2010 NHL Mock Draft, 11th Pick: Dallas Stars Select Derek Forbort

With the 11th pick in the 2010 SB Nation NHL Mock Draft, our Dallas Stars bloggers at Defending Big D select...

Derek Forbort, US National Team Development Program (USHL)

photo via thehockeynews.com

From Defending Big D:

The Stars traded their top defensive prospect, Ivan Vishnevskiy to the Thrashers in the deal for Kari Lehtonen, leaving them with Philip Larsen as the top rated blue liner in their system. He is the only defenseman in the Stars top 20 prospects outside of Hubert Labrie, who I'm guessing most Stars fans haven't heard of. The Stars' defensive cupboard is bare and Derek Forbort is where they need to start the re-stocking.

Forbort, by all accounts, is an impressive combination of size and skill. Projected by many to be a top pairing guy in the NHL, the 6'5", 198 pounder is good on the penalty kill, willing to blocks shots and can hold his own in the offensive end. While not a "pure puck mover", Derek scored 4 goals and 10 assists in 26 appearances with the U.S. National U-17 team in 2009-2010 and is described as an excellent skater for his size. He is committed to the Univeristy of North Dakota in the fall. The Stars are mock-happy to mock-draft the young man from Duluth, Minnesota, and continue a tradition of outstanding American players (Modano, Hatcher, Guerin, etc) in Texas.

The next pick in the draft belongs to the Anaheim Ducks and our bloggers at Anaheim Calling.