Kings draft Justin Azevedo
With their first pick of the sixth round (153rd overall), the Kings drafted center Justin Azevedo from Kitchener of the OHL. Azevedo is listed at 5-7, 183 pounds and is 20 years old.
Azevedo was the OHL's leading scorer, with 124 points (43 goals and 81 assists) and was voted player of the year by media. He played in the same league as No. 1 pick Steven Stamkos and John Tavares, the consensus No. 1 pick in the 2009 draft. Interesting pick.
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J.P. Hoornstra writes about NHL and IHL hockey for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group. He welcomes any and all dialogue on the finer points of hockey.
E-mail J.P. at jp.hoornstra@inlandnewspapers.com.
Jill Painter joined the Daily News in 2000 and during the last eight years she's covered the Dodgers, Cal State Northridge, UCLA, Kings, golf and everything in between. Even though she's from Colorado, she still freezes in the Staples Center press box but always manages to thaw her fingers in time to make deadline. E-mail Jill at jill.painter@dailynews
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Vincent Bonsignore is a sports columnist for the Los Angeles Daily News. E-mail Vinny at vincent.bonsignore
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What do you think about this pick Rich??
I know he is small, but this guy is a proven winner. He is a goal scorer..It is a steal at this pick.
Rich,
I love this pick. Yes, he is small and has been over-looked the last couple drafts but he can step right in at Manchester now and hopefully, after gaining more strength and experience, up to the Kings in a year or two. Here are some other awards he garnered this year:
Red Tilson Trophy for the most outstanding player in the OHL
Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy for being the top scorer in the OHL
Ed Chynoweth Trophy for being the top scorer of the Memorial Cup
CHL Player of the Year
CHL Top Scorer Award
Wayne Gretzky 99 Award for being the most outstanding player in the OHL playoffs
Not bad! I like winners!
Maybe I'm missing something here, but how is this guy a 6th round pick when he led the OHL in scoring? He outscored both Stamkos and Tavares. I realize that he never scored more than 69 points in the OHL before last season, but does that matter that much? Someone please explain this to me!
Thanks...brain cramp.
Matt...I'm not a scout or GM, but I would deduce that the questions about Azevedo would deal with both his size and his age, since he's 20.
He dropped because of his size, age, and linemates... His linemate was none other than Mikkel Boedker so his stats are a little inflated. But this is a really good pick, this guy may blossom into a dominant second line center. A+ pick.
great gamble... I love it. LOVE it
awesome grab in the 6th -- this pick is definitely "Luc Robitaille"-esque and it would be great to see him make it to the NHL especially with the Kings. I just can't believe he survived that long. definitely best player available
Actually, Mikkel Boedker played in Kitchener but was NOT Azevedo's linemate (powerplay - yes...Boedker played point with the man advantage). He did however play with Matt Halischuk (scored game winner for team Canada in Juniors) and Nick Spalling...both very, very, good hockey players. I have seen Azevedo play a lot and hope succeeds in the NHL. Is the biggest sleeper in the draft in my opinion.
Size matters in the NHL. The kid leads the OHL in scoring and drops to the 6th round, as a reward. Great pick DL. I hope Azevedo sticks it to the rest of the league, for letting him fall so far.