5th Overall: Montreal Canadiens - Anton Silayev, D/Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod
I’m unsure of whether the Canadiens and their fans would want to see their team draft yet another defenseman at No. 5, especially if Cole Eiserman, Cayden Lindstrom, or Ivan Demidov are still there. But this pick would let us dream up a potential pairing between Anton Silayev and David Reinbacher, so while counterintuitive, it makes sense, too.
6th Overall: Utah Hockey Club - Konsta Helenius, C/Jukurit
While I’m surprised there are quite a few top-five caliber players on the board here, I wouldn’t criticize the Utah Hockey Club for going in this direction. Konsta Helenius was simply too good at the pro level last year, so suppose the more likely Celebrini, Levshunov, Demidov, Lindstrom, and Eiserman lineup occurs next Friday; you can argue Helenius should be the next one off the board.
7th Overall: Ottawa Senators - Zayne Parekh, D/Saginaw Spirit
While this pick would come at the expense of letting another, and better option, fall past the Ottawa Senators at No. 7 overall, I couldn’t criticize this pick too much. No, Zayne Parekh won’t help his team win in the NHL by putting up big numbers all the time, but once he masters a two-way game, someone will be glad they drafted him.
8th Overall: Seattle Kraken - Artyom Levshunov, D/Michigan State
The first in a string of four prospects who managed to freefall in this simulation, the Seattle Kraken would snag the best blueliner in this draft if this situation really played out next week. Most likely, he’s not falling past the No. 2 pick or the No. 3 pick at the absolute furthest, but even when Levshunov is off the board, there will still be a good deal of blueliners available.