Bright Young Things: Best/Worst Picks of NHL Draft
With the 2013 NHL Draft in New Jersey just over a month away, the media will be betting among themselves as to whether Nathan Mackinnon, Seth Jones or Finn Aleksander Barkov will be the first name called out by the Colorado Avalanche! The draft system can be a tricky one and sometimes the first picks go onto the great things. But sometimes things don't quite go to plan and other times, future stars may go un-noticed in the later rounds. Here is a look at some of the great draft successes and failures from years gone by.
Top 5 Draft Steals
1. Dominic Hasek (199th Overall, 1983, Chicago Blackhawks): The Dominator was only selected in the 10th round by Chicago back in 1983 (Hasek didn't even know this until months later) and took 7 years to come play in the NHL from the Czech Republic. But when he arrived, he changed goaltending forever collecting 6 Veniza Trophy's and two Hart Trophy's over a 17 year career taking in Buffalo, Ottawa and the Red Wings where he won two Stanley Cups and fittingly collected an Olympic gold in 1998 with the Czech team! His strange style of keeping net revolutionized goal-tending and Hasek still holds the highest save percentage of all time!
2. Brett Hull (117th Overall, 1984, Calgary Flames): Back in 1984, the draft was dominated by Mario Lemeiux refusal to don the Pittsburgh jersey, but in the sixth round a future star went un-noticed- Brett Hull! In a career playing with Calgary, St Louis, Dallas, Detriot, and Phoenix, Hull stands 3rd overall in all time goal scoring behind Gretzky and Howe with an incredible 700 goals and 1,300 points and it has also seen him win two Stanley cups and he was a Hart Trophy winner back in 1991.
3. Luc Robitaille (174th Overall, 1984, LA Kings): In the same 1984 draft, Montreal native Robitaille was selected without any significant attention, but he has gone onto be an integral part of the LA Kings history and currently holds several of their all time records and as it stands 'Lucky Luc' is the highest point scoring left winger in NHL history with 1394 points! With a Stanley Cup win with Detroit in 02, Robitaille retired from the game in 2006 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009- and to think this man was only selected in the 9th round!
4. Pavel Datsyuk (171st Overall,1998 Detroit Red Wings) I know Mike will appreciate this inclusion, but it is impossible to think that this true star was only picked in the sixth round back in 1998 and went undrafted the previous two years before! Since arriving Datsyuk and his magical dekes have driven Detriot forward and he has now registered an amazing 522 points in 526 games! He has also added two Stanley Cup wins in 2002 and 2008 to his impressive career and it would appear there might be another one along soon!
5 Sergei Zubov (85th Overall, 1990, New York Rangers) Zubov was only taken in the 5th round by the Big Apple team in 1990 but fast became a fan favourite for his offensive minded play and is one of the highest scoring defensemen in the NHL ever with 767 points in a career spanning 18 years and added two Stanley Cup wins with New York in 1994 and Dallas in 1999 as well an Olympic Gold in 1992 with Russia!
Top 5 NHL Draft Busts
1. Alexandre Daigle (1st Overall 1993 Ottawa Senators) : The Pele of prospects gone bad! Back in 1993, young Canadian Alexandre Daigle was a media sensation and whilst playing in the Quebec Major Junior League he was touted by many as the next superstar in waiting and teams scrambled over themselves to secure him in the draft. Finally he was selected 1st overall by Ottawa Senators (amid rumours of games being fixed), and it appeared the franchise had acquired a vital future star. But despite posting a decent 51 points in his rookie season, Daigle career didnt quite go to plan and despite playing over 13 seasons in the NHL and scoring 327 points he would rarely match his debut season and became more notorious for his off ice antics than the ones on them!
2. Ray Martyniuk (5th Overall 1970 Montreal Canadiens): Back in the 1970 draft, goalie Ray Martyniuk was a hot prospect in the WCHL and had won just about every honour there was. The Habs were so excited about this future stopper that he never once played a game! Martyniuk would spend the remainder of his career in the minor leagues and sadly never once made the bright lights of the NHL!
3. Patrik Stefan (1st Overall 1999 Atlanta Thrashers): Czech centre Stefan put up respectable numbers whilst playing for the Long Beach Ice Dogs in the IHL and based these performances the Atlanta Thrashers felt him worthy of the number 1 draft slot (over the Sedin Brothers). Tragically Stefan would fail to meet expectations and struggled to score double figures each season. He only really contribution to hockey came while playing for Dallas against Edmonton in 2007 when through on goal with an empty net- he managed to trip over himself and let the puck go free for Ales Hemsky to score down the other end with 2 seconds left!
4. Pat Falloon (2nd Overall 1991 San Jose Sharks): In a 1991 draft dominated by Eric Lindros refusing to sign with Quebec Nordiques, Pat Falloon as the first ever draft pick by San Jose was seen as a building block for the franchise and after a rookie season of 59 points, there followed 3 seasons of underperforming and when finally traded in 1995 his career would deteriorate and he would be more known for his lack of condition and earned the nickname 'Fat Balloon'. Though he did later become a star for minor league Foxwarren Falcons in Manitoba, leading them to six straight titles!
5. Doug Wickenheiser (1st Overall 1980 Montreal Canadiens): The Story of Doug Wickenheiser is a truly sad one, his first overall selection instead of Francophile star Denis Savard in 1980 greatly angred Habs fans, particularly as Savard went onto to star for Chicago! The Canadiens management kept faith with Wickenheiser, but after 4 poor seasons he was finally traded to St Louis and spent the rest of his career as a journeyman before passing away in 1999 at 37 from terminal brain cancer. His cousin Hayley Wickenheiser however, has gone on to be big thing of female hockey in Canada!
Top 5 Draft Steals
1. Dominic Hasek (199th Overall, 1983, Chicago Blackhawks): The Dominator was only selected in the 10th round by Chicago back in 1983 (Hasek didn't even know this until months later) and took 7 years to come play in the NHL from the Czech Republic. But when he arrived, he changed goaltending forever collecting 6 Veniza Trophy's and two Hart Trophy's over a 17 year career taking in Buffalo, Ottawa and the Red Wings where he won two Stanley Cups and fittingly collected an Olympic gold in 1998 with the Czech team! His strange style of keeping net revolutionized goal-tending and Hasek still holds the highest save percentage of all time!
2. Brett Hull (117th Overall, 1984, Calgary Flames): Back in 1984, the draft was dominated by Mario Lemeiux refusal to don the Pittsburgh jersey, but in the sixth round a future star went un-noticed- Brett Hull! In a career playing with Calgary, St Louis, Dallas, Detriot, and Phoenix, Hull stands 3rd overall in all time goal scoring behind Gretzky and Howe with an incredible 700 goals and 1,300 points and it has also seen him win two Stanley cups and he was a Hart Trophy winner back in 1991.
3. Luc Robitaille (174th Overall, 1984, LA Kings): In the same 1984 draft, Montreal native Robitaille was selected without any significant attention, but he has gone onto be an integral part of the LA Kings history and currently holds several of their all time records and as it stands 'Lucky Luc' is the highest point scoring left winger in NHL history with 1394 points! With a Stanley Cup win with Detroit in 02, Robitaille retired from the game in 2006 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009- and to think this man was only selected in the 9th round!
4. Pavel Datsyuk (171st Overall,1998 Detroit Red Wings) I know Mike will appreciate this inclusion, but it is impossible to think that this true star was only picked in the sixth round back in 1998 and went undrafted the previous two years before! Since arriving Datsyuk and his magical dekes have driven Detriot forward and he has now registered an amazing 522 points in 526 games! He has also added two Stanley Cup wins in 2002 and 2008 to his impressive career and it would appear there might be another one along soon!
5 Sergei Zubov (85th Overall, 1990, New York Rangers) Zubov was only taken in the 5th round by the Big Apple team in 1990 but fast became a fan favourite for his offensive minded play and is one of the highest scoring defensemen in the NHL ever with 767 points in a career spanning 18 years and added two Stanley Cup wins with New York in 1994 and Dallas in 1999 as well an Olympic Gold in 1992 with Russia!
Top 5 NHL Draft Busts
1. Alexandre Daigle (1st Overall 1993 Ottawa Senators) : The Pele of prospects gone bad! Back in 1993, young Canadian Alexandre Daigle was a media sensation and whilst playing in the Quebec Major Junior League he was touted by many as the next superstar in waiting and teams scrambled over themselves to secure him in the draft. Finally he was selected 1st overall by Ottawa Senators (amid rumours of games being fixed), and it appeared the franchise had acquired a vital future star. But despite posting a decent 51 points in his rookie season, Daigle career didnt quite go to plan and despite playing over 13 seasons in the NHL and scoring 327 points he would rarely match his debut season and became more notorious for his off ice antics than the ones on them!
2. Ray Martyniuk (5th Overall 1970 Montreal Canadiens): Back in the 1970 draft, goalie Ray Martyniuk was a hot prospect in the WCHL and had won just about every honour there was. The Habs were so excited about this future stopper that he never once played a game! Martyniuk would spend the remainder of his career in the minor leagues and sadly never once made the bright lights of the NHL!
3. Patrik Stefan (1st Overall 1999 Atlanta Thrashers): Czech centre Stefan put up respectable numbers whilst playing for the Long Beach Ice Dogs in the IHL and based these performances the Atlanta Thrashers felt him worthy of the number 1 draft slot (over the Sedin Brothers). Tragically Stefan would fail to meet expectations and struggled to score double figures each season. He only really contribution to hockey came while playing for Dallas against Edmonton in 2007 when through on goal with an empty net- he managed to trip over himself and let the puck go free for Ales Hemsky to score down the other end with 2 seconds left!
4. Pat Falloon (2nd Overall 1991 San Jose Sharks): In a 1991 draft dominated by Eric Lindros refusing to sign with Quebec Nordiques, Pat Falloon as the first ever draft pick by San Jose was seen as a building block for the franchise and after a rookie season of 59 points, there followed 3 seasons of underperforming and when finally traded in 1995 his career would deteriorate and he would be more known for his lack of condition and earned the nickname 'Fat Balloon'. Though he did later become a star for minor league Foxwarren Falcons in Manitoba, leading them to six straight titles!
5. Doug Wickenheiser (1st Overall 1980 Montreal Canadiens): The Story of Doug Wickenheiser is a truly sad one, his first overall selection instead of Francophile star Denis Savard in 1980 greatly angred Habs fans, particularly as Savard went onto to star for Chicago! The Canadiens management kept faith with Wickenheiser, but after 4 poor seasons he was finally traded to St Louis and spent the rest of his career as a journeyman before passing away in 1999 at 37 from terminal brain cancer. His cousin Hayley Wickenheiser however, has gone on to be big thing of female hockey in Canada!
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