SAN JOSE – There was no question that the San Jose Sharks were going to select Macklin Celebrini at the NHL Draft in Las Vegas last year when they had the No. 1 overall pick.
Now that the Sharks have the second overall selection going into the first round of the draft this Friday in Los Angeles, the decision is a little less obvious.
With the New York Islanders expected to select defenseman Matthew Schaefer at No. 1, the Sharks will, in all likelihood, choose a center, someone who could — in time — play behind Celebrini on San Jose’s second line.
Whether that’s Michael Misa of the Saginaw Spirit, Swedish-born center Anton Frondell, or someone else entirely, it won’t be known until after 4 p.m. on Friday, with members of the team’s front office and scouting staff having more discussions on Wednesday and Thursday to finalize the decision, if it hasn’t been made already.
“I think we have a pretty good idea of the board right now,” Sharks general manager Mike Grier said Tuesday morning. “But we’ll definitely have some more conversations in the coming days.”
Grier said he hasn’t had any discussions with Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche about trading up to acquire the first overall selection. Turns out, there’s no need, as Darche said earlier Tuesday that he’s not trading the pick, which the Islanders won in the NHL Draft Lottery on May 5.
Nevertheless, the Sharks are still in an ideal spot to add a major difference-maker.
“We kind of have an outline of players we like,” Grier said. “We call it the identity of a Shark, and things that we believe allow players to have success in the National Hockey League.
“We’re looking for kids who are competitive, smart, hard to play against, and obviously, skilled. The skill players stick out. … If they’re smart and competitive, those are kind of things that we kind of gravitate towards.”
The Sharks are slated to pick second and 30th overall in the first round, 33rd and 53rd in the second round, 95th in the third round, 115th and 124th in the fourth round, 150th in the fifth round, and 210th (from New Jersey) in the seventh round.
But the focus right now is on the No. 2 pick, and several analysts have the offensively gifted Misa, 18, as the second-best player available in the draft.
A dual offensive threat to score or distribute, Misa won the CHL’s scoring title this season with 134 points, including 62 goals, in 65 regular-season games with Saginaw. At 6-foot-2 and 183 pounds, Misa, ranked second among all North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, has exceptional hockey sense along with being a terrific skater, shooter and passer.
The Sharks had dinner with Misa at the NHL Draft Combine in Buffalo earlier this month.
“I think he’s a worker,” Grier said of Misa. “He’s a serious kid who’s serious about hockey, serious about doing whatever he feels he needs to do to play in the NHL and be successful in the NHL.
“He’s an impressive kid. His season spoke for itself.”
Grier was also impressed with Frondell, and there seems to be a growing feeling that the Sharks are interested in taking the Swedish-born center at No. 2.
Listed at 6-foot-1 and 198 pounds, Frondell was the top-ranked international skater by Central Scouting in April after a season in which he had 25 points in 29 games with Djurgardens of HockeyAllsvenskan.
Frondell, 18, is perhaps more physical than some other players near the top of the draft, while also possessing a terrific shot and better-than-average playmaking ability. Grier felt Frondell was the best player at the Five Nations Under-18 Tournament in Sweden in February, where he competed against fellow top young players and had six points in four games.
Frondell played with Djurgardens up until April 25 as he helped the team win the league championship. He then flew from Sweden to Texas for the U18 World Championships, where he played for his country.
Frondell had just three points in five games, but Grier was impressed that he made the effort.
“People kind of knock him for his U18 performance, but you’ve got to give the kid credit,” Grier said. “He went on a long playoff run, won a championship, and literally that night, was on a plane to come over and play with Sweden, because he wanted to see that through with his age group.
“So another impressive kid, good hockey player. It was good to get to know him a little.”
Caleb Desnoyers, Porter Martone, or James Hagens could also interest the Sharks, and Grier isn’t necessarily ruling out the possibility of trading the pick.
“When you’re picking high up in the draft, it’s a good player that you’re hoping is going to be a part of your core for a long, long time,” Grier said. “So it’s just being as thorough as possible. You get some opportunities and things kind of thrown your way to consider, but we have to try and take the short and long-term view of it.”
After being drafted first overall a year ago, Celebrini was able to step right into the Sharks’ lineup and become, in time, the team’s best player. He finished his rookie season with 63 points in 70 games.
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That’s rare for an 18-year-old to do. But Grier didn’t want to rule anything out if they keep the second overall pick.
‘I don’t really want to put that type of pressure on any kid just to say yes or no, really, or discourage them if I say no,” Grier said. “I think they’ll probably have an opportunity to see how training camp goes. But as we all know, it’s a big jump for an 18-year-old to play in the NHL right away.
“These are all good players, talented kids, and we’ll see how camp goes. But what Macklin did is the exception, not what most normal 18-year-olds do. But we’ll have to wait and see. It’s not a yes or no for me.”
