Luckily, this wasn’t posted until after Rochester acquired the second overall pick today, so these picks do reflect that trade. Due to late editions, we were not able to Josh Johnson or Haodais Maracle, but both would have been early second rounders.
FIRST ROUND
1. Edmonton: Ben McIntosh– Ranked #1 overall, Derek Keenan, now the NLL general manager and head coach of the year, has basically said he wants to take Ben McIntosh. The pick makes a ton of sense for them and it’ll be interesting with his brother Garrett on the rival Calgary Roughnecks.
2. Rochester: Miles Thompson– Ranked #3 overall, I had Eli McLaughlin in this slot to Vancouver and then for a while, Jeremy Noble to Rochester, but now it makes a lot of sense to add Miles Thompson. He’s one of the most electric players in the game and now they need to replace Johnny Powless.
3. Minnesota: Jeremy Noble- Ranked #2 overall, Minnesota might get their wish after all. They wanted to trade for that second pick to get Noble, and so did Colorado, but now it seems the Swarm can still get their guy if the Knighthawks take Thompson.
4. Colorado: Robert Hope- Ranked #6 overall, there’s a chance the Mammoth grab McLaughlin while they can but they do love Hope, and he had a fantastic combine. I think they stay with the guy they want. He’s the best defender in the draft and the Mammoth have an older defense core.
5. Minnesota: Eli McLaughlin- Rankled #4 overall, if McLaughlin falls here there is no doubt the Swarm take him. This could be a very good first round for Minnesota, once again, even though they traded their top pick.
6. Calgary: Mark Cockerton- Ranked at #5, if Cockerton had played more box this year, he could have been a top pick. Nonetheless, Calgary won’t be disappointed with him if they put him in a small role as a rookie. He might not have the same campaign as Karen Leung or Garrett McIntosh but he should be a roster player.
7. Edmonton: Sheldon Burns- Ranked at #8 overall, Edmonton appreciates good defense and they might actually get better in 2015. Someone like Burns they can put right into their system and watch him develop into their next Kyle Rubisch.
8. Calgary: Ty Thompson- Ranked at #7, I originally had both the Thompsons in Calgary but that changed with the Rochester pick. For the Roughnecks adding both Ty and Cockerton it would be a good rookie class, and they get two Rochester Rattlers from the MLL as well.
9. Vancouver: Dan Keane- Ranked at #9, Keane is a very good scorer and not afraid to play in front of the net. Can add a youthful presence to a veteran Stealth offense.
