With roughly a week to go before the NHL Draft, it’s time to have more fun and concoct scenarios that wouldn’t just allow the Boston Bruins to regain a first-round pick, but a pick in the top 12. And how this can happen involves a simple formula: Just trade Linus Ullmark to a team with a top-12 pick, and that was my scenario when concocting this NHL mock draft simulation via FC Hockey.
The team with the 12th pick is currently the Philadelphia Flyers, and that’s whose pick I used in the simulation, except it was instead for the Bruins. Why No. 12? There is a good chance the Flyers and the Ottawa Senators end up trading spaces in the draft, as Ariel Melendez gave us insight on over at Broad Street Buzz.
A scenario of how the Boston Bruins can land the No. 12 pick
So, let’s assume Philadelphia and Ottawa are involved in a trade that involves the former moving up to the seventh pick and the latter moving down to the 12th pick. And with that pick, the Senators trade it for Linus Ullmark, as they have been in the rumor mill to try and trade for the accomplished goaltender.
I’ll keep the overall trade package rather simple here (unlike the Brady Tkachuk trade proposal from earlier in the month, which is one of a few possible scenarios), and we’ll just include a swap of the 12th overall pick. Which the Senators own in this scenario for Ullmark, even if there would likely be other assets involved in such a package.
But they aren’t the primary purposes of this mock draft, so I’ll spare the details. Instead, let’s dive into, if the Bruins landed the 12th pick in this scenario, who they should draft, and why they would make an outstanding and exciting fit for the prospect pool in a scenario where the following 11 players are already off the board.
San Jose Sharks: Macklin Celebrini, C/Boston University
You won’t find a single mock draft anywhere that has the San Jose Sharks rolling with anyone other than Macklin Celebrini. At this point, they may as well just put the Blackhawks on the clock.
Chicago Blackhawks: Berkly Catton, C/Spokane Chiefs
Honestly, Artyom Levshunov is the ‘should pick’ player here, but the excitement and upside Berkly Catton brings would make me give this pick an A-plus if it occurred. You’ll have a playmaker in Catton teaming up with an all-around generational talent in Connor Bedard in time, in such a scenario, and it’s a pick that would fully turn the Chicago Blackhawks around.