2010 NHL Mock Draft, 19th Pick: Los Angeles Kings Select Jon Merrill

With the 19th pick in the 2010 SB Nation NHL Mock Draft, our Los Angeles Kings bloggers at Jewels From The Crown select...

Jon Merrill, US National Team Development Program (USHL)

photo via thehockeynews.com

From Jewels From The Crown:

6'3"+, 198lbs, ranked 11th by ISS, Central Scouting 21st (NA skaters), gold medal for US-U18 this past year, Freshman at University of Michigan in the fall (which he committed to four years ago). Also, he's an Okie.

Conventional wisdom has the Kings picking a forward, but I think Lombardi will pick the best player available, and will have no problem picking someone who won't be ready for several years. Also, Lombardi's love of Red Berenson is legendary.

When I spoke to Merrill last week at Ann Arbor's Yost Arena, he told me he was excited about the prospect of -- wait, that didn't happen. I'm a blogger.

Next up today are our Pittsburgh Penguins bloggers at Pensburgh.