So let's see. So far Minnesota missed on Steph Curry, Stevie Y and Mike Trout.
Derrick Williams was kind of the consensus at No. 2, which is sad.
If you'd like to read 5,000 words on how David Kahn was more unlucky than bad, I can do that for you
I did a feature on AJ Thielen when I went to Michigan State in early 2005 to cover a Gophers basketball game. Things ... didn't seem to be going great at the time.
Awww, Thelen was going to be my second-rounder! How often does a college coach say his team is better off without a first-round draft pick (which is exactly what Rick Comley said when he booted Thelen)?
That's the one that stings Wild fans the most.
Still gotta say that Warren Babe is one of the greatest names of all time!
Warren Babe is so obscure the Star Tribune does not have any archived photos of him
Kyle Gibson and Warren Babe were two names I did not expect to hear tonight.
Was he Dave Coulier's stand-in on Full House?
His hockey hair grade was off the charts, though.
On a mission trying to find Mr. Warren Babe.
Warren Babe gonna regulate
Sorry, my copy had some glitches with my Warren Babe pick. Long story short: Louis refused to trade two second-round picks and the 12th overall pick in 1986 to the Rangers to move up three slots to take gifted defenseman Brian Leetch. Glen Sonmor was beside himself at the draft table and the North Stars came home with Warren Babe, Neil Wilkinson and Dean Kolstad while the Rangers stayed put and took Leetch.
Holy cow Rachel, I had completely forgotten about his existence
It's a run of NHLers, three in a row.
He had 35 points in 52 games for the Berlin Polar Bears this season. I should have went to see him play when I was there in January.
Taking up space was about the only thing Sheppard did competently.
Remember when we could travel, that was fun
LOL Rachel, that sounds like an NFL scouting report for an offensive lineman
I had this guy in my top five after brushing up on my Twins history. In 1982, the year the Twins lost 102 games (first year at Metrodome, I believe), they used the fourth overall pick on pitcher Bryan Oelkers. 0-5 in only 10 games (eight starts) with Twins in 1983. 8.65 ERA. Also had a cup of coffee with Cleveland. ... And oh yeah, the No. 5 overall pick was Dwight Gooden.
Like CMill said, that run of Wild first-rounders from 2004-2008 did not produce a single useful player. It's a pretty remarkable feat to misjudge talent so thoroughly for so long.
The snake draft MUST DIE. But for the time being I will take the Timberwolves selection of Derrick Williams at No. 2 overall in 2011 as the No. 11 worst draft pick in state history. Some players selected after Williams? Klay Thompson, Kemba Walker and Kawhii Leonard. You can't whiff on the No. 2 pick and in this case the Wolves did just that.
From 2004 to 2008 the Wild made some bad first round picks. Trying to choose between Benoit Bouliot (2005), James Sheppard (2006), Colton Gillies (2007) and Tyler Cuma (2008) would be tough, so let’s say the 2004 selection of Michigan State defenseman A.J. Thelen with the 12th overall pick beats them all. Thelen was kicked off the Spartans the next season and his career went nowhere.
Note: I think 2018 pick Filip Johansson could be on the same path ...
I'm going with some little known history and taking,,,Warren Babe 12th overall 1986, NYR and future Hall of Famer Brian Leetch 9th. Neil Wilkinson 30th and Dean Kolstad 33rd. North Stars GM Lou Nanne called a timeout with the NY Rangers on the clock with the ninth pick and talked to them about swapping his 12th, but ultimately wasn’t willing to give up, as I remember, both second-round picks he had to move up three places. So he took Babe, who played 21 games in his career and Neil Wilkinson and Dean Kolstad with those second-rounders. The Rangers stayed put and took Brian Leetch, a future Hall of Famer.
