Every year the SBNation NHL Draft Hub does a full mock draft in which every site choses a player at their respective teams position.
The New York Rangers, especially after their move to acquire Tim Erixon, will almost certainly look at a forward to help with their scoring depth in the farm system. Currently, the Rangers only have one true pure goal scorer in their system (Chris Kreider). Joel Armia automatically changes that.
Armia scored 18 goals and add 11 assists for 29 points in 48 Finnish Elite League games. That's even more impressive when you consider the fact that Armia is all of 17-years-old playing with men much older and stronger than him. Most 17-year-old prospects playing in men's leagues don't break double digits in points and most certainly not goals. Armia did.
His goal-scoring abilities have already been compared to Teemu Selanne's, and he could be exactly the type of risk/reward pick the Rangers might look to in the real draft at 15. Here is a scouting report from My NHL Draft:
Joel Armia is a budding power forward already playing in the Finnish Elite League at 17 years old. 6'2, 185 lbs, Armia has an incredible shot and uses his size to his advantage on the cycle. Already drawing comparisons to Finnish great Teemu Selanne, Armia possesses a similar scoring touch, though not to the same degree. Although he underwhelmed during the World Junior Championship, the Finnish team collectively flamed out during the metal round. Though he is one of the top offensive players in the draft, Armia may not go straight to the NHL, as his defensive game needs rounding out. Armia projects to go in the from any where inside to top 10-the a pick in the mid teens.
Another thing the Rangers lack in their farm system is a scoring threat with size. Armia also fixes this issue. He's lethal between the hashmarks with the puck, and in a men's league he is already cycling the puck in the tough areas on the ice, and winning those battles to boot.
Some people have questioned his World Juniors play, but I don't mind his poor performance. As a 17-year-old playing in the Under-20s on a team that collectively didn't play well at all, I can understand him not having a good showing. He only posted a single assist in six games. In the Under-18s however, Armia scored four goals and added nine assists for 13 points in six games.
Armia represents something the Rangers have very little of in their pipelines (although they have a plethora of young and talented defensemen) and he would help make them an even more dangerous team in the future.