NHL Draft

Tonight is the first of two main events for the NHL offseason: the 2022 NHL Draft. It is in person in Montreal. The New Jersey Devils are picking second and ...

The draft will take place tonight to continue what has already been a very busy and active week of activity in the NHL. Please leave your thoughts, expectations, hopes, and dreams for the 2022 NHL Draft in the comments. Of course, there will be an open post for each draft day for you to have your say about anything and everything happening at the 2022 NHL Draft. As there are multiple picks in the first round, I will have a summary for each day’s activities in the evening of each day. Beyond the first round, there are a couple of trends to look for with the Devils. One is a goaltender. That would be the pool to expect for second overall - assuming the Devils keep the pick. This trend could break in part that this year’s draft class from the ‘O’ is weaker than usual. For the Devils this year, that is second overall. The Devils earned this pick by winning one of the two lotteries in the 2022 NHL Draft Lottery. Will the Devils Use All of These Picks?: As always, the answer is maybe. The Devils traded their 2022 fifth rounder to Buffalo as part of the deal that gave them Will Butcher. (An odd move as it was a dump made on the first day of 2021’s free agency.) The Devils received Edmonton’s fourth rounder as part of the trade that sent Dmitry Kulikov to the Oilers at the 2021 NHL Trade Deadline. The Oilers did not win a playoff round in 2021, so the pick is a fourth rounder and not a third rounder. The Islanders’ fourth round pick will complete the 2021 trade that sent the Pride of Montvale, New Jersey, Kyle Palmieri, and Travis Zajac to Long Island. The pick was conditional on whether the Isles made it to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2021. The full ordered list of all 225 picks is here.

UMass' Luke Pavicich is the highest-ranked goaltender among current NCAA players (photo: Rich Gagnon). Few college hockey fans will forget the 2021 NHL Draft's ...

This isn’t because of a lack of college talent. Northeastern’s Jack Hughes is the top-ranked current NCAA player, appearing 26th on the NHL CSS final rankings, dropping from a midterm mark of seventh. In fact, there is a good chance that by the end of Thursday’s opening round (7 p.m. ET, ESPN and ESPN+) from the Bell Centre in Montreal, it will barely match or exceed the four early picks of 2021.

The 19 WHL players selected in the first rounds of the 2019, 2020, and 2021 NHL Drafts are the most among the three leagues that comprise the Canadian Hockey ...

The 2020 NHL Draft featured seven WHL players selected in the first round, including another star Oil King in Kaiden Guhle – then a member of the Prince Albert Raiders – who was selected 16th overall by the Montreal Canadiens. Guhle, of course, was the backbone of the Oil Kings run to the 2022 WHL Championship, being named WHL Playoff MVP for his efforts. Overall, 327 WHL players have been taken in the first round of the NHL Draft dating back to 1967. The 2021 NHL Draft was highlighted by five WHL players selected in the first round, led by Edmonton Oil Kings star Dylan Guenther, who was selected ninth overall by the Arizona Coyotes. Guenther went on to play a vital role with the Oil Kings in 2021-22, leading the team in scoring during the regular season as well as during the 2022 WHL Playoffs and the Oil Kings march to the Ed Chynoweth Cup. The 2019 NHL Draft – the last to be conducted in-person – was a fruitful one for the WHL, and it took place in WHL territory at Rogers Place in Vancouver, B.C. That summer, the WHL celebrated a total seven first-round selections, including three in the top 10: Kirby Dach (third overall), Bowen Byram (fourth overall), and Dylan Cozens (seventh overall). All three have since gone on to play vital roles for their respective NHL Clubs, with Byram serving in a top-four role on the blueline for the 2022 Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche. This marks the first time the NHL will have hosted an in-person draft since 2019 in Vancouver. The NHL Draft was hosted virtually in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The first round of the 2022 NHL Draft is slated for Thursday evening (5 p.m. MT) at the Bell Centre in Montreal, and several WHL stars wait in anticipation, hoping to hear their names called in the early going.

The NHL draft is being held in person for the first time since 2019. The host Montreal Canadiens are on the clock with the No. 1 overall pick.

He also was captain of Canada's gold medal team at the under-18 world championships. He was voted MVP of the Beijing Olympics men's hockey tournament after scoring seven goals as Slovakia won a medal for the first time. Center Logan Cooley led the U.S. under-18 team with 1.47 points per game. That last happened in 1985 when the Toronto Maple Leafs drafted Wendel Clark. 32. Arizona (from Colorado Avalanche in the Darcy Kuemper trade) 28. Buffalo Sabres (from Florida Panthers in the Sam Reinhart trade) 30. Winnipeg Jets (from New York Rangers in the Andrew Copp trade) 26. Montreal Canadiens (from Calgary Flames in the Tyler Toffoli trade) 22. Anaheim Ducks (from Boston Bruins in the Hampus Lindholm trade) 16. Buffalo Sabres (from Vegas Golden Knights in the Jack Eichel trade) 19. Minnesota Wild (from Los Angeles Kings in the Kevin Fiala trade) 6. Columbus Blue Jackets (from Chicago Blackhawks in the Seth Jones trade)

The Bell Centre is the place to be as the Canadiens make the first overall pick.

Molson Export is hosting a LIVE viewing party for the first round on a giant screen in Canadiens Plaza, outside the Bell Centre, from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Admission is free. MONTREAL -- The wait is finally over. For a more interactive experience, fans can also join Marc Dumont on Twitch as of 7:00 p.m. for a live reaction stream leading up to the first overall pick, featuring a chat with other fans, as well as an instant analysis of the top selection. Montreal is set to become the first NHL Draft host city to select a player with the No. 1 overall pick since the Maple Leafs chose Wendel Clark at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in 1985. After winning the Draft Lottery in May, the Canadiens will make the first overall pick. The first round of the 2022 NHL Draft is tonight!

Bell Centre will play host to the NHL and fittingly, the Canadiens will have the No. 1 pick in this year's draft and a league-high 14 selections overall. As ...

There will be many options for cord-cutters to catch the NHL Draft at a cost. How can you live stream the NHL Draft in 2022? Most hockey fans will be following the action at home and looking to watch the selections live as they come in. For the first time since 2019, the NHL Draft will be held in an arena setting. For those with cable subscriptions, that will be a piece of cake. As such, Montreal will be buzzing the appropriate amount as its hockey team looks to complete a tricky rebuild.

Rutger McGroarty is on track to become the first player from Lincoln, Neb. to make it to the National Hockey League. "It would be unbelievable," the U.S. ...

McGroarty: "I definitely love to do that. McGroarty: "My dad is the GM of the Muskegon Lumberjacks [in the USHL] ... Someone on the Lumberjacks was chirping me and I was like – my dad's never said this – but I was like, 'My dad hates you! He'll piss people off and raise the competition." And seeing that competitiveness, that energy, I feel like that would be a great role model and someone to model my game after." McGroarty: "Barb is the best. I really enjoyed it." McGroarty: "There was just a bunch of times in practice where I raised the compete out of people. It was a regular-season game against the Canadiens, and it was a blast. I feel like Toronto's a great spot, and I love it ... I grew up a Maple Leafs fan." It was definitely an awesome experience." "There's only a couple hockey rinks, but it was unbelievable. "It would be unbelievable," the U.S. National Team Development Program product said.