With how the Stanley Cup playoffs ended the bad atmosphere of the Dallas Stars behind us, all the attention and hope have turned to the future starting with the 2025 NHL draft. All the pressure on the strategy is closed due to the trades they made in the regular season, with the stars not having first and second round picks, with general manager Jim Nill, who can simply follow the best player they think they can use.
Related: 2025 NHL Draft: Real-time Tracker
Lack of stress is the general atmosphere I get from the stars in this year’s draft. The stars are still in their Stanley Cup window, with many core players signing certain long-term signatures. They drafted six players over the weekend, and neither of them was in a hurry to become a big club, which would not help in the coming years.
Let’s meet the latest members of the Dallas Stars.
Round 3, Select 94: Cameron Schmidt
As we all know, the star stole Cameron Schmidt’s first-round talent in the third round. The main reason for Schmidt’s drop to the 94th pick is his figure. The Vancouver Giants wingers are listed at 5-foot-8 and 160 pounds, to say the least. Last season, Schmidt scored 40 goals and 78 points in 61 games in the Western Conference Hockey League (WHL).
“We think we have first round talent with him, so we’re excited,” Amateur Scouting Director Joe McDonnell said of Schmidt. “You want him to be bigger, but we’re kind of like Logan Stankoven.”
Stankoven is a star’s precious winger, who is part of the Mikko Rantanen trade who famously trades to the Carolina Hurricanes. There are differences in their games, but one big similarity is their ability to clean up in front of the net. When watching all 40 goals Schmidt scored, the vast majority are in the slot or through fighting in front of the net.
Hockey writer’s Matthew Zator had some great insights about Schmidt before and after the draft.
“Schmidt’s coach Manny Viveiros also praised his strength and strength, despite being 5-foot-7 and weighing 157 pounds. When he was named the top prospect challenge for CHL USA, he talked about his game, saying: “People forget that Cameron is not the most senior player, but he is one of the most powerful players on our team and his business is the best player at explore.” You know, once the team understands his strength in his small body, the strength comes in different forms and sizes.
The only criticism of Schmidt seems to be his lack of defensive play. The term “one-dimensional” has been abandoned, but according to Viveiros, a portion of his game has improved this season. “He didn’t skip as many areas as he did last season, looking for breakthrough and real-time offense, but focused on his finish first. He learned that good defense often leads to the opposite scoring opportunity, which will help him well as he enters the NHL.”
GM didn’t work alone, but it seemed like Neil did it again. He traded almost every valuable pick in this year’s draft and the upcoming draft, but still has great value. It is difficult to know the future of this current lineup. Jason Robertson’s contract expires at the end of the 2025-26 season, with Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn in the last nine careers of their careers, and Rantanen is eight years old at the club, but that number can cut that number in half before Schmidt shows a consistent NHL move. Such an option can help keep its competitive window open for longer if the debris around him fall in place.
To sum up, let’s take a look at Zator’s final thoughts on Schmidt and how he’s going to influence the stars.
“Stars are very familiar with the smaller players drafting and have now chosen former star Logan Stankoven. This will be a huge steal in the next few years as Schmidt has the first-round skill and is stuck in the third round. The stars have a knack for swing skills and hit home runs, and they will stand out from Schmidt.”
Round 4, Choice 126: Brandon Gorzinski
Brandon Gorzynski played for the WHL’s Calgary Killer last season. The 6-2, 185-pound winger scored 17 goals in 68 games and recorded 42 points and was considered a high energy and physics player that stars may use in recent playoff games.
“He’s a good second half of the season,” McDonald said. “He started very slowly, but he took off in the second half and the Western guys played the table for him.”
Thw’s Dayton Reimer points to Gorzynski’s offensive advantage in his pre-draft prospects.
“Brandon Gorzynski flew most of the season under radar,” Rheimer wrote. The 6-foot-2 left-wing and Calgary Killer left-foot winger played offensively, offensively in terms of offense and speed, driving the game and hitting the net to kick off rebounds and end scoring opportunities. He can be an effective instigator, strong on the opponent’s skin, but is also often used on defense, but is often killed by killer killers. ”
“Gorzinski is best in front of the net,” Remer continued. “He is a big presence, the ideal player to end a rebound or jump on a turnover and turn it into a scoring opportunity. He has the ability to act in his size, allowing him to be in traffic traffic, and he often encounters a good vision and offensive ability when chasing the puck and attacking tough areas that can allow him to reach tough areas to finish the game.
Stars add their Finnish mafia in round 5
If the stars add a new set of players, it would be wrong if they don’t add at least one Finn. Well, with real Dallas fashion, the stars have selected Atte Joki. Joki, who is 6-foot-2 from Finland, scored 15 goals for Lukko of Finland last season and scored 32 points in 40 games.
“He was working hard and beat the rankings,” McDonald said of Joach.
Not long before the draft, thw“Andrew Forbes wrote about the pros and cons of drafting Joki and why he is likely to be drafted in later rounds, but he can also be added to the team he brings him the chance.
If he intends to take his game to the next level, Joki will have to hone his success and focus on those areas that develop the game. His skating is average. He lacks the overall explosiveness of the first step, because in this way, his game is more eager to get from his game.
His transition game is not particularly powerful, and he struggles to escape opponents’ players. That said, he has a physical aspect to his game that allows him to make an impact and be proud of it. Positionally speaking, he understands his role in the offensive zone – winning the hockey battle and becoming a net lead. But he isn’t afraid to enter dirty areas, get a puck or release the puck with his size and strength. He has a positive stick on defense, which proves to be good for him. ”
Stars add animal nickname with Swedish goalkeeper in round 5
By 158th pick, the stars drafted the Swedish goalkeeper Mang Goose. The 6-foot-5 goalkeeper scored 11-12-0 with Farjestad and scored 3.17 goals at an average level. Goos fits into the current NHL NetMinder model, McDonald said too.
“He’s what you want. The NHL goalkeeper is big and he’s very good at moving.”
Interestingly, he was also my favorite choice at this year’s draft, and this is his name Goose. Rantanen’s nickname is Moose and Jake Oettinger’s nickname is Otter, which means that the stars now have goose, moose and an otter, which is the role their social media team plays immediately.
Reimer said to the star’s latest goalkeeper:
“Goos’ best feature is his size. At 6-foot-5 he covered a lot of nets and he used his strengths in a wide butterfly posture that took a lot of shooting lanes. When locking the shooter, he wasn’t worried that his footsteps were both static, especially relying on his size and athletic ability to improve his footsteps, but adapting to his efforts rather than being able to improve his efforts. Stop the puck from entering the corners and out of high-risk areas, but his glove hands are also good.
After his first shot, Goose was also strong in recovery savings, using his long pad to block most of the bottom of the net. In this position, he can still cover most of the top of the net, which makes him a very difficult goalkeeper. He moved smoothly from post to post, his T-hole was very strong but measured. Instead of overuse them, he pushes himself away often, thus giving him good lateral movement when challenged. ”
Stars select two CHL players to end the draft
To end the 2025 NHL Draft, the Stars selected Dawson Sharkey in the 6th round, with the Pick 190 and Charlie Paquette picking Dawson Sharkey in the 7th round, with the draft of 222.
Last season, Sharkey scored 22 goals and 39 points in 54 games for Acadie-Bathurst in the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League.
Last season, Paquette, the assistant captain of Guelph Storm in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), scored 37 goals and 70 points in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He is listed as 6-foot-2 and 207 pounds, which is one of the heavier players in the OHL.
Nill and Co. are happy with this year’s draft course
The latest star starts summer development camp and journey to the NHL this week in Frisco.
Despite not having draft picks in the first two rounds, the stars gained a bunch of young talents despite not having draft picks.
Related: Dallas stars send mixed signals with Duchene & Marching Moves
“You talk about the process,” Neil said. “It’s not only drafting, but what’s going to happen next. We flew the development bootcamp here and now the process begins. We have an amazing staff working on the development part. We get results from it, so we’re happy with it.”
Thw’s Jordan Orth rated the star’s draft as B in each team’s draft results, and I agree with this assessment. The stars feel they can get the best players in every round, but even if they don’t, catching Schmidt in the third round is enough to see this draft as a victory.
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