Most of the defensemen we have discussed and the reputable scouts have at the top of the 2023 NHL Draft class are more well-rounded than we typically see. Because of just how much talent is at the center position and at forward overall, the blueliners that are going to be selected in the first round are largely more Moritz Seider than Rasmus Dahlin, if you catch our drift.
David Reinbacher, Dmitri Simashev, Tom Wallinder, and Axel Sandin-Pellikka, can all contribute offensively to their respective teams, but no one impacts the team’s total offense and has the team’s offense running through them like Tri-City Americans blueliner Lukas Dragicevic.
It is no surprise that the Richmond, B.C. native switched from being a forward to the blue line just a few seasons ago, because of just how damn well he can execute and be the main offensive driver for his team in the WHL. That skill alone has earned him to be placed within the first round on our little community draft board, but he is ranked just slightly little lower by the industry.
Pre-Draft Rankings
No. 36 by Corey Pronman
No. 18 (North American Skaters) by NHL Central Scouting
No. 35 by Bob McKenzie
No. 38 by EliteProspects
Statistics
It’s not readily available, but Dragicevic let the Americans in ice-time this season and that shows up in his point total. Tri-City was not a very good team overall this year – finished with a 34-26-5-3 record and got booted out of the playoffs in the first round – but considering just how much heavy-lifting Dragicevic had to do, he should earn a little bit more credit.
The 18-year-old, right-handed, 6-foot-1 blueliner led his team in scoring by 11 points, and the closest real NHL prospect as his teammate is a 2022 fifth-rounder from the Calgary Flames. Dragicevic is all alone on this team, so you just have to imagine what he would have done if given the same opportunities like the defensemen on the Winnipeg Ice were given, playing with the star-studded group of forwards that they have.
What’s there to like?
The offense, of course, is what Dragicevic will earn his professional career on. It’s all we’ve talked about so far, so it makes sense that it is a thing to like because we are generally positive people (hopefully).
In almost every area of individual skill that an offensive defenseman could have, Dragicevic put it on display for the Americans this season. He would perform these long stretch passes to link his team through the neutral zone; weave the puck through traffic while on the cycle; quarterback the power play successfully; and just unleash some bombs from the point to score the 15 goals that he did.
Every movement Dragicevic has with the puck feels extremely on purpose. There isn’t any accidental offense or streak of luck coming from his stick, but just finding ways to get by the five opposing skaters and map out the offensive play that most likely will start and end with him.
It’s all about what his team does with the puck for the ceiling of Dragicevic, but what about the times when they don’t?
What’s not to like?
Well, Dragicevic really is the typical offensive defenseman prospect in the sense that the defense has to come a long way for him to make it professionally. He sometimes doesn’t react as fast as scouts would hope to when he’s on the other side of the puck, especially considering his offensive vision. Plus, when it comes to moving around the ice, he isn’t the greatest at it either.
Where he differs from the typical production-driven blueliner is his skating. Dragicevic relies heavily on his excellent tape-to-tape passing to get his playmaking credits, and not really transitioning the puck through the zone with possession. He can certainly let his forwards take it up the ice after cutting the rink in half with a laser-like pass, but might not be able to successfully make the trip himself, if you know what I’m saying.
Elite Prospects’ Mitch Brown said this in a February scouting report: “Defensive skating really holds Dragicevic’s defence back. He shows some instincts. He tries to angle, engage early, and eliminate threats. He sees plays developing and looks to put an end to them. But he always ends up chasing because he reaches when closing space, overshoots the puck carrier, and slides too much through his stops when matching footwork.”
So yeah, there is a whole lot to like about Dragicevic but he will need another whole lot of development to really round out his game and make it professionally.
How would he fit in the Flyers’ system?
Getting someone this talented offensively within the pipeline for the Philadelphia Flyers’ blue line is what a whole lot of fans have been craving. Someone that can be on the right side and move the puck up the ice is what they were supposed to have in Ryan Ellis, and for those four total games we did see it, our desire to see that in action only increased now that he’s gone.
Dragicevic is a risk, but so is basically anyone you are selecting at this range in the draft, so why not just add a little bit more spice to the group of prospects on the blue line. Especially if the Flyers select someone like Ryan Leonard with their first selection, there is a reality where Dragicevic is a Philadelphia prospect.
Can the Flyers actually get him?
With the 22nd overall pick, we could certainly see a team in that range taking the risk to get Dragicevic. Or, honestly, if the Flyers don’t add anymore picks – that seems unlikely with all the recent trade rumors – then we could totally see them trading down from No. 22, drafting later in the first round or even getting two second-rounders, to then take Dragicevic and another dude, just to get more kicks at the can.
There will probably be better options for defenseman prospects after 21 selections – such as Tom Wallinder or Mikhail Gulyayev – but the difference between them and Dragicevic isn’t so vast that the hypothetical scenario where they do trade down is a possibility if they want to target the Americans defenseman.
What scouts are saying
No one combines his level of puck skills, vision, and activation. For both of his WHL seasons, Tri-City’s offence has flowed through him. He’s the initiator, connector, and often the finisher. And he led the team in ice time both seasons – no small feat for a player who switched from forward just a few years ago. Dragicevic’s skill is the envy of most forwards. He sends opponents careening into the boards with rapid-fire handling, uses them as screens with fluid curl-and-drag shots, and freezes multiple at once with deception before setting up a tap-in. But it’s not just the skill; it’s how everything interacts. Many of his best sequences start on the breakout, where he manipulates the first forechecker, then passes off. He activates, gets the puck back, completes another give-and-go, then fires off a chance. And then he controls the game inside the offensive zone, single-handedly putting Tri-City on an unofficial power play. -EliteProspects 2023 NHL Draft Guide
Dragicevic is very dangerous with the puck on his stick. He has good hands and better instincts and vision. He can run a power play like a pro. He shows the high-end IQ to let plays develop, hold pucks under pressure, and jump into attacks at the right time to go with a strong point shot. The question with Dragicevic will be without the puck. He’s an OK skater and competitor. I think he defends well enough in junior, but there will be questions on how he defends size and speed in the NHL. He’s not undersized and his offense is so good that I think he plays and scores in the NHL, but coaches may need to be careful in how they deploy him.– Corey Pronman, The Athletic
No more polls, folks! Friday’s helped us set the order for our final group of players, so it’s all coasting from here. Thanks for participating!
Previously on the 2023 Community Draft Board…
- Connor Bedard
- Adam Fantilli
- Matvei Michkov
- Leo Carlsson
- Will Smith
- Zach Benson
- Oliver Moore
- Dalibor Dvorsky
- Ryan Leonard
- Eduard Sale
- Axel Sandin-Pellikka
- David Reinbacher
- Nate Danielson
- Gabe Perreault
- Brayden Yager
- Matthew Wood
- Samuel Honzek
- Colby Barlow
- Andrew Cristall
- Daniil But
- Calum Ritchie
- Mikhail Gulyayev
- Gavin Brindley
- Dmitri Simashev
- Gracyn Sawchyn
- Quentin Musty
- Ethan Gauthier
- Oliver Bonk
- Bradly Nadeau
- Lukas Dragicevic
- …
