2016 Mock NHL Draft: Buffalo Sabres Pick Nylander

With Matthews going first overall, the Jets would do well to select big winger Patrik Lane of Tappara. Laine had an impressive season and would be a dangerous addition to the Jets’ forward core for years to come.. RW. Tappara (SM-Liiga). Patrik Laine . 2. player. 30

player. 148. At first, I saw the Blue Jackets taking Puljujarvi, but if they go with Tkachuk, he’d be great in Edmonton, too. He’s a big winger and a two-way force who’s drawn comparisons to Jamie Benn.. RW. Karpat (SM-Liiga). Jesse Puljujarvi . 4

5. player. 104. Chychrun, an American-born Canadian, has been showing off his skills with Sarnia of the OHL this past season. He was an A-rated skater by NHL Central Scouting in September, and would develop nicely in the Canucks system.. D. Sarnia (OHL). Jakob Chychrun

D. Windsor (OHL). Mikhail Sergachev . 6. player. 112. Sergachev will turn 18 right around the time of the draft, and just finished his first season playing in North America. Though he may need more time to develop his game here with the Windsor Spitfires, he’d be a good fit for Calgary.

D. London (OHL). Olli Juolevi . 7. player. 121. Some say that Juolevi will go higher – maybe even higher than Chychrun – but I’m putting him here. He’s impressed the scouts with his international play, and some have compared him to Olli Maatta. He’s a well-rounded defenseman who would fit nicely in Arizona.

12. With Nylander still available, the Buffalo Sabres would be smart to pick him up. His flexibility in playing both left wing and right wing brings another dimension – and there’s also the added bonus of his AHL eligibility. Unlike many other prospects, Nylander is eligible for the AHL, since his European team loaned him to the OHL – so he could join the Amerks & spend some time growing there as well.. LW/RW. Mississauga (OHL). Alexander Nylander . 8. player

152. The first QMJHL player to get picked in this year’s NHL Draft is a young one. Dubois will be barely 18 at the time of the draft, but just finished his second season in the Q. He put up 99 points (42-57) in just 62 regular-season games. This two-way forward and dynamic scorer would fit well in Montreal.. LW. C. Breton (QMJHL). Pierre-Luc Dubois . 9. player

Michael McLeod . 10. player. 103. McLeod has spent much of his career playing in the Toronto area, between the Marlboros and the Steelheads. He’s a highly-skilled center with great puckhandling ability and speed that would be valuable to any organization.. C. Mississauga (OHL)

11. player. 85. Long Beach native McAvoy is already quite familiar with New Jersey, having grown up in the area and even having played in New Jersey as recetnly as 2012-13 (for the New Jersey Rockets). He’s also played with the USNTDP and U.S. National U17 and U18 teams and just finished his first year at Boston University.. D. Boston U (NCAA). Charlie McAvoy

91. The Pointe-aux-Trembles native is ranked 12th overall by Central Scouting, and as low as 21 by ISS Hockey, so being picked up here makes perfect sense. Gauther is “an explosive power forward” whose drawn comparisons to Rick Nash. He just wrapped up his third season in the QMJHL.. RW. Val d'Or (QMJHL). Julien Gauthier . 12. player

player. 109. Clayton Keller would become the latest in a stretch of USA NTDP players to join the Hurricanes’ program. Justin Faulk played with the NTDP in 2008-2009, while Noah Hanifin spent a year with the program in 2013. If the Canes are collecting some of the most solid American players, Keller would be a great pick-up.. C. USA NTDP (USHL). Clayton Keller . 13

Bean, 17, recently wrapped up his second season in the WHL with Calgary. He plays strong both offensively and defensively, putting up 64 points (24-40) in 68 regular-seaosn games.. D. Calgary (WHL). Jake Bean . 14. player. 70

player. 98. Fabbro is another young player who will turn 18 just mere days before the 2016 NHL Draft. The New Westminster native is ranked 18th overall among North-American skaters, so the Coyotes picking him up here is spot-on. EliteProspects calls him a dependable two-way defenseman, “mobile at an elite level” and overall, “a complete defenseman.”. D. Penticton (BCHL). Dante Fabbro . 15

player. 151. Bellows is a tremendous goal-scorer ranked 10th in North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. This skiller power forward with a hockey bloodline (son of Brian Bellows) is set to join Boston University in the fall.. LW. USA NTDP (USHL). Kieffer Bellows . 17

18. player. 68. Brown would be an interesting pick-up for the Flyers at 18th overall. The Raleigh native is, quite frankly, a big dude, at 6-6, 218 pounds, and he knows how to use his body – something that could certainly be of use in Philadelphia. He’s also the son of former NHLer Jeff Brown.. C. Windsor (OHL). Logan Brown

19. player. 106. Tufte has spent time with the US National U17 team in the past and is headed to the University of Minnesota-Duluth in the fall to play NCAA hockey. He could be a good fit for the Isalnders with this pick.. LW. Blaine (USHSW). Riley Tufte

121. Asplund, an 18-year-old Swede, was ranked fourth among European skaters by Central Scouting. He’s not huge, coming in around 5-11, but could be a good centerman for the Coyotes prospect pool. He’s already spent the past two seasons with Farjestad BK in the SHL and will join them for another season in the fall.. C. Farjestad (SHL). Rasmus Asplund . 20. player

Jost would be a good pick-up for down the line for the Hurricanes. The St. Albert, Alberta native is ranked 16th among North American skaters heading into the draft and just finished up another season with the Penticton Vees, a team he captained. He also captained Canada’s U18 team. Next year, he’s headed to the University of North Dakota.. C. Penticton (BCHL). Tyson Jost . 21. player. 109

C/RW. Wisconsin (NCAA). Luke Kunin . 22. player. 30. Kunin had 19 points last season with Wisconsin playing NCAA hockey. His ability to play both center and wing makes him a more flexible player and would make him a solid pick-up for the Jets with this selection.

87. The 17-year-old will turn 18 just a few days after the draft. He’s spent all of his career up until this point playing in Russia, and is ranked fifth among European skaters entering the 2016 NHL Draft. This past season, he was loaned to Team Russia U18 and put up 26 points in 28 games.. C. Russia U-18 (MHL). German Rubtsov . 23. player

24. player. 105. Stanley, a Kitchener native, is a BIG defenseman – at either 6-6 or 6-7 depending on which site you believe. He knows how to use his body to get physical on the ice, and has also proven himself to be a consistent player. This past season, he put up 17 points and 103 penalty minutes with the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires.. D. Windsor (OHL). Logan Stanley

The Golden, BC native is just 17 – he’ll turn 18 a few short days before the draft – and is ranked 41st by Central Scouting, so this could be a big jump up for him. But why not take the risk on a guy who averaged more than a point-per-game this season after racking up just 27 points in the year prior?. LW. Kelowna (WHL). Dillon Dube . 25. player. 119

Saskatoon (WHL). Libor Hajek . 26. player. 19. The Czech-born Hajek was ranked 31st by Central Scoutning but could be a great pick-up for the Capitals with the team’s first-round selection here. He just finished his first season in North America with Saskatoon of the WHL and has plenty of room to grow. Though Saskatoon was a weak team last year, Hajek stood out and managed to put up 20 points.. D

27. player. 23. Bastian’s size (6-4, 208) makes him a force to be reckoned with, and a player who shouldn’t be overlooked heading into the 2016 NHL Draft. He’s ranked 29th by NHL Central Scouting.. RW. Mississauga (OHL). Nathan Bastian

Vancouver (WHL). Tyler Benson . 28. player. 99. Benson, an Edmonton native, is ranked 24th overall by Central Scouting, but could fall to 27th. He’s spent the past few seasons with the WHL’s Vancouver Giants, but played just 30 games this season due to injury. His team shut him down officially in February, but was in and out of the lineup prior to that. He’d be a good depth bick for the Blues.. LW

29. player. 70. Laberge, 18, just wrapped up his second season in the QMJHL with the Victoriaville Tigres. He registered a career-high 68 points – more than double his total from the previous season – including 23 goals and 45 assists in just 56 games. He’s tough and knows how to use his size, and is a solid two-way forward for the Bruins.. C/RW. Victoriaville (QMJHL). Pascal Laberge