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AP Photo/Martin Meissner
One significant NHL offseason hurdle has been cleared.
But many remain between now and the arrival of the regular season in October.
Each of the league’s 32 teams took steps toward their respective futures in Montreal with two days of selections at the annual entry draft.
More than 200 players heard their names called at the Bell Centre, and they’ll work their way into the new organizations as executives and coaches prep for the next task at hand, the onset of free agency on Wednesday.
The B/R hockey team got together again to assess where each team stands now that the picks are made and the countdown toward next season has begun in earnest.
The teams were ranked from No. 32 to No. 1, combining results from last season with noteworthy additions, subtractions and changes made in the meantime.
Scroll through to see what we came up with and feel free to drop a comment or two to let us know your thoughts.
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AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, file
32. Chicago Blackhawks
GM Kyle Davidson arrived with no first-round picks and
walked away with three, but eyebrows were raised by the price paid—namely 41-goal
forward Alex DeBrincat (to Ottawa) and recent No. 3 overall pick Kirby Dach (to
Montreal). Blue-chip prospects or not, it’s going to be tough in the meantime
for hockey fans in Chicago.
31. Arizona Coyotes
The Coyotes picked third and had a chance to grab the
longtime favorite to go first overall, Shane Wright, but they passed and
instead grabbed Logan Cooley, who’d been ranked second to Wright by NHL Central
Scouting. Maveric Lamoureux and Conor Geekie came later in the first, and Arizona
added future draft capital by taking on Edmonton tough guy Zack Kassian in an
Oilers salary dump.
30. Seattle Kraken
When Wright was passed over by Montreal, New Jersey and
Arizona, he dropped into the laps of the happy Kraken, who immediately added him
to last year’s No. 2 pick, Matty Beniers, to form an impressive one-two punch at
center. Jagger Firkus was another noteworthy pick early in the second round, and
GM Ron Francis has more than $22 million in cap room to work with.
29. Montreal Canadiens
Wright responded with a cold stare toward the Montreal table
after he was not selected at No. 1, but the Canadiens seemed quite pleased with
Slovakian teen Juraj Slafkovsky, a 6’4” forward who may be ready to make an
immediate NHL impact. The acquisition of Dach from the Blackhawks is a
worthwhile risk, and the subsequent picks of Filip Mesar, Lane Hutson and Owen
Beck may pay big future benefits.
28. Ottawa Senators
Arriving in Montreal without DeBrincat and leaving with him is
nothing but a win for GM Pierre Dorion. The prolific 24-year-old has a single
year left on a deal paying him $6.4 million before he becomes a restricted free
agent, but he’ll blend nicely in the meantime with Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle
and Josh Norris, who combined for 87 goals in 2021-22. Expect a step toward
relevance in Ottawa.
27. San Jose Sharks
The biggest draft-week news for the Sharks was the hiring of
Mike Grier as the first Black GM in league history. He was only on
the job for a few days before picking center Filip Bystedt at No. 27 and grabbing
Cameron Lund and Mattias Havelid in Round 2. Now, it’s time for Grier to hire a
coach to replace Bob Boughner and decide upon the eight restricted free agents
on the roster.
26. Philadelphia Flyers
Winger Cutter Gauthier was ranked fifth among North American
skaters by NHL Central Scouting, and the Flyers got him at fifth overall. He had
65 points in 54 games in the U.S. national development program, and he got a new
teammate on Friday when Philadelphia sent a fourth-round pick and two future
picks to Carolina for controversial defenseman Tony DeAngelo.
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AP Photo/Paul Sancya
25. Buffalo Sabres
The wave of optimism continued unabated through Western New
York thanks to Buffalo’s haul of forwards Matt Savoie, Jiri Kulich and Noah
Ostlund in the first round after defensemen Owen Power and Rasmus Dahlin
arrived first overall in 2021 and 2018. Goaltender remains a long-term need, and
the Sabres took a chance with Finnish prospect Topias Leinonen at No. 41 overall.
24. New Jersey Devils
The Devils addressed a need when they got defenseman Simon
Nemec at No. 2 overall and added additional blue-line help with Seamus Casey at
No. 46. The Nemec pick won’t age well if Wright and/or Cooley turn out to be superstars,
but GM Tom Fitzgerald was already sitting on a bevy of young forwards from past
drafts. Grabbing goalie Vitek Vanecek from Washington for a pair of picks also helps.
23. Anaheim Ducks
Whether they’ll reach star level is a question for the
future, but the players headed to Anaheim following GM Pat Verbeek’s two days
in Montreal should fill holes. Defenseman Pavel Mintyukov came to the Ducks at
No. 10 overall after producing 62 points in 67 games in the Ontario Hockey
League. His skating and offensive instinct help fill a hole created by the
Hampus Lindholm trade.
22. Columbus Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets landed two of the first 12 players chosen
in the forms of highly touted defensemen David Jiricek and Denton Mateychuk and then
followed up with forward Luca Del Bel Belluz in the second round at No. 44. Del
Bel Belluz, in fact, was the eighth-ranked North American skater by NHL Central
Scouting after scoring 30 goals and 76 points with Mississauga of the OHL last
season.
21. Detroit Red Wings
Center Marco Kasper arrived as the eighth overall pick for
GM Steve Yzerman following stints with Austria at both the world junior
championship and world championship tournaments. Winger Dylan James came in the
second round after a stellar rookie year in the USHL, and perhaps Yzerman’s biggest
move was trading a third-round pick to St. Louis for prospective starting
goalie Ville Husso.
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AP Photo/Mark Humphrey
20. New York Islanders
The Islanders traded out of the No. 13 position to grab starting
defenseman Alex Romanov from Montreal in a deal that ultimately let the Canadiens
move ahead with the Dach trade. Two more defensemen, Calle Odelius and Isaiah
George, came in the second round, but it’ll ultimately be about Romanov, who
was picked 38th overall in 2018 and has 133 NHL games under his belt.
19. Winnipeg Jets
Finnish center Brad Lambert was the 10th-ranked European
skater as the draft got started, so the Jets getting him at 30th overall could
be a coup down the road. Sixteen picks earlier, they’d grabbed high-motor
winger Rutger McGroarty on the heels of an eight-goal output in six games while
winning silver with the U.S. at the under-18 world championship tournament.
18. Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks’ draft class was highlighted by Swedish winger
Jonathan Lekkerimaki, whom they got at No. 15 after he’d been ranked sixth
among international skaters. He was the high scorer at the under-18 world
championships and went on to score seven goals in 26 games in the top Swedish
pro league. Now, the focus turns to whether Bruce Boudreau can maintain the magic
created after he arrived last season.
17. Nashville Predators
Playmaking winger Joakim Kemell played above his age in the
Liiga, the top league in his native Finland, and the Predators are excited
about him in spite of his smallish 5’9”, 185-pound frame. But they made even
bigger news with a current player, re-signing would-be unrestricted free agent
Filip Forsberg to an eight-year, $68 million deal after he posted career bests in
goals and assists with 42 apiece.
16. Washington Capitals
When it comes to the Capitals’ class of 2022, the future
will be the ultimate arbiter. Washington grabbed power winger Ivan Miroshnichenko
at No. 20 just five months after he was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma. He’d
been a top-five prospect on many lists prior to his illness. Later, the Capitals
got defenseman Ryan Chesley at No. 37 after he’d arrived ranked 18th
among North American skaters.
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AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
15. Dallas Stars
It was all about the blue line for the Stars, who picked
defensemen with each of their first four picks in Montreal. Lian Bichsel was
their first pick at No. 18, and the 6’5”, 225-pounder will be a huge (literally)
weapon when he develops to NHL-caliber play. Whether the team retains the
services of free agency-bound veteran John Klingberg will have quite a bit to
do with how the defense looks in 2022-23.
14. Boston Bruins
The Bruins were on the sidelines for the first round after
sending that pick to Anaheim in March in exchange for Hampus Lindholm. So 54th overall
selection Matthew Poitras slides in as Boston’s de facto first-rounder for 2022
coming off an OHL season in which he had 21 goals and 50 points in 68 games.
Elsewhere, the team is awaiting word from 36-year-old center Patrice Bergeron
on his future plans.
13. Vegas Golden Knights
Like the Bruins before them, the Golden Knights were also
without a first-round pick in 2022 after sending it to Buffalo in the Jack
Eichel deal last season. They wound up with Czech forward Matyas Sapovaliv at
No. 48 after he’d produced 52 points in 68 games with Saginaw and was ranked
23rd among North American skaters. Vegas is also strapped for cash space with seven
possible free agents.
12. Pittsburgh Penguins
Defenseman Owen Pickering came to the Penguins at No. 21
overall, marking the team’s first first-round pick since 2019. Consensus
suggests he’ll return to juniors this season and perhaps rise to the AHL the
following year, which means he won’t be in an NHL uniform for a few seasons. In
the meantime, GM Ron Hextall re-signed veteran Kris Letang to buoy the blue
line for six years, $36.6 million.
11. Edmonton Oilers
Grabbing Alberta native and power forward Reid Schaefer at
No. 32 overall was nice enough for the Oilers, but the main mission for GM Ken
Holland was to shed salary to allow for free-agency moves. The Zack Kassian deal
helped toward that end, and Edmonton now has better than $15 million to entice
Evander Kane, chase a goaltender and fund decisions on the nine others who are
restricted or unrestricted.
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AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu
10. St. Louis Blues
The Blues got forward Jimmy Snuggerud at No. 23 after he’d
been ranked 11th among North American skaters. He had 63 points in 59 games in
the U.S. U-18 development program and seven points during the U-18 world
championship. Additionally, St. Louis handed the No. 1 goalie reins to Jordan Binnington
with the Ville Husso trade and still has Vladimir Tarasenko with a year left on his
deal.
9. Minnesota Wild
It was a strong week for GM Bill Guerin, who dealt Kevin
Fiala to Los Angeles before he’d have stretched the budget on his way to free
agency, got Swedish winger Liam Ohgren with the pick acquired from the Kings and
added highly touted Russian winger Danila Yurov at No. 24. Along the way, they
also secured Marc-Andre Fleury for two seasons at $3.5 million apiece to handle
primary goaltending duties.
8. Los Angeles Kings
The Kings reached the playoffs a year ahead of expectations, and they’re doing all they can to stay among the contenders. Fiala came from
Minnesota and was signed for seven years, and fellow forward Adrian Kempe
remains in the fold for four years and $22 million after he scored 35 goals
last season. Draft-wise, after sending away a pick for Fiala, the team got Jack
Hughes from Northeastern at No. 51.
7. Calgary Flames
The Flames had sent their first-round pick to Montreal for Tyler
Toffoli and their third-rounder to Boston for goaltender Dan Vladar, so second-rounder
Topi Ronni at No. 59 was their first addition. But it’s all about free agency
in Calgary as GM Brad Treliving tries to strike a deal with imminent UFA Johnny
Gaudreau and tries to find a workable number with imminent RFA Matthew Tkachuk.
6. Florida Panthers
The Panthers didn’t have a selection until third-rounder Marek
Alscher came at No. 93, so there’s little expectation for immediate impact. The
first-rounder had been sent to Buffalo for Sam Reinhart at last season’s draft, and the second-rounder went to Calgary for Sam Bennett. Like many other teams, Florida
is focusing on free agency with little cap space and decisions to make on Claude
Giroux and others.
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AP Photo/David Zalubowski
5. New York Rangers
The Rangers sent their first-round pick to Winnipeg to
acquire Andrew Copp prior to last season’s deep playoff run, so Slovakian
forward Adam Sykora became their first selection at No. 63 in the second round.
He had two goals in five games at the 2021-22 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and is good on
the forecheck. Copp and Ryan Strome are among the free agents that GM Chris
Drury will need to decide upon.
4. Toronto Maple Leafs
The Maple Leafs sacrificed a first-round pick to get Chicago
to take on the contract of goaltender Petr Mrazek, who had two seasons
remaining at $3.8 million apiece. That meant forward Fraser Minten of the
Kamloops Blazers was the top import at No. 38 overall. Meanwhile, goaltending
remains a priority with Jack Campbell heading to free agency and GM Kyle Dubas
discussing Matt Murray with Ottawa.
3. Carolina Hurricanes
The Hurricanes fared well considering they didn’t have a
first-round pick, sending Tony DeAngelo to Philadelphia for additional draft capital
in 2023 and 2024. Carolina grabbed a pair of Russian forwards, Gleb Trikozov
and Alexander Perevalov, at Nos. 60 and 71. Given DeAngelo’s exit, GM Don
Waddell figures to use some of his $19 million in cap space to pursue a
smartly priced defenseman.
2. Tampa Bay Lightning
If nothing else, No. 31 selection Isaac Howard has the
personality to be an NHL star. The Lightning grabbed the 18-year-old after he’d
led the U.S. U-18 development team with 82 points in 60 games and he charmed the
media with his confidence and fashion sense. On the immediate front, however,
it’s up to GM Julien BriseBois to make the call on playoff sparkplug Ondrej
Palat as he approaches free agency.
1. Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche didn’t make much of an impact in terms of
selecting players, thanks to picks at Nos. 193 and 225. But they did make a
move on the current roster with a trade that brought 26-year-old goalie Alexandar
Georgiev in from the Rangers. He was quickly signed to a three-year deal worth
$10.2 million, meaning the end of the line for Cup-winning goalie Darcy Kuemper
as he heads to free agency at age 32.
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