NHL Mock Draft
The NHL Draft will take place next Friday (Round 1) and Saturday (Round 2-7) at the United Center in Chicago. It will feel a little bit awkward that there will be 31 teams participating in the NHL Draft and not 30. This will be the inaugural draft for the Las Vegas Golden Knights, who will have the sixth selection.
First Round: 1. New Jersey Devils- Nolan Patrick, C, Brandon (WHL)
2. Philadelphia Flyers- Nico Hischier, C/RW, Halifax (QMJHL)
3. Dallas Stars- Miro Heiskanen, D, HIFK U20 (Fin Jr.)
4. Colorado Avalanche- Gabriel Vilardi, C, Windsor (OHL)
5. Vancouver Canucks- Cody Glass, C, Portland (WHL)
6. Las Vegas Golden Knights- Owen Tippet, RW, Mississauga (OHL)
7. Arizona Coyotes- Casey Mittelstadt, C, Eden Prairie High School (MN)
8. Buffalo Sabres- Cale Makar, D, Brooks (AJHL)
9. Detroit Red Wings- Martin Necas, C/RW, Brno (CZE)
10. Florida Panthers- Timothey Liljegren, D, Rogle Jr. (SWE)
11. Los Angeles Kings- Michael Rasmussen, C, Tri City (WHL)
12. Carolina Hurricanes- Eeli Tolvanen, LW/RW, Sioux City (USHL)
13. Winnipeg Jets- Lias Andersson, C/LW, HV71 (SWE)
14. Tampa Bay Lightning- Nicholas Suzuki, C, Owen Sound (OHL)
15. New York Islanders- Jusso Valimaki, D, Tri City (WHL)
16. Calgary Flames- Callan Foote, D, Kelowana (OHL)
17. Toronto Maple Leafs- Elias Pettersson, C, Timra IK (SWE)
18. Boston Bruins- Erik Brannstrom, D, HV71 (SWE)
19. San Jose Sharks- Klim Kostin, C/RW, Dynamo (VHL)
20. St. Louis Blues- Ryan Poehling, C, St. Cloud State (NCHC)
21. New York Rangers- Urho Vaakanainen, D, Blues (FIN)
22. Edmonton Oilers- Nicolas Hague, D, Mississauga (OHL)
23. Arizona Coyotes (from Minnesota Wild)- Kristian Vesalainen, LW, Frolunda (HC)
24. Columbus Blue Jackets- Kailer Yamamoto, LW/RW, Spokane (WHL)
25. Montreal Canadiens- Isaac Ratcliffe, LW, Guelph (OHL)
26. Chicago Blackhawks- Jake Oettinger, G, Boston University
27. St. Louis Blues (From Washington Capitals)- Conor Timmons, D, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL)
28. Ottawa Senators- Maxime Comotis, LW, Victoriaville (OHL)
29. Dallas Stars (From Anaheim Ducks)- Shane Bowers, C, Waterloo (USHL)
30. Nashville Predators- Jaret-Anderson Dolan, C, London (OHL)
31. Pittsburgh Penguins- Henri Jokiharju, D, Portland (WHL)
Best Players Available after first round: Robert Thomas, C, London (OHL), Josh Norris, C, NTDP U18 (USHL), Jason Robertson, LW, Kingston (OHL), Kole Lind, C/RW, Kelowna (WHL), and Nikita Popugaev, LW, Prince George (WHL).
