What team got the best draft haul post 2015?

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Mitch nylander

One of the biggest fans from a bipolar fanbase
Jun 2, 2016
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Upon reflecting on some of the best NHL draft hauls I thought of a few:
  1. 1989 Wings: Nicklas Lidstrom (HHOF), Sergei Fedorov (HHOF), Vyasheslav Kostantinov (hard hitting top 4 d), Dallas Drake (1000 game top 4 defender), Mike Sillinger (1000 game nhler), Bob Boughner (600 game, bottom pair dman)
  2. 1979 Oilers: 3 HHOF players - Mark Messier, Kevin Lowe, Glenn Anderson
  3. 2011 Lightning: Nikita Kucherov (2x Art Ross winner, hart-winning winger), Odrej Palat (top 6 winger, 800 nhl games), Vladislav Namestnikov (800 game, reliable middle six centre), Nikita Nesterov (decent #6d for 150+ games)
-------------------------

Since 2015, multiple teams have had very successful draft classes. Here are some that come to mind:

2015:

Minnesota Wild:
  • Kirill Kaprizov (135th): Star first-line forward with already 2 100 point seasons.
  • Joel Eriksson-Ek (20th): Stellar two-way top 6 C, with two 60 point seasons
  • Jordan Greenway (50th): 3rd line power forward with over 400 NHL games to his name.
Winnipeg Jets:
  • Kyle Connor (17th): Over a PPG winner, with a 47 goal & 93 point season under his belt.
  • Jack Roslovic (25th): A reliable middle-six centre with almost 500 games to his name, and two 40+ point campaigns.
  • Mason Appleton (168th): Third line winger, who's played over 350 NHL games and is good for 30 points a year.
  • Jansen Harkin (47th): Played over 200 NHL games, as a bottom sixer.
  • Sami Niku (198th): 67 nhl games out of a 7th rounder is always respectable.
Carolina Hurricanes:
  • Sebastien Aho (35th): True top line point per game centre, 3 seasons with 80+ points.
  • Noah Hanifin (5th): Top 4 two-way d with over 700 NHL games and 300 points.
  • Nicolas Roy (96th): 30+ point 3rd line centre, with a recent 41 point campaign.
  • Steven Lorentz (186th): Good hard-nosed bottom 6 winger, with nearly 300 games under the belt.
2016:

Boston Bruins:
  • Charlie Mcavoy (14th): Top pairing 2-way defender, with two 50+ point seasons and 500 games under his belt.
  • Trent Frederic (29th): Third line physical forward, with over 300 games to his name.
  • Ryan Lindgren (49th): Top 4 defender, with physicality. Up to almost 400 Nhl games.
  • Oskar Steen (165th): 60 games tweener is more than respectable for round 6.
Calgary:
  • Matthew Tkachuk (6th): Top-line, physical point per game winger with two 100+ point seasons.
  • Adam Fox (66th): While he never played in Calgary, he's a Norris winning defender with 70+ point seasons.
  • Dillon Dube (56th): Was a reliable middle six player, who played over 300 games prior to the arrest.
2017:

Dallas:
  • Miro Heiskanen (3rd): Obviously a no-brainer pick at 3, but he's a top 10 defender in this league.
  • Jason Robertson (39th): Point per game winner, who put up 100+ points.
  • Jake Oettinger (26th): Starting Goalie, reliable for 50-60 games a year.
  • Jacob Peterson (132nd): Nearly played 100 games in the league.
Vegas:
  • Nick Suzuki (13th): Top line centre, good for 60-70 points a season. Never got to play in Vegas though.
  • Erik Brainstorm (15th): Offensive #5d, who's yet to find his footing, but has played nearly 300 games now.
  • Nicolas Hague (34th): Reliable, huge top 4 defender with over 330 games to his name.
  • Cody Glass (6th): Obviously a little two high of a pick for what he is. But he's a skilled bottom 6er who's now played over 200 games.
  • Jonas Rondbjerg (65th) & Jake Leschyshyn (62nd): Two tweeners who've now played over 70 games each.
2018:

Edmonton:
  • Evan Bouchard (10th): Offensive dman with 70+ point campaigns and a booming shot.
  • Michael Mcleod (40th): Speedy middle six centre, who can chip in 30+ point offensively.
  • Mike Kesselring (164th): Looking like a top 4 defender now. Late bloomer two-way defenseman.
No one else really.

2019:

Washington Capitals:
  • Connor Mcmichael (25th): Breaking in as a top 6 guy, on pace for over 55 points. Skilled centre.
  • Aliaksei Protas (91st): 6"6 top 6 forward, who's on pace for over 60 points. What a steal.
  • Brett Leason (56th): Over 200 Nhl games under his belt. He's a reliable, sizeable bottom 6 forward.

Anaheim Ducks:
  • Trevor Zegras (9th): While he has slumped a bit, he's still a dynamic creative, top 6 winger, with two 60+ point seasons.
  • Jackson Lacombe (39th): Recently really breaking in as a top 4 defensemen. Already has 20 points on the season.
  • Henry Thrun (101st): Looks like a guaranteed NHLer now, almost 100 games in the bigs.
2020:

Ottawa Senators:
  • Tim Stutzle (3rd): Top line forward, good for 90+ points in his prime. Probably the most talented player of the draft.
  • Jake Sanderson (5th): Top pairing two way defender, very good player.
  • Ridly Grieg (28th): Middle six player who plays with an edge. Has played over 100 games in this league.
  • Tyler Kleven (44th): Pretty confident he will be a middle pairing, no non-sense defensemen for a long time in this league. Has looked good as a regular this year.
  • Leevi Merilainen (71st): Has looked excellent through 9 games this year with .917 sv%. Looks like an nhler.
  • Cole Reinhardt, Egor Sokolov, Roby Jarventie: These are all guys who have seen a dozen NHL games, who could still make it. I think Reinhardt especially, might be a late blooming bottom 6 forward.
NYR
  • Alex Lafreniere (1): Obviously, an easy pick at number 1, but he's coming to his own as top 6 guy.
  • Braeden Schneider (19th): Over 250 nhl games, looking pretty comfortable as a middle 6 guy.
  • Will Cuylle (60th): He's the definition of a modern PWF, he's physical, can score. Should be a good 2nd-3rd line guy for years to come.
  • Brett Berard (134th): Pretty much solidifying himself as an NHLer, he's an amazing skater, works hard, can chip in.
  • Matt Rempe (165th): Nothing more than a 4th line goon. But to get that in the 6th, is still a great pick.
  • Dylan Garand (103rd): I think he's one of the best goalie prospects in hockey right now. He'll get some games.
2021 (too early to tell range):
  • Arizona: Dylan Guenther, JJ Moser, Emil Lilleberg + Josh Doan & Sam Lipkin
  • Dallas: Logan Stankoven & Wyatt Johnston... + Artem Grushnikov, Artyom Martino,
  • Seattle: Matty Beniers, Ryker Evans + Ryan Winterton, Ville Ottavainen
2022:
  • Columbus: David Jiricek, Denton Mateychuk, Luca Del Bel Belluz, Jordan Dumais,
  • Montreal: Juraj Slafkovsky, Lane Hutson, Owen Beck, Adam Engstrom, Filip Mesar
  • Minnesota: Danila Yurov, Liam Ohgren, Hunter Haight, Michael Milne, David Spacek
  • Leafs: Fraser Minten, Dennis Hildeby, Nikita Grebenkin
  • Chicago: Kevin Korchinski, Frank Nazar, Sam Rinzel, Paul Ludwinski, Ryan Greene
2023:
  • Flyers: Matvei Michkov, Oliver Bonk, Denver Barkey, Carter Bjarnason, Zaragin, Cole Knuble
  • SJ: Will Smith, Luca Cagnoni, Quinton Musty, Kasper Haaltunen, Eric Pohlkamp
  • St Louis: Dalibor Dvorsky, Otto Stenberg, Theo Lindstein, Jakub Stancl, Juraj Pekarcik,
  • Seattle: Eduard Sale, Carson Rehkopf, Caden Price, Oscar Fisker Molgaard, Lucas Dragicevic
  • Washington: Ryan Leonard, Andrew Cristall, Cam Allen,
 
Dallas 2017 first then Minnesota 2015.

One draft to watch for is Montreal 2022.

Slafkovsky is on pace for 50 pts as a 20 years old. A bit of a disappointing season so far but he is young and there is still room for growth.

Hutson: I think people in here know enough about him already haha. But on pace for close to 70 pts as a rookie D-man is insane.

Beck: Best forward in Laval. Called up tonight. Unless something dramatically goes wrong, he looks to be an NHLer at the very minimum.

Engstrom: Best D-man on the AHL team. His progression has been impressive. Bit of a dark horse. He could become a top 4 D if he keeps improving. Very good chance he plays some NHL games next season (if he is not with the team from the start).

Mesar: Still a bit of hope but time is running out.

Davidson: One of the best players in Laval. Could play some NHL games in his career but most likely not a regular. He was drafted as an overager so is 22 years old.

So despite the draft being only 2 and a half years ago, Habs have already 2 impactful players, 3 players with NHL games and 3 more with potential to play.
 
Dallas is the winner here. Picking two stars, Oettinger and Robertson, later in the draft looks like pure genius. And that's in addition to the more obvious top pick of Heiskanen.
 
Dallas is the winner here. Picking two stars, Oettinger and Robertson, later in the draft looks like pure genius. And that's in addition to the more obvious top pick of Heiskanen.
Dallas got great value on picks, but I am not sure it is the best haul at face value. I’m not saying it isnt, but its not by a clear margin imo like would be the case if speaking about relative value
 
While that really is quite a nice draft, it still reads the same way as the Gretzky brothers being the highest scoring brother duo in NHL history.
Thats a good draft even if you completely ignore McDavid.

Getting 3 players with decent careers with picks 117, 124, and 154 is very good work.
 
Dallas for this conversation. They got their franchise goalie and a top 10 defenseman in the same draft, and also got Robertson, who has been up and down a bit in his career - when he's on his a star though.

Thats a good draft even if you completely ignore McDavid.

Getting 3 players with decent careers with picks 117, 124, and 154 is very good work.
This. If they hadn't traded their 2nd pick (rumour has it they were considering taking Joel Eriksson Ek), this Oilers draft could possibly be in the discussion.
 
Dallas 2017 first then Minnesota 2015.

One draft to watch for is Montreal 2022.

Slafkovsky is on pace for 50 pts as a 20 years old. A bit of a disappointing season so far but he is young and there is still room for growth.

Hutson: I think people in here know enough about him already haha. But on pace for close to 70 pts as a rookie D-man is insane.

Beck: Best forward in Laval. Called up tonight. Unless something dramatically goes wrong, he looks to be an NHLer at the very minimum.

Engstrom: Best D-man on the AHL team. His progression has been impressive. Bit of a dark horse. He could become a top 4 D if he keeps improving. Very good chance he plays some NHL games next season (if he is not with the team from the start).

Mesar: Still a bit of hope but time is running out.

Davidson: One of the best players in Laval. Could play some NHL games in his career but most likely not a regular. He was drafted as an overager so is 22 years old.

So despite the draft being only 2 and a half years ago, Habs have already 2 impactful players, 3 players with NHL games and 3 more with potential to play.
Agree on Dallas but not sure how Habs in 20 is going to turn out yet, probably good but it's still too early to tell.

The Sharks this year might be one to watch but still way too early.
 
Where is 2007 Montreal Canadiens?

Mcdounagh
Pacioretty
Subban
Y.Weber

That is two #1 defensemen
one 1st line winger
and a solid #6 dman.
 
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If the Sens picked Peterka over Järventie or Faber over Kleven, we win this easily. 2020 for the Sens is still among one of the best, but definitely the undisputed best.
 
Upon reflecting on some of the best NHL draft hauls I thought of a few:
  1. 1989 Wings: Nicklas Lidstrom (HHOF), Sergei Fedorov (HHOF), Vyasheslav Kostantinov (hard hitting top 4 d), Dallas Drake (1000 game top 4 defender), Mike Sillinger (1000 game nhler), Bob Boughner (600 game, bottom pair dman)
  2. 1979 Oilers: 3 HHOF players - Mark Messier, Kevin Lowe, Glenn Anderson
  3. 2011 Lightning: Nikita Kucherov (2x Art Ross winner, hart-winning winger), Odrej Palat (top 6 winger, 800 nhl games), Vladislav Namestnikov (800 game, reliable middle six centre), Nikita Nesterov (decent #6d for 150+ games)
-------------------------

Since 2015, multiple teams have had very successful draft classes. Here are some that come to mind:

2015:

Minnesota Wild:
  • Kirill Kaprizov (135th): Star first-line forward with already 2 100 point seasons.
  • Joel Eriksson-Ek (20th): Stellar two-way top 6 C, with two 60 point seasons
  • Jordan Greenway (50th): 3rd line power forward with over 400 NHL games to his name.
Winnipeg Jets:
  • Kyle Connor (17th): Over a PPG winner, with a 47 goal & 93 point season under his belt.
  • Jack Roslovic (25th): A reliable middle-six centre with almost 500 games to his name, and two 40+ point campaigns.
  • Mason Appleton (168th): Third line winger, who's played over 350 NHL games and is good for 30 points a year.
  • Jansen Harkin (47th): Played over 200 NHL games, as a bottom sixer.
  • Sami Niku (198th): 67 nhl games out of a 7th rounder is always respectable.
Carolina Hurricanes:
  • Sebastien Aho (35th): True top line point per game centre, 3 seasons with 80+ points.
  • Noah Hanifin (5th): Top 4 two-way d with over 700 NHL games and 300 points.
  • Nicolas Roy (96th): 30+ point 3rd line centre, with a recent 41 point campaign.
  • Steven Lorentz (186th): Good hard-nosed bottom 6 winger, with nearly 300 games under the belt.
2016:

Boston Bruins:
  • Charlie Mcavoy (14th): Top pairing 2-way defender, with two 50+ point seasons and 500 games under his belt.
  • Trent Frederic (29th): Third line physical forward, with over 300 games to his name.
  • Ryan Lindgren (49th): Top 4 defender, with physicality. Up to almost 400 Nhl games.
  • Oskar Steen (165th): 60 games tweener is more than respectable for round 6.
Calgary:
  • Matthew Tkachuk (6th): Top-line, physical point per game winger with two 100+ point seasons.
  • Adam Fox (66th): While he never played in Calgary, he's a Norris winning defender with 70+ point seasons.
  • Dillon Dube (56th): Was a reliable middle six player, who played over 300 games prior to the arrest.
2017:

Dallas:
  • Miro Heiskanen (3rd): Obviously a no-brainer pick at 3, but he's a top 10 defender in this league.
  • Jason Robertson (39th): Point per game winner, who put up 100+ points.
  • Jake Oettinger (26th): Starting Goalie, reliable for 50-60 games a year.
  • Jacob Peterson (132nd): Nearly played 100 games in the league.
Vegas:
  • Nick Suzuki (13th): Top line centre, good for 60-70 points a season. Never got to play in Vegas though.
  • Erik Brainstorm (15th): Offensive #5d, who's yet to find his footing, but has played nearly 300 games now.
  • Nicolas Hague (34th): Reliable, huge top 4 defender with over 330 games to his name.
  • Cody Glass (6th): Obviously a little two high of a pick for what he is. But he's a skilled bottom 6er who's now played over 200 games.
  • Jonas Rondbjerg (65th) & Jake Leschyshyn (62nd): Two tweeners who've now played over 70 games each.
2018:

Edmonton:
  • Evan Bouchard (10th): Offensive dman with 70+ point campaigns and a booming shot.
  • Michael Mcleod (40th): Speedy middle six centre, who can chip in 30+ point offensively.
  • Mike Kesselring (164th): Looking like a top 4 defender now. Late bloomer two-way defenseman.
No one else really.

2019:

Washington Capitals:
  • Connor Mcmichael (25th): Breaking in as a top 6 guy, on pace for over 55 points. Skilled centre.
  • Aliaksei Protas (91st): 6"6 top 6 forward, who's on pace for over 60 points. What a steal.
  • Brett Leason (56th): Over 200 Nhl games under his belt. He's a reliable, sizeable bottom 6 forward.

Anaheim Ducks:
  • Trevor Zegras (9th): While he has slumped a bit, he's still a dynamic creative, top 6 winger, with two 60+ point seasons.
  • Jackson Lacombe (39th): Recently really breaking in as a top 4 defensemen. Already has 20 points on the season.
  • Henry Thrun (101st): Looks like a guaranteed NHLer now, almost 100 games in the bigs.
2020:

Ottawa Senators:
  • Tim Stutzle (3rd): Top line forward, good for 90+ points in his prime. Probably the most talented player of the draft.
  • Jake Sanderson (5th): Top pairing two way defender, very good player.
  • Ridly Grieg (28th): Middle six player who plays with an edge. Has played over 100 games in this league.
  • Tyler Kleven (44th): Pretty confident he will be a middle pairing, no non-sense defensemen for a long time in this league. Has looked good as a regular this year.
  • Leevi Merilainen (71st): Has looked excellent through 9 games this year with .917 sv%. Looks like an nhler.
  • Cole Reinhardt, Egor Sokolov, Roby Jarventie: These are all guys who have seen a dozen NHL games, who could still make it. I think Reinhardt especially, might be a late blooming bottom 6 forward.
NYR
  • Alex Lafreniere (1): Obviously, an easy pick at number 1, but he's coming to his own as top 6 guy.
  • Braeden Schneider (19th): Over 250 nhl games, looking pretty comfortable as a middle 6 guy.
  • Will Cuylle (60th): He's the definition of a modern PWF, he's physical, can score. Should be a good 2nd-3rd line guy for years to come.
  • Brett Berard (134th): Pretty much solidifying himself as an NHLer, he's an amazing skater, works hard, can chip in.
  • Matt Rempe (165th): Nothing more than a 4th line goon. But to get that in the 6th, is still a great pick.
  • Dylan Garand (103rd): I think he's one of the best goalie prospects in hockey right now. He'll get some games.
2021 (too early to tell range):
  • Arizona: Dylan Guenther, JJ Moser, Emil Lilleberg + Josh Doan & Sam Lipkin
  • Dallas: Logan Stankoven & Wyatt Johnston... + Artem Grushnikov, Artyom Martino,
  • Seattle: Matty Beniers, Ryker Evans + Ryan Winterton, Ville Ottavainen
2022:
  • Columbus: David Jiricek, Denton Mateychuk, Luca Del Bel Belluz, Jordan Dumais,
  • Montreal: Juraj Slafkovsky, Lane Hutson, Owen Beck, Adam Engstrom, Filip Mesar
  • Minnesota: Danila Yurov, Liam Ohgren, Hunter Haight, Michael Milne, David Spacek
  • Leafs: Fraser Minten, Dennis Hildeby, Nikita Grebenkin
  • Chicago: Kevin Korchinski, Frank Nazar, Sam Rinzel, Paul Ludwinski, Ryan Greene
2023:
  • Flyers: Matvei Michkov, Oliver Bonk, Denver Barkey, Carter Bjarnason, Zaragin, Cole Knuble
  • SJ: Will Smith, Luca Cagnoni, Quinton Musty, Kasper Haaltunen, Eric Pohlkamp
  • St Louis: Dalibor Dvorsky, Otto Stenberg, Theo Lindstein, Jakub Stancl, Juraj Pekarcik,
  • Seattle: Eduard Sale, Carson Rehkopf, Caden Price, Oscar Fisker Molgaard, Lucas Dragicevic
  • Washington: Ryan Leonard, Andrew Cristall, Cam Allen,
Canucks may make 2023 if willander, Brews, and Mynio all do well.
 
2017 Dallas for sure.

A good one to mention is 2021 Detroit. It’s too early to tell but I think they’ll end up with 4 very good players.
Simon Edvinsson (Detroit’s number 2 D)
Sebastian Cossa (probably Detroit’s top prospect now and I’d say comfortably a top 3 goalie prospect)
Mazur (2 national championships with Denver, a top 3 forward in Grand rapids that looks like a dude)
Shai Buium (top D on Grand Rapids. Also looks like a dude)
 

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