has quietly become one of my favorite defensemen outside the first tier because of his offensive potential and his ability to move pucks efficiently.

Option Three: Tynan Lawrence

4.) Tynan Lawrence, C, NCAA

20.) Xavier Villeneuve, LHD, QMJHL

45.) Ben MacBeath, LHD, WHL

124.) Evan Jardine, LW, USHL

156.) Ryder Fetterolf, G, OHL

188.) Julien Maze, LW, WHL

Lawrence might have the highest long-term two-way ceiling of anyone Buffalo could realistically draft at four. Villeneuve is my homerun swing and brings instant offense once he steps on the ice, while MacBeath gives you another steady defender whose game translates well to NHL systems.

7. Five mid-round forwards I love

These are five forwards I’d happily swing on because they all combine offensive upside with motors that never seem to quit.

• Pierce Mbuyi, LW, OHL
• Beckett Hamilton, C, WHL
• Rudolfs Berzkalns, C, USHL
• Jordan Duguay, F, WHL
• Tyus Sparks, F, WHL

If one of these players dramatically outperforms where they’re drafted five years from now, I won’t be surprised.

8. Five defensemen worth targeting

If you’re looking for future third or fourth defensemen that could carve out long NHL careers, I’d be targeting:

• Giorgos Pantelas, RHD, WHL
• Tomas Galvas, LHD, Czechia
• Landon Nycz, LHD, NCAA
• Alexander Bilecki, LHD, OHL
• Bode Laylin, RHD, USHL

9. Three players I’d happily “reach” for

• Adam Valentini, W, NCAA
• Beckett Hamilton, C, WHL
• Ethan MacKenzie, LHD, WHL

These are three players I’d pound the table for a round earlier than public lists suggest.

10. Trey Fix-Wolansky Award: Quinn McKenzie

Every year, there’s one player I become convinced will slip through the draft despite having NHL qualities.

This year’s winner is Quinn McKenzie.

McKenzie was one of the biggest reasons for the Soo’s success whenever he was on the ice. He’s one of the most defensively responsible centers I watched in the CHL all season while also driving transition and quietly producing offense.

He’s only 5-foot-10.

His puck skill isn’t dynamic.

He’s not going to wow anyone in one-on-one drills.

Which is exactly why I think he’ll go undrafted.

McKenzie is a player who consistently made the right read, arrived first to loose pucks, supported his teammates, and tilted the ice in their favor shift after shift.

He’s heading to Penn State this fall, and I wouldn’t be shocked if, three or four years from now, he’s one of those NCAA free agents that suddenly everyone is trying to sign, asking, “How did this guy not get drafted?”

11. Have fun this weekend!

NHL draft weekend is like freaking Christmas for me. It’s my favorite weekend of the year. Enjoy it. Revel in the rumors. Tell me I should be running the Sabres draft. Tell me my opinions are dumb. I love it all.

Regardless of what happens this weekend, remember that draft grades are for entertainment, not evaluation. We’re going to see draft selections that will surprise us, and every year, players taken in the 2nd round+ outperform lottery picks. That’s part of the reason I love the NHL draft. Today, we all think we know exactly how this draft will unfold. By the end of tomorrow, it will turn out that none of us know what we’re talking about. Enjoy the chaos, y’all.

Photo Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images