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Mighty Ducks 2004 draft review

Written by: Kevin Forbes on 07/02/2004 Subscribe to HF's RSS Feed

The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim went into the 2004 Entry Draft with plenty of questions and organizational holes to address. Their future blueline lacked top end talent, there was a lack of prospects with a combination of size and skill up front and there was virtually no depth between the pipes. However, recent moves had strengthened their defense, there was plenty of depth up front and the quality of the prospects in net had already forced one trade. Therefore, it was hard to pinpoint going in just what organizational needs would be addressed first.

In the first day of the draft, Anaheim focused solely on bolstering their blueline of the future. Even before the draft began, the Ducks were busy acquiring defensive prospects. They traded NHL veteran defenseman Niclas Havelid to the Atlanta Thrashers for prospect blueliner Kurtis Foster. Foster, 22, is a 6'5" giant, who possesses a cannon of a point shot. He is expected to compete for a spot with the NHL club at training camp. The defensive focus continued during the draft as three of the four players picked on the first day were rearguards, while the fourth was a name already familiar to the Ducks organization.

On the second day of drafting, Anaheim's attention shifted elsewhere as three of the four players chosen were forwards and the fourth was the first goaltender drafted by Anaheim in three years. Anaheim ended up drafting eight players, four forwards, three defensemen and a goaltender. Only two picks were European (Czech Republic and Finland, respectively), to go along with four Canadian-born players and two Americans.

Here's a look at the eight players that Anaheim drafted in Raleigh at the 2004 NHL Entry Draft:

Ladislav Smid, Defense, 9th overall (1st round)
Ladislav Smid was ranked fourth among European Skaters by Central Scouting and was the top ranked international defenseman. A Czech native, he is the first European drafted by Anaheim with their first rounder since the departure of former GM Pierre Gauthier two year ago. Given the team's lack of quality depth on the blueline, Smid is a safe pick. He may not be a high-risk, high-reward prospect, but he should still develop into a top pairing defender. One NHL scout told Hockey's Future before the draft that Smid was the best defenseman he had seen from Europe. He was highly sought at the draft; if rumors are true, he was New York Islanders' GM Mike Milbury's much heralded sleeper pick.

An NHL scout described Smid to Hockey's Future as "a little bit of everything." Smid's style of play, with his sound positioning and smooth skating has been compared to Niklas Lidstrom, although Smid probably won't be as successful as the Detroit Red Wings rearguard. Meanwhile, his offensive upside is similar to that of Toronto Maple Leafs blueliner, Tomas Kaberle. Smid had 1 goal and 1 assist in 45 games with HC Bili Tygri Liberec last season. His statistics don't necessarily reflect his scoring capabilities because Smid is playing in the top Czech League. At 6'3", 220 pounds, Smid has good size but he doesn't play the body much. Instead, he uses his positioning and vision to play a solid game in his own end.

"He sees the ice unbelievably, can head man the puck beautifully, has the passing touch and has patience and a good stick," an NHL scout told Hockey's Future. Another scout summed it up by saying "He’s just very efficient. He’s an excellent defenseman."

Smid will return to the Czech Republic for the 2004-05 season and is expected to move to North America for the following season. He should begin to contribute on an NHL level in two years time.

Jordan Smith, Defense, 39th overall (2nd round)
Jordan Smith was ranked 51st in North American Skaters by Central Scouting. A native of Sault Ste. Marie, he plays for the hometown Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League. In 68 games this season, Smith had 26 points and 127 penalty minutes and was named best defenseman for the Greyhounds.
A defensive defenseman, Smith loves to use his 6'1", 207-pound body to play a strong, physical game. He's been compared to current NHL players Bryan Marchment and Adam Foote. Aside from his sound play in his own end, Smith also has some developing offensive skills. Thanks to his skating ability and hard shot, he saw time on both the power play and the penalty kill for the Greyhounds. He logs plenty of minutes on the blueline and is a leader on and off the ice.

Kyle Klubertanz, Defense, 74th overall (3rd round)
Using a draft pick acquired from the Carolina Hurricanes along with Tomas Malec for goaltender Martin Gerber, Anaheim selected feisty rearguard, Kyle Klubertanz. Ranked 98th in North American Skaters by Central Scouting, he doesn't back down from anything, despite his average size (6'0", 178 pounds). His best attribute, however, is his puckmoving skills. He scored 27 points in 57 games for Green Bay of the USHL, which was good enough for third on the team in scoring and sixth in the league in scoring among defensemen. Klubertanz is committed to the University of Wisconsin for next season, where he will strive to improve his defensive play as well as get stronger.

Tim Brent, Center, 75th overall (3rd round)
With the pick immediately following the selection of Klubertanz, the Ducks selected Tim Brent. After another strong year with the Toronto St. Michael's Majors in the OHL, Brent was unable to come to terms with a contract in May, so he re-entered the draft. The Ducks, however, were not about to give up on the 20-year-old that quickly, and they selected him a second time, 39 spots after his first draft position (35th overall in 2002). Brent possesses great skills at both ends of the ice, along with leadership and grit. His 6'0", 175-pound frame holds him back a bit, but his talent and determination should eventually make him a solid second or third line pivot. In 53 games last season with St. Mike's, Brent had 67 points, including 26 goals. He may be able to reach an agreement on a contract for next season, and could start in Cincinnati with the Ducks AHL farm team, possibly even seeing an NHL call up. If not, he can still return to captain the Majors for his final year of junior.

Matt Auffrey, Right Wing, 172nd overall (6th round)
The Ducks dealt both this year's fourth and fifth round selections to Nashville during last year's draft to select blueliner Nathan Saunders, 119th overall in 2003. So the team waited almost 100 selections before going to the podium again to select Matt Auffrey. Rated 152nd in North American Skaters by Central Scouting, Auffrey will join third round selection, Kyle Klubertanz at the University of Wisconsin in the fall. At 6'2" and 203 pounds, Auffrey has power forward potential. He has a great shot and good puckhandling skills, but his skating still needs work and his drive and determination don't always seem to be there. Auffrey had 14 goals and 16 assists for 30 points in 53 games last season with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program U-18 team.

Gabriel Bouthillette, Goaltender, 203rd overall (7th round)
Gabriel Bouthillette was ranked 15th in North American Goaltenders by Central Scouting. He is the first goaltender that Anaheim has drafted since 2001 (Martin Gerber, 232nd overall). A product of the Quebec butterfly goaltending factory, Bouthillette was the top rookie goaltender in the QMJHL in 2003-04. A large goalie (6'4", 200 pounds), he covers a lot of the net but despite his size he still possesses good mobility. He played back up for the Gatineau Olympiques, a team that ended up competing for the Memorial Cup. His record was an impressive 17-2-4 and his 2.20 GAA was tops in the league for goalies appearing in 20 games or more. Meanwhile, his .907 save percentage was 10th in the league for netminders appearing in 20 games or more and his three shutouts tied him for second in the league. Bouthillette was also tied for league lead with 3 assists. He was traded to the Acadie-Bathurst Titan after the season ended where he will have a shot at taking over the starting reigns in place of the departed Adam Russo.

Matt Christie, Center, 236th overall (8th round)
Matt Christie was ranked 109th in North American Skaters by Central Scouting. Although he lacks size (5'10", 192 pounds), Christie is very talented offensively. He led the University of Miami in goals as a freshman with 21 and was named to the CCHA All-Rookie Team. He also led the CCHA in power play goals (six in conference play and eight overall). His size holds him back a bit, but he is fearless and has an acute ability to find open ice. Next season he will be called upon to provide more offense for the Redhawks as well as provide leadership and improve his defensive play.

Janne Pesonen, Right Wing, 269th overall (9th round)
A 22-year-old forward with the 2003-04 Finnish Elite League champions, Karpat Oulu, Pesonen was named rookie of the year. Although slight in stature (5'11" and 180 pounds), Pesonen is a sniper (in 56 games he had 17 goals and 13 assists), who plays an all-weather game. He will play in traffic but isn't much of a force; his real skill are his ability to be in the right place at the right time and wrist a puck into the back of the net. He skates well and is willing to back check, although his defensive play does need work. He also needs to improve his decision making. He isn't ready to compete for a spot on the Ducks just yet, but showed promise in his first year in the Finnish Elite League.

Copyright 2004 Hockey's Future. Do not duplicate without written permission from the editorial staff.

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