The biggest names in NHL brass have gathered in Vancouver as Round 1 of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft gets underway Friday evening at Rogers Arena.
The Calgary Flames were awarded the 26th pick at the draft lottery back in April. While many general managers choose to address positional needs with their selections, Flames GM Brad Treliving is aiming to go for the best player available.
“Barring a major miracle, whoever we’re selecting at 26th, you’re talking years not months before they’re ready to play in the NHL,” Treliving told Global News from Vancouver.
“Your needs today may be different from what you need when they show up.”
But beyond the largely-agreed-upon top two picks in Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko, there’s no real consensus on who the best players may be.
“I think you’ve got a handful of guys in that three/four spot and then as you get into number 10 and down there’s a bunch of names in there,” Treliving said. “I think you’re going to see some names drop unexpectedly. If you’re talking about 31 first-round picks, you could be into the 40s in terms of the players that could go in those 31 spots.”
Treliving has earned a reputation as a man who isn’t afraid to make a major splash on the draft floor.
On the second day of last year’s draft, Treliving orchestrated the blockbuster trade that sent Michael Ferland, Dougie Hamilton and prospect Adam Fox to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Noah Hanifin and Elias Lindholm.
He’s expecting to see a lot of movement at the draft, but the Flames have a lot of in-house business they want to take care of first.
Calgary’s top off-season priority is re-signing restricted free agent (RFA) Matthew Tkachuk. The assistant captain’s entry-level deal expired when the Flames were eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Treliving says conversations are ongoing with Tkachuk’s management, but he also has 12 other RFAs on the roster to deal with, including Sam Bennett, David Rittich and Andrew Mangiapane.
Many other NHL squads are in the same boat.
“Seeing a lot of teams up against the cap, I think that’s going to promote some activity,” Treliving said.
“Some of these teams that have got all these RFA guys, you’ve got to be careful how far you get out in front of it without having a handle on how much those guys are going to cost you.”
Local talent
While the order of selection is anyone’s guess, three Calgary-born players are expected to get picked up in the first two rounds.
Kootenay Ice captain Peyton Krebs has been ranked 10th overall by NHL Central Scouting leading up to the draft.
His stock could drop slightly because of an injury to his Achilles that he suffered in training earlier in June. He’s expected to be back on the ice in the fall.
Brett Leason, 20, was passed on not once, but twice, in the past two drafts. After putting together a stellar season with the WHL-winning Prince Albert Raiders, the towering six-foot-four winger could be picked up late in the first round.
WHL rookie of the year Brayden Tracey made a splash with 81 points in 66 games with the Moose Jaw Warriors and ranked 21st among North American skaters. Tracey could land early in the second round.
Draft day primer
Round 1 of the draft begins at 6 p.m. MT Friday. Rounds 2-7 will take place on Saturday.
The New Jersey Devils are expected to select American forward Jack Hughes with the first overall pick.
The rest of the league will select in the following order, barring any trades.
2. New York Rangers
3. Chicago Blackhawks
4. Colorado Avalanche (from Senators)
5. Los Angeles Kings
6. Detroit Red Wings
7. Buffalo Sabres
8. Edmonton Oilers
9. Anaheim Ducks
10. Vancouver Canucks
11. Philadelphia Flyers
12. Minnesota Wild
13. Florida Panthers
14. Arizona Coyotes
15. Montreal Canadiens
16. Colorado Avalanche
17. Vegas Golden Knights
18. Dallas Stars
19. Ottawa Senators (from Blue Jackets)
20. Winnipeg Jets (from Rangers)
21. Pittsburgh Penguins
22. Los Angeles Kings (from Maple Leafs)
23. New York Islanders
24. Nashville Predators
25. Washington Capitals
26. Calgary Flames
27. Tampa Bay Lightning
28. Carolina Hurricanes
29. Anaheim Ducks (from Sharks via Sabres)
30. Boston Bruins
31. Buffalo Sabres (from Blues)
The team that wins the Stanley Cup automatically picks last in the first round. In this case, the Blues traded their first-round pick to Buffalo as part of a deal that saw eventual playoff MVP Ryan O’Reilly pack his bags for St. Louis.
Players selected in the first round have a strong chance of suiting up in the NHL. That chance decreases when they’re selected in the second round and the numbers dwindle further after the third round.
Some gems can still be found late in the draft. Hall-of-Famer Luc Robitaille was selected 171st overall in the 9th round of the 1984 draft by the L.A. Kings. The Detroit Red Wings snagged two-time Stanley Cup champion Pavel Datsyuk at 171st overall in the 1998 draft. Small, speedy forward Theo Fleury wasn’t selected by the Calgary Flames until the 8th round of the 1987 draft.
Others don’t need to be drafted at all. Beloved Flames Mark Giordano and Joel Otto were passed over by the league, as well as the Flame that got away- Martin St. Louis.
The draft has been held in Alberta twice, first at the Edmonton Coliseum in 1995, and most recently in at the Saddledome in Calgary in 2000.
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