The 2012 NHL Entry Draft is set to go in Pittsburgh on June 22 and June 23.  For the third straight year the Edmonton Oilers will have the top pick.  General consensus is that Sarnia Sting forward Nail Yakupov will be selected first.  The question is does a team like the Oilers need another young highly skilled forward?  They are a team with glaring needs on defense and possibly goal tending, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if Oilers brass listened to offers for their first overall pick, in hopes of landing a roster player and a top ten first round pick in the draft to which they might select a young defenseman.

We thought that it would be fun to conduct our first ever mock draft and predict who The Hockey Fanatic suggests will go in the first round of this years Entry Draft.  You will notice that the order includes potential trades that we think might happen and because the final order is yet to be determined, you might notice our updated pick to win the Stanley Cup is (based on the draft order seen below).

The Hockey Fanatics 2012 Mock NHL Entry Draft

1. Toronto Maple Leafs (acquired in a deal with Edmonton) – Nail Yakupov
   Ht/Wt: 5’11″/189 lbs
   Position: RW
   Team: Sarnia (OHL)

 

2. Columbus Blue Jackets – Filip Forsberg
   Ht/Wt:6′ 1″/176 lbs
   Position:LW
   Team: Leksands (Swe)

 

3. Montreal Canadiens – Mikhail Grigorenko
   Ht/Wt:6′ 3″/200 lbs
   Position:C/RW
   Team: Quebec (QMJHL)

 

4. New York Islanders – Ryan Murray
   Ht/Wt:6′ 1″/200 lbs
   Position:D
   Team: Everett (WHL)

 

5. Edmonton Oilers (acquired in a deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs) – Griffin Reinhart
   Ht/Wt:6′ 3″/200 lbs
   Position:D
   Team: Edmonton (WHL)

 

6. Anaheim Ducks – Alex Galchenyuk
   Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/185 lbs
   Position:C
   Team: Sarnia (OHL)

 

7. Minnesota Wild – Mathew Dumba
   Ht/Wt:6′ 0″/175 lbs
   Position:D
   Team: Red Deer (WHL)

 

8. Carolina Hurricanes – Morgan Rielly
   Ht/Wt:6′ 0″/190 lbs
   Position:D
   Team: Moose Jaw (WHL)

 

9. Winnipeg Jets – Teuvo Teravainen
   Ht/Wt:5’10″/161 lbs
   Position:LW
   Team: Jokerit (Fin)

 

10. Tampa Bay Lightning – Malcolm Subban
    Ht/Wt:6′ 1″/178 lbs
    Position:G
    Team: Belleville (OHL)

 

11. Washington Capitals (from Colorado Avalanche) – Cody Ceci
    Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/203 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: Ottawa (OHL)

 

12. Buffalo Sabres – Jacob Trouba
    Ht/Wt:6′ 1″/185 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: USA U-18

 

13. Dallas Stars – Matt Finn
    Ht/Wt:6′ 0″ /200 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: Guelph (OHL)

 

14. Calgary Flames – Radek Faksa
    Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/183 lbs
    Position:C
    Team: Kitchener (OHL)

 

15. Ottawa Senators – Mark Jankowski
    Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/170 lbs
    Position:C
    Team: Stanstead, Quebec

 

16. Washington Capitals – Zemgus Girgensons
    Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/175 lbs
    Position:C
    Team: Dubuque (USHL)

 

17. San Jose Sharks – Tom Wilson
    Ht/Wt:6′ 4″/195 lbs
    Position:RW
    Team: Plymouth (OHL)

 

18. Chicago Blackhawks – Derrick Pouliot
    Ht/Wt:6′ 0″/192 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: Portland (WHL)

 

19. Tampa Bay Lightning (from Detroit Red Wings) – Pontus Aberg
    Ht/Wt:5’11″/187 lbs
    Position:LW
    Team: Djurgardens (Swe)

 

20. Philadelphia Flyers – Olli Maatta
    Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/198 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: London (OHL)

 

21. Buffalo Sabres (from Nashville Predators) – Ludvig Bystrom
    Ht/Wt: 6′ 0″/185 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: Modo (Swe)

 

22. Pittsburgh Penguins – Hampus Lindholm
    Ht/Wt:6′ 1″/198 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: Rogle (Swe)

 

23. Florida Panthers – Tomas Hertl
    Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/200 lbs
    Position:LW
    Team: Slavia (Cze)

 

24. Boston Bruins – Brady Skjei
    Ht/Wt:6′ 1″/183 lbs
    Position:D
    Team: USA U-18
25. St. Louis Blues – Nicolas Kerdiles
    Ht/Wt:6′ 1″/183 lbs
    Position:C
    Team: USA U-18

 

26. Vancouver Canucks – Brendan Gaunce
    Ht/Wt:6′ 2″/205 lbs
    Position:C
    Team: Belleville (OHL)

 

27. Phoenix Coyotes – Scott Laughton
    Ht/Wt:6′ 0″/170 lbs
    Position:C
    Team: Oshawa (OHL)

 

28. New Jersey Devils – Phillip Di Giueseppe
    Ht/Wt:5’11″/176 lbs
    Position:LW
    Team: Michigan (CCHA)

 

29. New York Rangers – Colton Scissions
    Ht/Wt:6’1″/189 lbs
    Position:RW
    Team: Kelowna (WHL)

 

30. Columbus Blue Jackets (from Los Angeles Kings) – Sebastian Collberg
    Ht/Wt:5’11″/174 lbs
    Position:RW
    Team: Frolunda HC (Swe)

 

 

Other mock draft’s can be found here.  Additional prospects via TSN.