At the Draft: Identifying Realistic Options at Forward for the Hurricanes

Face it, there are guys on June 24th that we're just not going to even sniff. Auston Matthews, Patrik Laine, and Jesse Puljujarvi are off the table (unless Ron Francis does something crazy and equally out of character). My guess is Tkachuk and Dubois are long shots as well. It would also be somewhat surprising if the brain trust used one of our 1st round picks on a defender. Later in the draft, absolutely, but not in the first round. There's also the very distinct possibility that one of the two first rounders gets traded. Is it likely? I won't go that far, but it seems pretty plausible that the front office wants to insure that the Canes are more than just competitive; they want a playoff team, just not at the expense of too much of the future.