The Best Draft In Years?

The forecasts of (mostly anonymous) scouts and excitable reporters must be regarded with skepticism. But for what it's worth, the 2003 cattle call was labelled by many as the deepest NHL Entry Draft in a decade.

The assistant general manager of the Minnesota Wild certainly thought so: "Last year, we were picking eighth and our elite group of players was seven guys," Tom Thompson told Eric Duhatschek of the Toronto Globe and Mail. "This year, we're picking 20th and we have 23 people in our elite group."

The Wild ended up with Brent Burns, a giant (6'4", 210 pounds) right winger from Ontario.

As always, size was a pivotal factor on draft day, as a parade of hulking 18-year-olds marched down the aisle. But in recent years teams have shown more willingness to sacrifice pounds and inches for skill, as evidenced in the selection of players like Nikolai Zherdev, Robert Nillson and Zach Parise, all of whom can fit comfortably through doorways.

For the second time in four years, a goaltender was called down first. Marc-Andre Fleury, selected by Pittsburgh after an exchange of picks with Florida, plays the butterfly style with great athletic flair, suggesting a potential hybrid of Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy.

But goaltenders develop so slowly that it is foolish to speculate on the future of an 18-year-old. Fleury has raw materials and a short resume. His junior statistics are ordinary - presumably the result of playing for a poor team. He shone at the World Junior Championship, but did that brief tournament represent the Fleury of the future? It could be another decade before we know the answer. Who knows what the game - or the art of goaltending - will look like by then?

The Montreal Canadiens took what might be the most interesting gamble, selecting Andrei Kastsitsyn with the 10th choice. Kastsitsyn reportedly suffers from seizures and anxiety attacks (given the crushing pressure these teenagers are under, it's a wonder more of them don't display such symptoms). At one point he was believed to have epilepsy. So his health is an obvious question mark. On the other hand, many call him the best pure talent of the entire draft.

In the end, the 2003 NHL Entry Draft looked like most other years: lots of wild trade rumors, but no deals of note; a good deal of talk about "upside;" every GM claiming "we got the guy we wanted;" lots of proud pops and teary moms, hugs and kisses, gawky smiles and handshakes.

Now everyone goes back to reality. As suggested last summer, it will be another five to ten years before we really know what to make of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.