Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Follow the bouncing ball to Tampa Bay



"Now, mister, the day the lottery I win I ain't ever gonna ride in no used car again"--
Bruce Springsteen, Used Cars

There will be no used cars on the horizon for Tampa Bay's eventual draft pick, the Lightning followed the bouncing ball and picked up the number one spot in the annual cattle call of young talent destined for a shot at NHL glory come this June.

Unless the selection is used as trade bait, young Steven Stamkos currently of Sarnia, Ontario might want to start thinking about some waterfront property on the West coast of Florida and perhaps a car to tool around the sunshine state in.

Stamkos is the projected number one pick in this years amateur draft, a six-foot, 183-pound forward who has the scouts drooling as an impact player ready to make the jump to the big leagues.

Tampa will now think over their options, count their cash and try and figure out if Stamkos fits into their long term plan or if he'd be the kind of trading chip that could help rebuild their line up in a rather quick order.

The draft selection which was televised by TSN featured Stamkos at home in Sarnia waiting patiently to see which team might be inclined to burn their brand into him when the young crop of players make their trip down the aisles of Scotiabank Place in Ottawa on June 20.

The top picks as selected on Monday night are:

1st Pick-- Tampa Bay Lightning
2nd Pick-- Los Angeles Kings
3rd Pick-- Atlanta Thrashers
4th Pick-- St. Louis Blues
5th Pick-- New York Islanders
6th Pick-- Columbus Blue Jackets
7th Pick-- Toronto Maple Leafs
8th Pick-- Phoenix Coyotes
9th Pick-- Nashville Predators
10th Pick-- Vancouver Canucks

Globe and Mail-- Tampa to pick first

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