Well, if you were watching the trades roll in from the weekend, you would have thought that this was a pretty good draft weekend, even without the kids finally getting their NHL team assigned to them. It was very interesting in that way and teams certainly came up trumps with new deals and they will have their day in the Sun, when the Pool Projections posts come out in mid-August.
What about those kids though? Auston Matthews going to Toronto, Patrik Laine heading to Winnipeg, Pierre-Luc Dubois snapped up by Columbus or Jesse Puljujarvi sneaking into Edmonton... all projected well and three out of the four are expected to crack their NHL lineup right away.
It's hard to say for sure, because every team, manager and/or coach is different and how they will want to develop these talents will be a decision made through the combination of those above. It will all start in a couple of weeks, when development camps start to open and we start to hear more from those in charge.
Still, from what we've seen, it does look all but certain that Matthews, Laine and Puljujarvi have a decent shot at making their clubs. How many of these kids are going to make the big leagues next season in total? That is really tough to say, but if the experts are any indication, it probably won't be very many.
From last year's generational draft, we saw eight players play at least one game, with Jack Eichel leading the way in games, goals and points, thanks in part to Connor McDavid's broken collarbone, but that's not really up for debate here. The other major impact player from last year's draft was the 5th overall selection, defenseman Noah Hanifin of the Hurricanes, he played 79 games and picked up 22 points.
78 players drafted in the 2015 entry draft are signed and ready to go, but with the 2016 draft class now in colours, the competition grows much stronger.
The 2014 draft class is also missing a number of notable names from active NHL duty, especially from the opening round. Michael Dal Colle of the Islanders (5th overall), Haydn Fleury of the Hurricanes (7th), Brendan Perlini of the Coyotes (12th), Jakub Vrana of the Capitals (13th), Julius Honka of the Stars (14th) and eight more 1st rounders still missing.
There is plenty of excitement with the entry draft, because it is great to have that glimmer of hope that one of these players will be able to help our club and potentially help our hockey pool teams to some greatness in a season. Do make sure you're doing your homework though, not everyone is a lock to make it, even a couple years down the road.
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