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PHT Mock Draft results: Team Staal (by James O’Brien)

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Using the actual roster pool for this weekend’s 2011 NHL All-Star Game and the rules designated by the NHL (each team’s goalies must be drafted by round 10; all defensemen by round 15), Joe and I made the selections for Team Lidstrom and Team Staal. (Or as someone wrote on Twitter, Team Yerdstrom vs. Team Staalbrien.)

Here’s a rundown of my selections in line-by-line form. We’ll share Joe’s picks soon.

For Joe’s picks, click here.

My best guess on forward lines:

Alex Ovechkin - Jonathan Toews - Eric Staal

Toews and Staal can share center duties. The crowd gets to watch Hurricanes captain Staal skate with two of the biggest stars in the game. This is the kind of line that hockey fans dream of (and goalies fear).

Daniel Sedin - Henrik Sedin - Loui Eriksson

Corey Perry could be a good fit for this line considering his space-opening style and right-handed shot, but I think fellow Swede Eriksson will fit in well with the Sedin twins because of his sniping ability and shared heritage. Obviously Ryan Kesler would make some sense here too to unite the Canucks, but I feel like this trio works best.

Danny Briere - Claude Giroux - Perry

Briere and Giroux work well together, obviously, while Perry brings size and grit (not that the All-Star Game is a great place for that) to this line. It’s also an all-Canadian line, which follows this team’s theme ...

Paul Stastny - Kesler - Phil Kessel

... As you can see from this All-American (depending on how you view Stastny’s nationality) line. Stastny can setup Kessel goals while Kesler does a little bit of everything for this line. All three of these players could play center if the lines are shuffled.

My best guess on defensive lines:

Mike Green - Zdeno Chara

Green gets to roam free while Chara can unleash his monster shot and play something resembling defense during the competition.

Dan Boyle - Shea Weber

This pairing could easily be this team’s top duo. Does it really matter in the All-Star Game? Boyle can roam free like Green while Weber brings another thunderous slapper to this group.

Dustin Byfuglien - Marc Staal

Byfuglien would be able to play his rover game because a) again, it’s the All-Star game and b) Staal can play “responsible” defense. Staal also gets to play on the same team as is brother. Always nice.

Goalies

Tim Thomas, Marc-Andre Fleury and Carey Price

The unorthodox and athletic Thomas is ably suited for this event while Fleury and Price produced some hot streaks this season. I don’t think there’s a bad goalie in the six chosen for the All-Star Game, so you can’t really lose with either bunch.