SB Nation St. Louis - 2012 NHL Entry Draft: Blues Draft Jordan Schmaltz 25th Overall

2012 NHL Draft Grades: St. Louis Given Mediocre Grade After Jordan Schmaltz Pick

2012-06-23T23:59:26Z

Draft grades are usually based on speculation more than anything, especially in sports like the NHL where prospects often take a year or more in the minor systems or colleges before they head to the big league club. That said, 'reaching' for prospects will almost always earn you bad grades from analysts and the St. Louis Blues' pick of Jordan Schmaltz is one such selection.

SB Nation's NHL Draft Grades, released shortly after the final round of the second day, give the Blues a mediocre C+ grade because of the Schmaltz pick, a pick that has a lot of boom or bust potential and surprised a lot of people:

St. Louis Blues: The pick of Jordan Schmaltz is going to be heavily debated -- he might be a great all-around defenseman once he makes the NHL, or he might be a major reach who will struggle to develop. Most expected him to go much later in the draft, with ISS ranking him 45th among North American skaters. C-

Going 'off the board' has worked for a lot of teams in the past but until Jordan actually makes it to the big leagues to ply his trade, the selection by the Blues will get panned by some and questioned by many more. That's just how the NHL draft works, and the Blues are hoping that in a few years they end up having the last laugh.

For updates on Blues draft rumors, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. For more comprehensive coverage, head over to Blues blog St. Louis Game Time. And for more general hockey coverage, visit SB Nation's NHL news hub.

2012 NHL Draft Results: VIDEO: 2012 Blues Draft Puglist Nick Walters In Fourth Round

2012-06-23T19:08:26Z

The Blues have never been a team of shrinking violets. From the guys that roughed up the Flyers and who inspired the Broad Street Bullies to the current team that sports a captain who isn’t afraid of playing with an edge, the Blues have always had a blue collar, hardscrabble work ethic. They drafted someone today that, if he makes the big club down the road, perfectly fits that mold.

Defenseman Nick Walters isn’t known as a scorer, despite netting 12 assists and 18 points last season in the WHL. As his hockeyfights.com fight card shows, he’ll drop the gloves. He had seven fights last season, and five fights the season before that. His last fight came on March 23rd against Jordan Messier, second cousin of Mark Messier.

The fight itself isn’t a big to-do, but Walters’ hit sure as heck is.

A quick Google search for Nick Walters returns a ton of hardscrabble fight videos. Blues fans should be pleased, but only if he has the discipline to do them when they count.

2012 NHL Draft Results: St. Louis Blues Wrap Up Day 2, Complete Draft

2012-06-23T17:34:29Z

The St. Louis Blues completed the 2012 NHL Draft by selecting three defensemen, two wingers, a goalie and a center during a fast-paced second day. The Blues' Day 2 haul will join first round pick Jordan Schmaltz, a 6-foot-2 American defenseman, to complete the team's 2012 draft class.

From St. Louis Game Time comes the complete list of Blues picks:

Rnd	Pick	Ovr	ST LOUIS	Ps	Sh	Ht	Wt	Club	League
1	25	25	.JORDAN SCHMALTZ	D	R	6-02	189	GREEN BAY	USHL
2	26	56	.SAMUEL KURKER	RW	R	6-02	201	ST. JOHN’S PREP	HS-MA
3	6	67	.MACKENZIE MACEACHERN	LW	L	6-02	180	BROTHER RICE HS	HS-MI
3	25	86	.COLTON PARAYKO	D	R	6-04	195	FORT MACMURRAY	AJHL
4	25	116	.NICHOLAS WALTERS	D	L	6-02	187	EVERETT	WHL
5	25	146	.FRANCOIS TREMBLAY	G	L	6-01	193	VAL-D'OR	QMJHL
6	25	176	.PETTERI LINDBOHM	D	L	6-03	209	JOKERIT JR	FIN JR
7	25	206	.TYREL SEAMAN	C	L	6-02	196	BRANDON	WHL

2012 NHL Draft Results: St. Louis Blues Select Defenseman Colton Parayko In Round 3

2012-06-23T15:46:46Z

The St. Louis Blues used their third round pick to tab defenseman Colton Parayko with the No. 86 overall selection in the 2012 NHL Draft on Saturday afternoon. Parayko is the second defenseman drafted in three picks by the Blues.

Parayko is a 6-foot-3, 181-pound Canadian who played last season for the Fort McMurray Oil Barons of the AJHL. Parayko finished the 2011-2012 season with nine goals and three assists in 53 games. He finished with three goals and nine assists in 21 games during the playoffs.

Parayko had signed a letter of intent to play collegiality at University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

2012 NHL Draft: St. Louis Blues Select Forward Samuel Kurker In 2nd Round

2012-06-23T14:40:45Z

After using their first round pick in the 2012 NHL Draft on defenseman Jordan Schmaltz, the St. Louis Blues decided to go with offense in Round 2. With the No. 56 overall selection, the Blues tabbed American right winger Samuel Kurker.

The 6-foot-2, 201-pound Kurker hails from Boston and played at St. John's Prep last season. Kurker finished the 2011-2012 season with 32 goals and 28 assists in 24 games. In 2010-2011, Kurker scored 37 points in 25 games with 20 goals.

Kurker, who was born in 1994, also competed on the USA's U-18 team last season, playing two games and only garnering two penalty minutes.

NHL Draft Day 2 2012: Time, TV Coverage, Results And More

2012-06-23T12:00:24Z

The St. Louis Blues started off their 2012 NHL Draft class by selecting Wisconsin native and University of North Dakota-bound forward Jordan Schmaltz. But he's only the tip of the iceberg, as the team's front office will pick six times on Saturday afternoon to round out the draft.

The team's picks on Saturday all fall at either No. 25 or No. 26 in every round between the second round and the seventh. Schmaltz was one of six Americans drafted on Friday night, with three of those players— Henrik Samulesson, Bradley Skjei and Stefan Matteau— being picked after the Blues took at No. 25 overall.

Date/time: Saturday, June 23; 9 a.m. CT

TV: NHL Network

Radio: Sirius XM Radio

2012 NHL Draft: VIDEO Jordan Schmaltz: Meet The Newest Blue

2012-06-23T03:14:47Z

TheScore.com gets to the bottom of it all… does Jordan Schmaltz like Rocky or Star Wars more? The answer may shock you.

Schmaltz also lead his team, the Green Bay Gamblers, to the USHL Clark Cup championship this past May. I’m going out on a limb and will wager a guess that the frosted tips were a team thing, not necessarily an attempt to follow in another member of the Blues’ footsteps.

Finally, this overtime goal is something that the Blues and their fans would love to see more of from the blueline. In a few years, maybe Schmaltz can deliver.

2012 NHL Draft: St. Louis Blues Select Defenseman Jordan Schmaltz With 25th Overall Pick

2012-06-23T02:30:17Z

Jordan Schmaltz was projected at 38th overall by Central Scouting and TSN, and the Blues gave him a bit of a bump by drafting him 25th overall. The big kid from Wisconsin will be attending the University of North Dakota next season.

He’s 6’2", 189 lbs, so he’ll be a project for the Blues. Luckily the Blues have decent depth at defense and have the time to bide as the youngster adds weight along with experience. He’s not going to be oversized or huge on the blue line, but since his strength is scoring size might not matter quite so much. He was second in the USHL in points, scoring 41 points in 55 games (10-31-41).

There might be some reconditioning needed for Schmaltz, however. Mental reconditioning. According to NHL.com’s draft prospect card, his favorite team is the Chicago Blackhawks and his favorite player is Patrick Kane. Cognitive dissonance is a bear.