Flames take Emile Poirer 22nd overall

 

 

Although consensus top-10 offensive talent (and Calgary born) Hunter Shinkaruk was still on the board when the Flames took the podium, the Flames instead chose to be the first team to go well off-board in the first round by choosing QMJHL left winger Emile Poirier.

Ranked 57th in the NHLNumbers concensus rankings, Poirier scored 70 points in 65 games for Gatineau, including 32 goals (NHLE = 25). He also had 101 PIM’s, suggesting a bit of an edge to his game. Poirier is 6’1" and 183 pounds and known for good speed and quality offensive instincts.

Jay Feaster claimed the team had Poirier amongst their top-10 available prospects. The 18-year old led his team in scoring by a full 16 points, and the guy who was second is 19 years old, so Calgary may have found something with this pick. It’s too bad they weren’t willing to gamble by waiting to see if he could drop to 28 given his consensus rankings, but we’ll see how things sort out down the road.