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2010 NHL Entry Draft: Top 5 prospects left

Tonight’s draft was full of twists, turns and surprises. Some players made big leaps (such as Ryan Johansen, the fourth overall pick) while others plummeted (Cam Fowler at 12, Emerson Etem at 29).

The tomfoolery is far from over, though, news-famished hockey fans. It turns out that Saturday will see six more rounds of increasingly obscure prospects (devolving to the point in which I imagine general managers will break out the darts and blindfolds). Few mock drafts or top-30 rankings are the same, so there might be a few quality players out there who will struggle to sleep tonight.

Let’s take a look at the top five remaining prospects eligible for this year’s draft. If you want to be a Negative Nancy, you might call them the biggest snubs. If you want to be mean, you can disagree with our choices.

1. Jonathon Merrill - The American-born blueliner was the 21st ranked North American player according to Central Scouting and went No. 17 in our mock draft. He’s a hard-hitter with a nasty shot.

2. John McFarland - He was the #1 pick of an OHL draft and went 18th in our mock. At one point, he seemed like a blue chipper, but scouts soured on him over time. He might smell a little like Angelo Esposito in that way, but he could also be a great buy-low candidate.

3. Tyler Pitlick - Besides having a funny last name, Pitlick seemed to be a worthy first-rounder. Brandon said he has the size and power to be a special player, in the right situation.

4. Calvin Pickard - A shoo-in for me to nickname him Calvin “Captain” Pickard. Goalies are mysterious, so you never know, but despite shaky numbers he shows a lot of potential.

5. Stanislav Galiev - He’s a Russian prospect but comes with the benefit of having some seasoning in North American hockey. I’m also very tempted to give him a “Galileo"-influenced nickname. I think I have a pun problem.