ARTHUR:
With the 12th pick in the 2010 SBN Mock NHL Draft, Anaheim Calling is proud to select Ryan Johansen form the Portland Winterhawks.
The reasoning I provided for the SBN main page:
Bennett was briefly listed in the ISS Top 30 after putting up monstrous offensive numbers in the BCHL with Penticton. He's a Gardena, CA native who played for the Junior Kings and participated in the Ducks West Coast Prospects Camp, so Anaheim should have plenty of scouting reports on him. He's also committed to Denver University, and the Ducks like the WCHA for development. Ultimately, though, I picked him here because he has speed and a strong shot, the two things I sacrificed to grab Johansen at 12th. I consulted fellow SBN Ducks blogger Earl Sleek and seriously considered Tyler Pitlick, who managed to fall to 29th in our mock draft, but Bennett was a strong fit for the cupboard. Realistically, while I think Ducks Director of Amateur Scouting Martin Madden may consider a fallen Top 10 player at 12th, he probably won't play that game at 29th. He'll be sure of his pick, whether Bennett or anyone else, and in this situation, the Ducks might even trade down if someone in the 2nd wanted a shot at Pitlick.
Now, in my defense, when I wrote that paragraph, the buzz about Beau Bennett going in the middle third of the first round hadn't really trickled down to me yet. And McKenzie's final Draft ranking for TSN, which put Bennett right behind Etem, hadn't come out yet either. So, I was appropriately defensive about someone telling me I was passing on Pitlick, a player I've seen (and liked) and who I still think will go in the first round. I haven't seen Bennett beyond the video above, but I've scared up some details after the jump.
--Oh, and if you're wondering, Earl's input was indeed a coin flip, and in that, I think we may have gotten the best simulation of Bob Murray ever. Heh heh.
First, it should be noted that McKenzie has Bennett at 18th, offering this:
Bob McKenzie: Another native Californian, from Gardena, who could be the talk of the draft if he gets selected as high as some teams have his ranked. A true wild card, cited as everything from Top 10 overall to the late second round, he scored 120 points for Penticton of the BCJHL. Still physically immature, he could suffer from "weaker league" syndrome but he’s bound to be one of the really interesting stories of this draft.
McKenzie's definitely in line with what people are saying. Bennett could go in the second round, or he could be the highest Californian ever drafted (i.e. higher than Etem, who has been ranked pretty steadily in the middle third of the first round this season). If you're wondering, Jonathan Blum is currently the highest.
Where Bennett ends up is really up to the team that drafts him and what they think of the BCHL. But I really meant it when I said that the Ducks should have scouting reports on him and know what they're getting into. As a kid who played his youth hockey up the road and even played with Newell Brown's son, the Ducks should know EXACTLY what they'd be getting with Beau Bennett. So if he's available at 29th, and they pass on him, then I think that would be an assessment of him that is independent of the "weaker league" syndrome. I can't see them passing on him, though. As I said, speed and shot, it's exactly what the Ducks need in the system.
And they've seen it from him, even if only in this form:
If the Calirubber narrator's voice is too soporific for you, scrub to 4:55 to see Bennett's goal.