Wow, FC Hockey’s mock draft simulator decided to be generous this time, as I played general manager Doug Armstrong’s role once again in Mock Draft 3.0 for the St. Louis Blues. As in the previous two mocks, I used the simulator and set it to where I would pick only for St. Louis, and yeah, I landed not one, not two, BUT THREE first-round talents in this mock.
And better yet, they were all defensemen, something I’ve been hoping the simulator would give me a chance to take at 16th overall as opposed to a high-upside forward. That wasn’t the case in the first couple of mocks, but it was worth the wait here, especially with those first two picks featuring a pair of dynamic two-way blueliners.
16th Overall: Carter Yakemchuk, D/Calgary Hitmen
Just a few short days ago, I wrote an extended report on Carter Yakemchuk, and here we are in Mock Draft 3.0, with him falling to the Blues. While I’m still on the fence about whether he would actually be available for St. Louis in real life, if he is, Doug Armstrong will have his name written down long before the Blues draft time runs out in Round 1.
48th Overall: Henry Mews, D/Ottawa 67’s
Henry Mews is another player who I wouldn’t anticipate falling this far, but for the purposes of this mock draft, he’s going to the Blues at 48th overall. And if you think Yakemchuk is a great two-way player, Mews is in the same mold, with 15 goals and 61 points in the regular season for Ottawa, and he also found twine twice and had five assists in seven games at the World Juniors for Team Canada.
56th Overall: Charlie Elick, D/Brandon Wheat Kings
This was literally a dream scenario, as I was saying to the other teams in this simulation, “Don’t pick Elick, don’t pick Elick, don’t pick Elick!” And guess what? They didn’t. Elick ranked 38th overall, per FC Hockey’s rankings, so once again, another potential first-rounder, this one falling all the way to 56th overall.