It’s been an interesting few days leading up to the NHL draft, with more picks not only in play but already moved than you typically see. A rising cap is giving teams room to add players to their rosters, and this year’s picks are being largely treated as currency to make those additions, even by teams that were well out of the playoff picture at the end of the regular season.
The prospects have been watching the drama unfold ahead of the biggest day of their hockey careers, with their potential destinations changing with every rumour and confirmed transaction to shift the picks around. A different team grabbing a high pick means a different order of how things could have otherwise played out, and we’ll see which player teams had in mind when putting these trades together.
How to watch
Round 1
Date: Friday, June 26
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
TV Channel: Sportsnet, TVA Sports (Canada), ESPN (USA)
Online stream: Sportsnet+
Rounds 2-7
Date: Saturday, June 27
Start time: 11:00 AM EDT / 8:00 AM PDT
TV Channel: Sportsnet, TVA Sports (Canada), NHL Network (USA)
Online stream: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
It’s expected that Gavin McKenna will go first overall given the number of times the new Toronto Maple Leafs management group has visited with him in recent months, but there is a group of players in the running even to go first overall, and a selection of highly touted players available at the top of the class.
First round order
- Toronto Maple Leafs
- San Jose Sharks
- Vancouver Canucks
- Buffalo Sabres
- New York Rangers
- Calgary Flames
- Seattle Kraken
- Winnipeg Jets
- San Jose Sharks
- Nashville Predators
- St. Louis Blues
- New Jersey Devils
- New York Islanders
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- St. Louis Blues
- St. Louis Blues
- Los Angeles Kings
- Washington Capitals
- Utah Mammoth
- Buffalo Sabres
- Philadelphia Flyers
- Pittsburgh Penguins
- Boston Bruins
- Vancouver Canucks
- Ottawa Senators
- New York Rangers
- San Jose Sharks
- Montreal Canadiens
- St. Louis Blues
- Calgary Flames
- Carolina Hurricanes
- Ottawa Senators
