A team with another too-early playoff exit in their recent past gets to the podium with the number 23 pick, and whoever goes in that spot will be a project that they won’t expect to make an impact for a couple of seasons at least.
#23 – WASHINGTON CAPITALS
May 13, 2013; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) stands on the ice after the Capitals game against the New York Rangers in game seven of the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Verizon Center. The Rangers won 5-0 and won the series 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
TEAM STRENGTHS: dynamic offensive players, solid goaltending
TEAM WEAKNESSES: skilled grit, top defensive prospects
HOCKEY’S FUTURE ORGANIZATIONAL PROSPECT RANK: 25th of 30 teams
UNDER CONSIDERATION: Josh Morrisey, Ryan Hartman, Andre Burakovsky, Laurent Dauphin, Morgan Klimchuk, Ryan Pulock
FANSIDED MOCK DRAFT PICK: Stars & Sticks selected Zachary Fucale
SENSHOT’S CHOICE: Ryan Pulock from the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL. The Capitals have a dearth of quality defensive prospects, and would be happy to get the hard shooting Pulock at #23. He will be a top 4 defenseman who would be a nice foil for Mike Green in the future. He already has over 210 lbs on his 6′ frame, and is a decent but not great skater.
SENSHOT’S MOCK DRAFT TO DATE (click on team to view the selection):
| PICK | TEAM | PICK |
| 1 | COLORADO | Seth Jones, Portland (WHL) |
| 2 | FLORIDA | Jonathan Drouin, Halifax (QMJHL) |
| 3 | TAMPA | Nathan MacKinnon, Halifax (QMJHL) |
| 4 | NASHVILLE | Valeri Nichushkin, Chelijabinsk 2 (KHL) |
| 5 | CAROLINA | Darnell Nurse, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) |
| 6 | CALGARY | Sean Monahan, Ottawa (OHL) |
| 7 | EDMONTON | Nikita Zadorov, London (OHL) |
| 8 | BUFFALO | Max Domi, London (OHL) |
| 9 | NEW JERSEY | Alexsander Barkov, Tappera (FIN) |
| 10 | DALLAS | Hunter Shinkaruk, Medicine Hat (WHL) |
| 11 | PHILADELPHIA | Zachary Furcale, Halifax (QMJHL) |
| 12 | PHOENIX | Anthony Mantha, Val D’Or (QMJHL) |
| 13 | WINNIPEG | Elias Lindholm, Brynas (SEL) |
| 14 | COLUMBUS | Bo Horvat, London (OHL) |
| 15 | NYI | Adam Erne, Quebec (QMJHL) |
| 16 | BUFFALO | Frederik Gauthier, Rimouski (QMJHL) |
| 17 | OTTAWA | Robert Hagg, Modo (SEL) |
| 18 | DETROIT | Alexander Wennburg, Djurgardens (SEL) |
| 19 | COLUMBUS | Samuel Morin, Rimouski (QMJHL) |
| 20 | SAN JOSE | Kerby Rychel, Windsor (OHL) |
| 21 | TORONTO | Rasmus Ristolainen, Turko (FIN) |
| 22 | CALGARY | Nicolas Petan, Portland (WHL) |
| 22 | WASHINGTON | Ryan Pulock, Brandon (WHL) |