Although Mike Grier has made no secret of his intentions to pick Macklin Celebrini with the first overall pick, his plans for the team’s other first-rounder, at #14 #11 overall, are far murkier. The general manager of the Sharks has expressed a willingness to move up or down, depending on the state of play on draft day, and has repeatedly said that he is likely to take the best player available to him in that range rather than drafting for positional need.
That might not be the answer fans want to hear, given the paucity of talent on defense — of the Sharks’ current prospects, only Shakir Mukhamadullin grades as a likely top-four defender, and arguably only Luca Cagnoni has true top-pairing offensive upside (which his size may prevent him from ever reaching).
If Carter Yakemchuk is available, however, San Jose could kill two birds with one stone.
Carter Yakemchuk, D – Calgary Hitmen (WHL)
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 201 lbs.
Age/DOB: 18, September 29, 2005
Shoots: Right
Calgary Hitmen (WHL): 66 games, 71 points (30 G, 41 A)
The defender enjoyed one of the most productive draft seasons by a WHL defenseman in recent memory, with 30 goals and 71 points for the Calgary Hitmen. Armed with an imposing physique, with a 6’3” frame weighing 203 pounds, Yakemchuk very much looks like the prototypical top-of-the-lineup defenseman whose potential makes general managers salivate.
The case against Yakemchuk
Of course, if he were truly NHL-ready and didn’t have serious holes in his game, he would rival Celebrini for the first overall pick rather than being in discussions for teams picking outside the top ten. While some focus will be put on his flawed skating mechanics, the real reason for Yakemchuk’s fall has more to do with his defensive awareness and on-ice IQ, especially in his own end.
At this age, offensively gifted defensemen often have major issues in their own end, as they find themselves cheating on plays or caught unawares while looking for an outlet up the ice, and Yakemchuk is no different. This is a big reason why he is rated as the sixth of the “Big Six” defensive prospects in this year’s class, behind Artyom Levshunov, Zeev Buium, Zayne Parekh, Anton Silayev and Sam Dickinson.
The case for Yakemchuk
With that said, production of Yakemchuk’s level is truly rare. Very few junior hockey defensemen have ever come close to matching his production, and offensive output in the lower leagues is usually among the best predictors of future NHL success. Yakemchuk’s high-end skill would give the Sharks another potent weapon on offense while filling a position that they are extremely thin on. He has drawn comparisons to Evan Bouchard for his upside, and the style of play is quite similar.
If he is available with the 14th pick, there’s a good chance that the Sharks go for him, especially given Grier’s focus on upside. Young prospects can grow and learn, and there’s simply too much offensive skill with Yakemchuk to expect him to fall too far, especially given his size. Perhaps nothing showcases the range of opinions on him better than pre-draft rankings; some put him as high as #3, while others place him in the teens.
But each scout says that this is a prospect with breathtaking levels of upside, and if he is still undrafted by the time the Sharks come up on the board again, they might get two prospects who are graded as top-three talents in the entire draft class.
