The NHL draft is the closest real-life example of roulette you can find outside of a casino: you take a chance and hope you hit it big. Even the first-overall pick has the chance to be a major loss, sometimes with injuries derailing careers, or prospects who were never going to be a great professional player.
The same applies to the 25th overall pick, which once again falls into the lap of the Montreal Canadiens this year. While there’s not an all-star roster of players that have been picked, there’s been some solid NHL talent selected there over the years.
2005 Draft: Andrew Cogliano
Stats: 786 GP, 137 G, 197 A
Drafted by the Edmonton Oilers following the lockout season in 2005, Cogliano has gone on to have a very good NHL career with both the Oilers and currently the Anaheim Ducks. In fact, since he turned pro in 2007, Cogliano has not missed a single game due to injury or other reason. Currently he trails only Steve Larmer, Garry Unger, and Doug Jarvis for consecutive games played. In the modern era this is nothing short of incredible. Add in his production during his career, and you have a solid draft choice.
2006 Draft: Patrik Berglund
Stats: 637 GP, 151 G, 145 A
The St. Louis Blues made Berglund their second pick in the first round of the 2006 NHL Draft, after selecting Erik Johnson first overall in the same round. With 10 NHL seasons under his belt, all with St. Louis, and an Olympic silver medal, Berglund has had an unspectacular, but fruitful, career since he was selected. Another solid pick at 25th overall, getting a player who can be a regular in an NHL lineup is always a major win when it comes to drafting.
2007 Draft: Patrick White
Stats: 0 GP, 0 G, 0 A
Sometimes you crush a home run with your first-round pick, and get a player who has yet to miss an NHL game in his career. Sometimes you’re the Vancouver Canucks and you select Patrick White who never played an NHL game — or even an AHL game — after being selected. White went from the University of Minnesota to the dregs of the European leagues, playing in the German second and third divisions before bouncing around Slovakia, Russia, Austria, Norway and, most recently, the French league. What likely makes this hurt even more is right after White, long-time NHL player David Perron was selected, and in the second round none other than P.K. Subban was available.
2008 Draft: Greg Nemisz
Stats: 15 GP, 0 G, 1A
Much like Vancouver the previous year, Calgary swung and missed big time with their 2008 draft selection. Greg Nemisz ended up as a major first-round bust after a truck load of hype from his junior career. The issue with Nemisz’s dominant CHL numbers is the fact he played on a Windsor Spitfires team that won back to back Memorial Cups. These two teams were led by current NHL stars like Taylor Hall, Ryan Ellis, and Adam Henrique. Based on his professional career it’s clear this former first-round pick was a passenger on a ship driven by other players.
2009 Draft: Jordan Caron
Stats: 157 GP, 12 G, 16 A
The Bruins made Jordan Caron their first-round choice in 2009, and while he managed to play in six professional seasons, he never lived up to his billing as a first-round pick. He spent the most recent season playing in the AHL for the Chicago Wolves, where he tallied just 25 points in 57 games. If the Bruins truly wanted a winger, the next pick was Kyle Palmieri who has gone on to have great success in the NHL, including back-to-back 50 point seasons for the New Jersey Devils.
2010 Draft: Quinton Howden
Stats: 97 GP, 10 G, 7 A
The Panthers made what looked a solid pick at 25th overall in 2010, after Howden had produced at a high level for the Moose Jaw Warriors in the WHL. Unfortunately, the leap from the junior to the professional ranks for Howden was not easy. At the NHL level he has only 17 points in 97 games played, and at the AHL level he’s produced below a half point per game. The real stinger here is that with the 26th overall pick the Washington Capitals selected Evgeny Kuznetsov, who has become a bona fide star in the nation’s capital.
2011 Draft: Stuart Percy
Stats: 12 GP, 0 G, 3 A
Part of a disastrous first round for the Maple Leafs in 2011, Percy ended up as the better of their two first-round picks. Given his low NHL games played, it’s unfair to say Percy is a bust, as he’s a serviceable AHL call-up, and can likely hold his own in light minutes. But, for a first-round pick you likely expect a little bit more in terms of production. He still turned out better than Tyler Biggs at least.
2012 Draft: Jordan Schmaltz
Stats: 9 GP, 0 G, 2 A
We’re entering the drafts were some of these picks are just turning pro, so it becomes far too early to judge them. But early returns show that Jordan Schmaltz is developing into quite the defender for the St. Louis Blues after a solid career at the University of North Dakota. In his nine-game stint this past year with the Blues he grabbed two assists, and in his AHL time he’s producing at a half point per game. Not a bad choice at all.
2013 Draft: Michael McCarron
Stats: 53 GP, 2 G, 5 A
McCarron has been a divisive pick among the Habs fan base. He’s a gigantic, physical forward; something people have clamoured for for years. In the OHL and even in his AHL seasons he’s shown to be quite the adept scorer as well, showing good hands around the net, and an astute defensive game. At the NHL level, however, he’s been used as a fourth-line grinder, and has had more fights than points in recent seasons. A new coaching regime may help the young forward right his career trajectory.
2014 Draft: David Pastrnak
Stats: 172 GP, 59 G, 64 A
Talk about knocking a pick out of the ball park, the Boston Bruins selecting David Pastrnak has been nothing short of perfect for them. In his two pro seasons, Pastrnak has become a certified star for the team, and exploded this past season for 34 goals and 36 assists. Even more impressive is that he does this while playing in tough minutes alongside Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. A flawless pick if there ever was one.
2015 Draft: Jack Roslovic
Stats: 1 GP, 1 G, 0 A
Roslovic has just one pro season under his belt, which he spent with the Manitoba Moose of the AHL. In that season though he notched 48 points, was named an AHL All-Star, and won a World Juniors gold medal. It’s obviously early in his career, but it looks like the Jets landed themselves a budding star to play alongside Laine, Ehlers, & Co. in Winnipeg.
2016 Draft: Riley Tufte
Stats: 0 GP, 0 G, 0 A
Drafted right out of high school Tufte just finished his first season and the University of Minnesota-Duluth. With 16 points in 37 games in his freshman year he’s off to a decent start. Time will tell for Tufte, but as of now it’s far too early to judge this draft pick.
While they didn’t make the time cutoff, players like Steve Ott, Cam Ward, Brendan Morrow, and Marc Denis were also drafted at 25th overall. It’s a crapshoot, but this pick has created some solid NHL talent who have had long professional careers. It’s also created some busts, but that’s the nature of the draft: you’re never going to hit a slam dunk on every pick.
In 2017 it’s the Habs turn once again to try and land that future NHL player, while hopefully avoiding the Greg Nemiszes.
