The Arizona Coyotes are not earning rave reviews for their two first-round picks in the 2023 NHL Draft.
They aren’t even early good reviews or even mild ones.
The team is being slammed for its selection of Dmitri Simashev at No. 6 and Daniil But at No. 12 in stories from NHL writers about the winners and losers of the NHL Draft.
One site was particularly hard on Arizona’s picks, calling the team’s picks “inexplicable.”
SB Nation’s James Dator wrote: “The Coyotes wrote the book on how bad teams stay bad with their picks on Wednesday night. Nobody in the NHL botched their draft capital more than Arizona, who took the No. 6 and No. 12 picks and ended up with two massive reaches. There’s nothing functionally wrong with either Dmitri Simashev or Daniil But. They’re both legitimate first round talents who could surprise, but based on everything we’ve seen they were not the best talents on the board at either of the Coyotes picks. It’s almost as if the team was absolutely locked into taking a defenseman at No. 6, then got thrown for a loop by the Canadiens taking David Reinbacher — so instead of pivoting their board they freaked out and reached for their next-best D. We can’t even assume they wanted players who could contribute right now, because neither Simashev nor But can come in right away. Why the hell don’t you take Michkov and land one elite talent? This is a draft that will be studied for years in how not to draft in the NHL.”
Ouch.
That site wasn’t the only one to be hard on the Coyotes’ selections in the first round.
More: Arizona Coyotes select defenseman Dmitriy Simashev at No. 6 in the NHL Draft
Check out more criticism of the Arizona Coyotes’ 2023 NHL Draft:
CBS Sports: Coyotes surprise ‘for the wrong reasons’ with first-round picks
Austin Nivison wrote: “The Coyotes had two picks in the top 12 picks of this draft, and both picks wound up being surprises for the wrong reasons. With the No. 6 overall pick, the Yotes took Russian defenseman Dmitriy Simashev, and the selected Russian winger Danil But at No. 12 overall. Both of those players are currently locked into KHL contracts, which muddles their NHL timeline a little bit. Both of those players are plenty skilled enough to become big-time contributors for the Coyotes, but in a draft where teams seemed desperate to trade up, the Yotes could have taken advantage of that. There is a chance Arizona could have gotten a haul of future assets for one of their first-round picks and still gotten one of either Simashev or But. Of course, hindsight is 20/20.”
Yahoo Sports: Coyotes’ two first-round NHL draft picks will be ‘highly scrutinized’
Ian Kennedy wrote: “Arizona turned the sixth and 12th overall picks into Dmitry Simashev and Daniil But. It’s a pair of large framed Russians with massive upside, but Arizona left an even larger pool of talent on the table at both spots. To pass on Matvei Michkov and then follow it up with this pair is almost inexplicable. Arizona has a cupboard full of prospects, but if they can’t turn those prospects into regular playoff appearances in a few seasons, this could be the draft that haunts the organization for a decade. Or, maybe the Coyotes scouts just found two gems. Time will tell, but these will be two highly scrutinized picks with the potential to backfire immensely.”
More: Arizona Coyotes new arena update: NHL team focused on East Valley, avoiding public vote
Sporting News: Coyotes’ draft picks ‘came out of left field’
Bryan Murphy wrote: “Dmitri Simashev has a ton of potential as a defenseman who is seemingly just tapping into his offensive ability while already owning a strong defensive game. Daniil But is a power forward with size and skill along with a wicked shot. The downside of those two picks is where the players were drafted. Simashev at No. 6 seemingly came out of left field; the Russian was surprised when he heard his name called. But at No. 12 was less of a reach, although plenty of better players were still available, such as Zach Benson, Matthew Wood and Oliver Moore. That made the pick underwhelming.”
Sportsnet: Coyotes’ picks ‘may be tough to swallow one day’
Ryan Dixon wrote: “Everything you could say about Montreal at No. 5 you could basically repeat about Arizona at No. 6 in terms of trying to drum up a market for the Michkov-hungry teams. The Coyotes obviously weren’t afraid of the “Russian factor,” opting for defenceman Dmitri Simashev at No. 6 and left winger Daniil But at No. 12. On one hand, tip your hat to a team that has the courage to eschew conventional wisdom and pick kids way ahead of where they were slated to go. Still, taking But one pick ahead of Benson may be tough to swallow one day.”
Yardbarker: Coyotes ‘reach’ for first-round NHL Draft picks
Michael Gallagher writes: “With the No. 6 and 12 overall picks, it feels like the Coyotes should have come away with better players than they did. While defenseman Dmitri Simashev and forward Daniil But are solid players, they both were a bit of a reach. Arizona has one of the top farm systems in the NHL, and this draft was an opportunity to bolster it even more. The Coyotes may look back in a few years and regret passing on a few players like Danielson, Sandin Pellikka, Matvei Michkov and Zach Benson.”
Fansided: Coyotes get ‘underwhelming return’ in 2023 NHL Draft
Jim Lynch wrote: “The final team that deserves a shoutout are the Arizona Coyotes. Arizona drafted sixth and 12th overall and landed Dmitri Simashev and Daniil But. Both are quality prospects but for where the Coyotes were picking it feels as though they could have moved down and still landed these prospects. The Coyotes are in the midst of a long rebuild and while they did land two good prospects, this is an underwhelming return for a team that thought they could land Bedard when the 2022-23 season began.”
Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Coyotes slammed for ‘inexplicable’ first-round NHL Draft picks
