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When Kaapo Kakko came into the league
at the 2019 entry draft I was hearing debates regarding him vs. Hughes in just friend circles. Big kid, seemed like he’d be money and went 2nd overall. Yzerman’s first pick for Detroit as GM was 4 slots later in Moritz Seider. That pick was so shocking that I actually saw a tweet asking if we could get Holland back.
Fast forward to today. Kakko signed his qualifying offer of 2.4m and Seider is potentially looking at 7m plus. No word on negotiations. Raymond, as the number 4 pick, is looking at a big raise as well. Kakko’s career season was 40 points and he hasn’t broken 20 goals yet. Seider hasn’t cracked double digit goals, but as a Dman in the league has 50 points, 42 points and 42 again in his first three season. Raymond has 57, 45 and 72 points and eclipsed 30 goals in year 3. Raymond is looking at a healthy raise as well.
Full disclosure, I had very little to no idea about either player and both have been welcome additions. This isn’t to pile on, there is a brutal amount of pressure in New York especially at that pick. Detroit was knocked back 3 picks when they got Raymond by the Lottery. The team had finished dead last and picked 4th
in the 2020 draft. There was hope the team could get Stutzle at least but Raymond has been a pleasant surprise. You can see career scoring at the link and games played. Stutzle is a legitimate stud but Raymond actually has more points than Lafreniere in 60 fewer games. Not bad at all.
Yes, enter the argument about later rounds. Those two players still have surprised many of us. It’s just an interesting contrast on expectation and draft position vs. performance. Those top 3 spots have a lot of pressure, with the top ten also seeing high expectations. Stutzle would have been a huge get, but being pushed back by Bettman’s Bouncers was just part of the annual fun and Detroit made some solid grabs that weren’t on the radar for many experts.
In a side note,
The Utah Hockey Club will now officially be named “The Utah Hockey Club” for the coming season. The jerseys say “Utah” on the front. This may be one of the biggest marketing misses I’ve seen in my lifetime. My hockey bud wanted to see “The Yeti”. You could cross promote with the coolers and mugs. It’s an advertising deal that writes itself. Just feels like a swing and a miss.
Let me know your thoughts on the first two first rounders for Yzerman and if they’ve met, fallen short or exceeded your own expectations. Also, is it a “miss” for Utah? This development doesn’t make for very cool swag in my opinion.
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
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