There's something close to a consensus that there's a fall-off in talent at the No. 14 pick in this year's NHL draft, one that's evident in our latest mock draft posted Friday. Some scouts will say the draft is 12-deep and a couple I've spoken to, generous souls, will pin it at 15 or 16. Fourteen, though, is the number mentioned most. (This doesn't include goaltenders.) The buzz among scouts is that GMs are networking hard and trying to gauge their chances of moving up into the top 14 and preferably the top 12.
Colorado is lucky to own two picks in the top 14: the second overall and No. 11, which came over in the still unfathomable multi-player trade that sent Kevin Shattenkirk and Chris Stewart to St Louis. Some execs think that even the Avalanche will seek a forward with their second pick and might look to trade up from No. 11 in the event that there's the expected run on that position from the third pick through No. 10. The presumption is that Avalanche want Adam Larsson at No. 2. Landing two picks in the top 10 would require Colorado to give up a live body, because the team doesn't have picks in the second or third round.
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Grant Sonier
Grant Sonier has scouted for six NHL organizations over the past 13 years, most recently for the Atlanta Thrashers during the 2010-11 season. He is a special contributor to ESPN Insider.
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Victoria Matiash
Victoria Matiash has served as a Fantasy Hockey columnist for ESPN.com since 2007, and contributor to NHL Rumor Central since 2010. She lives in Toronto.
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