The most successful steals in NHL Draft history
One of the most interesting aspects of the NHL Entry Draft is filtering through the hundreds of prospects to find potential steals or sleeper picks. Year after year, diamonds in the rough slip through the fingers of general managers and head scouts.
There are a myriad of factors that contribute to a player’s sleeper status, whether it’s lack of playing time (see: Steve Mason), physical immaturity, injuries, lack of exposure from playing in Europe or Junior B, or simply that the prospect had not yet shown any significant potential. Every prospect is different and follows a unique course on the path of development.
What follows is a breakdown of the top sleeper picks per NHL franchise. As the selections will show you, some of the best players in the history of the NHL were picked outside of the first round.
For clarity’s sake, the draftee must have been picked between the second and sixth round to be considered a sleeper. There have been a number of elite players picked later than the sixth round, but we’ll consider them “shot-in-the-dark” picks rather than sleepers.
Anaheim Ducks – Ilya Bryzgalov
The big Russian netminder, whose rights were recently traded to the Philadelphia Flyers, was selected 44th overall by Anaheim in 2000. Bryzgalov was the third goalie drafted at the 2000 Entry Draft. The Islanders took Rick Dipietro first overall while the Flames selected Calgary Hitmen product Brent Krahn in the eighth slot. Of the trio, Brygalov has been the most productive, posting career totals of 156 wins and 23 shutouts.
Atlanta Thrashers – Ondrej Pavelec
Picking Patrik Stefan first overall in 1999, just ahead of the Sedin Twins, really set the tone for years of ineptitude at the draft from Thrashers general manager Don Waddell. Just 16 prospects selected by the Thrashers have gone on to play at least 100 games. One selection that has begun to bear fruit, and should continue to do so in Winnipeg, is Czech goaltender Ondrej Pavelec, the Thrashers’ 41st overall selection in 2005. The 23-year-old netminder is coming off his best season, finishing with a respectable .914 save percentage, and appears to be trending upwards.
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Boston Bruins – Milan Lucic
As the captain of the Vancouver Giants, Milan Lucic faced questions about how his lumbering power forward style would translate at the NHL level. The Bruins were all too happy to snap him up with the 50th overall pick in 2006. The Vancouver native has become perhaps the prototypical Boston Bruin and, despite an up and down 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Vancouver native was a big part of the Bruins Cup final victory. Lucic – a physical force every game – has tallied 151 career points, more than any winger drafted in 2006.
Buffalo Sabres – Ryan Miller
Entering the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, Ryan Miller was somewhat of an afterthought. The frail goalie had not yet established his dominance in the CCHA with Michigan State University and was consequently the 17th goaltender selected and 138th overall pick in 1999. Miller has become the cornerstone of the Sabres franchise, won the Vezina Trophy, was honoured as a first-team NHL All-Star and named MVP of the 2010 Olympics hockey tournament.
Calgary Flames – Joe Nieuwendyk
The Calgary Flames 1985 draft class clearly reflects the difficulty scouts face in projecting the long-term potential of prospects. Calgary’s first selection, Chris Biotti, never played an NHL game, while its second round pick, Joe Nieuwendyk, won three Stanley Cups, the Calder Trophy, the Conn Smythe Trophy, and is undoubtedly the best player to come out of the 1985 Draft. Nieuwendyk’s decision to play college hockey with Cornell University, rather than major junior where he would get more exposure, helps to explain why the Oshawa native was the 16th forward selected in the draft.
Carolina Hurricanes – Ray Ferraro
The Hartford Whalers whiffed on their first two picks in 1982, but used the middle rounds to pluck three players who went on to play more than a 1,000 NHL games. Hartford picked Kevin Dineen 56th overall, Ulf Samuelsson 67th overall and Ray Ferraro, the most prolific of the trio, with the 88th pick in ’82. The undersized Ferraro was drafted out of the unheralded BCJHL, but used his wily hockey sense en route to 18 NHL seasons and career totals of 408 goals and 898 points.
Chicago Blackhawks – Duncan Keith
When the Chicago Blackhawks selected Brent Seabrook in 2003, it was widely believed that Seabrook was a much better prospect than Duncan Keith, Chicago’s second-round pick, 54th overall in 2002. Jay Bouwmeester was seen as the can’t-miss puck-moving defenseman of the 2002 draft class, while Ryan Whitney and Joni Pitkanen were regarded as the elite offensive d-men in ’02. Since then, though, Keith has developed into one of the league’s elite skaters and has turned into an offensive force from the back-end without taking away from his steady positional defensive play. Keith’s rapid ascension came to a head in 2009-10 where he not only won the Stanley Cup but was also awarded the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman.
Colorado Avalanche – Milan Hejduk
The Quebec Nordiques final draft in 1994, prior to relocating to Denver, saw the franchise select pugilist Wade Belak in the first round. The Nordiques atoned for the early mistake by selecting little-known right winger Milan Hejduk from Pardubice HC of the Czech league with their fourth-round pick. Hejduk has been the consummate Avalanche, as he leads the franchise with 910 games played and his 757 points are second only to Joe Sakic.
Columbus Blue Jackets – Steve Mason
Heading into the 2006 NHL Entry Draft there was not a lot made of London Knights back-up goaltender Steve Mason. But the Columbus Blue Jackets scouting staff must have seen something they liked in Mason who they selected 69th overall in 2006, despite the backstopper only playing 12 games in his draft year. Mason has had a turbulent time between the pipes. He was a Vezina Trophy finalist in 2009 and has followed that up with two sub-par seasons in Columbus.
Dallas Stars – Jere Lehtinen
The Minnesota North Stars selected right winger Jere Lehtinen with their fourth round pick in 1992. The two-way forward was drafted from Kiekko-Espoo of the Finnish Division 1, a level below the Finnish Elite League. The faith in Lehtinen paid off in spades as the winger has quietly amassed 243 goals, 514 points and trails only Mike Modano on the franchise all-time games played list. And Lehtinen has done it on both ends of the ice. The 37-year-old has been awarded the Frank J. Selke Trophy, as the league’s best defensive forwards, three times.
Detroit Red Wings – Nicklas Lidstrom
A relative unknown heading into the 1989 Entry Draft, Nicklas Lidstrom tallied just two points in 20 games for Vasteras IK in the Swedish Elite League in 1988-89. European scout Christer Rockstrom saw something he liked in Lidstrom during an era in which there was still some trepidation about European skaters. The Red Wings selected Lidstrom in the third round, 53rd overall. It became easily one of the best picks in the history of the NHL Draft. The smooth Swedish rearguard has developed into the best defenseman of his generation, and one of the best blue-liners in the history of the game.
Edmonton Oilers – Mark Messier
The 1979 NHL Entry Draft is considered as one of the best of all-time due largely to the merger of the NHL and WHA prior to the draft. The minimum draft age was lowered by one year in 1979, which allowed for two year’s worth of prospects to be plucked by NHL general managers. Mike Gartner, Ray Bourque and Michel Goulet, all Hall-of-Famers, were selected in the first-round. But the draft’s best player was selected in the third round, 48th overall by the Edmonton Oilers – his name, Mark Messier. Moose played Tier II junior hockey in Alberta and later in the WHA in 1978-79 where he put up just 11 points in 52 games. He was touted as a hard-nosed player with great leadership, not a scorer. The St. Albert, Alberta native tallied the second most points all-time and is believed to be the best leader in NHL history, though some Canuck fans might disagree.
Florida Panthers – Jaroslav Spacek
Despite being selected in the fifth round, 117th overall, Jaroslav Spacek has been one of the most productive defenseman to be drafted in 1998, as he leads all defenseman selected in games played (834) and is second in points (340). Spacek was the third d-man selected from the Swedish Elite League in ’98, behind Christian Backman and Viktor Wallin. Needless to say, the Florida Panthers European scouting was on point in advance of the draft.
Los Angeles Kings – Bernie Nicholls
1980 was a banner draft year for the Los Angeles Kings. They selected Hall of Famer Larry Murphy along with productive NHLers Jim Fox, Greg Terrion and Steve Bozek. With their fourth round pick, the Kings selected Bernie Nicholls from the Kingston Canadians of the OHA. Nicholls tallied 79 points in his draft year for Kingston and followed that up with 152 points the following season. Playing with Wayne Gretzky, Nicholls reached the 150 point plateau in 1988-89 – one of just five players to tally 150 or more points in one season. With 1,127 games played and 1,209 points, Nicholls is one of the best value picks of all-time.
Minnesota Wild – Cal Clutterbuck
Cal Clutterbuck played four seasons in the OHL before being selected by the Minnesota 72nd overall in 2006. Never a sniper in junior, Clutterbuck was drafted as a gritty depth winger. In three NHL seasons, the pugilistic forward has become the league’s best hitter. Clutterbuck has also shown some offensive touch, seeing as he’s coming off a career best 19 goals in 2010-11.
Montreal Canadiens – Patrick Roy
The third goalie selected in 1984, behind Craig Billington and Daryl Reaugh, Patrick Roy — as a Quebec Nordiques fan — was initially disappointed to be picked in the third round by the Montreal Canadiens. The feeling wasn’t mutual, as the Habs were able to select arguably the best goaltender in the history of the game with the 51st-overall pick. Suffice to say, Roy was not a successful player in junior, in his draft year he posted an abysmal 5.55 goals against average with the Granby Bisons of the QMJHL. Today, however, he remains perhaps the best example of the importance of weighing long-term potential over available statistics in the analysis of prospects.
Nashville Predators – Shea Weber
The 2003 Draft is remembered as one of the best draft classes of the past 20 seasons. Several upper-echelon blue-liners were selected in 2003, including first-rounders Dion Phaneuf, Braydon Coburn, Ryan Suter and Brent Burns. The best defenseman to come out of the 2003 Draft, however, has turned out to be Shea Weber, the Nashville Predators 49th overall pick. In his draft year Weber had not yet established himself as the dominant defenseman on the Kelowna Rockets, as he was overshadowed by teammates Duncan Keith, Josh Gorges and Tomas Slovak on the back-end. Since, the Predators captain, has developed into the face of the franchise and one of the league’s most complete defenseman.
New Jersey Devils – Pat Verbeek
The stigma against short hockey players still pervades the NHL, but was of much more concern to NHL GMs in the 1980s. Case in point, Pat Verbeek. The 5’9″ winger drafted 43rd overall by the New Jersey Devils in 1982. Verbeek had a strong season with the Sudbury Wolves in his draft year, but faced questions about his size entering the 1982 Draft. The Little Ball of Hate had a tremendous NHL career, as he produced 1,063 points in a career spanning 20 seasons.
New York Islanders – Zdeno Chara
Just as short players are discriminated against, giant skaters are often regarded as slow, awkward and without balance on the ice. The New York Islander took a chance on the 6’9″ Zdeno Chara, the tallest player in NHL history, from Trencin of the Slovak league with their third round pick in 1996. Chara, the 22nd blue-liner selected in 1996, has rounded into the league’s best shutdown defenseman, as well as a Norris Trophy winner in 2009.
New York Rangers – Tony Amonte
Level of competition is something scouts have to consider when analyzing the potential of a prospect. A skater that pots 100 points in major junior is more credible than one who reaches the century mark at the high school level. The Rangers took a gamble on Tony Amonte, a fleet-footed winger out of Thayer Academy in Massachusetts with their fourth-round pick in 1988. Amonte would prove his worth at Boston University before playing 16 seasons in the NHL as one of the best American born wingers in the history of the game.
Ottawa Senators – Daniel Alfredsson
Ottawa Senators fans can credit John Ferguson Sr. for landing Daniel Alfredsson in the nation’s capital. Ferguson plucked Alfredsson out of relative obscurity and advised Senators GM Randy Sexton to take a chance on the unheralded right winger out of the Swedish Elite League with the 133rd pick at the 1994 Draft. Alfie has gone on to be the best player in the history of the franchise and has tallied over 1,023 points. Not bad for a guy selected in the sixth round.
Philadelphia Flyers – Rick Tocchet
Rick Tocchet didn’t put up big numbers in his early seasons with Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL. Tocchet was draft eligible in 1982 but was not selected by an NHL GM. Following a more successful second season with the Greyhounds, the Flyers selected the truculent winger with their 6th-round pick, 121st overall, in 1983. Tocchet developed into a power-forward with offensive skills, scoring 440 goals and 952 points while earning 2,972 career penalty minutes — 10th most all-time.
Phoenix Coyotes – Keith Yandle
Keith Yandle, a Massachussets high school product out of Cushing Academy, was not on many scouts’ radar in advance of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. Those seeking a puck-moving defenseman were keen on Jack Johnson, those wanting a shutdown blue-liner looked to Marc Staal and Ryan Parent. Coyotes GM Mike Barnett took Yandle with the 105th pick in 2005. The Boston native has become one of the league’s elite offensive defenseman, scoring 144 points — more than any other rearguard drafted in 2005 – in just 283 games with Phoenix.
Pittsburgh Penguins – Mark Recchi
The 1988 NHL Entry Draft produced a bevy of quality NHLers, the likes of Mike Modano, Trevor Linden, Jeremy Roenick, Rod Brind’Amour, Teemu Selanne and Rob Blake. Despite a 152-point season with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers, Mark Recchi fell all the way to the fourth round. The Pittsburgh Penguins were all too happy to select him with the 67th-overall pick. The Penguins three picks prior to Recchi, Darrin Shannon, Mark Major and Daniel Gauthier never played a game for the big club. Despite his height and lack of mobility, Recchi has out-produced all of the Pens players selected in 1988 — with 1,533 career points.
San Jose Sharks – Ryane Clowe
Not a lot was made of the San Jose Sharks sixth-round pick, 175th overall, in 2001. Their selection, Ryane Clowe, a rugged Newfoundlander had a mediocre season with the Rimouski Oceanic in his draft year, producing 25 points in 32 games. It was a slow development for Clowe, who spent three seasons in the AHL before cracking the Sharks lineup in 2006. Recently, however, the 28-year-old has become an essential component of the Sharks offensive front, providing a physical net presence to complement San Jose’s skilled perimeter players.
St. Louis Blues – Michael Handzus
Playing in the Slovak second division with Banska Bystrica Michal Handzus was an unheralded prospect heading into the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. The St. Louis Blues drafted the 6’4″, 220-pound centre 101st overall in the fourth round. Handzus has become one of the elite checking centers in the NHL while quietly amassing 434 points in 13 NHL seasons.
Tampa Bay Lightning – Brad Richards
Brad Richards and Vincent Lecavalier struck a friendship at the age of 14 and played together in the QMJHL with the Rimouski Oceaniques. When the Lightning selected Vincent Lecavalier first overall in 1998 he suggested that the Lightning take a flyer on Richards. The P.E.I native was criticized as un undersized skater whose numbers were inflated due to playing with Lecavalier, but the Lighning nabbed Richards with their third-round pick in 1998. Richards has produced 716 points in 772 games and developed into one of the league’s elite playmakers.
Toronto Maple Leafs – Nikolai Kulemin
The Cold War might have ended over 20 years ago, but NHL general managers are still wary of Russian products. Seemingly every draft we see highly-skilled prospects plummet through the draft due to their Russian passports. Maple Leafs former GM John Ferguson Jr. found a potential gem in Nikolai Kulemin a talented winger from Magnitogosrk of the Russian Super League, and selected him 44th overall in 2006. Of all wingers selected in 2006, Kulemin is third in goals with 61, and sixth in points with 124. Coming off a career-high 30 goals and 57 points, the Russian sniper is only getting better and looks poised to become the Leafs most dynamic forward.
Vancouver Canucks – Alex Edler
Playing in the Swedish third division, Alex Edler was anything but a known commodity in advance of the 2004 Entry Draft. Canucks head European scout Thomas Gradin and Detroit Red Wings super-scout Hakan Andersson both saw potential in Edler, despite the Swedish blue-liner’s poor level of competition. The Canucks traded up in the third round of the draft to select Edler who has grown in to a terrific two-way defenseman for Vancouver.
Washington Capitals – Michal Pivonka
Drafting a Czechoslovakian player during the Cold War was a risky proposition. When the Washington Capitals selected Michal Pivonka from the Czech national team 59th overall in 1984, the center had to defect from his country, still under the guise of the Iron Curtain, to play with the Capitals. Pivonka spent his entire career with Washington, playing in 825 games and registering 181 goals and 599 points.
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