from Bob McKenzie of TSN,

Appearances can be deceiving.

Take for instance, TSN’s Top 15 2019 NHL Draft Rankings, the Lottery Edition.

American Jack Hughes is the unanimous No. 1 pick. Ten out of 10 scouts surveyed by TSN this week — on the eve of next week’s (Tuesday, April 9) NHL Draft Lottery — put Hughes in the No. 1 slot, just as they did in TSN’s preseason rankings in September and midseason rankings in late January.

So, Jack Hughes, slam-dunk No. 1 prospect for the 2019 NHL draft, correct?

Well, not so fast.

Unanimity doesn’t allow for how close the race for No. 1 has become between Hughes, the 5-foot-10, 168-pound American centre, and 6-foot-2, 194-pound Finnish forward Kaapo Kakko, who is now the most prolific under-18 goal scorer (22 in 45 games played) ever in Finland’s top professional league (eclipsing Aleksander Barkov’s 21 goals in 53 games in 2012-13).

“The difference for us, right now, is razor thin,” said one NHL team head scout. “It’s almost a coin flip, pretty much a dead heat. Really close. Call it Hughes at 51 per cent, Kakko at 49 per cent. It’s that close and that could change.”

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