A year after selecting John Tavares with the No. 1 overall pick, the New York Islanders once again found themselves at the top of the NHL draft. With a pair of highly-touted defensemen still on the board, including Brandon Gormley and Cam Fowler, the Islanders instead decided to go offense and selected Swiss forward Nino Niederreiter with the No. 5 overall pick. By going fifth overall, Niederreiter becomes the highest drafted Swiss player ever, and it's another positive step for a country that has consistently become more competitive on the international stage in recent years.
"I'm trying to be a scorer one day," said Niederreiter, who believes he can make the Islanders roster this fall. "At the moment, I think I'm a two-way player with some skills and also defensively. At the end, I just want to be a goal-scorer."
“Our goal has constantly been to add the best player into our lineup that will help us build our young core into a team that consistently competes for the Stanley Cup,” Snow said. “Nino was extremely impressive in the World Junior Championships playing for Team Switzerland, using his size to create space. He is a big power-forward who will add size to our lineup for years to come.”
At 6-foot-2 and already over 200 pounds, he has plenty of size and is effective doing dirty work along the boards, as well as having the ability to make plays in the open ice.
He may not be NHL-ready at the moment, but in the not-too-distant future the Islanders should have a rather impressive stable of young forwards, as Niederreitter joins a franchise that already has Tavares, Kyle Okposo, and Josh Bailey, all of whom are under the age of 23 (Okposo is the "old man" of the group at 22).
Niederreiter is the fifth player in Islanders history selected fifth overall. Other Islanders drafted fifth overall in the NHL Entry Draft include Raffi Torres (2000), Tim Connolly (1999), Eric Brewer (1997) and Darius Kasparaitis (1992).
To put a cap on the night, the Islanders acquired the 30th overall selection from the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for the 35th and 58th selection. With that pick, the Islanders selected 19-year-old center Brock Nelson from Warroad High School in Minnesota.
In 25 games with Warroad HS, Nelson recorded a point in every game, notching 39 goals and 34 assists. He was one of 10 finals for the Mr. Hockey Award, which is given to the most outstanding senior high school hockey player in the state of Minnesota.
Nelson will also attend the University of North Dakota next season.
"North Dakota is a great place with a storied hockey tradition," Nelson. "Both of my uncles played there so seeing them, knowing they played there kind of influenced it. And seeing all the guys that go through there and on to the NHL kind of shows that I want to do the same thing."
His uncle, Dave Christian was a member of the 1980 US Olympic Men's hockey gold-medal winning team. The lineage of gold doesn’t end there.
His grandfather Billy Christian and great uncle Roger Christian were members of the 1960 US Olympic gold medal winning hockey team as well.
So what does Nelson know about the current Islanders on-ice product?
"I’ve seen a little bit of them," Nelson said. "I know they have a lot of young talent and they're on the rise. They should be a great franchise in a few years and win the Stanley Cup. Hopefully I can develop as a player and continue to work hard and get there as well."
Nelson also respects the history the Islanders have.
"It's an honor, knowing they have all those guys and the franchise that they have. It's great just being able to be up there."
Although he was drafted last on the first night, and doesn’t have to wait until the second day to find out whether he will be drafted or not, Nelson knows the journey doesn’t end here at the Draft.
"I know inside that if you get drafted first or 100th you still have to work," Nelson said. "It just starts now and now is the journey."
The selection of Neiderreiter was a very interesting one seeing as how Brandon Gormley and Cam Fowler were sitting there for the Islanders to select. But scouts love this kid. Here's the scouting report on "El Nino:"
Niederreiter had a great year for the Winterhawks, his first in the WHL. He adjusted well to the major junior game, which is played on NHL-sized rinks.
"El Nino" is a big forward with good skating ability and soft hands. He is fun to watch in the open ice, but he's also effective in the high-traffic areas.
As he puts on weight, Niederreiter will be a force in the WHL, where he will likely play at least one more season before turning pro. His play with Portland really won scouts over. He made an impact on a good Winterhawks team, getting better as the season wore on.
Don't make any mistake. Scouts aren't dumb, and they evaluate a player based on his body of work. But they are always curious when a relative unknown like Niederreiter gets a chance on the big stage. That's where El Nino got everyone's attention.
Niederreiter became a big-time prospect with his performance in the 2010 World Junior Championships. Playing for Switzerland, Niederreiter put up six goals and 10 points in seven games, as his team earned a surprising fourth-place finish. Included in that was a two-goal performance in a quarterfinal upset of Russia that included a tally in the final minute of regulation, then the overtime game-winner. He has positioned himself to be the highest-drafted Swiss player ever.
He should be able to be a big time player for the Isles for years to come and it seems like that may not be so far down the road.
Now on to Brock Nelson.
"You can't deny his good skills and size"
From the THN Draft Preview
Nelson is charging up the draft rankings. Scouts love the speed/size/hands combination that he possesses. Brock should be a mid to late first round selection.From Hockeyprospects.com
One of the reasons he was ranked low was because his High School didn't face top competition every night. But when you have someone of his size and skill it's worth the risk. Reports also speak highly of his character and work ethic, two things the Islanders are looking for. We probably won't see him on the Island for at least another two years, but somewhere down the road it seems like he is going to be able to make a big splash.
That's what has been said about this kid. He will get better with seasoning at the University of North Dakota. Brock Nelson should be a solid player for the Islanders.
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