My 2021 draft grades can be found here.

Format:
Team Name: 2022 Draft Letter Grade
2021 Grade: 2021 Draft Letter Grade
Notable 2022 Selections: Player Name (Pick #)
Brief description

With 32 teams, I’ll put 8 in each of the A/B/C/D tiers. Nobody drafted a convicted criminal this year (as far as I’m aware anyway lol), so no F grades. I’ll also assign +/- this year if I feel like it is warranted and they’re a cut above or below the other teams in their tier. Note on how these are assigned: I do this based on total incoming value of prospects. I don’t necessarily weight it on how good the picks were, so if you reached by ~10 picks on every selection but still had 7 picks in the first two rounds, you’d still be bringing in a lot of talent and probably get a good grade. I also weight it more heavily towards guys that I think should’ve been around top 100 picks (i.e. first 3 rounds or so, because I think those are the most valuable rounds, obviously), and will mention the guys I think were major steals in the late rounds.

Anaheim Ducks: A-
2021 Grade: B
Notable 2022 Selections: Pavel Mintyukov (10), Nathan Gaucher (22), Noah Warren (42), Tristan Luneau (53), Ben King (107)
Mintyukov was the best LD available at 10 after Korchinski was taken at 7, and he brings a bit of size at 6’1” to a Ducks D corps that could sorely use some (Drysdale and Zellweger are tiny). Great pick filling a need for them, and I could easily see him next to Drysdale on the top pair in a few years. Gaucher and King give them a formidable centre lineup. Gaucher is a strong 2-way player with some offensive upside that at minimum projects as a good 3C, and if his offense pops he could be more (although he probably won’t leapfrog Zegras or McTavish lol). King is a double overager who led the WHL in goals this year, and is a big centre who plays a good 200-foot game as well. If he ends up as the 4C, the Ducks would be very happy, and there’s now some serious size and snarl behind Zegras up the middle. Warren is a gigantic RD who might have been a bit of a reach, but plays a strong defensive game. On the other hand, Luneau was a bit of a steal, and he’s also a very good RD, but with a different style, as he’s more offensively inclined. Overall, the Ducks look totally stacked on the back end (especially on the right side, with 3 guys that could slot onto the 2nd pair behind Drysdale in Helleson, Warren, and Luneau) and up the middle, which puts them in an enviable position.

Arizona Coyotes: A
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: Logan Cooley (3), Conor Geekie (11), Maveric Lamoureux (29), Artem Duda (36), Julian Lutz (43), Miko Matikka (67), Jeremy Langlois (94)
Passing on Wright was certainly a decision, but they still selected a top 3 player in the draft in Cooley, who I think will be a very dynamic 1C for them (the Cooley+Guenther combo on the top line one day sounds excellent). Geekie was a bit of a reach, but I figured he would be, it’s hard to find 6’3” centres with skill. He’ll probably take a few years to work on his skating before he makes it. Lamoureux is a project, but a 6’7” RD that can skate is the kind of project that you love to have. In 5 years you hope you have a monster on your 2nd pair, but he should at least be a 3rd pair defensive ace. Duda was a reach I reckon, because he lacks pace and mobility, but he’s a talented LD, which is something Arizona lacks. Lutz was one of my favourite 2nd rounders, he’s a big winger with skill, a good shot, and he can skate. The only reason he wasn’t a 1st round lock was because of a major injury in my opinion, and I think he should provide very nice value for a 2nd round pick selection. Matikka is a big winger that can shoot but has skating issues, maybe a bit of a reach at 67, but a decent project. Langlois went around where I expected he would, and he gives the Coyotes some depth at a position of weakness in their prospect pool (LD). He might be a 3LD PP2 guy if he works out, he’s got a good point shot. If you noticed a pattern, it’s that pretty much every guy here needs 3-5 years to develop (except Cooley) lol. That’s probably a good strategy for the Coyotes, so they can continue to pick up high picks for the next few years and not have to subject their future impact players to playing in their disgrace of a building.

Boston Bruins: D
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: Matthew Poitras (54)
Not much to say here. They needed a centre and took Poitras in the 2nd (their only pick in the first 3 rounds). I think that was a pretty big reach though, he’s got some skating issues despite his good shot and compete level and decent skill. I would’ve taken him in the 3rd or 4th. Reid Dyck isn’t one of my favourite goalies of this draft, but he’s got decent size and a bit of pedigree (he was one of Canada’s goalies at the U18s). Not a bad use of a 6th.

Buffalo Sabres: A+
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: Matthew Savoie (9), Noah Ostlund (16), Jiri Kulich (28), Topias Leinonen (41), Viktor Neuchev (74), Mats Lindgren (106)
Wow, what a draft for the Sabres. They absolutely nailed their first 6 picks (and Joel Ratkovic Berndtsson gets bonus points for a fantastic name, shame he can’t decide whether he’s Finnish, Slovakian, or Swedish with a name like that though lol). Savoie has elite skill, even if he projects as a RW in the NHL (although he does have a chance to stay at centre). Ostlund is a slick playmaker who probably sticks up the middle in their top 9. Kulich could be a top 9 centre as well (and I would say he was a top 3 biggest steal of the first round), or he could slide to LW and he has a great shot and a large frame, unlike the other two. Leinonen was a slight reach, but they can’t be disappointed to get the best goalie in the draft. Neuchev (highly skilled forward) and Lindgren (small, slick-skating offensive LD with great hockey sense) were both steals at those selections as well. Another fantastic haul for the Sabres.

Calgary Flames: D
2021 Grade: B
Notable 2022 Selections: Topi Ronni (59)
Ronni went a little higher than I expected him to, although some people had him around this range. Getting a big centre with some skill is fine in the late 2nd, even if there are skating issues. I’m disappointed they didn’t take a RD though, even if they would’ve had to reach a little for a guy like Ty Nelson or Michael Fisher. If they were going to take a centre, I would have preferred Danny Zhilkin. Only three total selections (and only one in the top 150) so this result was kind of expected for the Flames. Taking Jack Sparkes at 155 would’ve been a good choice for them though.

Carolina Hurricanes: A-
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: Gleb Trikozov (60), Alexander Perevalov (71), Simon Forsmark (101), Cruz Lucius (124), Vladimir Grudinin (156)
Somebody needs to stop the Hurricanes. They didn’t pick until the late 2nd, and only had two picks in the top 100, and still walked away with 5 guys I expected to go in the 2nd or 3rd rounds. They get the minus because they don’t have a first round talent (arguably Trikozov, but I had him around the mid-2nd), but if we were comparing the guys they selected to expected draft position, they would be the top team by a mile. All of these guys were steals. Most fit the mold of exciting skill players with skating issues at various positions, but the Hurricanes are clearly betting on talent, and with this many shots, you have to think at least one or two of them becomes an impact NHLer, which is a good result for a draft without a top 50 selection. Once again I walk away from an NHL draft wishing my team drafted like the Hurricanes do (that makes it what, at least 3 years running that they’ve been a draft day winner?). They’re the best Day 2 team at drafting in the league and it’s not close.

Chicago Blackhawks: B+
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Kevin Korchinski (7), Frank Nazar (13), Sam Rinzel (25). Paul Ludwinski (39), Ryan Greene (57)
The Blackhawks went into draft day with zero first round picks and walked out with three. They had a very solid draft, although I think most of their picks were reaches. Korchinski is a very talented offensive LD with size and skating, and if he works on his defensive game he could easily be a top pair guy. I mock drafted him at 10, but had him rated around 12 overall (I prefer several of the forwards over him, but he’s still the 3rd best D in the draft in my eyes). Nazar is a dynamic offensive player with speed, however his small frame might hold him back. He should be a 3C or 2RW as his floor though, we’ll see if he can establish himself as a top 6 centre. I think he’s got a good chance to get there if he’s given a couple years to develop, and he’s got a good 2-way game as well. Rinzel is an exciting project. He’s a huge RD that can skate, he’s basically got all the tools you could want, but he hasn’t played at a very high level of hockey yet (he played high school hockey last year). He’s the type of guy you let sit for 5 years and hope you get an impact top 4 guy at the end of it. Ludwinski was a reach by a couple rounds in my view. On a personal level as a Sens fan, I’m not disappointed that this pick was used on him lol. I think he could be an energy guy because he’s always motoring, but I’m not sold that he has the skill to justify being selected this high. Greene was a nice selection too, he’s a centre with good skating, slick puck skills, and a nice shot. He has middle six upside and was their only slight steal. Dominic James in the 6th was a nice pick that some people really love, but I just don’t think he has enough skill to make an impact as a 5’9” forward. Good skating and compete level though.

Colorado Avalanche: D-
2021 Grade: B
Notable 2022 Selections: None
They only had a 6th and a 7th round pick. The most interesting thing about their draft was that they made the last pick of the draft, and selected Ivan Zhigalov, a Belarussian goalie who brought the total count of different countries represented up to 13 total.

Columbus Blue Jackets: A
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: David Jiricek (6), Denton Mateychuk (12), Luca Del Bel Belluz (44), Jordan Dumais (96), Kirill Dolzhenkov (109), Sergei Ivanov (138), James Fisher (203)
The lone team where I liked every single one of their selections, and they follow up a great draft last year with another high end draft. Columbus now has a lethal blueline, with Jiricek projecting as a big top pair 2-way physical force with a bomb from the point and Mateychuk being a slightly undersized guy, but with oodles of skill and capable 2-way ability that should see him slot behind Werenski in the top 4 long term. LDBB was the best centre available at 44, so that’s a good pickup for an organization with a lot of guys that might play centre, but aren’t necessarily guaranteed to. LDBB should be a good 2-way 3C as his floor, but he might have enough skill to be a 2C. Dumais is the biggest steal of the draft. He was 3rd in QMJHL scoring this year, he’s supremely talented. The only knock against him is that he’s 5’8”. He’s one of the rare super small, skilled players I believe in though, if anyone’s going to be the next Gaudreau from this draft, I’d bet on this kid. Dolzhenkov is a massive brute, a 6’6” forward with puck skills. His skating is atrocious, but he’s definitely worth taking on as a long-term project, and I’d even say he’s a steal at this point. Ivanov is a decent bet as a goalie, he’s small but he’s one of the more talented goalies in the draft. And while I don’t know much about Fisher, he’s an intriguing right shot prep school power forward who I thought would go higher. Not a top 100 guy or anything, but a slight steal by maybe a round to cap off an excellent draft for the Blue Jackets.

Dallas Stars: B-
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: Lian Bichsel (18), Christian Kyrou (50), Matthew Seminoff (179)
I really liked the Stars first two selections. Bichsel is a massive Swiss defensemen that skates pretty well and projects to at least be a 2nd pair shutdown guy. If his offensive game translates up levels he has the potential to even be a 2-way guy who is effective in transition, which is very desirable in today’s game. Kyrou is as small as Bichsel is large, but he’s an elite offensive defenseman. These two could honestly make a very good 2nd pair together a few years down the road, I think they are polar opposites and would complement each other well. I wasn’t a huge fan of their next two picks, but adding depth at RD is always good. Getting Seminoff in the 6th was insane. He is an overager, but he's very talented, and had great success as Stankoven’s linemate this year. I thought he’d go in the 3rd or 4th. And Maxim Mayorov is a huge goalie, definitely worth taking a chance on the raw talent and massive frame and seeing if he could be Oettinger’s backup in 6 or 7 years.

Detroit Red Wings: C+
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: Marco Kasper (8), Dylan James (40)
I’m a huge fan of Kasper’s game, and think he’ll be a very good 2C that is effective on the forecheck and contributes in all situations and on both special teams. Before Chicago traded for pick 7, I (along with the rest of the world) thought this was exactly where Kasper would go, and when Chicago chose to go with Korchinski over Kasper (the two options I thought they’d be picking between), it was once again obvious that Detroit was taking him. James is a solid Swiss-army knife player and was the USHL rookie of the year, but he does have some skating issues, and I personally think he’ll wind up as a bottom six winger that is useful on the PK, which isn’t exactly the type of upside you’re going for at pick 40 (I would’ve taken him in the mid-3rd at the earliest). Similar to how I graded Arizona last year and Philadelphia and Vancouver this year, the Red Wings get a C+ grade for bringing in a good top 10 pick calibre prospect and a pretty big reach in the early 2nd (so one other top 100 pick). I’m personally not a huge fan of their other picks, but there are a couple of Europeans that might be intriguing to some people, and Amadeus Lombardi has a wonderful name.

Edmonton Oilers: D+
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Reid Schaefer (32)
Another year, another draft where the Oilers use their 1st round pick on a winger after trading down and watching their original pick be used on a guy that plays an actual position of need for them, and then proceeding to pick nobody else of note. I actually really like Schaefer as a future middle six power forward with some scoring upside, and he showed in the WHL playoffs that he shows up when the games get important, but it honestly seems deliberate at this point how the Oilers seem to go out of their way to not draft anybody that plays a position that they need, and have needed for years (notably RD and G, although RD is more relevant to this specific pick, as there were several that you could easily justify taking in that position, and Arizona drafted the giant RD Maveric Lamoureux with pick 29).

Florida Panthers: D-
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: None
Florida’s only pick in the first three rounds was a late 3rd, and I wasn’t a huge fan of that pick. I did think they got great value by taking Liam Arnsby and Jack Devine in the 7th, but I still only had them in the 4th. That was pretty much the story for the Panthers this draft. All 7 guys they took I thought would go around the 4th or 5th, which isn’t bad value-wise considering they only had one pick in the first 3 rounds and 4 of their picks were in the 6th and 7th rounds, but not a lot of high-end talent coming in. No guys I would view as top 100 rated prospects.

Los Angeles Kings: C
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: Jack Hughes (51), Otto Salin (148), Jack Sparkes (180)
The Kings had a pretty solid draft. They were missing a 1st (traded for Fiala) and a 3rd (their own was used to trade for Arvidsson, and the Pittsburgh 3rd they got in the Carter trade was used to trade down), but still managed to get 3 guys I had going in the top 100 with a couple of steals late. Hughes was a good pickup in the 2nd, adding another talented centre to their deep crop of forward prospects. They then strengthened the right side of their blueline by taking Salin (offensive guy with skating issues) and the 6’8” Sparkes (mobile with a bomb from the point, but very limited in how he can contribute to the offense, still looks like a solid defensive guy). Not the highest rated guys, but certainly rated higher than they went, and they’re definitely worth taking on as 4-5 year projects. Overall a decent haul for only having one pick in the first 3 rounds, but their grade is held back by the lack of a 1st.

Minnesota Wild: A
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: Liam Ohgren (19), Danila Yurov (24), Hunter Haight (47), Rieger Lorenz (56), Michael Milne (89), Servac Petrovsky (185)
The Wild really blew this draft out of the water. Ohgren was an excellent pick at 19, he’ll be a very good scoring line winger in a couple years. Yurov has high risk attached to him due to being a Russian under contract in the KHL, but if he ever comes over to North America, it’s very likely he’s the steal of the draft. He’s a top 10 pick on talent very easily, and has arguably the highest upside of any player in the draft. Haight is a decent 2-way centre, but I’m not a big fan. Some people really like his offensive game, but I’m not as high on it, and when combined with his skating issues and below average size, I’m just not sure I see even a 3C. Maybe a 4C or bottom six LW that can help on the PK. I wouldn’t have taken him until the 4th round personally. He is a breakout candidate and I might eat this next year, but everything I read about his ability to produce at a high-end rate seemed like projecting something that wasn’t actually there yet. Lorenz was a solid pickup, I figured that was about where he’d get taken, and I think he projects as a solid 3LW that is effective on the forecheck, can be used on the PK, and chip in some offense every now and then. Milne was a solid selection as a talented double overager out of that great Winnipeg Ice team. I think he has enough talent to be worth taking a flier on at this stage, and now we’ll get to see how that translates to the AHL. There’s definitely something there, but he’ll need some development to see if it’s NHL talent or just enough to be great in junior and carve out a career in the lower pro leagues. I couldn’t believe Petrovsky was on the board at 185, I legitimately thought he’d been selected at least 3 round prior. He’s got a good shot and high compete level, which when combined with a decent 2-way game and ability to play both special teams should at least give him a shot at reaching the NHL after a few years of seasoning, despite his small stature. Definitely one of the biggest steals of the draft in my opinion.

Montreal Canadiens: A+
2021 Grade: F
Notable 2022 Selections: Juraj Slafkovsky (1), Filip Mesar (26), Owen Beck (33), Lane Hutson (62), Vinzenz Rohrer (75), Adam Engstrom (92), Jared Davidson (130), Miguel Tourigny (216)
Slafkovsky has been my favourite player in this draft class for over a year and a half (I didn’t think of him as the 1st overall pick for that whole time, but I consistently thought he was better than the consensus until the consensus started to have him top 2 like me haha). I was very happy to see him get called first overall, and I think he will be a dominant player in the league for years. Suzuki and Caufield seem like the perfect complementary linemates, and his power game will complement them as well. The Habs should have a very good top line for the next decade with those three holding things down. Mesar is very fast and very offensively gifted, and I could see him as a 2RW one day (especially with a big centre like Kirby Dach). Brownie points for being good friends with Slafkovsky since they were kids. Beck is a very good 2-way centre who should solidify Montreal’s depth up the middle as their potential 3C behind Suzuki and Dach. Hutson is very tiny, but very smart and very good on offense. In the right situation, he could be an elite puck-mover and PP1 type (the Torey Krug comparables are not just because of his size, but also because of his high-end offensive ability). Rohrer is one of my favourites from this draft. His drive is unmatched, he’s got decent skill, and a well-rounded 200-foot game. I would bet on him being a 3RW for this team. Engstrom is a big LD that skates well and is effective in transition, but he’ll have to improve his own-zone defensive play and/or playmaking ability in the offensive zone to have a shot at sticking in the NHL, but regardless he was a solid pick in the late 3rd round. Taking a flier on the double overager Davidson was a good choice, he was very effective this year as the leading scorer on a good Thunderbirds team, and is ready to turn pro. And finally, one of the bigger steals of the draft, the Habs picked up the double overager Quebec-born RD Miguel Tourigny. His elite skating and offensive ability (great shot and great playmaking ability) but small size make him very comparable to Hutson (with Tourigny’s edge being he shoots right and skates better, but Hutson’s edge being that he’s 2 years younger). I think ultimately only one of them ends up as a full time roster player (just because it’s so rare to see a top 6 with multiple 5’9” or smaller defensemen, because they’re typically not as useful on the PK and neither of these players project to be either), but the Canadiens were right to bet on talent, and I could’ve seen Tourigny as high as the 2nd or 3rd round. Overall a fantastic draft for the host team, they’d be hard-pressed to have a better weekend.

Nashville Predators: B
2021 Grade: A
Notable 2022 Selections: Joakim Kemell (17), Adam Ingram (82), Kasper Kulonummi (84)
I love Kemell. If Ottawa didn’t trade the 7th overall pick, I would have been ecstatic if we had selected Kemell there. The fact that he fell to 17 makes him by far the biggest steal of the 1st round. He has a top 3 shot in the draft (#2 for my money) and plays bigger than his size, as he’s not afraid to engage physically despite being 5’9”. I think he’ll be a dynamic offensive winger, and likely a top line guy. I also really liked their next two picks. Ingram’s a big centre that is effective in transition and dangerous in the offensive zone. I would’ve taken him as high as the late 2nd. Kulonummi is another one of those good-at-everything, great-at-nothing 2-way RD that everyone seemed to decide would go in the 3rd round, which is a good place for them to go, so I liked this pick as well.

New Jersey Devils: B
2021 Grade: B
Notable 2022 Selections: Simon Nemec (2), Seamus Casey (46), Tyler Brennan (102), Daniil Orlov (110)
This was a solid draft for the Devils to build out their back end. I personally think that they should’ve taken Wright regardless (or at least traded down to get another asset on top of Nemec) because I think he’s the better prospect, but they still ended up with a future top pair RD that will be great at both ends of the ice and elite in transition. Casey is another guy who is good at both ends of the ice, but obviously has a much lower ceiling and is smaller. If they get a 2nd pair guy they’d be thrilled, but a serviceable 3rd pair guy would still make for a successful pick. Brennan was the 2nd best goalie available, and worth taking in the 3rd, so he was a great pick in the early 4th for a team that has serious goalie issues both now and in the future (I like Daws but that’s about it for NJD goalie prospects). Orlov is a fine LD to take in the 4th, he’ll ideally develop into a 3rd pair defensive guy that can make a decent outlet pass.

New York Islanders: C
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: Calle Odelius (65), Quinn Finley (78), Isaiah George (98)
I really like the Odelius pick. I think he could be a very intelligent 2-way 2LD one day with his high-end skating and puck-moving ability while being decent enough defensively. I would’ve taken him in the first half of the 2nd round. Finley is a fine pick, he’s kind of average at everything (good offensively, good skater, not great off the puck, average size), so he’s a project that will have to choose a specialty and hopefully turn into a bottom-six winger. George is a pick I really like here, he's another one of those 2-way defensemen that are good at everything but not necessarily great at anything. He should get bigger minutes next year as a veteran on London (younger players traditionally barely get ice time on the Knights) and then we’ll see what his true potential is, but he looked effective enough at both ends in limited minutes this year.

New York Rangers: D
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: Adam Sykora (63), Bryce-McConnell Barker (97)
The Rangers made two solid selections here. I thought this was pretty much exactly where Sykora would go, and he looks like a potential complementary 3rd line winger who can provide some offense. He’s one of the younger players in the draft and has a high compete level, so that will help him. BMB was a steal in the late 3rd by about a round, he looks like a good 2-way future bottom-six centre despite skating issues.

Ottawa Senators: D
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Tomas Hamara (87)
The Sens draft makes me want to cry. Hamara is the only selection I liked, and he was a good pick in the 3rd and a one round steal at that point as a mobile 2-way LD with a good shot. But the Sens used 4 picks on LD, which is objectively our strongest position (both at the NHL level and in the prospect pipeline). And I don’t even think any of the other guys taken (LD or not) are that great. Taking Filip Nordberg one pick before Calle Odelius was an absolutely terrible thing to see happen live mere minutes after waking up. The only other prospect I find that interesting is Kevin Reidler because he’s a 6’6” goalie who we can leave to develop in Sweden for a few years while our logjam in North America clears up. But it’s okay, I’ll just dry my tears on my Alex DeBrincat jersey.

Philadelphia Flyers: C+
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Cutter Gauthier (5), Devin Kaplan (69)
He was a late riser that surprised a lot of people who don’t necessarily see his upside, but I love Gauthier. He’s got an amazing toolkit as a big, physical power forward with an elite shot (top 5 in the draft, I’d rank it #3) that can skate, and is versatile enough to play centre or the wing. I see him as either a 1LW or 2C, and think either option would put him in the conversation for BPA at 5, as this draft doesn’t exactly have a ton of high-end talent. I think he’ll dominate in college next year, and then unfortunately get ruined by Chuck Fletcher’s inability to do anything right, so hopefully he gets traded before then (only half joking). Kaplan was a 4th liner at the USNTDP (this year’s forward crop was great, the entire top 6 went in the 1st round), but he has shown he might have some upside as a power forward. Next year in college will be a big year for him to show that he has middle-six offense, otherwise he’ll likely top out as a 4th line grinder and PKer.

Pittsburgh Penguins: C
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Owen Pickering (21), Zam Plante (150)
Another year, another underwhelming draft with a lack of picks for the Penguins. At least they kept their 1st this year, and Pickering looks like he could be a future 2nd pairing guy. He’s huge (he grew like 9 inches in the last couple years to stand at 6’4” now) and a good skater who will be very effective defensively at the very least, and has a shot at being a well-rounded 2-way guy (he has good offense for the junior level, the key will be translating that to the professional level). Pickering is immediately their best prospect and it’s not close. Plante is a fine late round flier with decent skill who I would’ve considered taking in the 4th, but he is a small forward and isn’t as skilled as a guy like Dumais or Moldenhauer so he might be just another name that shows up in Pittsburgh’s top 10 prospects list for the next few years, but never actually has a chance at making the NHL.

San Jose Sharks: B
2021 Grade: B
Notable 2022 Selections: Filip Bystedt (27), Cameron Lund (34), Mattias Havelid (45), Michael Fisher (76), Mason Beaupit (108)
The Sharks had a very solid draft. It was very clear they took chances on guys with very high-end tools, but that haven’t put everything together. A lot of projects, but I really like that they shot for the moon, and they added a lot of depth to their system. Bystedt has extremely high upside as a 6’3” centre with skills that can skate. Probably should’ve gone in the early 2nd, but he’s a guy I’ve really liked for a while so I don’t hate this pick, and think the Sharks should have a 3C at minimum. Lund is another big centre with a great shot. He’s got good skill and can make plays off the rush and on the power play. Inconsistency is his biggest flaw. M. Havelid is a favourite of mine, as despite being very small for a defenseman, he’s very dynamic with excellent speed and a great shot. He actually defends well for his size in junior, and I think he’ll turn into the right-handed version of Samuel Girard. The Sharks also took one of the biggest goalies available (and the biggest guy I thought was a lock to get selected prior to the draft) in Beaupit, who I think is a good project to add to their pipeline behind Benjamin Gaudreau. Finally, M. Fisher is a guy I really like as a smooth-skating 2-way RHD with size. He doesn’t do anything great, but he does pretty much everything good. He was also one of the best performers at the combine (extremely athletic), which probably raised his stock a little higher than I thought he’d go for a guy who has yet to play at a very high level.

Seattle Kraken: A+
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: Shane Wright (4), Jagger Firkus (35), Jani Nyman (49), Niklas Kokko (58), David Goyette (61), Ty Nelson (68), Ben MacDonald (91), Tucker Robertson (123)
The Kraken put on an absolute clinic this draft. They lucked into Shane Wright at #4 and solidified their top 6 centres for the next decade, which is something Vegas still hasn’t been able to do, despite their success. Unbelievable that he fell that far, but I’m happy he isn’t in the East or rotting on the Coyotes. Firkus is a very talented winger who I would’ve taken in the early 2nd but didn’t expect him to actually go there, so I really like that the Kraken went for some talent here. Nyman’s been a favourite of mine, despite his skating issues. I think he’ll find a role in the middle six as a power forward with a great shot. Kokko was a bit of a reach in the 2nd, but he was one of my top 5 favourite goalies in the draft, and I’ve heard some great things about his ability to steal games, so I don’t hate them taking the guy that they like with their third 2nd round pick. Goyette was a great pick to round out a fantastic harvesting of talent in the 2nd round, he’s a speedy centre with enough skill to be a 3C one day, and at the very least should find a role in the bottom six somewhere as an energy guy. I liked the Nelson pick in the third to start building out their defense. They took a couple of projects last year, and I think they were hoping to get Nemec to inject some high-end talent into their back-end, but when Wright fell into their laps (and following that up with 3 very nice forwards in the 2nd round), but Nelson is a solid guy to add at this stage of the draft. He’s on the smaller side but he’s well-built, good at both ends, and very good in transition. I think he has 2RD upside and would not have been surprised if he was taken earlier. MacDonald isn’t great at anything, but he’s also not bad at anything. He’s got good vision and plays with pace, and it will be interesting to see how he does at Harvard, well worth a late 3rd. Robertson went in the 4th as he should as a highly skilled centre who can score, but has skating issues to go with his small stature. He’s a bit of a project, but a worthy pick. The Kraken certainly added a TON of depth to their forward pipeline in this draft, and I liked a lot of their picks. They get a guaranteed top 6 centre in Wright, and I would expect at least 2 more top 9 forwards to come out of the rest of their picks, which would be a great draft (especially if Nelson or Kokko turn into anything as well).

St. Louis Blues: B-
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: Jimmy Snuggerud (23), Aleksanteri Kaskimaki (73), Michael Buchinger (88), Arseni Koromyslov (120)
I think the Blues had a very underrated draft. I wasn’t overly thrilled with the start, as I thought Snuggerud deserved to be the 6th USNTDP forward off the board (and would have personally taken him in the late 1st or early 2nd), but I did expect him to be taken in the early 20s. And it’s actually a good fit for the Blues, because he’s a right-shot winger and a power forward with a good shot. Remind you of anyone? I think he’s the guy they’d like to step into their top 9 and replace some of Tarasenko’s production, because even if he sticks around this year, I’m not sure Tarasenko will be back (it doesn’t sound like the organization has exactly won him over again). Obviously Snuggerud’s not the same calibre of player, but he’s physical and should be able to be another 20-goal top 9 winger that plays hard, which seems to be exactly what the Blues love. Kaskimaki was a shot generating machine in the Finnish junior league and has good playmaking ability and 2-way responsibility (despite skating issues). Buchinger is a smooth-skating 2-way LD, who I wouldn’t be surprised to see turn into a reliable 3rd pair guy one day, although his hockey sense could be better and he’ll probably have to work on perfecting one aspect of his game to reach the NHL, rather than just being decent at most things. I’m not the biggest Koromyslov fan, but he was still a huge steal in the 4th round. He’s a big, mobile, physical LD who probably tops out as a 3rd pair PK guy in the best case scenario, but his frame and skating should be good enough to give him a shot at reaching that peak. Overall some good value selections for the picks the Blues had.

Tampa Bay Lightning: C
2021 Grade: C
Notable 2022 Selections: Isaac Howard (31), Lucas Edmonds (86)
They can’t keep getting away with this. I figured Howard would go in the late 1st, and also pegged the Lightning as the team smart enough to take him in my last minute mock draft, but it was still a steal of a pick. And annoying of them. He fell because he was the 4th best small, skilled winger available (after Savoie, Kemell, and Lekkerimaki), but he still should not have slipped past 25 based on talent (he was a justifiable pick as high as 20 to the Capitals I’d say, some have him above the Swedes but I don’t hate taking them first and probably would have done the same). He’ll slot nicely into the left side of their top 6 in a couple years, him and Hagel are likely the Palat/Killorn replacements long-term (leaving Colton+Paul for the checking line). Very confident bordering on cocky too lol. I kind of hope he makes it because the NHL could use a single person with a personality, but I’m sure that will get beat out of him over the next couple of years by the hockey men. And Edmonds looks poised to be another one of the patented Lightning projects. He’s a talented double overager who will spend 3 years in Syracuse and then magically appear in the Lightning’s bottom six and score 20 goals. Just like Joseph and Colton before him. At the very least he’ll be a guy they find a way to squeeze some solid games out of (like Verhaeghe, ABB, Raddysh, Katchouk, Volkov, etc.) and turn into a trade asset somehow. Nick Malik was a solid pick too, he’s a goalie I don’t hate (and I hate most goalies in this draft lol, the goaltending class sucked). Decent size and good numbers in Liiga, despite being a double overager. He should be a capable backup to Alnefelt in Syracuse next year.

Toronto Maple Leafs: C-
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Fraser Minten (38), Nick Moldenhauer (95)
I’m a big fan of the Moldenhauer pick. He’s one of the smaller forwards that I think has legitimate skill, and I think his story is inspiring, he overcome a major injury this year (skate to the face in his first shift of the season after missing training camp + 15 games with a mono-like virus). If the USHL had a Bill Masterton award, he would’ve won it this year, Scott Wheeler did an excellent spotlight article if you subscribe to the Athletic and are interested. Anyway I think he was a very good pick in the late 3rd, he seems like a classic Dubas puck in that he’s a smaller forward (being a right shot centre is nice though) with high skill, but he’s also a good 2-way player with a great motor, I think he’s got more upside to tap in to, and he’s clearly motivated to play. A steal at this point for sure, although I can’t say the same about their other pick in the first three rounds. I think they reached on Minten by at least a round. They obviously needed a centre, and preferably one that was good defensively, so Minten ticks those boxes, but there were other centres available that are also good 2-way players, but have more skill. I think Minten leans more towards being a 4C if he makes it because I’m not a fan of his offensive ability. I’m shocked they took him when LDBB was still available. The rest of their picks were a massive double overager goalie, an overager Russian that I’m not a huge fan of, and another classic Dubas selection of a tiny playmaking winger. Nothing special.

Vancouver Canucks: C+
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Jonathan Lekkerimaki (15), Elias Pettersson (80)
Funny draft for the Canucks, as they once again select Elias Pettersson out of Sweden. This Pettersson is a solid defensive LD who needs to work a little on his first pass and poise with the puck, but he’s a good skater with a hard shot who plays physical. Maybe a little bit of a reach, but not that bad if they believe in his ability to make that first pass out of the defensive zone. Getting Lekkerimaki was a no-brainer for the Canucks. I can’t believe he was available at 15, I thought he had a chance to go top 10, but should’ve been taken very shortly after that regardless. He’s a small winger, but very talented with the best shot in the draft. He can and will score from anywhere and everywhere. Great pick here. And this draft was just further proof that Allvin loves his Swedes lol, he signed every Swede that went unsigned by the team that drafted them a few weeks ago, and used his two top 100 picks on Swedes in this draft.

Vegas Golden Knights: D
2021 Grade: B
Notable 2022 Selections: Matyas Sapovaliv (48), Jordan Gustafson (79)
Sapovaliv was a decent pick in the mid-2nd, I probably would’ve gone a little later though. He’s a big centre who is a good playmaker. He plays good enough defense and while his skating could be better, he might be able to overcome it and be a bottom six guy. I like the Gustafson pickup, he was a very good player on a very good Thunderbirds team this year. He should be a top 6 centre that plays with pace for a team that is looking to go deep next year (Schaefer-Gustafson-Lambert top line? That would be fun to watch). He’s a solid pickup in the 3rd round, apparently lots of teams were impressed with his speed and work off the puck on the playoff run this year, so I thought he could’ve gone even earlier.

Washington Capitals: B
2021 Grade: D
Notable 2022 Selections: Ivan Miroshnichenko (20), Ryan Chesley (37), Alexander Suzdalev (70), Ludwig Persson (85)
Miroshnichenko was in the top 2 conversation before he got cancer. He did lose this season to that, which isn’t great coming out of the two COVID years, but he’s such a beast that I think he should be able to re-find his game fairly quickly if he’s truly healthy, and that’s what the Capitals are banking on. He could potentially crack the NHL by 23-24, and climb to being an impact top line winger, which is what the Capitals are banking on. Obviously the cancer + being Russian are major risks, but Washington’s never shied away from Russians, and they clearly think they won’t have any issues getting him to North America. This was a good swing for the fences pick on a high upside guy who may be able to contribute to a run before Ovechkin retires, and best case scenario turns out as a top 5 calibre player in the draft that they stole at #20. I also love the Chesley pick, he was my highest rated player not drafted on Day 1, I thought he’d for sure be a 1st. Probably the most reliable RHD in the draft after the top 2 guys. He doesn’t have crazy high upside, and is only 6’, but he projects to be a reliable all-situations 2nd pair guy. I understand why some teams went with the raw guys with intriguing tools (i.e. Rinzel, Lamoureux), but Chesley should be a very good player. Suzdalev is a talented playmaking winger with size and speed (Swedish, not Russian by the way), but he plays more on the perimeter and had a rough end to the season that culminated in a bad U18s. I probably would have liked him more in the 4th round, but he does have upside. Persson is kind of similar as a talented playmaking winger who was very productive this year, but he’s smaller and slower so he’s more of a wildcard. I probably would’ve also liked him more in the 4th, but if you’re a believer in his talent and think he edges more towards boom than bust, then the 3rd is okay.

Winnipeg Jets: B+
2021 Grade: B
Notable 2022 Selections: Rutger McGroarty (14), Brad Lambert (30), Elias Salomonsson (55), Danny Zhilkin (77), Fabian Wagner (175)
Another year, another savvy draft for the Jets. I did think McGroarty was one of the bigger reaches of the first round (I had him in the late teens to early 20s) but he’s still a big winger who can score, and is a great leader, which is something the Jets sorely need. I figured Lambert would fall to the late first, but this is still a good pick, he’s arguably the fastest and most skilled player in the draft, there are just some hockey IQ and off-ice concerns, but there’s no questioning he’s a high end talent that deserved to go higher based purely on his play (I do find it kind of ironic that the guy who requested a trade as a 17yo got drafted by the Jets of all teams though lol). Salomonsson is a great pick at this stage of the 2nd round, he was touted as a potential 1st coming into the year, and despite a subpar season where he didn’t progress much, he’s still got all the tools you could want (big, right shot, mobile, good skater, excellent shot, good enough defensively), so it’s just a matter of developing him correctly so that he gains consistency and reaches his true peak. Zhilkin is one of my favourites, he’s a skilled 2-way centre with a good shot that I think could be a 3C one day. I had him ranked just below LDBB for reference, I think they’re pretty comparable in terms of tools and upside, and would’ve been comfortable selecting him in the top 50, so he’s a steal by about a round in my books. I was kind of disappointed the Flames passed on him at 59 honestly. Wagner is undersized, but speedy with a great work ethic. I could see him becoming a 4th line energy guy if he learns how to PK, and thought he would go in the 4th or 5th because he does have some talent (around a point per game at the J20), so he was a great pick in the 6th. Overall a very good haul for the Jets that brings in some good talent to the organization as well as some solid depth prospects, they once again took a lot of players that I specifically like (Chaz Lucius was one of my favourites last year, and Nikita Chibrikov fell a lot further than the point where I first thought he’d be a steal).

Teams listed alphabetically within their tier.
A+: Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens, Seattle Kraken
A: Arizona Coyotes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild
A-: Anaheim Ducks, Carolina Hurricanes
B+: Chicago Blackhawks, Winnipeg Jets
B: Nashville Predators, New Jersey Devils, San Jose Sharks, Washington Capitals
B-: Dallas Stars, St. Louis Blues
C+: Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks
C: Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins, Tampa Bay Lightning
C-: Toronto Maple Leafs
D+: Edmonton Oilers
D: Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, Vegas Golden Knights
D-: Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers