Ottawa Will Pick 17th In The NHL Draft In June

With the Senators great season coming to an unfortunate end, it is time to look ahead to the off-season, and first up will be the draft.  With the first 14 spots being pre-determined after the draft lottery among non-playoff teams, the next three spots have been also already been set.  The Islanders will draft 15th, Minnesota 16th and Ottawa 17th.

June 22, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cody Ceci is selected as the number fifteen overall draft pick to the Ottawa Senators in the 2012 NHL Draft at CONSOL Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

So, with the first round being very deep, the Senators will have a lot of options depending on which direction they want to go.

In net, the Senators are pretty solid, with Robin Lehner a great prospect and the future in net.  The Senators drafted two quality netminding prospects at last summer’s draft, so they don’t need to use their first rounder on goaltending.

The forward units should be ok for the future, with prospects like Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Mark Stone, Matt Puempel, Stefan Noesen, Shane Prince all biding for spots in the next couple of years.

Which leads to the blue line.  With possibly Sergei Gonchar and Chris Phillips on the downside of their careers, the shelves need to be stocked.  There are a couple of prospects in the system like Cody Ceci, Swedish blueliners Michael Wickstrand and Frederik Claesson in addition to Mark Borowiecki and the usual suspects that rotated through the lineup this season.

If I were stepping to the podium, I would be inclined to lean towards the best defesnseman available when it comes to the Senators selection.

Defensemen who might be available around that pick might include Mirco Mueller (Everett, WHL); Shea Theodore (Seattle, WHL); Ryan Pulock (Brandon, WHL); Chris Bigras (Owen Sound, OHL); Robert Hagg (Modo Jr., Swe) and Linus Arnesson (Djurgarden Jr., Swe).